Trains, Circassians and Method Acting

As we were preparing this issue, which has a long feature on the history of Russian rails (page 36), I was reminded that, like many frequent travelers to Russia, I have countless train-related memories of Russia, most of them positive. Sure, there was that one horrific overnight in an unbelievably loud carriage en route to St. Petersburg... and the time we were pestered by an overzealous customs agent on the train to Helsinki... But these were exceptions.

The rule has been pleasant, safe, trips across Russia, with fond memories. Like pulling into Saratov on a bright fall morning, or staying up all night on a train to the far North, drinking vodka, eating chicken and telling stories.

What I love about train travel is that it is efficient, yet not unreal. You are traveling through the landscape, not above it; you can move about and socialize with fellow travelers; you are not encased in an automotive cocoon. In my mind, it really is the best way to travel about a country.

This past fall I had two very pleasant train experiences in Russia.

The first was the new, efficient (and very reasonably priced) express train connecting Moscow's Sheremetyevo Airport to Belorussky Train Station. Yes, the walk from the air terminal to the train nexus was rather long (and there is a rather ridiculous elevator choke point), but it offered welcome exercise after nine hours folded up in an economy airline seat.

The train runs every half hour on the dot. I know this because I arrived at the train terminus at 29 minutes past the hour, just in time for the mercilessly automatic doors to close in my face. No matter, there was a superb and friendly Starbucks two steps away.

Thirty minutes later, I was gliding into the city on a sunny Sunday morning, checking email on the free wifi and not feeling the least bit nostalgic for the "good old days" of negotiating with a gypsy cab driver outside the chaotic arrivals hall.

My second train experience was the ride to St. Petersburg.

"Of course you have to take the Sapsan," everyone said when I mentioned I was heading north. And so I did, gladly foregoing a sleepless night above clattering rails for a smooth, high-speed daytime ride that covered the distance in just four and a half hours.

The train was very full for a midday, midweek departure, and the ride was smooth and well-managed. Yes, the constant announcements over the loudspeaker (a cultured Russian female alternating with a London-accented male) were somewhat annoying, but balance that off with the frequent procession of food carts, the free wifi, and the pleasant conversation with my seatmate, and it was beyond positive. And a bargain at just over $100.

Russia would do well to use its efficient, safe trains as a centerpiece of advertising the country as a tourist destination. As Nicky Gardner points out in our feature on this topic, it really is a unique selling proposition.

Our other stories in this issue – like Russian railroads – cover a broad swath of the country's history, culture and society, from theater to ethnic groups, from the tsars to newspapers, dress-up balls, poetry and art.

So grab a glass (not a mug!) of tea, find a comfortable chair, quiet your cellphone, and sit back and enjoy the ride.

Oh, and Happy New Year!