roubles or dollars?

[baggyoops]

what currency would you recommend taking to Russia?  (Moscow and St Petersburg)
American dollars/Euros/sterling/roubles or a mixture?

[Aschenbach]

If your travel plans are just to the larger cities of European Russia, it's best to bring a mixture of cash, travelers cheques credit cards. 

 It is hard to get roubles outside Russia (I even read in 1990s that you're not allowed to remove them from the country) Take good condition US dollars or Euro notes to change once there. It is illegal to pay for goods or services in hard currency, though it is often accepted. Use the ATMs inside of banks rather than on the streets because of PIN fraud.