a good way of getting around in st.petersburg is catching a minibus or "marshrutka" (derived from the german word "marschroute"). that already indicates, that a marshrutka has it's defined route and certain stops. when you want to get off, you just give the driver a "на остановке остановите, пожалуйста" (stop at the next stop, please) and he will. if you're sitting at the back of the marshrutka, having to exclaim your wish aloud, be sure to gain some glances of surprised people turning their heads because of your accent.
the great thing about it is that you can tell the driver to stop at any time along his route, even if there isn't a busstop. what a convenience in such an over-regulated world!
the not so good thing about marshrutkas is that you never know when they will turn up. how many times have i been standing in the cold (or rain, alternatively, or a combination of both), swearing at the irregulate schedule of public transport here...i guess that's the two sides of a coin called (de)regulation.
the great thing about it is that you can tell the driver to stop at any time along his route, even if there isn't a busstop. what a convenience in such an over-regulated world!
the not so good thing about marshrutkas is that you never know when they will turn up. how many times have i been standing in the cold (or rain, alternatively, or a combination of both), swearing at the irregulate schedule of public transport here...i guess that's the two sides of a coin called (de)regulation.
that's how a marshrutka looks like.
a marshrutka from the inside. the most exciting thing is to sit beside the driver and watch the insane traffic as a spectacle on its own. one ride takes 30 rubels that have to be paid when entering the marshrutka. when there is a lot of folks on the bus, people will happily pass on your money to the driver and will even return the change. there is some astonishing honesty about this!
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