A few dribs and drabs about Moscow, i.e. stuff I forgot last night!

Up early and thinking of a few things I din't mention and photos I didn't include last night so here goes.

• When crossing the streets in SPB, there were always sounds of chirping birds to let you know it was time to cross; it was the same in Tallinn too or was that in Helsinki or even Reykjavik? damned if I can remember but we heard it in one of those cities!
• Here in Moscow, we've heard it a few times but not at every intersection by any means compared to SPB.
• I'd mentioned before about the minimal police presence we saw in SPB; very different here in the capital but it would be the same, I know, in DC too for that matter.
• Here there are police officers or, if not officers, people with batons and whistles everywhere; when we were walking in the massive Kremlin complex complete with  huge buildings, gardens, a church etc, we "inadvertently" strayed off the crosswalk so I could take a photo in the middle of the almost barren street. Immediately, whistles were blown telling us in no uncertain terms to get back on the proverbial straight and narrow, i.e. the sidewalk toute de suite!
• While I was watching the Changing of the Guard outside the Kremlin walls, Steven sat down on some granite on what seemed like a perfectly comfy and OK place to sit; 2 seconds later, a guard, not one standing at attention but dressed just like those that were, blew his whistle.  Steven didn't know it was being directed at him so continued to sit on his duff; again the whistle blew, Steven looked up and saw the guard cupping his hand ever so gently in an unmistakable motion of "get up."
• Steven had said for the months and months it took planning this trip how we needed very little time here in Moscow, that the city was so unbearably ugly, there was nothing to see, etc.  I am sure I heard the spiel a good dozen or so times b/c he didn't want me disappointed after the beauty of SPB and of course I believed him.  He had visited here for a few days in the winter with a tour group while teaching at the American school in Teheran some 40 years ago.  He was the first to admit/state that the city is indeed way more beautiful than he recalled; it does not match the beauty of SPB but it does have a tremendous of charm and beauty all its own in my opinion at least.  I was expecting nothing after all so have become enamored with what we've seen so far.  Steven agrees that the winter weather, omnipresent gray skies and the residents' dour faces had something to do with is recollections; plus, we did see y'day on our marathon trek through much of the city some of the ugly concrete skyscrapers the city was infamous for and that Steven remembered so well from his past visit.
• A few photos: 

  

  A dark and gloomy night at one of SPB's many train stations.

  
  

  

  Getting ready to board the Red Arrow train on our first leg of the Trans Siberian journey to Moscow

  
  

  

  Enjoying breakfast just before arriving on Moscow: our only meal included on the whole trip.

  

  In iVan Hostel's common area with Aisa, one of the wonderful staff here; will be emailing each other to exchange recipes ,etc. The hostel was a super find: super clean, we have a large private room, decent sized shared kitchen with plenty of space in the fridge for our food, two of the three staff members could not be nicer.  We can also check out by noon tomorrow but leave all our bags here and groceries in the fridge, come back to make and eat dinner and then hang out for our almost midnight train to Irkutsk, all at no extra charge - that convenience can't be beat.

  
  
  
  

  

  Gum Dept. Store above and below

  
  
  
  
  

  

  
  

  
  
  
  

  

  I have been intrigued by the trompe l'oeuil facades put up everywhere when construction is underway: this one was in The Kremlin.

Last day in SPB, first leg of Trans Siberian trip and 2 days in Moscow

With a title like that, I figure I have my work cut out for me, don't you think.  I will have to get myself a cup of tea in a bit so I don't flag halfway through!

• Our second day (on 8/20) at The Hermitage was as spellbinding as our first - wonderful being able to return with fresh feet and new eyes for 4 or so more hours at a museum we doubt we'll ever see again.  Being able to gaze if only briefly at the wonders of room upon room of paintings by Rubens, Rembrandt, Cezanne and all the other Masters is a treat not quickly forgotten.  I envy Ivy's knowledge of the world's most famous painters and their great works and wished she were by our side to help us more fully appreciate what we were seeing.
• It wasn't just the paintings, sculptures or other pieces of art I/we loved; for me, seeing the gorgeous, beautiful, intricate ceilings and floors in many of the rooms were worth the price of admission in and of themselves.  One had to be constantly reminded to look down as well as up and not just in front to fully absorb all there was to see.
• As many of you know, I spent literally countless hours on the computer over this past year reading other travelers' posts on Trip Advisor for EACH of the countries we were planning to visit on this trip.  
• One thing that was very confusing was the matter of getting our Russian visas "registered" once in Russia as there seemed to be of confusion as to whether it was actually required or not.
• We decided not to take any chances and anted up $25 each to have this done in SPB (compared to $50 each in Moscow) several months ago to the same company we had paid for our "Letter of Invitation," a document needed before applying for the Russian visa.  
• All this to say, we had our passports photocopied at the company's SPB office on 8/17 and told to pick up the visa registrations late Monday, the 19th, or the next day.  We were there close to closing hours but nope, they were not available. We were a tad apprehensive knowing we needed them before leaving SPB the next day for Moscow but luckily we were able to pick them up by 4ish on the 20th so that mini crisis was averted.
• Funny story for you: We were waiting about 6pm on the sidewalk in front of our airbnb apt for an independent taxi to take us to take us to the train station.  Steven decided to sit on the pavement rather than wait standing up, which is not uncommon for him to do; soon 2 Russian young men stopped by with beers in their hands evidently somewhat surprised to see Steven on his rear and wanting to chat.  You have to bear in mind I know NO Russian apart from please, thank you, and the like but Steven knows a good part of the Cyrillic alphabet and a few rudimentary phrases, praise be!  Anyways, the two guys (all of 20 mind you) proudly showed us their Russian police ID badges and the English slogans on their Tshirts.  I remarked that some of the words were misspelled and were not English at all and one of them said laughingly they were made in China inferring what do you expect!  In the middle of all this, an old woman, clearly down on her luck, stopped and got money out of her pocket to give to Steven thinking he was begging sitting on the street like that!  
• Last thought about SPB for now - very minimal obvious to us at least police presence in the city which we were surprised about.
• Onto Moscow via the overnight train and specifically the very famous Red Arrow train I'd read about online.  Not sure what the future trains will be like as we travel across the vast breadth of Russia but this first one was a great introduction - very clean and spacious compartment  - perhaps you'll want to remind me I said that in a few weeks when we're still travelling by train!
• After quick showers at the iVan Hostel (nope, no misspelling!), we walked (natch!) to meet up with our Moscow "Free" Walking Tour to get a sense of the city.
• Irina, our guide, was very good just like the others - lucky us.
• A few facts and figures for you:  the city has a population of 14-15 million and 10% of Russians live in Moscow; the heart of the city art is known as Lord of the Rings b/c there are so many ring roads around the city; a Russian person needs a special occasion to smile, Irina said although she was smiling pretty well nonstop through our 2 plus hour tour!
• Communism substituted for Christianity; when Yuri Gagarin returned from space, Kruschev  asked him, "So, did you see any God in space?"  Gagarin replied that he had felt him to which Kruschev replied "Don't tell anyone!"
• Red Square was called that not b/c of the red brick used in its construction but b/c another meaning for red in the Russian language was beautiful.
• A couple of Russian jokes courtesy of Irina knowing we, among others on the tour were from the US:  You can say in the US, "I hate Reagan, I hate Reagan. Well, we can say the say the same thing here in Russia in the middle of Red Square:  I hate Reagan, I hate Reagan!"  Another one:  You Americans had an election last year and Obama and Romney were the candidates. How did you not know in advance who'd win the election? After all, here in Russia, we know months or even years in advance who'll win the election!
• Perhaps the jokes don't come across well in my telling it but they were amusing to us.  Ben, I need your comic touch!
• On a more serious note, Irina related how her grandfather returning home to Russia after being a prisoner of war, was then imprisoned in Russia for a year as his loyalty to the USSR was questioned.
• Stalin was asked to pick and then initial one of 2 architectural plans for a new building; he initialed in the middle of both plans so the architect, not wanting to displease Stalin, chose one design for one part of the new building's facade and the other design for the other part!
• Stalin was asked to approve the draft of the famous Moscow Metro; he left a coffee stain on the draft so now Moscow has a Brown Metro line.
• This is getting way too long so I'll just say that after the tour y'day, we toured the massive Kremlin complex, St. Basil's, Gum, the world's largest department store, but I have a fear of heights so not something I want to revisit; today, another long walking day (about 12 miles according to my pedometer, Mindy!) - walked to the Arbat, akin to Boulder's Pearl St, then on to Gorky Park (all you spy novel fans, weep!) and then to the Tretyakov Gallery.
• Steven, who also wants to be known as the pack mule, had DEFINITELY had it by the end of the day!  I hope he'll recover by tomorrow but not planning too much luckily.
• Photo time!  XOXO to all those we love and hold dear.

  

  Alexander's Column I mentioned in a previous post in front of The Hermitage

  
  

  

  The main building of The Hermitage

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  

  

  Rembrandt's Return of the Prodigal Son 

  
  

  

  and his Descent from the Cross

  
  

  

  One of the many "Netherlandish" Rooms

  
  

  

  Matisee's Dance

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  

  

  Waiting for the midnight train to Moscow

  
  
  
  
  
  
  

  

  Love the impersonators!

  
  

  

  Building with 2 facades courtesy of Stalin

  
  

  

  St. Basil's in the b'ground

  
  
  
  
  

  

  Changing of  the Guard outside the Kremlin

  
  

  

  In the Kremlin

  
  

  

  The Kremlin

  
  

  

  Entrance to Gorky Park

  
  
  
  
  

  

  Tretyakov Gallery

  
  

  

  Tretyakov Gallery

  
  

  

  Tretyakov Gallery

  
  

  

  Tretyakov Gallery - see Steven in right hand corner!

  
  

  

  Love the Izod skorts, Suellen!

  
  

  

  The Kremlin walls

Steven at the end of a LONG walking day

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SPB: Oodles of churches and museums!

Hard to know what to write and include in this post as I don't want to bore you silly, don't want to give you a straight travelogue as you could get that from reading just one of the many we read before coming here and I guess even more basic than that, I don't know what "one" normally should or should not include in a blog post. You sure would have thought I'd have thought of all this before now, huh!  All that to say, sure would appreciate any comments or suggestions as to what you'd like to read as that would help going forward.  Folks, we have another 2 1/2 months to go on this trip, so let me know or otherwise, I'll keep writing in this same vein!

OK, I digress, but what's new!  Mentioned in my last post about going on the free walking tour our first day; we met in Palace Sq. with The Hermitage on one side of it and, on the other side the Staff bldg, one of  Europe's longest buildings; in the middle is Alexander 11's column representing Russia's win over Napoleon.

• The column weighs 60 tons but has no foundation; the locals were so concerned it would topple over the French (!) architect and his dog walked around it every night to prove it was safe.
• Interesting tidbit about churches under Soviet rule when there was no religion: the churches were closed, many were destroyed but that got to be too expensive so other uses were found for them: as museums (of atheism for one), markets, concert halls and even as public swimming pools!
• Speaking of churches and museums, there's generally a 2 tier pricing system for entry fees, i.e. a base price for Russians and a significantly higher price for all others; there has been no senior or pensioner reduced rate here in Russia as compared to Iceland through Estonia though.
• SPB was built on a swamp so we've had to be very careful not to drink the water or even rinse our toothbrushes in it; we're boiling water all the time here in the apt and using it to rinse fruit etc.
• From water to toilets, a natural segue, no?!  You see signs everywhere here as in the other countries for WC - often here though, you enter the public ones after paying the lady at the outside kiosk 30 kopecks, and then get to use the loo; other options include putting money in the lock and then using the facilities; but here comes the "fun" - you can't put the used t.p. down the toilet but rather in a small waste (literally) paper basket.  That's not so bad at the beginning of the day but it does get sort of ripe later in the day when you're lined up behind a dozen women all waiting to use the WC!
• BTW, Tchaikovsky died in a building a 2 minute walk from our apt after drinking the water and getting some disease; saw the plaque on the bldg stating that!
• Have walked miles and miles every day as our apt's location is fantastic; have even gotten used to how gritty the entrance to and the apt itself is and the stench from the cat feces as we trudge up 2 flights of stairs to our apt; never thought I'd have said this after seeing the place for the 1st time a few days ago but I would stay here again. Perhaps I need my head examined!

On 8/17, we took the hydrofoil to and from Peterhof, located 30 kms west of SPB.  It was built by Peter the Great as his Versailles by the Sea.  Here are some photos as my words cannot do justice for the beauty and magnificence of Peterhof:

If you ever come to SPB, our suggestion would be to see Church of the Saviour on Spilled Blood aka Church of the Resurrection; it was partly modeled on St. Basil's in Moscow; now most commonly known as the church that took 24 years to build and 27 to restore; it has 700 sq. meters of mosaic; Alexander 11 was blown up there and hence its name.

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Saw the Summer Garden, SPB's most famous park, on 8/18; it was laid out for Peter the Great so it would resemble the park at Versailles. 

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• Spent almost 2 hours last night doing the above as I had difficulty getting the pictures in with the text so I will revert to putting the photos on at the end til I get some technical assistance from Steven another time!
• Also saw a minuscule part of The Hermitage on 8/18; the museum is the 2nd largest in the world after the Louvre and it would take 10 years to see every painting if you spent just 2 minutes looking at each; it's not one building but rather 5 in all and contains almost uniquely non Russian works.
• I had bought online, while we were in Florida, a 2 day pass good over any 3 day period b/c we knew we'd be museumed out trying to see just what we "wanted" to see based on the research I'd done; that turned out to be a wise choice b/c we were both "done" after being in just one bldg for almost 4 hours and no break.
• The museum is of course wonderful, fantastic, spellbinding and every other positive attribute one can apply but the sheer size of it and the corresponding crowds was overwhelming after a few hours so glad we can return today with somewhat fresher eyes.
• Take a look below at the photo of the "security guard" at The Hermitage!  No security guards in any of the museums we've been to wear uniforms and 99% of them are women who also have their purses on their arms or on the chairs they're sitting on while "guarding" the priceless works of art.
• On 8/19, we decided to take the metro over to the Peter and Paul Fortress rather than walking b/c we were curious what the Metro was like after hearing about it from our walking tour guide; that was the only time we've used any of the public transportation here in SPB; withthe decent weather and great location of the apt, we've walked everywhere leaving about 10 every day and getting back about 6 or so; that's enough walking for these folks and our tired feet at the end of the day!
• Zachary would have loved seeing the fortress and hearing the cannon going off at noon but wished we'd had our ear plugs in as it was bloody loud (as my Mum would have said!) as we were so close to it!
• After walking back across one of SPB's gazillion bridges from the fortress and stopping for the 3rd time at the Souvenir Market, we walked to the Russian Museum; it's the country 1st public art gallery and home to Russia's finest Old Masters and contains 400,000 works of art.
• Was able to buy postcards ONLY at The Hermitage and Russian museums and no other souvenir stall, shop, etc anywhere in the city or at Peterhof; the downside for me was that the postcards were only of the paintings, none of ANY bldgs or sights of SPB.
• We take the midnight train to Moscow tonight, the first leg of our Trans Siberian marathon trip.
• On to photos now to give you a sense of what we've been doing and seeing the last few days.

  

  The Hermitage sign in the WC!

  
  

  

  Nicholas II's library at The Hermitage

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  

  

  Security guard at work.
  

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  

  

  SPB's Metro

  
  

  

  Entrance to Peter and Paul Fortress

  
  

  

  Cathedral at Peter and Paul Fortress

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  

  

  At Peter and Paul Cathedral in their Fortress: Plaque about Tsar Nicholas

  
  

  

  Peter and Paul's Cathedral at the Fortress: Tsar Nicholas and his family are buried here.

  
  

  

  Russian Museum

  
  

  

  R. Museum: Ilya Repin's The State Parliament

  

  R. Museum:  Ilya Repin's Barge Haulers on the Volga; according to the photocopy from the guidebook I brought from home, it shows "an incomparable indictment of Russian social justice."

  
  

  

  R. Museum:  The White Hall; Strauss and Berlioz played here.

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  Steven in front of Portrait of Outraged Jewish Boy!

  
  

  

  R. Museum:  Karl Bryullov's Last Days of Pompeii; people queued for months to see the painting as it was, in its time, the most famous R. painting.