The Munich to Moscow Meander - Part IX:

Здравствуйте Mосква!

Saturday, September 1, 2012

In St. Petersburg I boarded the high-speed Sapsan train that whisked me through the early morning fog across the fields and forests of western Russia...

View Munich-Moscow in a larger map

Just over two hours later, having slept most of the way, I arrived in the great Russian capital, the most populous city in Europe, 5th largest city proper in the world, and the northernmost megacity on earth: Moscow!

I exited the Leningradsky station to find busy sidewalks and streets and a quintessential Moscow skyline...

I took the metro (more on that later!) to my fairly centrally-located hostel. While checking in I met another traveler at the hostel who was actually a Russian student visiting Moscow. He was getting ready to leave and after talking for awhile we agreed to go grab a bite to eat together at a nearby moderately-priced eatery (Moscow is one of the most expensive cities in the world, after all!)

It was interesting talking to him and getting some good insider tips on what to do and see in Moscow. After saying goodbye, I was ready to start exploring the city!

Of course, my first destination would be the center of it all: the Kremlin on the Moscow River...

There she is...

And of course, next to the Kremlin, the famous Red Square. But to my dismay and disappointment, Red Square was almost completely closed off due to the setting up of a large viewing area for an international military band competition that would go on throughout the week. I was warned of this from another traveler in St. Petersburg, but I was still a bit sad I wouldn't be able to get those classic shots of the famous St. Basil's Cathedral from the square.

There was still a pretty decent view of the cathedral from the bridge if it weren't for all those cranes. Still, with a little cropping and photoshopping, one could get a decent photograph out of the scene. The photo above and below are the same photo. Is that cheating, or making the best of a less-than-ideal situation?

This was about as close as I could get to the thing since the rear of the cathedral was serving as a sort of "back stage" for the music festival...

Not quite the great St. Basil's shot I was hoping for, but we'll see if I could get closer to it later in my visit...




But first, let's enter Red Square from its proper entrance on the other side. The castle-like State Historical Museum serves as the northern gate of the square. One approaches through the the large park (with underground shopping mall!)

Overlooking Red Square are the 17th century towers of the Kremlin fortress...

 

At one wall is the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier...

One enters Red Square through the gates next to the State Historical Museum. I was pleased on Monday to find the square opened to tourists during the day. There was a horse show going on throughout the day with music and horse dancing...

And prancing...

Lenin's Tomb is midway up the square against the Kremlin wall (and behind the wall is Putin's residence)...

Along the wall itself are the graves of several Soviet leaders. Here are Stalin and Brezhnev...

Red Square has a long history as the main market place and public area of old Moscow. Today, events like the horse show and the military music festival follow that tradition...

 

On the opposite side of the square from the Kremlin is the massive GUM Department Store...

It was built as an indoor market center after the 1812 fire of Moscow and was one of the main shopping centers in Imperial Moscow until the 1917 Soviet Revolution...

It served various state functions until 1953 when it was reopened as a shopping center. It was one of the few places that did not have the regular shortages of goods and lines often stretched across Red Square.

Today the chicest of brands inhabit the arched boutiques of the mall. I visited often to use the free bathrooms...

On Monday afternoon I was happy to see that St. Basil's was opened to tourists!

The cathedral was built in 1555-61 and was a wonder of architecture in it's time and has been ever since. It was a design without precedence and has since become the best-known icon of Russia...

As is typical with many Orthodox churches, the inside does not contain a large single chamber as in most Catholic cathedrals, rather, it has several smaller chapels scattered throughout and connected by labyrinthine passageways beautifully decorated...

A men's quartet with deep Russian bass sang liturgical chants in the central chapel and the music echoed throughout the cathedral...

It is a miracle that St. Basil's has survived. When Napoleon invaded Moscow in 1812, the Moscovites set fire to their city and fled eastward. Three-quarters of the city was destroyed, but not St. Basil's. The occupying French troops looted the church and used it as a stable but did not comply with Napoleon's orders to have it destroyed.

It almost suffered destruction in the 1930's when Soviet planners redesigned Red Square:

The legend is that Lazar Kaganovich, Stalin's associate and director of the Moscow reconstruction plan, prepared a special model of the Red Square, in which the cathedral could be removed, and brought it to Stalin to show how the cathedral was an obstacle for parades and traffic. But when he jerked the cathedral out of the model, Stalin objected with his rather famous quote: "Lazar! Put it back!"

It was fun to see all the little details inside and out of this World Heritage monument that are often overlooked...

Yay!




I also did a tour of the Kremlin itself. The fortress was originally built in medieval times but most of the walls and towers date from the 17th and 18th centuries (though, in some instances rebuilt). Once inside there are only certain areas where tourists are allowed to go of course.

One enters through the Troitskaya Tower and passes the modern Palace of Congresses (originally built for Communist Party events but today for concerts and other public events)...

Guards make sure one does not stray from the tourist areas. Also cannons...

The main historic center of the Kremlin is Sobornaya Square surrounded by several old churches...

Inside these churches are exquisitely ornate murals, carvings, icons, and other artwork...

Also on the square is the Ivan the Great Bell Tower. Built in 1508, it was for a long while, the tallest building in all of Russia. I took a tour inside...

There was an interesting historical presentation projected on the white walls inside...

The view from the top is grand...

The Assumption Cathedral consecrated in 1479, where, for hundreds of years, the Tsars were crowned rulers of Russia...

The Cathedral of the Annunciation, finished in 1489, was sort of a private church for the Tsars...

Onion domes and crosses (with Moscow skyscrapers in the distant fog)...

An interesting view across the river from the Kremlin...

One of the frescoes on the Assumption Cathedral: Father, Son, and Holy Ghost...

Old Church Slavonic inscriptions on the Bell Tower...

The Tsar Bell is the largest bell in the world (though it's never been rung since it broke after casting)...

Next to the cathedrals are some gardens...

With a fine view of Moscow...

But the best views of the Kremlin itself are from the bridges...

 

The red stars on the towers are from the Soviet era but have never been removed...

Closeup...

Also from the bridges one has a fine view of Moscow towers from different eras of its history...

Another view of the Kremlin...

This is one of the "Seven Sisters," Soviet-era skyscrapers built throughout Moscow (with cousins in Warsaw, Riga, among other places)...

Because of a big festival, the bridge near Red Square was closed to traffic...

My first evening meal in Moscow was at a recommended Azerbaijani restaurant...

I got homemade cheese as an appetizer with an anise-flavored soft drink...

And a yummy main course with lamb...

I spent several evenings on the bridges getting some nice night shots of the Kremlin and its neighbors...

The cathedrals and the Ivan the Great Bell Tower...

From the embankment...

Unfortunately, because of the military music festival, this was the closest I could get to St. Basil's at night...

That first evening was a big celebration in front of the Kremlin and Red Square. There was quite a crowd...

One of the main prospekts or boulevards leading away from the Kremlin...

Of course one of the main attractions here is the Moscow Metro. It's one of the largest metro systems in the world and the third largest (behind Tokyo and Seoul) in passenger volume, so I had to go late at night to get my photos. It's also probably the most ornate and opulent of any metro system in the world...

It's also one of the deepest metro systems in the world. This is the longest escalator in Europe, 126 meters, 760 steps, and about three minutes to ride to the top...

Each station has its own style...

Even the modern stations have a certain elegance...

All over the older stations are murals, reliefs, frescoes, and statues of Soviet figures. Here I am with Lenin...

Peasant women...

Peasant women holding up the USSR...

Workers being honored by the state...

And workers building a modern Moscow...

Revolutionaries...

More revolutionaries and a moisture vaporator...

 

Flight...

Fruit...

Located 33 meters beneath the surface, Mayakovskaya station became famous during World War II when an air raid shelter was located in the station. On the anniversary of the October Revolution, on 7 November 1941 Joseph Stalin addressed a mass assembly of party leaders and ordinary Muscovites in the central hall of the station...




So that's it from Moscow for now. Stay tuned for the last and final entry in which Nate visits Cinnabon... or, should I say, Синнабон!

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