How I Lost My Way in the Metro in Moscow: A Memorable Experience
However, upon my initial arrival in Moscow as an international student at HSE University, I thought that I was going to be surprised in many aspects: the weather, the language, academic culture, and the number of people in the city. What I did not expect was that one of the biggest adventures during my initial months of stay in this country was going to be experienced in the underground, in the legendary tunnels of the Moscow Metro.
I had heard of the metro before visiting Russia and I was already aware of the fact that it was known to be very architecturally designed, decorated with chandelier and unimaginable punctuality. However, reading it and getting to experience it personally were two completely different things. The metro turned out to be more than just a mode of transport to me; it became the museum, a sightseeing travel spot and surprisingly, the scene of one of my best memories in Moscow.
A System Steeped in History
The Moscow Metro had established its image long before I entered its marble halls and it was already legendary on the global scale. The system opened in 1935 with a single line and thirteen stations, not only was it meant to address the transport demands of the city but was also meant to demonstrate the grandeur and ideology of the soviet era. Lot of stations were constructed as palaces of people in mosaics, sculpture, stained glass and lavish lighting in references to classic art, Russian folklore and socialist realism.
The network has grown quickly over the decades, enduring turbulent periods in history, such as the Second World War where some of the stations were bomb shelters to the period of high urbanization towards the end of the 20th and the beginning of 21st centuries. The Moscow Metro is now one of the busiest and fastest metro systems in the world with over 270 stations and several interrelated lines that create a lively system of circulatory systems underneath the city.
I was used to seeing pictures but I was unprepared to the asthma-inducing truth. Each station was like a cultural time capsule and would not keep secrets. And that thought of just looking a bit is what cost me a lost afternoon one snowy afternoon, an experience that turned out to be an adventure of unanticipated experience.
The New Start of the Adventure
This was my second month in HSE Moscow, and my schedule was slowly becoming more familiar and my mastery of navigation increased. I was already proficient in paths around my dormitory, my university, and several of my favorites around grocery stores. That is why, when one of my classmates informed me that one cafe has been opened recently, in the neighborhood of Arbatskaya, I resolved that I was now willing to go out on my own.
The day was undoubtedly of Moscow winter, containing a blend of wind and snowflakes which swept my face like powdered ice. Getting into the metro was like moving into a different world: pleasant, sunny, crowded, and vibrating with traffic. I was so self-assured in swiping my Troika card, that I now understand I was too young and naive to make that judgment.
I got into the escalator down the assumption that I would just follow the signs. However the Moscow Metro being all beautiful can be daunting to the first time visitor particularly when everything is speeding up and the station names keep disappearing when you are most in need of them.
The Instant I Knew I was Lost
The first error that I made was not to check the direction of the train again. I got on the first coming, thinking that it was going to the center of the city. After five stations, I had begun to realize that the names were becoming unknown, totally unknown. This was followed by my second error I did not get off at once, instead I persuaded myself that maybe I had forgotten the path.
The next thing I knew, I was lost, by the time I got out, at a station of which I had never heard. Lost, totally, and without any hesitation.
Oddly enough, when I felt panic, I felt a thrill. I had found myself in a gorgeous station with large ceilings, columns of classical design and marble sofas which seemed unlikely to belong to a transit station or any waiting room. I recall that I had emotions of embarrassment and excitement. I was an international student of HSE, having two mobile applications and a sense of adventure and being in the center of one of the most iconic metro systems in the world, having no clue of where I was.
Finding Beauty in the Bamboozle
Having spent several minutes in orientation, and a deep breath, I understood that it was not as scary as it could be to be lost in the Moscow Metro. In comparison to other transportation systems that I had ever known, this one had rhythm and order that made it quite navigable even to a person who spoke practically no Russian by that time.
I chose not to see the situation as a problem but as an adventure to be had. I caught the following train, and was in no haste to get back on the way I started, but just to see where it would lead me. Each station was a new part in a story that I had by chance stumbled into.
I recall my amazement at the variety of styles of buildings: the grandeur of Soviet buildings of Komsomolskaya with its golden mosaics of military heroes; the cool almost futuristic environment of the stations on the newer lines; the stained-glass charm of Novoslobodskaya; and the grace of arches of Mayakovskaya, a masterpiece of the Art Deco style that I was only familiar with out of books.
I ceased to be a simple traveler, I became a tourist, an explorer, an admirer of art who was strolling in an underground gallery.
Why the Metro is more a Living Museum
The more I had penetrated into the network the more I felt why the Moscow Metro is said not to be a mode of transport but an experience. Most of the stations were constructed by renowned architects and artists with themes that included victory in war to success in the fields of science, culture, and sports. Passing by them was like turning the pages of the history of Russia.
The aspect that impressed me the most was the deliberate artistic concept: the idea that ordinary citizens had the right to beauty in the streets and that architecture could make people proud in their community. Agriculture and industry in the form of mosaics were present in some of the stations, and others had sculptures to signify friendliness between peoples. The artists had attempted to infuse hope, strength, and progress in the walls themselves as it were.
Being an international student, it was a motivating experience to observe such design philosophy. It helped me think about the emotional connection with a city that is influenced by the nature of the public spaces. The metro of Moscow did not only just move people, but it defined their everyday life in a beautiful and symbolic way.
Finding My Way Back
Almost one hour of wandering around stations, taking pictures, and reading historical plaques made me think that it was the time to find the way back. Luckily, the Circle Line (the so-called brown line) is one of the most desirable aspects of the Moscow Metro and serves as a guide of people who have got lost. When you locate it, it is much easier to go back to the places that are familiar to you.
The use of a map on my phone and some kind gestures of my fellow passengers helped me find my way back to the station I was planning to visit. By the time I caught a glimpse of the world outside, at the place of Arbatskaya, I had the peculiar feeling of someone who had just finished a spontaneous mini-adventure under the city.
When I related to my friend the story of what happened to me, she laughed, but then she said that when coming to a new place many newcomers lose their way at least once. It is something of a rite of passage, so I joked. I realized she was right. The subsequent loss made me rely on myself, learn the ropes fast and, most of all, have fun with the city that I would never have had otherwise provided that nothing was out of order.
What I Learned During the Experience
Now, I can see the reason why this day has become so clear in my mind. It was the time when I realized that Moscow had turned into a large and threatening metropolis I could relate with, on a personal and profound level.
The experience taught me a number of things:
- It is in making a mistake that exploration usually starts.
- Had I not taken the wrong train, I would never have gotten the opportunity to see some of the most spectacular metro stations along the same line.
- Where you least want it, beauty is found.
- An art museum, a cultural archive and a source of inspiration are also possible transportation systems.
- Losing oneself is a catalyst to confidence.
One day, I had to get to the metro on my own due to an accident, and it helped me feel more competent and self-reliant as an international student who had to get used to a new city. Moscow rewards curiosity. It is a city that is full of meaning, history, stories- and at times all you need is the strength to venture out of your comfort zone.
An Adventure That Passed into Memory
Nowadays, I am much more familiar with the metro lines. I am always able to change the lines, use the quickest routes and even suggest newcomer foreigners that come to HSE the stations. However, a part of me is missing the innocence and adventure of that initial adventure - the sensation of entering into a world that was all at once awe-inspiring and supremely beautiful.
Whenever I pass through the same station where I originally felt lost, I smile to me. It is a reminder to me that the best memories are developed sometimes not when we have the ideal plans but instead when we give ourselves the opportunity to go with the flow.
Getting lost at the Moscow Metro was not only a mistake in terms of navigation, but a transition. It caused me to fall in love with the city, its culture and its history in the least expected way. That sense of belonging is invaluable to an international student who is living so far away. And it started all the day when I caught the wrong train.
Shared by
Qanita Masood
