New York to Moscow - Goodbye PhD

Finally have found a trusted diary. Have seen many over the past 3 days of visiting this impressive city but my cheapness kept me from buying any of the leather bound diaries I found. Since we leave tonight at 23:45 on the Rossiya "002MA ФИРМ СКОРЪIЙ". These tickets had been bought from the Russian train website "www.rzd.ru" at 2AM in NYC about 1 week prior. The ordeal lasted >2 hours and consisted of a combination of google translate and a website created by an Italian traveller written in a 10 year old's English. Seems it was actually successful since showing the printed confirmation sheet received approving nods from the young lady working at the desk. Just received last tidbits of how to get to the train station by metro with map and Russian stations written on my bright white soon to be lost sheet of paper. I am told that a local would need maximum 1 hour to get there but that we, as tourists, should leave at least 2 hours prior to our train's departure. These final preparations reminds me of the first hours upon arriving in MOscow just 72 hours ago. After a nearly sleepless 8.5 hour flight on thin orange seats (same exact color as our ex couches in NYC... how sad) in АЗРОФЛОТ, we go through customs and receive our OK with barely a smil.
Actually, my lovely wife received a big smile from the tall blonde girl as she practiced pronouncing her name... maybe she had never seen a passport from Brazil... a BRIC sister of sorts. As I show my US passport, old cold-ar hate or just the normal Russian temperament seeps into the ladies face and I enter the giant red bear without fanfare. 1st order of business: obtain money (roubles or rubles depending on your preference). Easily done at bilingual ATM. Next, frind train into downtown Moscow. Karol's fear of being "lost", another way of saying not knowing which spot on a map we are, ignites. Follwoing signs that clearly mark "Train to Moscow" does not serve as a reliable guide in her eyes. We must absolutely ask someone how to get there. Finally on train (350 roubles/person) that seems as modern as any Swiss train with the only difference being the scenes that unfold through the windows. This train puts any type of of LIRR (long island rail road for the non-new yorkers) to shame. Metro stations are cleaner than NYC but all signs are currently incomprehensible to us. A someber but helpful man in an Armani suit gives us a hand and we finally exit the station. We are next to the Kremlin but absolutely lost with a vague notion that our hostel is northeast of here. We have the address but absolutely no map (woops). 2 police officers and 5 people later, no luck. The street doesn't exist, at least in Karoline's mind. Finally a yound looking student with perfect English pops out an iPad and shows us exactly how to get there. He even buys us a map and wishes us good luck. The next 3 days are spent walking around beautiful Moscow trying to minimize costs! Tretyakov gallery, the most famous collection of Russian art in the world, was 450 roubles for adults, but only 300 for students. Of course we did not go! Last evening spent in hostel included pasta with pesto + dried tomato sauce + vodka shots with 11 people representing 13 countries. Metro ride to train station (now as easy as NYC subway) and 1 hour to find correct train. Policemen stand in groups talking to each and smoking barely looking at you if you dare to "ask" a question. We make our beds on the train and Karol implores me to get water... we'll see with time. Good night.