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Hi,

inloft1_sm.jpg (18472 bytes)We are Patrick and Sabine from Roelofarendsveen, Holland (near Amsterdam). With a years savings we quit our jobs and went on an overland tour to and through Asia. While searching for accommodation in Moscow we came across Uncle Pasha’s site www.unclepasha.com . He keeps a list of $40-70/night units, but when we asked for something real cheap and central, he offered us a loft in his apartment right near the Kremlin for only $25 a day. Expecting something rather awful we’ve nevertheless been seduced into accepting his offer because of its price. With the next cheapest alternative being the youth hostel at $18 per person per night in a dorm (thus making it $36 for the two of us) we decided to take a chance.

And now we’re here, crawling up a ladder into this 1.5 meter high space with enough room to lie down and to spread out the contents of our backpack but without the possibility to stand up-right, unless you’re a dwarf. Pasha is downstairs, working on his laptop and, judging from his tone of his voice, giving someone a hard time over the phone. His wife Olesya is in the other room with the baby. And we are here too, trying not to be in the way while we search for food (not finding much more than a few crackers), make tea, and do our laundry. This is Pasha and Olesya’s home office, so we even can use the Internet and other office facilities whenever Pasha and Olesya are not using them.

So, if you travel on a budget, want to have some relaxing days in Moscow, and don’t mind an obnoxious bearded fellow trying to push-sell you his "misery travel"  concept or entice you to his "Moscow-the-ugly" tours that include rat-watching, consider staying with Uncle Pasha, Olesya (who acts as a nice counter-balance), and their surprisingly quiet kid Maria (aka Masha, Marusya etc.).

Given the price, location, facilities and their laissez-faire style, this offer is hard to beat no matter what.

Patrick and Sabine

Read about our East Europe, Russia, and Asia trip at wereldreis.zondervleugels.nl (in Dutch with English summaries)