‘It is important that you visit Russia before Russia visits you!’

Statue of Lenin at the All Russian Exhibition Centre

Like most capital cities we had been forewarned that Moscow was different to the rest of the country: Expensive prices and unsmiling people with a haughty attitude was the warning given to us by a lot of people. We felt well prepared for this however having spent time in Laandaaaaarn (cockney for London) before we left!  In a city of 15 million people our guide explained that although Muscovites do not smile it is not due to unfriendliness, how would you feel in a hectic job following a long commute from the city outskirts in freezing temperatures?  A fair point we thought having not worked for nearly 5 months and remembering my bouts of rage in Mexico City rush hour.  She turned out to be right, as the people were overwhelming warm and helpful around the city.  With one of us reading the metro station names… ‘P, backwards N, funky star, C, box with legs, K, A , backwards R, funny 6’… and the other looking often despairingly for the station we managed to negotiate the incredibly ornate underground and spent an amazing 5 days in Russia’s gigantic capital.  

Lenin's Mausoleum in Red Square

Starting out as always with a walking tour, the guide (Irena) opened by congratulating us on coming to Moscow as she told us ‘It is important that you visit Russia before Russia visits you!’  She continued with a dry sense of humour for the next three hours of a very enjoyable walk around the city centre.  Moscow is a city full of strange rumours and legends, unsurprisingly for the capital of a nation that is reported to have high levels of censorship (so say the ‘free nations’ whose press are all owned by the government and their elite friends).   Irena told us that despite these rumours, Russia did have freedom of speech telling a Russian joke that described an American and Russian having a beer.  Discussing his country the American stated that he loved American freedom of speech as he was able to criticise Obama if he so wished when stood outside of the White House.  The Russian replied that he to had freedom of speech and that he could also criticise Obama outside of the Kremlin in he wanted!  Standing in the Red Square underneath the soaring walls and towers topped with the red stars it was easy to imagine that most Russians felt a little intimidated by their strong government.  Irena said Russians found it strange that foreigners did not know the result of their presidential elections before the process had started but with 9 out of 10 Russians supporting Putin he must be doing something better than David Cameron in the eyes of the nation.  One thing that has surprised us is the number of police and military officers on the streets which are apparently present in huge numbers even when the security alert is not high.   Police lined the entrances into Red Square and were present on most street corners in Moscow but as they were mainly very young and clean shaven they were about as intimidating as Dads Army!

St Basils Cathedral

Take Off!

Moscow’s blend of heavy industry, Soviet monuments and giant roads and buildings left us in no doubt about its past but mixed among them were beautiful churches and parks that made it a very eclectic city.  Red Square is so called not because of communism or the colour of the bricks but because it means 'beautiful' in Russian.  Standing in the centre gazing at the iconic image of modern Russia, St Basils Cathedral, it was easy to see how it got its name.  The church has ten different chapels inside and it was very different to any other church we have been in before and we found it intriguing. As we got lost in the catacombs several times Hannah felt as if she was like Alice down the rabbit hole - especially as a one eyed man with metal teeth started talking to us enthusiastically in a language we couldn't understand in one of the fresco covered rooms . Set alongside the Kremlin wall in the square were the graves of former Soviet Union figures such as Stalin, Brezhnev and Yuri Gagarin as well as Lenin’s Mausoleum where we went to see the great mans preserved, wax-like body.  We spent another day walking from the square alongside the river, through a park containing hundreds of old Soviet Union monuments and a snow covered wood with friendly squirrels to the imposing Moscow State University.  Gulag prisoners constructed parts of the university which perversely later saw severe repression of the intelligentsia under Stalin.  The university was built under Stalin alongside seven other architecturally similar buildings as symbols of victory and a new era of Soviet power after WW2. The colossal ‘Seven Sisters’ skyscrapers across Moscow are visible alongside huge smoking chimneys that dominate the skyline of the city.

Dynamo Moscow v Torpedo Moscow

Model Sculpting contest round 2

One day in Moscow had to be spent exploring the Soviet history of the city so we visited the All-Russia Exhibition Centre, an outdoor area filled with different pavilions showcasing the economic (or lack of) achievements of the Soviet Union.  At the centre of the enormous grounds was The Friendship Fountain with its golden dancing maidens each dedicated to a Soviet republic.   The park came complete with speakers blaring Soviet music, full size models of Russian spaceships and a giant statue of Lenin making the afternoon one of the most bizarre of our trip.  Next to the park was the Cosmonauts Museum which sat below a 100m tall rocket blasting off from the roof!  Inside we saw Sputnik and loads of other memorabilia from the space race as well as tributes to the first man in space, Yuri Gagarin.  My highlight though were the stuffed remains of the first two dogs to survive a trip into space !!   I also cashed in a few of my hard earned brownie points from the ballet to go to an Ice hockey game between the Moscow Dynamos and the Moscow Torpedo’s.  Costing just 300 roubles each (3 pounds) the arena was only 6 months old and filled with enthusiastic fans accompanied by drums which created a fantastic atmosphere.  The match was very fast paced and following a 2-2 draw we were treated to a golden goal 20 seconds from the end of over time. We both left as new fans of the sport!  We also followed up the marzipan sculpting contest when we stumbled into a bar that gave each table in the bar four coloured pieces of plasticine to add to the floor to ceiling 'art' covered walls.  

Squirrel feeding in the park

We left Moscow on the second part of the Trans – Siberian to Yekaterinburg, a 26 hour journey covering nearly 1500 km and two time zones.  Thankfully in our cabin we made friends with three Russians with Alexei particularly keen to show us the photos of his self-made wooden home and family. Jokingly he said he has failed in his duty as a Russian male; despite building his own home and planting a tree he did not have a male heir having two young daughters with his wife. Inside the train was unbearably hot, so much so that everyone was walking around in shorts and flip flops as we passed the snow covered fields.  The train was not quite as modern as the last, with no sockets in our cabin and old leather bunks to sleep on.  We passed the time attempting to play chess (with our other new Russian friend Dimitri guiding us) and looking at the stunning scenery as we crossed wide frozen rivers and passed through huge white forests.  The lady in charge of our carriage paraded up and down with rollers in her hair and a bright fluffy dressing gown looking like she had just walked off of the set of EastEnders much to our amusement.  Despite the 'no smoking' signs, one old man kept sneaking into the toilet for a fag every 20 minutes, creeping out and standing in the corridor playing innocent despite stinking of smoke.  As the day progressed just ourselves and the master criminal remained on our carriage and by 1 am we were both relieved to have finally arrived into the capital of the Ural Mountains.