[monetus]

Can I ask what time periods?

I have no personal experience of Kyrgyzstan or Russia, but my hunch would be that the noughts were riddled with taxi drivers like you say, while that has slightly improved over time? I mean, perestroika is known for having those problems, wasn't it? Correct me if I am wrong please anybody, thank you.

Also, kudos on your travel.

[madaxe_again]

Crashes, various points over the last few decades. Three fender benders but the guy in Istanbul managed a proper one at speed, early hours of the morning and going too fast in the rain - thankfully nobody hurt but his car was trashed.

Robberies, both 2012, on the same trip.

And yes, corruption still rules the roost in a lot of old eastern bloc countries, from the government to the cops to the babushka driving the bus - it will take a long while for the mindset that the USSR inculcated to dissipate - that is, that the only way to get ahead in life is to lie, cheat, and steal. 2012 was my first time east of the Urals, and these days I know far better how to deal with it than back then, when I was still wet behind the ears.