Let's go shopping!

When coming to a foreign country, one usually worries about where I can buy all the necessary things. Coming to Petrozavodsk one shouldn’t worry, because we have a huge amount of shops and supermarkets of all kinds. The local dwellers are even irritated being toughly surrounded by shops. They even wanted to rename Petrozavodsk to Petromagazinsk (the word “magazine” means a shop in Russian).  It’s a true story!

People from abroad usually doubt whether they can pay by card or in Euros in Russia. Unfortunately, one can pay by cash only in Rubles, but there are a lot of banks with currency exchange, and there are exchange terminals in big hotels like «Onego Palace» and «Karelia», which are situated on both sides of the Onego Lake embankment. All the supermarkets are equipped with a slot for international bank cards like Visa and Mastercard.

There are some most beloved supermarkets among the locals in our town:

·         Sigma (Сигма)

This is a big supermarket, situated on Lesnoy Avenue, 47. It works round the clock, 7 days a week.  One can buy local brand food, such as Karelian salted trout, Karelian Balm, as well as common Russian food like baranki, and also European brand food. There is a department of dishes cooked by Sigma chiefs.  In Sigma you can also buy clothes, footwear, tableware, etc.

A cozy café is open for shoppers and also many people like to celebrate wedding here or organize a birthday party. This supermarket provides kid’s indoor playground for free, so that parents could easily make all the purchases while children are having fun under a special nanny’s  supervision.

·         Maksi (Макси)

This is a brand new supermarket on our main street Lenin Avenue, 14. It’s a huge and beautiful supermarket with an underground parking, a cinema, an entertaining centre with game-playing machines. Many international brands can be bought here, e.g. Mexx, ADILISIK and many others. There is a huge sport department and shops for kids full of toys. There are a lot of different fast-food shops and coffee shops and a restaurant. One can buy food on the first floor in a Sigma food department.

·         Tetris (Тетрис)

This supermarket is visible from afar. Its colors are very bright. No one can omit noticing it on Meretskov street, 11. It also has a cinema and cafes and entertaining centre with game slots. Many fashionable clothes that you could notice on local people are from Tetris. It has a food department but not as much as in Maksi.

·         Lenta (Лента)

This is our cheapest supermarket, where one can buy food and clothes. It’s situated on Leningradskaja street,13. It’s  a part of a huge net from Saint Petersburg. They produce a lot of things and food from their own brand “Lenta” that’s why it’s cheaper.

In every part of the town one can find a small supermarket, which sells food that can be paid by a card. Or if you love funny adventures, for you there is only one food store in Petrozavodsk, where a Soviet Union system of buying is used.  It’s located on Nevskogo Avenue, 29. We still have some bazars (open-air markets) on Chapaev Street and Even a small one in the centre of the town on Lenin Avenue.

Well, Petrozavodsk is a small paradise for shopaholics, and there is nothing that can’t be found here.

More info:enjoyrussian.com