Vapouround magazine ISSUE 12 | Page 109

I noticed lots of glamorous promotions girls at the show - not that I was especially looking out for them - but they did a great job in directing attention to the stands they were promoting. This was a big show which filled a large hall and a smaller one connected by a small walkway and I even saw one vendor who had set up his stall under a marquee outside the venue’s main entrance, to take advantage of the mild weather. The approach to the venue itself was interesting. VapExpo was held at Sokolniki Exhibition and Convention Centre which is inside Sokolniki Park which was created by Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich, the father of Peter the Great. The park has been open to the public since 1878, and is home to pines, spruces, birches, oaks, limes and maples and wildlife including 76 types of bird as well as hares, squirrels and weasels. All vehicles were subject to a military check upon entering the park and we had to pass through airport-style security checks at the venue itself. I mentioned before that people were very friendly and a lot of people there had heard of Vapouround Magazine and were told us they loved it. One vape fan at the show even told me he had cut out the Vapouround logo from the magazine and had made stickers from it for the rear windscreen of his car. This was my first time in Russia and I thoroughly enjoyed myself. I felt very safe walking around at night and I had stunning views of the park from my 20th floor hotel room. The only negative thing for me was encountering the rush hour traffic on my way from the airport to my hotel on the day I arrived. The 18 mile trip, which might reasonably have been completed in around half an hour, took more than two hours in the slow moving traffic. Then rush hour is bad no matter what part of the world you are in and I didn’t let it detract from this trip. In fact there was such a good vibe about the place that I would happily come back as a tourist. VAPOUROUND MAGAZINE ISSUE 12 109