Travel Notes

I am pleased that we now have a president who is keenly aware that the Hermitage is green and the Russian Museum is yellow. That he does not confuse them…

Vladimir Gusev, Director of the Russian Museum in St. Petersburg (Itogi)

Private Rails

In September, President Vladimir Putin appointed 66-year-old Railways Minister Gennady Fadeev to be the first president of the newly-created Russian Railroads joint-stock company. Russian Railroads, which is 100 percent state-owned, has an initial capitalization of $50 billion and controls 95% of the property formally assigned to the Railways Ministry, including 987 enterprises and organizations. The Property Ministry, the Railways Ministry and the Finance Ministry are to put together a list of enterprises not subject to privatization, such as the Ministry’s so-called social assets (e.g. hospitals, schools and kindergartens), which are to be transferred to municipal authorities. The remaining assets are to be privatized by the end of this year.

Passenger’s Day

Every first Thursday of the month, passengers will be able to address the management of Moscow train stations with questions, requests and complaints. The place where management’s representatives meet those who have something to say about the train station and its services is to be announced over station P.A. systems. Moscow Railroads promised that questions will either be answered on the spot or the client will receive a written reply within ten days. (Railways Ministry Internet Agency)

Securing the Trains

Railways authorities plan to launch luggage inspections at Moscow train stations in the near future. The innovation will be introduced first at Kazansky Train Station and then, if it is successful, at the rest of Moscow’s stations. The measure is designed to ensure greater security at train stations. (newsru.com)

122 more hotels

The Moscow government has announced it plans to build 122 hotels to accommodate a total of 32,080 visitors by 2005. Some 59 hotels already have investors. Moscow has about 150 hotels, which house over 3.6 million guests each year. Eighteen hotels, which together can accommodate over 5,000 persons, are presently being constructed. (RIA-Novosti)

New Airport Services

Domodedovo International Airport in Moscow has opened a special office to provide free services to the handicapped. Airport management has promised that staff of the new office will help handicapped passengers to get from the parking or bus stop to the plane and back, ensure easy passage through check-in, customs and passport control, and help with luggage. The airport has purchased imported equipment for use on airport premises and special wheelchairs to use inside planes. The special services can be requested at any check-in desk or at the medical aid post.

Cheaper Sleepers

This September, the Railways Ministry lowered ticket prices for four berth compartments, referred to as a “kupe” and two berth “sleeping” compartments, termed an “SV,” by 11%. The move was an effort to boost the number of train travelers. This year, prices for train tickets grew by as much as 31%, and passenger flows decreased significantly at the height of the summer holiday season. The Ministry promised to lower prices for the period between November 10 and December 22 by a further 10%. The cheapest train tickets this year will be sold on December 31. Prices to ride the train on New Year’s Eve will be 44% below normal tariffs. (Gazeta)

Hermitage Amsterdam

In February next year, St. Petersburg’s Hermitage will launch an Amsterdam branch, to be called “Hermitage on Amstel.” The branch will be located in the four-story Amstelhof building. Its six rooms will be used to put on small temporary exhibitions, each lasting just over five months. The opening exhibition will feature Greek gold jewelry (in honor of the 2004 Olympics, to be held in Athens). Later in 2004 there will be an exhibition on the life and collections of the last tsar and tsarina, followed in 2005 by an exhibition on Venetian paintings, with masterpieces by Tintoretto, Guardi, Canaletto and Tiepolo.

By the end of 2007, all of Amstelhof will be used by the Hermitage Amsterdam, with a total exhibition space of over 4000 square meters. The cost of renovating the Neerlandia Building will be 4 million euros, and the whole plan has a building budget of 39 million euros. Costs will be met with the aid of the sponsor, SponsorBingo Loterij and the subsidising bodies, the Province of North Holland, the City of Amsterdam and the W.E. Jansen Fund. The Hermitage already has two other foreign branches, in London and Las Vegas.