Moscow

Hi, I'm back.  I was in the US for a very short week.  A trip to Memphis, mostly work but it was a great chance to see many friends. 

On my return trip, I needed to stop in Moscow for a team meeting.  My jet lag was awful, but there's no easy way to get over it so why not spend it in this crazy town that seriously never sleeps!

I would never want to live in Moscow - too expensive, too many people (11 million), a very aggressive place.  It's very Russian.  I'm sure it would be a great place to be your 20's.  But now, I like the "relative" calmness, the European influences, & the culture of St. Petersburg.  But it's fun to visit.

We stayed at the Ritz Carlton.  When in Moscow, stay at the best!

It had a really cool club on the top floor, called the O2 Bar, with a terrace & awesome views of the city, Red Square, and the Kremlin



Russian State Museum & Red Square is in the middle, and the Kremlin is on the right.  On the left is the Hotel Russia, which was built by the government in 1964-1967.  It was the world's largest hotel until 1990 (the Excalibur in Las Vegas surpassed it).  They have been slowly demolishing it, brick by brick, since 2006.




Tverskaya Street in Moscow, one of the main streets in the city center



Kremlin wall

 On our 1st night, we went to the Bolshoi Theatre to see the ballet Giselle.  We were at the small theatre, not the old historic one that was just renovated last year for over $600 million.  I would have loved to have visited the big theatre, but tickets are really hard to get.

I really enjoyed Giselle.  A ballet about a a peasant girl who dies after finding out the love of her life is engaged to someone else.  The 1st act told the story, but the 2nd act was my favorite - very classical dancing in moonlight by Giselle & the Wilis (the spirits of women gilted by their lovers & who died before their weddings).

On our 2nd day, we were able to take a short tour of Red Square & the Kremlin Armory.  Red Square or Krasnaya Ploshchad (Красная площадь) is definitely a "must see" for anyone who gets the chance.  But you'll be amazed by how small it seems!  Maybe it's just me, but it always appeared to be so massive when you'd see it on TV (New Years parades & speeches) in the 70's.

Here's a few pictures of St. Basil's Cathedral.  Built in 1555 by Ivan the Terrible.  I read that Stalin wanted to demolish St. Basil's, to free up the space for massive military rallies & parades, as well as remove such a powerful symbol of the church.  But the architect (Pyotr Baranovsky) made numerous appeals to the government & ultimately won.  Although he was sent to the gulag for 5 years for "dissent".....

There are 10 interconnected towers & small chapels inside. 



St. Basil's Cathedral




St. Basil's Cathedral





One of the Kremlin Towers

Below is Lenin's mausoleum.  Lenin's embalmed body has been on public display since 1924, and you can visit it a few hours each morning.  The tomb was under guard from 1924-1993, but the guard was removed.  There is controversy around whether Lenin should be removed and buried.  Most people, politicians, and the orthodox church seem to believe that he should be given a proper burial, but the Communist Party is strongly against moving him.  So he stays...........



Lenin's tomb




The State History Museum

  


Gum Department Store, the 1st in Russia (built in 1890).  Ridiculously expensive, including an 8 Euro charge to use the bathroom! 




Kazan Cathedral, which was built in the 17th century to commemorate the repulsion of Polish invaders from Russia.  It was rebuilt in the early 1990's

  Below is the reconstructed Resurrection Gate, which was the 1st gate built leading into Red Square in 1535.  The gate was destroyed by Stalin in 1931 to allow for military vehicles to drive through Red Square, but rebuilt in 1994-1996.

The chapel in the center of the structure is called the Iveron Chapel.  Inside is a replica icon of Pangaea Portaitissa "Keeper of the Gate". 


Resurrection Gate & Iveron Chapel

  Here's the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in Alexander Garden in front of the Kremlin.  Built in dedication to the Soviet soldiers lost during the Great Patriotic War (WWII) from 1941-1945.  In total, the Soviet Union lost 27 million people, 9 million of which were military.  The rest were civilians who died due to wartime violence, famine, disease, or died in German forced labor camps. 



Tomb of the Unknown Soldier