THE BEST WAY TO MOSCOW
From LAX, Aeroflot offers nonstop service to Moscow, and KLM, Lufthansa, Air France, Delta, Swiss, Turkish and British offer connecting service (change of planes). Restricted round-trip fares range from $965 to $1,655, including fees and taxes.
To arrange my stay and guide, I used tour operator Distant Horizons, 350 Elm Ave., Long Beach; (562) 983-8828, http://www.distant-horizons.com.
Hotel Metropol, 2 Teatralny Proezd, Moscow; 011-7-499-501-7800, http://www.metropol-moscow.ru. Doubles from about $250 a night.
Café Pushkin, 26-A Tverskoi Bulvar, Moscow; 011-7-495-739-0033, http://www.cafe-pushkin.ru/en/. "Library" area main dishes about $15-$80.
Produkti Cafe & Bar, 2C1 Bersenevskiy Pereulok, Moscow; 011-7- 903-789-3474. No website. Meals $10-$19.
State Tretyakov Gallery, 10 Lavrushinsky Lane, Moscow; http://www.tretyakovgallery.ru/en. Adult admission about $15.
TO LEARN MORE
Consulate General of Russia, San Francisco, http://www.consulrussia.org/eng/index.html
Russian National Group, New York, http://www.RussiaTravel.com