Emergency in St. Petersburg
Everything is OK
I guess the best thing to do in these situations is to assure you that I am ok - I'm not hurt. Well maybe my pride is a bit wounded, but that's it. We'll get to what happened in a bit, but suffice it to say that the Russians will not let me leave the country any time soon. Here is a story about my time in Russia so far.
Shock & Disorientation
I arrived at 2:30pm to a train station I did not recognize. I am still not sure it was Finlandia Vogzal, because I could not find the statue of Lenin staring out to Finland. Instead of the old concrete station where I left Anders and Joen over 2 years ago, it was a modern Russian train station. But just then I bought a metro token and jumped on what feels like the longest escalator ride on earth - down to the St. Petersburg metro. The feeling & smell of the station triggered happy memories from this city. I rode a familiar train to what should have been a familiar metro stop. But when I got off, I became disoriented immediately. When I left, they were revitalizing much of the city for its 300th birthday. Now, at a stop that I saw daily just 2 years ago, I had no idea where I was.
Reorientation
I had presence of mind to buy a city map in the metro. I didn't really look at it; I thought I might walk a bit and see if there was something recognizable. I walked toward buildings I knew, but still had no idea where I was going. Once I realized I was lost and after a moment in front of the map, I figured out where the center of town was, and I proceeded in that direction. All of a sudden it hit me. It was my old neighborhood - I walked down the street remembering where I had eaten and drank and hung out. I went directly to a cafe where I spent many afternoons studying russian; had a beer, and thought about my next move.
My Expensive Hotel
I seemed to remember & confirmed it with Joen that the Hotel Europe had a St. Pete newspaper in English that I could use to find a place to live. I walked over to the hotel, with my two backpacks on, and grabbed a paper. I sat in a cafe with a piva (beer) and called a few places. I found a couple possibilities, but I was in no mood to cross the city with my backpack again. I checked into St. Pete's 5 star hotel - The Europe Hotel. It is beautiful by European standards, but it is no Peninsula.
Money is Honey
"Money is Honey" was a pretty cool 3 story club near the center of the city. A lot of travelers won't go in becuase it is in a really dark dangerous looking corner of town, but I have fond memories of it - I walked over. I had a dance or two, and when I went to sit down, a security guard came over. I really couldn't understand what he wanted, but then out of nowhere, a russian guy came over to help. Of course he couldn't speak english either, but between the two of them, I figured out that I needed to change tables. My new russian friend joined me, and we tried to communicate. Before you know it, I joined his group of friends.
Here Comes Trouble
The next morning I checked out of the Europe, checked my baggage with the bell desk, and started out to find a place to live. After visiting a few dangerous looking hostiles, I found a reasonable little hotel just a couple metro stops from the center town. Tired from my journey, I had some coffee and dinner, and afterwards headed back to the Hotel Europe to grab my bags. I put on my 75lb "turtle suite" and headed for the metro station a half block away. Now usually I put my wallet in my front pack when wearing the immense "turtle suit", but this time I left it in my side pocket. When I reached my hotel, I realized that someone picked my pocket. They unbuttoned my pocket and removed my wallet containing my passport, credit cards, and visas. Now What?
I had only made a small deposit on the room; Tatyana only spoke russian, and I had no rubles (local money). Luckily I had presence of mind to put $500, copies of my documents, and phone numbers in an "open in case of emergency" envelope. I opened it and gave Tatyana a $100 bill to hold so I could change money the next day - then I made some calls.
Timing is Everything
Of course this all happened on a Friday evening on a holiday weekend here. They are celebrating the end of WWII, and government offices including mail delivery will by closed on Monday. Also, my "hotel" could not figure out what its zip or postal code is, so I could't order new credit cards. So - I shut my credit cards down, but not before the crooks had a chance to charge nearly $2000 on them.
Before I could get replacement cards, I needed a postal code. I called the United States Consulate; their recorded message said that if the call was regarding a life or death emergency, I could press 1. I knew instinctively that it wasn't life or death, but couldn't help giving it a try. The call went directly to the duty officer. He was very helpful, but unfortunately the office will be closed until Monday. Now I have an appointment for 2pm to get a new passport. And with the holiday, the Russian consulate is closed until tuesday, meaning that I cannot get a visa (required to be here and not get arrested) until then. Thanks to Angela who wired me some money, I will have $999 on Tuesday, but I will have to be careful until then.
So What's the Fallout?
I have a little money; I figured out my postal code, so credit cards are on the way, and I won't have documents allowing me to leave the country until Wednesday at the earliest. Within a half hour of calling the credit card companies, I relaxed a bit, and decided not to allow this minor setback to ruin my trip. I only lost just a couple hundred dollars & my papers. I have enough money for the time being, and everything will get sorted out next week.
Back to Normal
That night I went out & walked some of the city. I stood in front of the Neva river & its drawbridges. I saw a couple cathedrals, and returned to Money Honey for a quick dance before retiring to my new home, where I wil probably reside until Friday next week.
Last night I went to a new club called Plaza. It's immense with a huge dance floor and 4 separate bars. On either side of the dance floor there are stages, where on one side men dance and on the other women. The place was packed and I danced until 3am. I caught a ride (hitchhiked) home for about $3.
Things could be a lot worse. They could have stolen my camera, or I could have been stranded in a city I didn't like. At least now I have an excuse to spend some more time in one of the most beautiful cities in Europe.
P.S. I will let you all know when I have cash & cards again. :)
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