Flight Diary Stats

My Flightdiary.net profile

21 June 2013

Russia 2007 part 1 / Moscow

I’ve been reminiscing about our trip to Russia – I can’t believe it was almost SIX years ago now!!  Time really does fly.

We went with Cosmos on a bus tour that covered 3 days in Moscow and 3 days in St Petersburg – travelling between the 2 cities by night train.

Russia

I decided to go with a tour company because I was a little overwhelmed by the destination.  I don’t speak the language, the alphabet is different, rumours that it’s not the safest place on Earth… I though a tour would be the better way to go but looking back I kind of regret it (the Bus Tour, not the vacation!) I think we actually missed out a bit because we were on a tour; we would have seen more had we been on our own – however I had no way of knowing that going in.


We arrived in Moscow after  having spent a week in Venice. I like to split up my vacations like that - between 2 very different destinations – because it makes it feel like 2 completely separate vacations. I sometimes forget Venice and Russia were part of the same trip!

Here we are packed and checked out from our hotel in Venice, heading out to the airport to fly to Moscow:

Leaving Venice for Moscow - Simone & Frank

Boy that was a long time ago now! Confused smile

We were supposed to fly with Alpi Eagle Airlines, and I remember that the cost was about 200$ each. A few months before leaving, my agent gave me the great news that Alpi was no longer in business (or soon to be out of business – I forget the exact details), so we had to fly with Aeroflot instead… for double the price! Figures.


Day 1: Check into your hotel. The rest of the day is free for you to explore the Russian capital. Tonight, meet your Tour Director and fellow travellers.

We arrived late so we didn’t have any time to explore the capital nor to meet our fellow travellers! I just remember that my husband and I and two other women on the same airport transfer as us were taken to a restaurant around the corner for our included “Welcome Diner”.

This was before the days were I take pictures of all my meals so I don’t recall what I ate, but I do remember thinking the place was a lousy dive!

Fisrt supper

This was also the birth of my husband and I now referring to restaurants as “peck-toe-pahs” since Restaurant in Russian is spelt Pectopah.

Our hotel on the other hand was AMAAAA-YAA-YAA-YAA-ZING! Marriott Courtyard. Our room was humongous and we had a King bed! NOT what we were expecting compared to previous (and future) Cosmos Tours.

IMG_5526

IMG_5524

It was also in walking distance of Red Square – about 20 minutes.

I’d stay here again in a heartbeat!

moscow


Days 2 & 3: Sightseeing with a Local Guide this morning will include a drive into Red Square, then a walk past St. Basil’s, a visit to the Kremlin and one of its cathedrals, and one of Moscow’s famed underground Metro stations. Free time to join other optional activities or do your own exploring of Russia’s fascinating capital.

Red Square was incredible! Surreal! I just could not believe I was there!!! I STILL remember that feeling of having to pinch myself and thinking: I am standing in the middle of Red Square!!

Here’s proof!!

Red Square - St Basil's Cathedral - Simone

But as for the rest of it… I’m still disappointed.

We toured the Kremlin and I remember 3 things vividly: Finding it hard to get my bearings. Feeling like we were skipping past some important buildings. Being blown away by the Fabergé Eggs in the Kremlin Museum (and stupefied that husband didn’t care!)

Had we been on our own, following our own path, I think we would have soaked up much more. We didn’t even have time to visit Lenin’s Tomb! Sad smile

Later in the day, we were taken on a city tour. I hated it. I saw NOTHING. I don’t recall if it was the intention, but it was night out so it was all a dark blur of nothing. It felt like a RACE. “here’s this thing and here’s that thing and here’s this statue and there’s that park…” I could have skipped it completely. I got nothing out of it. If we would have had more free time (like half a day instead of just a few hours to roam around Red Square), we could have seen all theses places properly and taken nicer pictures!!  Instead I have this:

Victory Park - Endless Fountain by Night 01

 

However… I there is one memory that sticks out from that night-tour: The Peter the Great Statue. It's HUGE!  HUGE! Again, we just saw it by night so I didn’t get a good proper look at it, but it’s grandeur is not why I remember it.

We didn’t actually visit the statue, instead our tour bus parked on the road nearby so we could admire it from across the water - like the cars in this satellite picture are doing. (To get an idea of how BIG this thing is, look at it’s shadow on the water)

Statue

We stepped out of the bus to admire the statue, and instead were distracted by a couple having sex at it’s base.

It was hysterical! He had his pants down around his ankles and she was bent over the railing… I thought at one point he was going to catapult her over into the water! I wonder if they saw the tour bus full of people staring right at them ??? too funny. What timing!

Here’s our only picture (sans the fornicators!)  I’m sorry this is the only glimpse we got - 10 minutes by night. I wish we could have seen it by day and spend a little time getting a closer look and exploring around.

Statue of Peter the Great by Night

 

I did enjoy the tour of the Metro to see see some of the incredible art work decorating the stations. I have to admit that they really were special. The experience of being taken on a metro tour was funny: We were herded around like Kindergarteners! but I can understand that the tour director and city guide being afraid of losing a traveller somewhere along the way!

Metro Komsomolskaya 01


Another memory that sticks out is deciphering the alphabet.

I was constantly trying to make the links between the strange shapes of the letters and the familiar sounds we all know, and eventually it just clicked.

Starting with studying my name spelt in Russian on my travel visa and “Pectopah” for Restaurant, I figured out how P sounds like R and C sounds like S and H sounds like N. Surprisingly, it came to me rather naturally. It was easy!

You already know what these signs say:

Ikea

McD

BK

And that’s how you learn how to make the association between the unfamiliar letters and their corresponding sounds.

Eventually, without even trying, you know that this says STOP:

Stop

When visiting the Cathedral Of Christ the Saviour, I was able to read the plaque under the statue of Tsar Alexander II nearby; it just came to me!

Tsar Alexander II

Here’s the plaque I read. What do you think?

Plaque

I don’t want you to think I think I can actually speak the langue or even understand what I am reading !! NO! not one bit!!! But knowing how to read and pronounce a word made reading maps and street signs INFINITELY easier!


I don’t remember much about the food, but I think it was probably lousy overall because we ended up at The Hard Rock Café for super one night.  The coffee was like tar - that lingers! For one lunch, we were directed to a Food Hall, which was really just a crappy food court and I remember gagging on some fishy potato dish… how strange they would take us there for lunch!!

But all was not lost. When we were set loose for lunch on Day 2, my husband and I had a fantastic experience at Café Pushkin. BOY was it nice!!! We felt SO underdressed and conspicuous but I’m so glad we did it anyways!  It was so fancy and atmospheric… Top notch service and even a mini purse-table under the tables so you don’t have to put your purse on the floor!  Too bad we felt too conspicuous to take more pictures;  we just took a “sneak shot” of the bar.

Coming back here is high on the list of things to do next time we are in Moscow!

Having lunch at Cafe Pushkin 02

Having lunch at Cafe Pushkin 01


Another funny memory was when we visited Sparrow Hill to see a panoramic view of the city.  It was a nice area, I think we spent about an hour there admiring the view over Moscow…  It was a very polluted view mind you, I remember seeing a brown haze in the air while gazing at the skies over the 1980 Olympic Stadium.

You can SORT of see it in the picture:

Sparrow Hills - 1980 Olympic Stadium

When it was time to leave, we all pilled back on the bus and waited and waited and waited and waited…  then the city guide finally arrived. She was not happy. Turns out the bus was parked illegally and she had been negotiating with the police over the ticket.

The reason why I remember all this as being funny, is that she was not mad that she got a ticket – she was pissed because the officer would not be bribed! HA! “it’s so hard now that they don’t take money!” she exclaimed in exasperation.


Day 4: Excursion to Sergiyev Posad–Overnight Train to St. Petersburg. Enjoy a day excursion that includes a visit to the Trinity Monastery of St. Sergiyev, founded by St. Sergiyev, one of Russia’s most revered holy men. To this day, thousands flock to the monastery not only as an act of religious belief but also to see one of Russia’s greatest and most splendid architectural treasures. It is also used by filmmakers because of its five-tiered bell tower, uniquely beautiful and equally photogenic. After dinner in Moscow, transfer to the station for your overnight train to St. Petersburg.

I could have skipped this excursion to Sergiyev Posad completely. In hindsight, I would have preferred a day in Moscow on our own to really do the city justice instead of visiting the monastery. Don’t get me wrong, it was very nice, and I would recommend a visit in general, but not enough to warrant missing more time in Moscow.

Trinity Monastary of St Sergius - Cathedral of the Assumption 1

Look at all the birds!!

Trinity Monastary of St Sergius 5

Plus the included lunch was awful. It’s been 6 years and I still remember it was a dish of boiled meat with boiled carrots and boiled potatoes and stale bread. Yuck.

What I remember the most about this day is how much time we spend in traffic. I have never in my life before or since have seen such horrendous traffic and congestion… and the drivers are so impatient to boot!!  3-lane roads become 4-lane roads in a flash, and the painted dividers on the ground are little more than decoration.

Traffic always seemed to be an issue. Even the day we checked out of the hotel was a mess. A car was blocking the lane so our bus driver could not pick us up at the hotel. We rolled our bags to the end of the road and waited for about an hour for the bus to finally drive up! Why so late? He was stuck in traffic.


I’d go back to Moscow – I think 3 or 4 days would be perfect to plug up the holes of things I feel we missed! … but only after they get rid of the hassle of visa requirements, and on our own, not with a tour.