Have you ever been to Belarus?

November 14, 2005 10:44 AM

Have you ever been to Belarus?

I'm young, bored, reckless, and I really like Central Europe. So I'm thinking about going to Belarus for a while before I head elsewhere on the continent. Can anyone share their Belarussian experiences and cautionary tales? Am I going to get rolled as soon as I step out of the airport?

posted by cmonkey to travel & transportation (14 comments total)

Why Belarus? If you're looking for a reasonable facsimile of the Soviet Union, it's great. I have been there, and it's light years behind Poland, Lithuania, Estonia, Latvia, Ukraine, Russia Romania, just about everyone in the region. Also, it is NOT Central Europe. Not even close. It is Russia. I would advise skipping it for the next few decades unless you have pressing business there. There's really not much to see or do, it's quite depressing, it's a de facto totalitarian police state, and travel is complicated and unpleasant. No offense to the Belarussian people, with whom I share a certain kinship, and are wonderful in their own right. Are there specific things you want to know?
posted by loquax at 11:05 AM on November 14, 2005

I've never been to Belarus, but I've spent some time in Moldova, a similarly poor Central/Eastern European (and former USSR) country. Make sure you have your papers in order. That means reviewing all requirements for non-Russian Federation and non-Belarussian citizens to be in that country. You will probably have to register at the police station nearest where you'll be staying (or the hotel might do this for you) and keep your passport on you at all times. You will most likely need a visa. Learn the US Embassy's phone number by heart and consider getting a cell phone (at least one that has coverage across the East like Voxtel) if you plan to travel outside of the capital.

Do you speak Russian or Belarusian? If not, you might have difficulty getting too far outside of Minsk. Learn to read the Cyrillic Alphabet, at least. Also make sure to read up on Lukashenko and the political situation. I'm sure certain things will be cheaper (some foods, taxi/bus/tram transit) and others will be more expensive (electronics, some western goods, etc).

From my most recent experience in a post-Soviet airport: Moldovans and other CIS citizens were put into one line at immigration and EU/US citizens were put into another. The EU/US line took much longer and each person waited at least 5 min to have their Passport examined. Once you leave the immigration area you enter customs, where they scan your luggage, etc and ask you about certain items--especially laptop computers and camera equipment, because they fear that you'll sell them in Moldovan markets. After that you can hail a taxi or take a "maxi-taxi" which is a VW or Benz minivan into the city.
posted by vkxmai at 11:09 AM on November 14, 2005

Maybe that was a little too strong - definitely go if you want to go, I'm sure you will be safe enough, just make sure you understand that it's quite different from most of the other former communist countries that are in the process of integrating with Europe.
posted by loquax at 11:12 AM on November 14, 2005

No, but for every neigbouring country the In Your Pocket guides are essential. Their Belarus guide should be no different. At one point Minsk was supposed to have Europe's best Techno scene, which just goes to show ...
posted by grahamwell at 11:16 AM on November 14, 2005

In response to loquax, I agree in part. If you want to see former Soviet/communist countries but wish to avoid the hassle of a repressive, near-totalitarian state, I would recommend Russia (St. Petersburg and/or Moscow), Latvia, Estonia, Romania, Moldova or Ukraine.

For added adventure, try visiting non-EU countries as a rule.
posted by vkxmai at 11:18 AM on November 14, 2005

I would recommend Russia (St. Petersburg and/or Moscow), Latvia, Estonia, Romania, Moldova or Ukraine.

I haven't been to Russia or Ukraine, but I've been to the others (and Poland, Hungary, Czech Republic, Serbia, Croatia, and Bulgaria) and had a much better (and easier) time than I did in Belarus. Granted I speak Romanian so that makes a difference, but Romania is probably at least 10-20 years ahead of Belarus socially, politically and economically, just as a measuring stick. Also, I stayed with family in Belarus, but I found that there was very little infrastructure in the way of accommodating tourists. And yikes, check out this yahoo review of tourism prospects there:

Progress in Belarus has been sluggish compared with other independent nations of the former Soviet Union. Travel to the country is difficult, inexpensive Soviet-style hotels are the typical accommodations and visitors are rewarded by an utter dearth of things to see and do. Invasions destroyed most of Belarus' historic structures, and rapid industrialization robbed it of most of its charm. The few tourist attractions that remain are in towns that somehow managed to maintain the integrity of their old structures. For the most part, better examples of the various architectural styles can be found elsewhere.

Nevertheless, there are some reasons to visit Belarus. Its countryside and wildlife are highly prized, and areas of special interest and beauty can be found if you know where to look.

Still, not to discourage you (honestly!). I'd go again. It is very different, and as vkxmai says, it's definitely adventurous.
posted by loquax at 11:31 AM on November 14, 2005

Yes, I know that it's an economically depressed, totalitarian state (I believe The Guardian called Lukashenko "Europe's last remaining dictator"), but I'd like to understand what a country in that position is like, first hand. I don't generally do "touristy" things; I tend to walk everywhere, drink beer in bars along the way, and talk to the locals.

So, are the Belarusians friendly? Do they welcome foreigners or shun them? Will the cops be stopping me regularly to demand bribes?
posted by cmonkey at 12:00 PM on November 14, 2005

Will the cops be stopping me regularly to demand bribes?>/i>

If it's any comparison, I was stopped five times when I was in Moldova on the street to show my papers. I was dressed in black slacks, black shoes and a wool coat with a hat I bought in the main market there. Depsite all of my attempts not to look like an Ami, I was still spotted relatively quickly. I never bribed the police, I just called the US Embassy before I went any further than giving them my passport to examine, in case they tried to arrest me.
posted by vkxmai at 12:10 PM on November 14, 2005

So, are the Belarusians friendly? Do they welcome foreigners or shun them? Will the cops be stopping me regularly to demand bribes?

Are you male or female? Will you be travelling alone? Will you be travelling with someone who speaks Russian/Belorussian?

I never had any problems with the police, but I was with people who knew their way around and could speak the language. You will be scammed, but likely not robbed. Everyone will overcharge you, try to trick you, try to make you buy things, especially anywhere near hotels. Exploiting unknowing foreigners is big business. Watch the taxis especially. The police is ubiquitous, so robbery wouldn't be a big concern for me, but drunken brawling is. I would avoid walking into unknown bars at night, assuming you can find any, as most are hidden away and don't look like they're actually trying to entice people in.

I'd say that they're surprised by foreigners more than anything else, especially those that are there for pleasure. Business traffic, sure, but random guests they don't see too often, especially from North America. I'd say there are two types of people (and this goes for a lot of the region if you ask me), those that are very welcoming, very excited to talk, very curious and generally very pleasant, and those that only care about you in so far as your lack of knowledge of the language irritates them. I'd say it's probably 90:10 in favour of the latter. Where else have you been in Europe? Perhaps something is comparable. I'd say they're as friendly as anyone, but have far less invested in catering to tourists, so it's harder to be exposed to it, if that makes sense. Maybe I can compare it to a small, non-touristy town in Germany or something, where they don't get tourists, and don't particularly care if you are a tourist, unless you get in their way. Well, in some respects anyways.

Bribing cops is somewhat an overstated concern. The most common situations it occurs in is traffic stops and border issues. If you're not planning on driving, and you have your paperwork in perfect order, you shouldn't have problems. If you do have to bribe them, it's not really a big deal. If you stay in a hotel, you can always sort of ask them how to do it, or if it's a concern (in a non-insulting way of course). Certainly everyone there has paid off the cops at one time or another. Just pay their "fine" and be on your way. Make sure you don't carry a lot of money on you (but not too little either), and avoid carrying US or EU currency.
posted by loquax at 1:06 PM on November 14, 2005

Oh and good luck talking politics. No way. My family would barely discuss things with me except in the most general sort of way. Assuming you can find Belorussian English speakers, I doubt that they would be willing to engage a foreigner they just met in a political discussion. They may not be willing to talk to you at all about any subject other than the weather and positive things about Belarus. It's definitely not a free country, and who overhears you is a concern (to some extent, on certain subjects). Perhaps not as bad as it used to be, but certainly along the lines of Prague post-68 in my opinion, perhaps it's not the same everywhere. And assume your hotel phone line is bugged (although it probably isn't, though only from lack of funds). Your letters may be read, and long distance calls may be monitored. Seriously, for what it matters to you (which is probably not a lot). If I remember correctly, there was very little outside media, mostly Russian programming, and what did come in was very strictly controlled. This was a few years ago though. People know vaguely that there's an outside world that's doing better than they are, but it's still too remote for most to really care. Most people there have never left their hometown, let alone the country. They're not alone into Europe, even if they had the money to go, for the most part. If they go anywhere, it's to the baltic states, or to Russia. People are also generally very poor by Western standards. Many survive on substinence farming. The average income is maybe about 100 US per month. Many survive on pensions of less that 50 US a month. There are definitely two price schedules, one for foreigners and one for Belorussians. Even the friendliest Belorussian may be looking for a smallish handout, and I wouldn't say it's rude to offer a few dollars (but not too much) for help that's given to you. Maybe not for simple directions, but if someone guides you right to where you're going, 5 bucks or so is probably appropriate, if not too much. But then again, don't be too insistent, or overpay. Also be careful of tipping. Tipping is not really the custom there, but they'll expect it of you, to an extent, assuming they're not already overcharging you. Do not overtip, even though you'll be tempted to. 10% is more than any self-respecting Belorussian would ever give. Tip cabs only the change. If you've been elsewhere in Eastern Europe (Poland, Romania, Bulgaria) it's not too different in terms of custom and the general attitude of the people, but for the extent of the poverty and the lack of political freedom.
posted by loquax at 1:56 PM on November 14, 2005

Try the Caucasus or Central Asia - cheaper and probably even more of an adventure!
posted by k8t at 2:08 PM on November 14, 2005

Are you male or female? Will you be travelling alone? Will you be travelling with someone who speaks Russian/Belorussian?

I'm male, I travel alone and I don't speak Russian yet (although it's on my list of languages to learn). I definitely don't talk politics unless it's brought up by someone else, and even then I generally just say "Yeah, Bush sucks and unfortunately, there's not much I can do about it. So, let's talk about [popular regional sport or activity]...".

The tipping aspect I didn't think of, I tend to overtip wherever I go since I can never remember which countries expect it, which ones appreciate it, and which countries find it a degrading practice.

Thanks, this has been helpful!
posted by cmonkey at 2:14 PM on November 14, 2005

"Yeah, Bush sucks and unfortunately, there's not much I can do about it. So, let's talk about [popular regional sport or activity]...".

International politics is probably safer than regional politics. Soccer and that sort of thing is fine, they're very proud of their wildlife too. You will win friends asking about bird sanctuaries and hunting and the woods and that sort of thing. You will likely not win friends asking too many questions about living conditions, local politics, the police, that sort of thing. What I always have problems with in that region are the questions they ask about my living conditions, how much I pay for housing, food, clothes, my income, how much the plane ticket was, that sort of thing. Many people don't get that currency conversion makes a lot of it irrelevant, and they don't grasp that making 20 times the average salary there hardly makes you a king among men in the US. It can be very touchy. I wouldn't out and out lie, just stress that you're not rich, and you live very much like they do, and that many problems are common between the two countries. Good luck convincing them that there's such a thing as homeless people, let alone that there are probably more in the average American city than there are in Minsk.

Also, keep in mind that while ostensibly, the country tilts politically towards Russia, there is little love lost between the two people. Belorussians resent the influence and control Russians had over the country during Soviet rule, and there are (some) tensions between ethnic Belorussians and ethnic Russians. Be careful how you address people, or assuming that a given person belongs to either group.
posted by loquax at 2:37 PM on November 14, 2005

Oh, and have fun!
posted by loquax at 2:37 PM on November 14, 2005