Russia World Cup 2018: Saransk
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The journey to Saransk was just 10 hours and there were only two of us in the compartment. So it was a peaceful journey. We arrived in Saransk at noon. You could tell it is getting to the end of my stay here as I found my accommodation within five minutes of leaving the station. Once again I went through all the formalities of registering, but it was completed in record time.I spoke to the receptionist briefly about the process. She laughed as she ridiculed the fact that as well as taking a copy of all the documents she also had to record the occupation of all the guests. She admitted that in her rush to complete the formalities she occasionally forgot to ask. But if she did not put anything down she would be in trouble. (She jokingly said "They will kill me!"). So she would put the guest down as a stripper, gynaecologist, or an exorcist. No one had ever come back to her.
The town centre was closed to traffic and a party atmosphere was present all day as the locals watched the antics of the Panama and Tunisia fans.
After the match I spoke to the receptionist again and found that before the World Cup 90% of the residents of Saransk thought that hosting the World Cup was a bad idea. They were worried about the influx of foreigners and their behaviour and that there be lots of drunk people that they were meant to be nice to. Also the city centre roads would be closed off.
Now she told me 99% of the residents thought the World Cup was a success.
Unfortunately once the football fans checked out she had no more bookings.
Saransk to Kazan
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