If you want to take the pulse of Russia as its oil and gas boom of the past few years comes to a sudden and wrenching stop, leave behind the garish consumerism of Moscow and drive 220 miles (355 km) southwest to the small Russian town of Lyudinovo. For the first part of the five-hour trip, the road is a smooth four-lane highway that whisks you past gleaming gas stations and a brand-new Samsung TV factory. Then everything slows down. The highway turns single-track and becomes progressively rougher. For the last 20 miles (32 km), you bump along the ruts, distracted only by the swaying rows of silver birch trees that flank the road.
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