I am a big believer in day trips, especially in a foreign country. If I’m visiting a city in a new country, I always try to take a day to see leave the city behind and see a bit more of what the country has to offer – whether that’s a castle, a village or simply another town a few hours away.
On a recent trip to Moscow, I took the opportunity to do just that and visited Sergiev Posad – one of the towns on the Golden Ring nearest to Moscow. The city kremlin is well known both for the deep-blue onion domes of its cathedral and as a site of religious pilgrimage in Russia.
The day was not a success.
Inspired by my day at Sergiev Posad and other incidents, here are my tips on how not to plan a day trip.
One of the churches in the Sergiev Posad kremlin
Don’t research the best mode of transport
We got the bus to Sergiev Posad. The journey that was meant to take one hour almost took two and a half due to the ridiculous Moscow traffic jams, and the fact everyone and their babushka was heading to their country homes for the four-day bank holiday weekend.
Don’t check on possible construction works
On our approach to the kremlin, it soon became clear everything in sight has been completely covered in scaffolding and netting and the whole place was under ‘remont’ (renovation). Instead of the deep blue onion domes, we saw scaffolding. Instead of sunlight glinting off the golden crucifixes, we saw scaffolding. We went in anyway.
Sergiev Posad under extensive remont.
Don’t be foreign
On arriving at the kremlin, we were asked to pay for permission to take photos. On paying, the cashier realised we weren’t Russian and so forced us to pay the foreigners’ entry price. (Russians ‘pay’ for the entry to museums and palaces through their taxes – apparently – so entry is often more expensive for foreigners.)
Don’t check the calendar
On entering the kremlin and a few churches, it soon became apparent it was busy. REALLY busy. We eventually realised this was because it was Orthodox Good Friday. We had visited one of Russia’s most famous pilgrimage sites on one of the holiest days of the year.
There were a lot of queues.
The only time I’ve ever seen Russians queue.
Assume journeys back are regular
Not a problem in Sergiev Posad, where we simply hopped on the train for a much more successful journey home, but definitely an issue after a day at Malbork castle, Poland.
After spending the day wandering around the vast Malbork castle in the freezing cold and the snow, we reached the train station to find the next train back to Gdansk wasn’t for almost three hours. More of an annoyance than a disaster, we at least got to watch the film Alex Ryder: Stormbreaker, which was being shown in the waiting room. God knows why.
In the end, hiccoughs are all part of the experience, and although my day to Sergiev Posad was a let-down from start to finish, we had a lot of fun. And at least it was warmer than Malbork.
However, I must stress my day trips are usually a lot more successful. Honestly.
Which of your best laid plans have gone awry?