Recently, my husband and I happened to travel from Moscow to Nizhny Novgorod and back on high-speed trains of Russian Railways - Sapsan and Lastochka. Travel time for both trains is 4 hours, but a ticket for Sapsan is more expensive than for Lastochka by about 1000 rubles.

The difference was in the level of comfort. Judge for yourself:

"Sapsan"
The high-speed electric train Sapsan appeared on the Russian Railways in 2009 - since December it has been running between Moscow and St. Petersburg. And from July 2010 on the route Moscow - Nizhny Novgorod and back.
The Sapsan was designed by the German company "Siemens" on the basis of the standard Velaro platform, on which trains for European countries are manufactured. The Russian train got its name in honor of the bird "Peregrine Falcon" from the order of falcons - the fastest in the world. The peregrine falcon has a number of structural differences from its European counterparts. In particular, it is capable of operating at temperatures up to -50 degrees overboard, and the train interior is almost 30 cm wider than the standard (European) one, which is associated with a wider railway gauge in Russia.

Each Sapsan train consists of 10 cars (7 economy class cars, a bistro car and one business class and one first class car) with a total capacity of 506 passenger seats. Passengers in wheelchairs can travel in the 6th car of the train. The peregrine falcon is capable of speeds up to 350 km/h, but on our railways it is limited to 250 km/h. However, on the way from Moscow to Nizhny Novgorod and back, the speed on the way did not exceed 160 km/h. And this was my main disappointment from the trip on the Sapsan. I didn't have enough speed!
For the rest, everything was fine.
In Moscow, the Sapsan high-speed train departs from high platform 11 at the Kursk railway station. Finding a platform is not difficult, unlike platform 6 in Nizhny Novgorod (but more on that later). Before entering the platform, Sapsan passengers need to go through a metal detector and scan their luggage. The inspection was not as thorough as at the airport, so it did not take much time.

At the platform on the 1st track, a sharp-nosed handsome train was already waiting for us - a long, slender, but not tall train. On each car door there is an electronic display with information - route, current time and car number. Boarding began 20 minutes before departure, the conductors took their places at the open doors, which made it possible to notice that the train crew consisted exclusively of young people.
At the entrance, the conductor marked us on the electronic list. And here we are on board.

The carriage interior is separated from the vestibule by glass doors that open automatically, which is very convenient when your hands are busy with suitcases. Immediately at the entrance on the side there is a fairly roomy design for bulky luggage, and in the center of the cabin there is a wardrobe closet. Above the seats, which in Sapsan go in two rows of two chairs, there are luggage racks. And between the windows there are small hooks for light clothes.
The seats in the cabin are comfortable, I was pleased with the presence of a false pillow (with my short stature, I always lack support for my neck). There is a footrest that is attached at the bottom of the chair in front, a very durable folding table, and an individual lighting bulb. Between the seats is a sound control panel and two headphone jacks. Speaking of headphones.
There is a TV set in the passage under the ceiling, on which during the trip they first showed an informational video about the train, then there was a very interesting video about the photo project “Russia from the Train Window”. In the middle of the journey, the film "White Sun of the Desert" was shown, which helped pass the time on the road. And in conclusion, the programs of the My Planet channel began to be played. I watched TV with my headphones, and my husband used the headphones that are in each pocket of the seat in front. Having plugged them into the connector, he pulled something there all the way, rearranged it, pressed the buttons. As it turned out, from the very beginning one earpiece wheezed, then another, and at the end the sound disappeared altogether.

You can pass the time on the road not only by watching movies. The train has Wi-Fi. But it is free only for first class passengers. So, what it is, what it is not (as, for example, in Swallow) - it doesn't matter.

At the beginning and end of the car, under the ceiling, there is an electronic display, which contains information about the speed of movement. Our chairs were arranged in such a way that we could not physically see the scoreboard. Accordingly, the information of interest was not available. Again, due to the location of the seats, we got only a small piece of the window. If we were driving during the day, it would be very inconvenient to sit half-turned to the window all the way to see something. But we left Moscow at sunset, it quickly got dark outside the window and there was nothing to look at.

During the trip, you can have a bite to eat in the bistro car, but stewards also walk in other cars and offer tea, coffee, and chocolates. Tea costs 70 rubles.

A few more details:
- under the window between the chairs hanging bags for garbage. But the garbage containers are located only in the vestibule.
- in the description of the train it is stated that the seat back can be reclined, but we did not find any "magic button".
- there are only two sockets in economy class cars, I would like to have at least one for two seats.
- toilets are located in each car in the vestibule. Its area is slightly larger than the bathroom on the plane, but even for a large person there will be enough space there.

Two stops are planned along the route between Moscow and Nizhny Novgorod - in Vladimir and Dzerzhinsk. Parking at each station for two minutes, and the exit is not made from each car, so passengers were asked to prepare for the exit in advance.

"Martin"
The Swallow high-speed electric train was manufactured for Russian Railways, as well as Sapsan, by Siemens in Germany. The train made its first trip with passengers on January 23, 2013 from the Moscow railway station in St. Petersburg. And since April 2013, the swallow began to "fly" between Moscow and Nizhny Novgorod.
The train consists of 5 cars with a total length of 130 meters, but is often used in a double version - 10 cars. The capacity of five cars is 409 seats, 4 of them for passengers with limited activity. The maximum speed of the train is 160 km/h.

Outwardly, I liked the Swallow train more than the Sapsan. Firstly, it is taller, because of this it looks somehow more solid, which suggests its reliability. Lastka has large panoramic windows, brighter colors and a more glossy surface, which attracts attention. Yes, and the composition looks more familiar than Sapsan.

Now about the impressions on the way. Although it is worth starting from the moment of landing.
In Nizhny Novgorod, the Lastochka, like the Sapsan, set off from platform No. 6. You need to get to it not through the station, as to long-distance trains, but through a separate hall with access to the trains, which is located behind the ticket office to the left of the main entrance. Passengers of electric trains pass through turnstiles on tickets, passengers of the Lastochka pass through separate gates. Then we go down into the tunnel, the arrow on the wall indicates that the sixth platform is waiting for us somewhere at the end. Exit to platform 1, 2... We pass the 5th platform and run into a glass door with the inscription "Exit to the city". In bewilderment below I find some words about Sapsan, we pass on. There really is an exit to the city and a small waiting room. Having twisted around, we find another arrow indicating the further path to the 6th platform.
As I was getting ready to go, I read that in Nizhny Novgorod we would face some difficulties with boarding high-speed trains. But I didn't think it was really that complicated :)

In Moscow, there is only one scanner and a metal detector frame to check Sapsan passengers. There are six of them in Nizhny Novgorod, but at the same time a line of indignant passengers gathered. It turned out that while waiting to board the flight at 9:45, all of us - passengers and railway workers - were waiting for the police, without which we could not be allowed to board. At 9 am, the police squad just had a briefing-divorce. After some time, we still got to platform number 6, which was barely enough for the double composition of the Lastochka.

There were some difficulties with determining the number of the car, for some reason it hung on the window in the middle of the car, and not at the door as usual. After standing on the platform for quite a bit, they began to let us into the cars. The team of guides of the Swallow, unlike the Sapsan, consisted of guides wise in life and professional experience. When landing, we were no longer marked in an electronic list, but in a regular paper one. Being one of the first to burst into the car, we hurried to put our suitcase in the luggage compartment, which turned out to be much smaller than in Sapsan.

Although the rest of the passengers safely stacked their suitcases on the luggage racks above the seats. Salon in Swallow is quite bright, the seats are arranged in two rows of two and three chairs, which are slightly narrower than in Sapsan. Most of the chairs look at each other, i.e. on the way, the passenger examines the person in front of him and rests his knees on him, because. there is not much space between the seats.

However, we were satisfied with our places (3 and 4), because before buying tickets, we studied the scheme of wagons. We had almost the entire large window, enough legroom and no faces, only the backs of the front seats.

Structurally, the train is designed in such a way that toilets are located only in those cars in which wheelchair users can travel - these are the 1st and 5th cars (head). Those. there were only 4 toilets for our ten-car train, in which there was a queue from time to time. About two hours later, on the way, the line to the toilet in our car grew to an abnormal size, its tail dangling in the vestibule. It became interesting to observe the reaction of people who want to visit the toilet. An hour before Moscow, they made bets on whether everyone would have time to get there.

But it was not the lack of toilets and the queue there that became the main inconvenience, but the lack of a folding table. It seems that you can drive without it, but in fact there is not enough table (folding or window, which is logical, given the location of the seats "face to face"). Especially when the steward hands you a glass of very hot tea (50 rubles), which tends to spill while the train is moving.

Details, comparisons:
- transparent doors between cars in Swallow only close automatically. To get into the salon you need to make an effort, because. the doors are very tight, which is not very convenient if your hands are full of luggage.
- There is no Wi-Fi on the train, as well as cinema with TV. But personally, I didn’t suffer much from this, because. it was interesting for me to look at Russia flying past the window - pine, birch forests, beautiful swamps, villages.
- under the ceiling, there are a sufficient number of electronic boards with information about the speed of the train, the temperature overboard and the next stop. Between Moscow and Nizhny Novgorod, the Lastochka makes three stops - Dzerzhinsk, Kovrov, Vladimir. Parking is also 2 minutes. The maximum speed reached by our train was 155 km/h. Most of the time we were driving at a speed of 140 km/h.
- electrical outlets are also located in the ceiling - above several seats for the entire car. The cable from my tablet would not be enough to plug it in for recharging and somehow use it.
- in Lastochka, toilet facilities are many times larger than in Sapsan. They are adapted for people with disabilities.
- I saw more opportunities to throw out any garbage in the Swallow. Small containers are located at each entrance door of the car.
- it must be admitted that the Swallow has a less smooth ride than the Sapsan. In Swallow we periodically shook and chatted from side to side.

Of course, two trips on the same route are not enough to appreciate high-speed trains. And the overall impression will be formed not only from the technical characteristics, comfort level and ticket price. Neighbors will also play a role here (mostly business people, richly dressed ladies, foreigners rode with us on Sapsan, and grannies with grandfathers in Swallow, people from the former republics of the Soviet Union got hooked in Dzerzhinsk), and the time of day with the weather outside the window (from cloudy We left Moscow for the night looking, but we drove back, watching the beginning of autumn in our beautiful forests and Moscow already met us with the sun) and our own mood with thoughts.

I have long wanted to visit Karelia. I learned that Swallow goes to Petrozavodsk from St. Petersburg, 5 hours on the way. Maybe this is our next trip :)

Where: Jaromez (Czech Republic)

When: 4 days in the second week of August

Ticket price: from 70 euro

Who has performed at the festival before: Amon Amarth, Slayer, Mayhem, Hatebreed, Opeth, Amorphis and many other famous bands and musicians

Buying tickets

The surest way to purchase tickets is to buy them on the website. They will be sent to you electronically and you can print them at home. The earlier you buy your ticket, the better. The most correct decision would be to overflow in October-November.

Later, closer to the fest, you will be asked to order a bracelet to take home to avoid queuing for the fest. Taking into account the work of the valiant Russian Post, this is not worth doing - it has been verified empirically.

You can also purchase one-day tickets at the box office on site. Their cost will be approximately 50 euros.

Road to the festival

It is best to arrive on zero day to get and check in without haste.

You arrive in Prague, but the festival takes place in Jaromiež, so you need to take the 119 bus from the airport, get to the final one, go down to the metro and get to the Hlavní Nádraží station. Rise from the subway and immediately find yourself in the building of the main station. Approach the ticket office, take a “ticket to Jaromezh” and at the same time ask the cashier for “timetable”, because it would be better to get on a direct train to Jaromiezh, otherwise you will have to travel with transfers. The latter is not critical, but still less comfortable. At the same time, do not forget to find out which platform the train leaves from, otherwise you will rush around the station and everything is just ... sorry, miss it.

After two hours on the road, get off in Jaromiezh and go straight for the muzla brothers, of whom there will be a lot on the train, scratch until the fest.

Accommodation at the festival

It is best to live at the fest either in a VIP camping (20 euros for the entire fest) or in a hotel (about 100 euros). There is also free camping, but this is still a pig farm, so it's better not to save money. In VIP camping you will have security, shower, lighting, toilets and wash basins. What is in the hotel - and so it is clear.

But there is no hotel near the fest - the nearest one is 20 minutes by bus. You should not worry, the latter run every 20 minutes round trip.

Actions on Day Zero

If you are in a free camp, you can decompose in any convenient place, and then go to get dressed. And if in a paid one - first get a fest bracelet, then a VIP camp bracelet and go settle in a place.

The bracelets at Brutal Assault have a chip on which you put money to pay for purchases on the festival grounds. You can replenish them in special tents with the inscription "Top Up", which are poked in every corner on the territory of the fest and near it. You can pay in cash in kroons and euros, as well as by card, so there shouldn't be any problems.

Festival area

It's time to talk about the festival itself, and then move on to all sorts of nuances like food and other little things.

So, there are five scenes on Brutal Assault. The two main ones, Sea Shepherd and Jagermeister, stand next to each other and play in turn. The third, slightly smaller, is called MetalGate and is located at the other end of the territory. An even smaller stage is called Oriental, it is located in a small corner of the Josefov fortress, on the territory of which all the action takes place. And the fifth scene is ambient, it is located inside the so-called chill-out zone. The festival also brings to your attention a horror movie theater and a small museum that also hosts Meet & Greet with musicians.

The schedule of performances and autograph sessions, by the way, will be given to you in two copies along with bracelets: in the form of a booklet and in the form of a badge. Wear them however you like.

On the territory of the fest there is a play area with tables for table tennis, while the entrance there is
at extra charge. There isn't much to see outside of the festival. The city is small: a couple of taverns, two supermarkets, an ATM - in general, everything you need is there.

Food and drink

There is a whole street with food for every taste at your service. Vegan cuisine, burgers, all kinds of noodles, shawarma, fish, donuts, ice cream and everything else - and at a very reasonable price.

If you want cheaper, then go outside the gates of the fest and buy food and drinks there at slightly lower prices and for cash. In addition, you can be cheated, so keep your eyes open.

What is a festival without booze? Here are six types of beer, cider, from the strong Jägermeister. On the first day, you will be given a cool plastic glass: every time you come up for a drink with it, they will pour you into a new one, and take the old one away. In case you want to drink and don't have a glass with you, you will have to buy a new one for 50 crowns.

Along with the glass, you will be given a cardboard token. Don't throw it away: after the fest, you can turn in the glass along with the token and get 50 crowns back, although many do not do this and take the glasses with them as souvenirs.

merch

Merch at the festival in bulk. There are three places where you can buy the official merch of the festival. There, in addition to T-shirts and hoodies, you will see bags, windbreakers, rubber boots, shorts, caps, cups, books, CDs, glasses, belts and other merchandise of performing bands. There is also a whole street with merch, where you will find all sorts of things for every taste.

After the festival

The next day after the festival, go the same way to the station. The sooner the better, because after 10 the whole festival will rush to Prague.

You can ask for the train schedule at the Customer Care tent at the fest or (there are several points with Wi-Fi at the fest).

15.08.2017 In order not to be late for long-distance trains and electric trains, you need to know where to go

In connection with the repair of the Moscow railway station, the scheme of passage to the trains has again changed there .. To prevent this from happening to other Nizhny Novgorod residents, the correspondent of the portal site investigated the paths of the passages.

After the site talked about, the head of the Gorky Railway, Anatoly Lesun, personally visited the station with a check. And, apparently, "made a rustle."

The next day, the correspondent of the website portal saw a huge number of employees of the State Railways and the transport police on the territory of the station. Almost everyone readily told how to get to the platforms, ticket offices, and waiting rooms. From the speakers every two minutes there were reports of trains and the possibility of passage to them.

We tell people all the time where to go, although this is not our duty, one of the employees complained. We have other responsibilities.

Tunnel - one!

The most important thing to know. Now the passage to the platforms is closed, both from the tunnel that connects the Moscow Highway with Revolution Square, and from the tunnel from the Kirov side. This is due to the fact that elevator shafts for passengers with limited mobility are being built on the second and third platforms.

Access to all electric trains and trains, except for the Swift, is possible ONLY through the tunnel that goes to the suburban cash desks.

This tunnel is also open from the side of the Moscow highway through the building of the suburban station.

Ticket offices and waiting areas

Two lounges are now open. One is located in the building of suburban cash desks from the side of the Moscow railway station, the second - in the building of the service center. In both, you can wait for both long-distance trains and suburban electric trains. For the summer period, a shed was also built near the Service Center. There are benches here, you can hide from the sun and rain.

Exit to Strizh, three options

Usually the Swift departs from platform 1A, which was specially built for the period of repair. You can get to it through the Service Center, through the checkpoint to the existing tunnel and through the additional terminal, which is attached to the station building from the side of the Tsar's Pavilion.

It should be borne in mind that from the side of the Moscow highway you will have to go through the tunnel, climb up, and go to the platform through the Service Center.

However, as station workers reported, sometimes the departure of the Swift is scheduled from the third platform. You can get on it, respectively, as on all other trains.

How to get to Lastochka

These trains, as usual, depart from the sixth, high platform. You can get to it by going through the tunnel and the checkpoint to the platform. According to a strange logic, passengers boarding the Lastochka have to go through metal detectors and check the contents of their luggage twice - at the entrance to the tunnel or the Suburban Station and in front of the platform itself.

This is what did not give those few minutes to Elena Erysheva to catch the train on that ill-fated day.

I would have been in time if it were not for the terribly slow conveyor belt in these devices, - Elena recalls. - After all the running around the station, there were still a few minutes left. But checking luggage was very delayed.

Help for the disabled. So they say

One of the leaders of the station told how to get help for people with limited mobility.

In the building of the Service Center there is a window in which the assistant to the head of the station is on duty, - an employee of the State Railways told the website correspondent. - In order for our employees to meet and see off a person in a wheelchair or with other difficulties, you need to contact him. We have people who will do it, and vehicles. And after the reconstruction, special elevators will operate on platforms 2 and 3. For them now they are building mines on platforms.

The head of the corporate communications service of the State Railways, Natalia Vorozhtsova, told the site correspondent that after the inspection of the station, the management agreed that informing passengers was not fully organized.

She said that in the near future additional information boards will be placed at the station and around it. And she even promised that arrows would be drawn on the pavement from all public transport stops indicating routes to different trains.

Text: Tatyana Kuznetsova
Photo: Tatyana Kuznetsova, Yandex map fragment
Infographics: Evgenia Bikunova

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By the way, this is how my friend met his future wife. He was at work, the neighbors called him - you have a cat walking along the ledge. He hands to feet, and run. Runs, and at this time just two girls bought a huge watermelon. Bought, and carry it together in a package. Barely a rod, a very heavy watermelon. Meanwhile, a friend, with a cat on the ledge, rushes past, with his head up, trying to see on the scoreboard from which platform his nearest train leaves. And he decided to slip between these girls. He intuitively calculated that he had enough clearance. He even said "I'm sorry" on the run, in case someone was accidentally hurt. And he just did not notice the watermelon.

The watermelon exploded. The explosion was so powerful that it splashed seeds and pulp over the entire area of ​​the three stations, and the club of railway workers up to the roof. That's how big the watermelon was. Of course, the friend immediately began to fussily and humiliatingly apologize, offering to immediately compensate for the cost of the watermelon. To which the girlfriends, with tears in their eyes, answer him.
- Yes, what is the cost? Do you know how hard we pierced it!?
Buddy says:
- Girls, cute! I'll buy the world's largest watermelon and bring it to you wherever you say. But I'm in a hurry right now! I have a cat on the ledge!

Oh! they exclaimed. - The cat is on the ledge! And what floor?
- Ninth!!
- Oyoyo! Dear mothers! What are you standing for? Run faster!
- A watermelon?
- To hell with him, with a watermelon!

These were such beautiful, sensitive girls. They even had tears of resentment for the watermelon immediately dried up, and concern for the fate of the cat appeared on their faces. A friend slipped them a business card in a hurry, because they categorically refused to take money, and rushed off to catch a cat falling from the ledge.

The cat was at home. He walked to his heart's content, keeping casual bystanders in suspense with his dangerous behavior, and returned as if nothing had happened. Well, of course, his friend immediately hit him in the face, calmed down, and remembered the watermelon. About watermelon, and about girls, and he felt embarrassed. Because he didn't even ask for a phone number. So he sits, upset, and then the bell rings.
- Hello, hello! It's us who have watermelon today...
He screams like:
- Yes Yes Yes! It's great that you called! I sit and think about you! I'm so embarrassed! Tell me more, where can I bring a watermelon?!
To him in reply:
- Was this watermelon given to you!? What are you up to - watermelon, watermelon! To hell with that watermelon! Tell me more - what about the cat? Is the cat alive? We are very worried!

Assuring that everything was in order with the cat, he lured the address out of them by means of threats and blackmail, and went to buy a watermelon. Just hung up, - another call. The same voice, insinuatingly.
Hello, sorry, it's me again. When you go, please don't forget to check the windows. You are welcome!
He bought a shorter watermelon, the largest one, then more champagne, two bouquets, and on the way he decided that he would probably marry one of them. They made such a pleasant impression on him with their concern for the cat, and in general.

The friends were mother and daughter. Moreover, curiously, the age difference between them and him turned out to be exactly the same, with each nine years. Only in different directions.
Yes, they are just clones. I still confuse them over the phone.
So he got married. On the one that is the daughter. Although he says that he could on the one that is mom. Basically.
Now, for every anniversary of their acquaintance, they buy the largest watermelon. Tradition.
And on the windows they have such special anti-cat nets.
To avoid.

An online scoreboard appeared on the BelZhD website. It contains information from the Minsk-Passenger station about arriving and departing trains, as well as on which track and which platform to look for them. The service is currently in test mode.

The scoreboard in the waiting room of the Minsk-Passenger station. The picture is used as an illustration. Photo: Dmitry Brushko. TUT.BY

The new service can be found on the BelZhD website. In fact, this is an online version of the information that is displayed on the scoreboard in the halls of the central railway station. The online scoreboard shows the arrival and departure of international trains, long-distance trains within the country and ordinary electric trains.

The service helps, without entering the station, to find out from which track and platform the train departs.

On the online scoreboard of the railway, unlike the airport one, there is no line that would display the status: it is not clear whether the train has already left or is delayed, whether the boarding is in progress. This moment also confuses: the train should have already left according to the schedule, but it is displayed on the scoreboard for several minutes, so it is not clear whether it has left or is still standing on the platform.

This is how the online scoreboard looks on the smartphone screen

In mobile browsers with traffic compression, the scoreboard is not displayed, like other BelZhD services. If you do not have a smartphone, there is no way to view the scoreboard from your phone. For comparison: the online scoreboard of the National Airport is also displayed on simple phones.

There is a caveat on the site: the service is still being tested. Comments and suggestions can be sent by message through a special form.