slothis · English

Moscow to St. Petersburg: A Rough Train Journey

2016-07-02 · Updated: 2026-08-11 · Original (Korean)

This article was translated from the original Korean post with AI assistance. Read the original Korean post →
A large stadium with photos of soccer players is visible beyond blue ticket gates.
Spartak Moscow's home stadium. It's on the way to the subway station.

I'm catching a 4 PM train to St. Petersburg today. I thought I had plenty of time, but it's my first time navigating to the train station, and it's been raining non-stop—something I haven't seen much of lately. So, instead of going anywhere special today, I just lounged around the hostel as late as possible before heading out. Honestly, the rain was an issue, but my body isn't in the best shape right now either. My backpack must be heavier than I can handle because my right shoulder aches like it's severely cramped. If I rest as comfortably as possible and avoid using my right hand, it gets a little better, but within 30 minutes of putting the pack back on, the shoulder pain returns. I'm starting to regret not just bringing a rolling suitcase and staying comfortably in a hotel like everyone else.

I'm already physically and mentally exhausted, and to make matters worse, the walk from the hostel to the subway station is ridiculously long. What would normally be a 10 or 15-minute walk took me about 45 minutes of huffing and puffing, thanks to the rain and my heavy pack. I've spent way more money than I expected so far, so I've been eating as little as possible, which means I have zero energy. Deciding I needed to eat something to survive, I ordered blini (Russian pancakes) and pyshki (donuts) at a restaurant next to the subway station, but the owner was super grumpy. On tough days like today, bad people and bad situations just seem to stick to you like glue.

A tray holding a cup with a black drink, a receipt, a crepe on a plate, and a donut sprinkled with powdered sugar.
Clockwise from the drink: kvass (fermented beverage), blini, and pyshki. The white powder on the pyshki is sweet like sugar. The pyshki was 20RUB, and the kvass was about 85RUB. If you want a cheap meal, just getting those two is enough.

I went to 'Oktyabrskaya' station, thinking the name on my train ticket was the subway station I needed to go to. But when I arrived and asked around, everyone told me I was in the wrong place. (I experienced firsthand that poorly reading Russian is actually more dangerous than not reading it at all.) Only then did I remember something I'd read in a guidebook: in Russia, train stations are named after the city they travel to. Since I'm heading to St. Petersburg (formerly Leningrad), I had to go to Leningradsky Station. I didn't even have time to feel defeated or regret my mistake. My train was leaving soon. I snapped out of it, gritted my teeth, and sprinted as fast as I could to 'Komsomolskaya' station. Whenever I rode the Moscow subway, I used to wonder, "Who on earth walks or runs up these incredibly fast Moscow escalators?" Turns out, it's me.

I barely made it, got my ticket, and settled into the train.


People standing in front of a train station's glass doors with a sign for the long-distance train ticket office.
Even if you bought an e-ticket, it's best to exchange it for a physical ticket. Unless you are literally counting the seconds, you should swap it. If there are three or four people ahead of you, expect it to take about 20 to 30 minutes to get your ticket.
An open door of a gray train with a sign for car 9 indicating Moscow and St. Petersburg.
Car number 9 this time.
Green fields, forests, and small houses seen through a train window, with water bottles and cups resting on the windowsill.
The rain stopped.

Once on the train, I was lucky enough to have a young couple sitting across from me, which made me worry a lot less about theft. But my bad luck decided to torment me until the very end of the day: the guy in the bed right below mine was a terrible snorer. He was a chubby kid who looked like he was in middle or high school, but his snoring could put a burly middle-aged man to shame. Thanks to him, no one nearby could sleep properly, and people were quietly muttering complaints or curses in Russian. People are the same everywhere, whether in Russia or Korea.

Since I couldn't sleep despite being exhausted, I ended up chatting a bit with the guy in the next bed. Surprisingly, we were both programmers! We excitedly spent a couple of hours talking about things programmers always wonder about, like "What are you building?" and "What do you think the next big trend will be?" No matter where you go in the world, people in the same line of work share a special bond. (Well, I don't know about other professions, but it's true for programmers.) Especially when things aren't going well and you have to pull an all-nighter—those stories almost sound like bragging. It was a moment that made me realize once again how glad I am to have this job.

We arrived in St. Petersburg at 4:30 AM. I think I barely managed two hours of sleep. It wasn't just a quiet snore; he was snoring with such intense, full-bodied effort that it was impossible to sleep through. If I hadn't lounged around the hostel until noon today, I would have been in serious trouble.

I've arrived in St. Petersburg, the most beautiful city in Russia, but right now, I just want to sleep rather than see the city.

Expenses

Total Expenses 792RUB

Total Trip Expenses 525,936 KRW + 36,675RUB + $152.26