I'm glad things worked out for you. Although I think generally, especially here in North America, people are given the wrong perceptions about Russia. Although they have rules that must be followed and they take them very seriously, I feel that Russians can be quite reasonable and honorable (at least from the few I've known over here).

I live in Canada and for most of my life near the USA border in the Great Lakes region near cities like Detroit. It was common to hear local news stories about Canadian teenagers and adults arrested by the American Coast Guard and sent immediately to American Federal prison cells in the interior of the country. Some were maximum security prisons where the most hardened prisoners from Detroit and elsewhere are sent.

Their crimes you ask? One minute they are leisurely (and legally) fishing in the river between the two countries when their boat strays briefly over the invisible border in the water. When they are intercepted by U.S officials they realize they forgot their identification at home that day (never planning to cross into the USA). They are just wearing t-shirts, shorts and flip flops a couple kms from their homes. Ooops. Yes. In some cases it would take parents and lawyers months to retrieve their loved ones from US prison cells. That's scary.

Did they make a mistake - yes.
Were the US authorities overreacting - perhaps.

Great post!