sergeyvzn knows infinitely more about the situation than I do, but let me add the perspective of a total Anglo, who visited there last year, (and can't wait to go back again in a few weeks
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4) Our experience was that St Petersburg was much easier from a language point of view than Moscow, but neither requires a guide. Most of the 'English' we saw was the Roman script version of Cyrillic (so not 'English' as such), but in the tourist precincts of St P especially there is English (ie ticket types and prices).
5) My experience with the metros was different from sergeyvzn. In St. P there was Cyrillic and the Roman version of it. Your Lonely Planet type maps will have the Roman version, so you can match the words. However in Moscow, we were initially flummoxed by the fact that there was only Cyrillic:
But note the colour coding of the lines, and with a map with the Cyrillic you can easily find your way around. Trains run very frequently, so no need to jump on a train you aren't totally sure of. Make sure you do the 'tour' of the decorated Metros in Moscow. The art and decoration (all Soviet) is outstanding on many of them.
And as for talking to the ladies in the ticket booths - forget it! Just hold up 10 fingers to get 10 tokens. very cheap. You can get a multi-ride ticket, but I could never make myself understood to actually buy one. Didn't matter.
With a map, and understanding that Cyrillic is based on Greek, remembering your Greek alphabet helps you get some sounds out of the Cyrillic words
, we got on fine. ie π (pi) = "p" sound , Ω (omega) = "o" ∆ (delta) = 'd' - and their capitalized equivalents.
In this sign, you know what it says
. So what looks like a 'P' is the Cyrillic letter based on the Greek rho ρ, so an 'r' sound. Γ is the capital form of gamma, so a 'g' sound. Yes, understanding Cyrillic can be fun!
Don't let me concern you here - we are as gormless travelers as you will find, and we navigated all the Metros and ate out in restaurants just fine. The world's longest escalator is in one of the Moscow stations.
6) Don't miss the "Soviet Café" on Nevsky Prospekt (one of the main boulevards). Set in a Soviet era apartment, its a great throwback for tourists. They will take a reservation if you call in. Hard to find, left hand side of Nevsky P as you go towards the river / Hermitage, steps down to basement level. The Singer Café, also on Nevsky, 1st floor of the unmistakable Singer building is a great place for a nice relaxing 'western style' coffee / pastries or beer etc after you have hoofed it all day around the Hermitage, Admiralty etc etc.
Good luck! I'm spending another 3 days in St Petersburg and another 2 in Moscow, just to finish off the 'essentials' from last time. Still not enough time, but will have to do ... until next time.
