Hi, I'm Rauf Aliev.

Made it from Bolshoy to Tsaritsyno. And it’s incredibly cool here. My phone is full of videos. Just wondering how I’ll manage to run in the morning after 30 km on the bike… 🙂

The light festival is in full swing. I seem to be the only one here with a bike. Stopped by on my way to Tsaritsyno. Something’s going on there too.

Kolomna. Golutvin Station. Just now. A disabled person came to buy a train ticket. The station turned out to be not adapted for disabled people. Listen to the station staff’s reasoning. Very telling.

Meanwhile, I am buying a ticket for a bicycle. I waited in line at the first window. Directed to the second one, they have issues with card acceptance. Waited in a long line at the second. They refused. Directed me to a machine. It barely worked, but sold it.

And I feel sorry for the man. We helped him to get up, of course. He has a rather heavy electric wheelchair. It took four people. The rails next to him were too wide.

Received my race number for the Moscow marathon, a 10km race this Sunday.

After standing in a long line, they refused to accept card payment because it was international, and they have a block on such. I scooped up all the cash from my wallet, and it was just enough with 15 euros tucked away in a corner from a trip to Belgium. Fortunately, a kind soul in line bought the euros from me, and voila, mission completed. Well, for now, just the first step – the main challenge is on Sunday.

In the Moscow marathon packet along with the number was a can of non-alcoholic beer.

Sports fair at the exit from registration for the Moscow Marathon. Heineken stand. Now they are positioning non-alcoholic beer almost as a sports drink) grabbed a couple of mugs

It’s very noticeable in Moscow that people who are strangers or barely acquainted don’t really greet each other. For example, during a jog in the USA or Europe, it’s quite rare that a fellow jogger won’t throw you a casual hello. And there’s no need to even mention the neighbors. In Moscow, it’s quite the opposite: it’s rare for someone to greet you. Also, there’s a suspicion that if you do something wrong, here they prefer to make remarks over asking you not to do something. I never really noticed it before.

This is what offline bugs look like. And all because they couldn’t find a decent Solution Architect and QA!

It feels strange to be out in the unpleasant rain, under a grey sky, at the intersection of Veselaya and Solnechnaya streets

10 km training

This is how I’ve been getting around Moscow these days. It’s a ripstik (aka waveboard aka rollersurf aka two-wheeled skateboard). Comparing it to a longboard, which I used for the same purposes before.

1) it doesn’t fly under the wheels of cars and feet of pedestrians in case you lose control. It immediately falls on its side and stops. This is a huge plus in the city.

2) you can ride it without jumping off, accelerating and slightly braking, if the road allows.

3) you can climb up small hills on it, again without jumping off. But that’s a physical effort, and a good chance to end up quite sweaty at your destination.

4) it’s more convenient to carry.

As for the downsides: on narrow paths, you can only brake to a complete stop. Slowing down is not easy if there’s no space to curve. And it’s slightly harder to learn than on a longboard.

Actually, I initially packed it in a suitcase for my daughter in the USA, but how could I not use it when there’s a chance to move faster.