Museums such as the Planetarium and Experimentarium are especially exciting for children. There are also several circuses for more entertainment. Restaurants in Moscow can be extremely expensive. Expats may find their social life is limited if living on a budget. Luckily, knowing the right places will help make going out more affordable. There are several international schools in Moscow offering excellent quality education and facilities.
There are also good private Russian schools, although only a small percentage of expat children attend these. The demand for schools outweighs the supply. Therefore, schools in Moscow can be expensive with long waiting lists.
Schools are usually located outside of central Moscow. So, unless expats live close to the school, children will have to travel some distance by school bus or car each day.
The climate in Moscow is fairly extreme. Winter weather can be beautiful in Moscow with blue skies and sunshine on the white snow. Cross-country skiing is popular with expats and ice-skating is possible all over the city as many playgrounds are made into ice-rinks. Summer is a great time to explore Moscow as the city is generally quieter. There are lakeside and river beaches in Moscow where expats and locals alike can take advantage of the good weather.
The extreme winter weather can make living in Moscow challenging for most of the year. Expats should make sure to have enough thick and warm winter clothing to get them through. For some moving to Russia can alter their perceptions, Nova G. After living in Malaysia and Netherlands moving to a country that wasn't warm, friendly or at least easy to get to definitely wasn't going to happen.
But we did it and I can remember being stunned for the first time by the energy of the city and bamboozled by the language. I relish the chance to walk on wide, clean streets, wandering along and taking in the sights.
We were also a bit afraid of not being able to understand the language with the Cyrillic script, or finding ourselves in a completely foreign world. Today most of all, we love the variety of things available here: from sweet Peruvian mangos to Mexican raspberries. But, as you get to know it, you discover so many unexpected layers that you can fall in love with… and another… and another.
Intermark report: how to obtain a work permit in Russia A Russian education: Relocate gets the facts from Intermark For more related news and features, visit our Russia section. Fernanda R. Our team of experts is ready to help you find a home abroad, move your household goods, and settle into your new country. Are you considering becoming an expat in Moscow? Moving to the Russian capital has become a viable career opportunity for many expats. InterNations GO!
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Since the collapse of the Soviet Union in , Moscow has become an international metropolis, attracting an influx of Western expats eager to live and work in this enigmatic city. However, due to the economic and political difficulties the country has experienced in recent years, many expats have left or decided against moving to Moscow. The bureaucratic hurdles have also contributed to the decline of Moscow as an expat destination.
Nevertheless, the city has a lot to offer ambitious or adventurous expatriates looking to further their careers in a multinational company or to enjoy life in this megacity.
Many expats arriving in Moscow are specialists in their field, or else foreign correspondents or embassy employees. Language teachers are also often attracted to the city. Moving to Moscow or going there for short-term visits typically requires a visa. Only citizens of some of the countries of the Commonwealth of Independent States CIS can enter and stay Russia without one, while some nationals may enter visa-free for short stays — it is worth checking beforehand if this applies to you.
To apply for short-term business and tourist visas, a letter of invitation from a Russian citizen or organization is necessary. Expats moving to Moscow in order to take up employment need a work visa. This can only be issued after a work permit for a particular position has been successfully acquired.
Normally, your potential employer in Moscow takes care of the application process. It is generally easier to hire one of the many established visa services such as VFS Global or Real Russia to deal with immigration authorities. We recommend getting in touch with your nearest Russian embassy for up-to-date information on visas and the application process.
Before moving to Moscow, it is important to understand the layout of the city. Moscow has developed in circles around the original historical center. Today, the city is divided into twelve okrugs , or administrative divisions. These in turn are divided into districts, of which there are in total. Finding suitable accommodation is among the most difficult parts of moving to Moscow. Some say it is easier to find work than a decent apartment.
They then transferred the money to my US bank account. In other outlying neighborhoods, like mine, it was rare that someone spoke English.
Unlike a lot of countries that attempt to put more things in English for tourists, Russia seemed to have the attitude of, it is your problem, figure it out. Also set your web browser to translate web pages into English. I knew that learning Russian would improve my life in Moscow a great deal.
If you know me personally, you know I am a pretty persistent person. If I set my mind to something, I will do it….. To be fair I did learn the alphabet, how to count to ten and a few greetings and other nouns.
The Moscow Metro is very nice, cheap and easy to use. It follows the same basic system of metros around the world. If you are considering learning Russian start with the alphabet, it will help you use the metro. Not all the stops and stations are in English. Have a metro map downloaded on your phone in English.
You can use it to help you figure out the stop names in Russian. The metro runs from about am to 1am. I took the metro whenever I could, but on off hours, going to the airport or when traveling somewhere not on a metro line I used Yandex taxis. They are the Uber of Moscow and very cheap. Between May and August almost all of the apartment buildings have an assigned 10 days when the hot water is shut off for maintenance.
You can check online at Oaomoek to see when it will be shut off for your apartment building. If you have a new building you may not have to deal with this most buildings are old though. As an American moving to Moscow, Russia I definitely had an adventure! If you have moved to Moscow let me know in the comments below what your experience has been like. Feel free to leave any questions about moving to Russia below as well.
The hot water thing happened to me while living and teaching english too in Prague! I had no idea that was a thing! Luckily it was for 3 days. Thank you for such a great article! Moving to a new country is always a stressful process no matter how prepared you are and knowing these little ins and outs of the process really helps. Having to get an HIV test before moving kind of surprised me and registering every time you return to Russia seems like a hassle!
I have heard that Russian is a very difficult language to learn. I tried learning the basics when I was travelling through Eastern Europe and the Balkans and almost immediately gave up because I found it incredibly difficult to teach myself from free online resources.
Also we had to do them a couple times of year at the school I worked at. I found Russian really hard to learn when I had a private teacher. I can imagine it would be even more difficult to try to teach yourself. Yes, the metro stations are beautiful! Tell me about it the visa progress, internet, hot water shut off! I learnt Russian pretty fast had no choice but I did enjoy my time there. Would I go back? I had heard about a lot of things about Russia and turns out most of them are true!
They have this strictest Visa process and paperwork. One of my acquaintances arrived in Russia after visiting some other Central Asian countries. He was apparently deported with no proper reason. He was told if you want to visit Russia, come directly from your country and not through any other country! It was good to know a lot about Russia and Moscow in general from your blog. I hope you had a good and exciting time there.
First off — kudos for having managed in this city. It does seem like a challenge to get here and more importantly stay here. The amount of documentation and forms. And to not be able to pay your bills in a jiffy. Russian only and no English can be hassle if you are staying there for long term.
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