Medical Exam in Moscow

[slim 1,530]

Satellite, I have a feeling you'd make your wife walk down a dark alley at midnight to save a $1.

It's one thing to make someone do something that's maybe not so safe simply because you're being a cheapskate and another entirely when there's no "protection money" to go around. Maybe they can't afford to take a cab so she must walk through a dark alley.

In situations like that, the only thing that can be done is to minimize the risk. When you have excess cash, it's nothing to pay for safety and piece of mind. But, when the cash isn't there, sometimes a calculated risk is necessary.

ok, ok. Very interested in economics.

I've known a lot of girls like this, and now I have a smart-@$$ and sacrcastic, albeit PC, way to describe them. Thanks, eekee!

[visaveteran1 33]

Satellite, I have a feeling you'd make your wife walk down a dark alley at midnight to save a $1.

It's one thing to make someone do something that's maybe not so safe simply because you're being a cheapskate and another entirely when there's no "protection money" to go around. Maybe they can't afford to take a cab so she must walk through a dark alley.

In situations like that, the only thing that can be done is to minimize the risk. When you have excess cash, it's nothing to pay for safety and piece of mind. But, when the cash isn't there, sometimes a calculated risk is necessary.

ok, ok. Very interested in economics.

I've known a lot of girls like this, and now I have a smart-@$$ and sacrcastic, albeit PC, way to describe them. Thanks, eekee!

I think anyone who lives beyond a cardboard box home on skid row can afford one more night in Moscow...even if you just go to the airport and sleep. A cheap bus ride and a seat at Terminal 2 cost almost nothing. Or for only a few bucks you could bribe the late night hotel clerk to let you sit in the lobby all night.

But let's be real, I'd have to guess 85-90% of American men looking oversea for a wife, or who luckily discovered a wife while overseas, have a good amount of income...at least enough to pay for one more night in Moscow. Yes?

[Bobalouie 0]

Satellite, I have a feeling you'd make your wife walk down a dark alley at midnight to save a $1.

It's one thing to make someone do something that's maybe not so safe simply because you're being a cheapskate and another entirely when there's no "protection money" to go around. Maybe they can't afford to take a cab so she must walk through a dark alley.

In situations like that, the only thing that can be done is to minimize the risk. When you have excess cash, it's nothing to pay for safety and piece of mind. But, when the cash isn't there, sometimes a calculated risk is necessary.

ok, ok. Very interested in economics.

I've known a lot of girls like this, and now I have a smart-@$$ and sacrcastic, albeit PC, way to describe them. Thanks, eekee!

I think anyone who lives beyond a cardboard box home on skid row can afford one more night in Moscow...even if you just go to the airport and sleep. A cheap bus ride and a seat at Terminal 2 cost almost nothing. Or for only a few bucks you could bribe the late night hotel clerk to let you sit in the lobby all night.

But let's be real, I'd have to guess 85-90% of American men looking oversea for a wife, or who luckily discovered a wife while overseas, have a good amount of income...at least enough to pay for one more night in Moscow. Yes?

Yea, whats another $150-200 on the ol' credit card?

[visaveteran1 33]

I guess I've been going to the FSU for so long I've gotten desensitized to the crazy costs there. When I think of what I've paid for airfare, taxis, renting houses and flats and the restaurants...well one extra night in Moscow seems like pocket change.

Cost of doing business.

[Bobalouie 0]

I guess I've been going to the FSU for so long I've gotten desensitized to the crazy costs there. When I think of what I've paid for airfare, taxis, renting houses and flats and the restaurants...well one extra night in Moscow seems like pocket change.

Cost of doing business.

You and I are making the same point my friend

[Satellite 1]

Yea, whats another $150-200 on the ol' credit card?

I guess I've been going to the FSU for so long I've gotten desensitized to the crazy costs there. When I think of what I've paid for airfare, taxis, renting houses and flats and the restaurants...well one extra night in Moscow seems like pocket change.

Well there is little you can do about the cost of airfare except fly in the off season, sometimes between February and April or September through November. We never use taxis in Moscow, so no cost there. The bus / group taxi costs under $1. We never rented at Western rates, but rather stayed at my wife's uncle's flat in the Moscow suburbs. But if we had to rent it would be at Russian rates sharing some room with locals in those same suburbs an hour away by commuter train. So yeah, $150 is a lot when that money would be better spent here in the US on something like AOS.

[slim 1,530]

I guess I've been going to the FSU for so long I've gotten desensitized to the crazy costs there. When I think of what I've paid for airfare, taxis, renting houses and flats and the restaurants...well one extra night in Moscow seems like pocket change.

Cost of doing business.

For those of us not "doing business" over there, even a single trip is something that can take years to plan and pay for. And, when there's not a "significant" source of income to pay for it all, the credit cards don't even work. If you only have a $300 limit on your Capital One No Hassle Platinum card, (at 29.95% with a $150 annual fee) that's not going to go very far to pay for an extra night.

I think you guys in your mid-to-late 30's, 40's and even 50's need to remember how much money you had in your 20's. You were nowhere near generating the kind of cash you're generating now and nowhere near the amount of wealth and/or credit. Sure, an extra couple hundred bucks is nothing for you now. But would it have been 20 years ago?

And, you're talking about tacking on an extra hundred or two to a trip that is costing you several thousand dollars, probably even closer to $10,000 once you figure in her airfare too. As a young guy, you'd be trying to be closer to $1,000 than $10,000 and when you think about it in terms of percentages, $150-$200 is a significant chunk of change when the total trip costs about $2,000 compared to what it would be as part of the $7,493 trip that the more "aged" guys are able to take.

I'm in 100% agreement that you deserve it, your girl deserves it, and money should be no object. But, people who say money is no object are the people who can afford to say money is no object. Or, at least, it's not as much of an object. When you make under $30,000/year, taking a $3,000 vacation is huge. When you make $45,000 plus, EVERY YEAR, and have been for the last ten years or so, taking a $6,000 vacation is chump change.

So, don't call Satellite (and indirectly me too) cheap. Just understand that sometimes a calculated risk to save what money is available is necessary. Or, at the very minimum, paying extra for "piece of mind" just isn't an option. Yet. Hopefully the time will come when it is. But, by that time, it shouldn't even be necessary as the "calculated risk" has been done enough that it's no longer risky.

[mox 298]

I think you guys in your mid-to-late 30's, 40's and even 50's need to remember how much money you had in your 20's. You were nowhere near generating the kind of cash you're generating now and nowhere near the amount of wealth and/or credit. Sure, an extra couple hundred bucks is nothing for you now. But would it have been 20 years ago?

So, don't call Satellite (and indirectly me too) cheap. Just understand that sometimes a calculated risk to save what money is available is necessary. Or, at the very minimum, paying extra for "piece of mind" just isn't an option. Yet. Hopefully the time will come when it is. But, by that time, it shouldn't even be necessary as the "calculated risk" has been done enough that it's no longer risky.

I don't think I've called Satellite "cheap" yet, I still haven't exhausted all the other things to call him. I'll add it to the list though.

The first quote is exactly the reason why I get so tired of Satellite (and I guess you, although you haven't been near as abrasive about it) coming in and telling everyone what an idiot they are because they spent $30 on a cab. Everyone here is in a different financial situation and a different time of their life. Maybe $30 is a lot to Satellite and you. But others find it affordable and are willing to pay. So when Sat comes in looking down his nose at anyone who can't figure out how to use the autobus (hint: it's not easy, even in Moscow) or just walk the 18 miles uphill through the snow in the dark to save 50 rubles, it gets annoying. Because YES we get it. There are cheaper alternatives. And yes, we know Satellite speaks the language and he knows the culture and we're all a bunch of dumbass tourists because we don't. We GET it.

So yeah, if $30 is a lot for you, then you're going to have to work the system a little bit more. But I for one am sick of being (implicitly) called a rube because saving time between terminals was worth a $30 cab ride to me. Because I guarantee that when Satellite starts pulling in that 6 figure salary, he's not going to be riding the goddamned autobus or hoofing it around Moscow. He's probably gonna rent a limousine and sip wine while cruising through the streets of Moscow. And occasionally he'll have the driver pull over so his wife can catch up.

[eekee 182]

while i tend to agree with Sat on the saving-money points, i do agree that the bus is not so easy, especially when the windows are totally frozen over and there's no announcement over a PA system as to which stop you're at. You just have to KNOW without being able to see out the window.

I don't think I've called Satellite "cheap" yet, I still haven't exhausted all the other things to call him. I'll add it to the list though.

The first quote is exactly the reason why I get so tired of Satellite (and I guess you, although you haven't been near as abrasive about it) coming in and telling everyone what an idiot they are because they spent $30 on a cab. Everyone here is in a different financial situation and a different time of their life. Maybe $30 is a lot to Satellite and you. But others find it affordable and are willing to pay. So when Sat comes in looking down his nose at anyone who can't figure out how to use the autobus (hint: it's not easy, even in Moscow) or just walk the 18 miles uphill through the snow in the dark to save 50 rubles, it gets annoying. Because YES we get it. There are cheaper alternatives. And yes, we know Satellite speaks the language and he knows the culture and we're all a bunch of dumbass tourists because we don't. We GET it.

So yeah, if $30 is a lot for you, then you're going to have to work the system a little bit more. But I for one am sick of being (implicitly) called a rube because saving time between terminals was worth a $30 cab ride to me. Because I guarantee that when Satellite starts pulling in that 6 figure salary, he's not going to be riding the goddamned autobus or hoofing it around Moscow. He's probably gonna rent a limousine and sip wine while cruising through the streets of Moscow. And occasionally he'll have the driver pull over so his wife can catch up.

[Chuckles 0]

He's probably gonna rent a limousine and sip wine while cruising through the streets of Moscow. And occasionally he'll have the driver pull over so his wife can catch up.

Awesome line.

Slim and Sat, you are cheap bastards, get over yourselves, and admit it. I am sure your wives would agree.

[eekee 182]

Should they go into debt to satisfy their wives' every whim?

Slim and Sat, you are cheap bastards, get over yourselves, and admit it. I am sure your wives would agree.

[Kazan' Tiger 1]

Done that! It's amazing though, ESP does kick in! I never missed my stop in Kazan'. I got used to the curve of the road, that special pothole, and the way the few colours trickled through the frost. Oh, it's my stop!

while i tend to agree with Sat on the saving-money points, i do agree that the bus is not so easy, especially when the windows are totally frozen over and there's no announcement over a PA system as to which stop you're at. You just have to KNOW without being able to see out the window.

[visaveteran1 33]

I guess I've been going to the FSU for so long I've gotten desensitized to the crazy costs there. When I think of what I've paid for airfare, taxis, renting houses and flats and the restaurants...well one extra night in Moscow seems like pocket change.

Cost of doing business.

For those of us not "doing business" over there, even a single trip is something that can take years to plan and pay for. And, when there's not a "significant" source of income to pay for it all, the credit cards don't even work. If you only have a $300 limit on your Capital One No Hassle Platinum card, (at 29.95% with a $150 annual fee) that's not going to go very far to pay for an extra night.

I think you guys in your mid-to-late 30's, 40's and even 50's need to remember how much money you had in your 20's. You were nowhere near generating the kind of cash you're generating now and nowhere near the amount of wealth and/or credit. Sure, an extra couple hundred bucks is nothing for you now. But would it have been 20 years ago?

And, you're talking about tacking on an extra hundred or two to a trip that is costing you several thousand dollars, probably even closer to $10,000 once you figure in her airfare too. As a young guy, you'd be trying to be closer to $1,000 than $10,000 and when you think about it in terms of percentages, $150-$200 is a significant chunk of change when the total trip costs about $2,000 compared to what it would be as part of the $7,493 trip that the more "aged" guys are able to take.

I'm in 100% agreement that you deserve it, your girl deserves it, and money should be no object. But, people who say money is no object are the people who can afford to say money is no object. Or, at least, it's not as much of an object. When you make under $30,000/year, taking a $3,000 vacation is huge. When you make $45,000 plus, EVERY YEAR, and have been for the last ten years or so, taking a $6,000 vacation is chump change.

So, don't call Satellite (and indirectly me too) cheap. Just understand that sometimes a calculated risk to save what money is available is necessary. Or, at the very minimum, paying extra for "piece of mind" just isn't an option. Yet. Hopefully the time will come when it is. But, by that time, it shouldn't even be necessary as the "calculated risk" has been done enough that it's no longer risky.

I think Sat is cheap...and he's shown that often IMO. I judge some people are cheap by necessity and some by their nature. I think Sat falls in the latter category. I don't have an opinion about you (Slim)...but if you want to be offended that's your issue. I don't challenge "cheap" around most issues...but I do concerning a woman's well-being. With that said, if you read my various posts you'll see that I suggested ways to stay in Moscow an extra day without spending much if money any, beyond a few cents for the bus...so why embrace any risk with options?

I will only add that I liked what Mox had to say and agree with his comments around money, Sat, etc.

[Bobalouie 0]

I guess I've been going to the FSU for so long I've gotten desensitized to the crazy costs there. When I think of what I've paid for airfare, taxis, renting houses and flats and the restaurants...well one extra night in Moscow seems like pocket change.

Cost of doing business.

For those of us not "doing business" over there, even a single trip is something that can take years to plan and pay for. And, when there's not a "significant" source of income to pay for it all, the credit cards don't even work. If you only have a $300 limit on your Capital One No Hassle Platinum card, (at 29.95% with a $150 annual fee) that's not going to go very far to pay for an extra night.

I think you guys in your mid-to-late 30's, 40's and even 50's need to remember how much money you had in your 20's. You were nowhere near generating the kind of cash you're generating now and nowhere near the amount of wealth and/or credit. Sure, an extra couple hundred bucks is nothing for you now. But would it have been 20 years ago?

And, you're talking about tacking on an extra hundred or two to a trip that is costing you several thousand dollars, probably even closer to $10,000 once you figure in her airfare too. As a young guy, you'd be trying to be closer to $1,000 than $10,000 and when you think about it in terms of percentages, $150-$200 is a significant chunk of change when the total trip costs about $2,000 compared to what it would be as part of the $7,493 trip that the more "aged" guys are able to take.

I'm in 100% agreement that you deserve it, your girl deserves it, and money should be no object. But, people who say money is no object are the people who can afford to say money is no object. Or, at least, it's not as much of an object. When you make under $30,000/year, taking a $3,000 vacation is huge. When you make $45,000 plus, EVERY YEAR, and have been for the last ten years or so, taking a $6,000 vacation is chump change.

So, don't call Satellite (and indirectly me too) cheap. Just understand that sometimes a calculated risk to save what money is available is necessary. Or, at the very minimum, paying extra for "piece of mind" just isn't an option. Yet. Hopefully the time will come when it is. But, by that time, it shouldn't even be necessary as the "calculated risk" has been done enough that it's no longer risky.

You are absolutely right Slim, and If i indirectly called you Cheap, that was not my intention. But you are one of the people that braved this without a lot of money. I dont know how old you are, but I think mid 20's which puts us around 8-10 years apart (Im 34) and I would not have even contemplated doing this when I was in my early 20's like you did. Your absolutely right, I didnt have near enough money to do it. So, my hats off to you for your resourcefulness. But, we dont all throw away money like you suggest. My trip to go over and bring my fiancee back with me is $3030 and includes all airfare, hotel in Moscow, transfers, everything except money on the ground. I am all about not spending more than necessary.

[mox 298]

I just want to caveat my last post by saying that I'm all for posts on how to save money or even travel through Russia on the cheap. I think that's one of the unstated goals of this forum, and I for one am all ears. I won't be riding limousines through the streets of Moscow in my lifetime, so if I can turn a $30 cab ride into a $5 autobus ride, I'm all for it. But don't tell me I'm an idiot for just walking outside Sheremetyevo for the first time in my life, trying to make a connection in 45 minutes and spending $30 on a cab instead of wandering around trying to find people to share a cab with or other wonderful deals. I'll pocket that info for future use, and advice like that is appreciated, but it doesn't make me an idiot for not knowing it or having the time to use it in the first place.