For many people, a good night's sleep is one of the few creature comforts left in their stressful day-to-day lives. Yet for many expatriate Muscovites, the achievement of even this simple pleasure can mean an endless, and often fruitless, quest for the necessary implements.


It seems like just yesterday that I was planning to move into a new apartment which had been carefully prepared for me by my employers, who were also paying the rent. The remont had been done, the landlord told me, and all that was missing was a pillow.


Never mind, I said confidently. I will pick one up this weekend. I should have been forewarned when I saw the look on the landlord's face. As I set out determinedly that Saturday morning in May, I had no idea of the odyssey that lay ahead. Eight hours, at least 14 stores, and several square miles later, I trooped home, dispirited, dismayed and uncomprehending.


How could it be that there was not a pillow to be found in all the department stores in Moscow? How had everyone else in the city come by their pillows? The cynical answer seemed to be that either Russians are born with pillows or some sort of spontaneous genesis existed, because they were surely not being produced in adequate quantities.


While I soon came across a pair of inexpensive polyfill models at Stockmann that did the trick, I have been told that pillows continue to be a scarce entity, appearing and disappearing with little warning from city shops. Moreover, friends and acquaintances report that those other bedtime necessities, mattresses, are even more elusive. Before you resign yourself to an infuriating search for these holy grails of slumber, a few tips might come in handy.


Pillows of the large Russian variety have recently been spotted on the second floor of TsUM (2 Ulitsa Petrovka, tel. 292-7600), where a 68x68cm down/feather pillow was selling for 8,000 rubles and a larger 70x70 model for 10,000 rubles. A komplekt set with blanket and 50x60cm pillow in decorative patterns sells for 65,000 rubles.


The Vesna Podarky store (21 Novy Arbat, tel. 201-1111) displayed 68x68cm feather pillows for 6,250 rubles, the last of which was unfortunately snatched up while we were in the store. A saleswoman was loath to predict when the next delivery would come in, although she said that deliveries were "periodic." A better bet at Vesna Podarky, if you do not mind the size or busy pattern, is a 78x78cm model feather pillow that was selling for 9,250 rubles and seemed in good demand. In the same department was a range of feather comforters in different patterns and sizes for 17,250 to 28,190 rubles and 100-percent wool blankets from China for 18,125 to 32,4000 rubles.


A note of warning to potential pillow shoppers: You might have to monitor these stores to intercept the stock during irregular deliveries. It is always a good idea to try to call before heading over.


For those who are looking for something a bit more luxurious (not to mention something conforming to Western pillowcase sizes), you might want to check out the stock at Stockmann's Home Store (70/1 Ulitsa Lyusinovskaya, tels. 954-8234 or 952-6513), which is currently featuring pillows from the Finnish manufacturer Jousten. Unfortunately, the 50x70cm 55 percent down/45 percent fine feather model (which was on sale for $67 plus VAT) is currently awaiting reorder, but an identical-sized 90/10 blend ($116 plus VAT) was still available.


If you have been hunting for mattresses, you might want to check out Taki-Moscow (10 Ulitsa Mnevniki, tel. 191-9471), where 160x200cm mattresses start at $150 and other sizes can be ordered through the firm.


Another factory, conveniently named Manufacturers of Quilted Mattresses (24B Ulitsa Veshnyakovskaya, tel. 373-2421), makes mattresses in a variety of sizes. Doubles mattresses measuring 190x140 start at 26,000 rubles, according to a saleswoman over the phone, and other sizes are also available. Orders and payment are taken on the premises on the first and 15th of each month.


Russia, it seems, has yet to learn of the joy of orthopedic mattresses. If your mattress is a bit too firm, or your fold-out sofa distractingly lumpy, you may want to consider buying some namatrasniki, bed-sized cushions that will provide a layer of softness. They can be had at the furniture store at 19 Chongarsky Bulvar (by Varshavskaya metro, tel. 119-0544) for between 28,000 and 38,000 rubles.


If all else fails, ring your friends and ask if they have any bedding to spare.