Okay. I will play along. You don't need one in Moscow. The places you will go will have enough expats that you will not need to know anything outside of the metro. In the metro just tell the old lady "adeen bilyet" and hold a finger up. That is about the only time you will need to know any Russian. Maybe a few Salams or Allah Akbars. Moscow is basically between 15% to 20% Islamic.
Moscow is expensive and hard to meet girls. So don't even plan on it in 2011. You have to get beyond the Ring. That is basically a day trip. Most girls struggle with English as well.
Do learn the cyrillic alphabet. Takes 30 minutes. Most menu items are simply Western words in cyrillic print.
Word of warning. Moscow is EXPENSIVE. Too expensive. It makes Manhattan look like trash. Plus, it is too diverse. If you want pretty girls get outside of the ring. The center of Moscow is filled with every ethnic group that speaks Russian. That is basically every look you see on this planet save for black people. Black people are still very rare. However, the Soviet Union had 13 time zones and included quite a diverse group of people. The center seems to attract the wealthiest sectors of the different ethnic groups.
Do try the McDonalds across from Pushkin Square. Supposedly the busiest on earth. Get a drink at the Bosco Bar type of place at Red Square if you can. In May you can literally ON Red Square and enjoy a $15 drink or a $12 latte. Worth it. Across from Lenin's Tomb. Also try the Starlite Diner. Every expat has eaten there.
Evropeisky Mall next to Kievskaya Metro is a nice mall. Filled with a lot of Caucasian people (those from Southern Russia). Nightlife is VERY expensive. Rai is still hot. Shopping is a joke. Tons of great high-end brands for 5 times what you can find them in NYC. Problem is that Moscow has better higher-end shopping these days than NYC.
If you plan on getting a taxi from the airport get ready to spend well over $100. Deal with it. It is Moscow. If you are flying from America try flying out of Houston with Singapore Airlines.
The Great Ethnic Riots in December.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rfRKTZpBcDE&feature=related
What they call Caucasians or Kavkaz in Russian. Don't ask how they get those types of vehicles at that age or why they stop in the middle of one of the world's busier streets and start to dance. Actually, they were heading for a fight. Long story. Russia is Russia. People in the West will never get it.
