Spaced With The Sputniks in Moscow

Back on January 24th, I had my first of two Sputnik-V injections at the GUM department store on Red Square. I wrote about this adventure just afterward. My final jab was administered in the same place on St. Valentine's day February 14th. Since then I have been traveling and working mostly un-masked (except for mass transit where they'll catch & fine you).

Now that six months have elapsed, I decided to follow recommendations and get re-vaccinated with a booster. The facility at the GUM department store has since been closed down, and in its stead, a massive vaccinating center was opened in the vast "Gostinniy Dvor" space just across the street.

As I entered this space I checked my watch, it was Saturday, July 24 at 4:30 pm. There must have been 40 medical personnel on duty, and perhaps 8 "patients", myself included. The sensation was strange, so many health professionals were there ready to serve hundreds, but the place was almost empty. I presented my passport, my original vaccination certificate for the two Sputnik-V jabs received earlier, signed a new informed consent, and was immediately escorted to the injection table. Swabbed, and jabbed with the new Sputnik-Lite (a one-time jab).

While I was being injected, a nurse completed a further re-vaccination certificate, entered my data into the Moscow health department registry, smiled, handed my papers back, and sent me on my way. This happened at 4:42 - the entire process took an agonizing 12 minutes! The downside was that they didn't give me free ice cream as they did at GUM. Instead, they handed me along with my papers a 1000 ruble (about $12.50) pharmacy discount coupon. Not too shabby I thought to myself.

So now I can bravely face this pandemic-engulfed world knowing I have been Sputnik'd every-which-way possible. My total cost for the initial vaccinations and this re-vaccination was $0, and I got one ice cream then, and 1000 rubles now to spend with wild abandon at the drug store! Not a bad deal by any measure.