Ode to Moscow
Page 35
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Those of you who know the ageless and rather ebullient Bernard Johnstone, proprietor of the Joloda business in Liverpool, will not be in the least surprised to hear of his latest exploits in Moscow.
On his arrival at the hotel in the Russian capital he was shown to a small dingy room at the back his readtion was typical of the man. Bernard sent for the Hotel Controller (they don't have managers, like us), drew his rather large physical stature to its full height, and gave the unfortunate Controller a good old Merseyside dressing down—telling him that as a good British businessman he was used to staying in good hotels and expecced a pleasant front room with a bathroom, in all countries at all times.
The overwhelmed Controller thereupon moved Bernard into the "diplomat's room" which was about 40ft by 40ft with private bathroom (complete with bath plug!) and a bay window from which one could discern the Kremlin.
He tells our Man in the North that when he later visited the British Embassy he found that the commercial attaché's SMMT vehicle guide was seven years old (including, of course, his own advertisement). Needless to say he put this right on his return home.
But one thing which caught Bernard's eye, confirming earlier impressions from other travellers, was the incredible cleanliness of the Moscow metro stations. Not even a match on the platforms. It's a waste of time saying LT please copy : after all, they can't match the incentives, can they?