Sunday, August 5, 2007

Queueing in Russia

Russian skills in queueing developed during the Soviet era. It is said that if they saw a queue they would join it and find out what it was for when they reached the head. Perhaps they would be able to buy a cabbage and then cook shchi soup.

We have seen the Russian skills of queue jumping but mostly have been able to hold our own. We were tested when queueing for ferry tickets in the pouring rain in St Petersburg and the morning rush for tickets at the Hermitage Museum.

Today we felt our skills proven. We managed to get the very last tickets for the day to visit the Armoury in the Kremlin. We saw the wonderful treasures and managed to get a front row view of the wonderful Faberge eggs. One Russian guide tried to elbow us aside but was no match for our skills.

Some of the guides are fine but most must have had previous careers working with the KGB. Their only match are the museum officials and the train guards. They have been lucky to avoid being sent to the salt mines.

1 comment:

theotherbear said...

so did you join any queues and end up with something unusual?