May 11th 2023: We had the same meal, however we woke up a little later, at 08:30. We were fatigued after the trips, and it showed in our sleep as well. So, today, we decided to accomplish the following:
- Go to the Red Square, Tomb of the Unknown Soldier and Lenin’s Mausoleum.
- Go to the State Historical Museum and Museum of the Great Patriotic War.
- A change in the evenings perhaps?
With this in mind, we took the YandexGo taxi to Alexandrovsky Sad (Alexander Garden in English). It is a public park outside the Kremlin. When I first saw it on a map, I realized it ran the entire length of the western Kremlin wall. Initially, we planned to access the Kremlin complex. However, the ticket offices were closed that day, thus you will find this narrative of events in Part V. We wandered through the garden, admiring the varied flowers and environment. Mum was fond of tulips.
It was a Thursday morning, and the majority of Moscovites had left for work. A handful of them decided to spend their spare time somewhere, and they chose the park. As a result, it’s ideal for a picnic. People went for a walk in the park and took photos. There was a little fountain next to an underground hypermarket near the park. (I later discovered that Mum spent the most of her waiting times here). We continued walking till we arrived at the garden gates. The Tomb of the Unknown Soldier was visible just outside the gates. It has historical significance since many unsung heroes of World War II died bravely defending their country from the Axis powers. Some of them had yet to be identified, therefore they were referred to as “unknown” soldiers. Two guards are sent there, and they rotate every hour. It’s right outside the Kremlin walls. A sculpture of a soldier’s helmet and robes, complete with fire, stood between the guards’ positions. The public was granted access up the stairway. A group of students came and lay the wreath on the tomb. As I traveled farther forward, I saw Russian plaques commemorating the Red Army’s successes in the battles of Smolensk, Murmansk, Kiev, Bryansk, and other locations during World War II. All of them bore the Red Army symbol.
Thinking about how this small plot of land was destroyed and then travelers flocked to it for images and memories will remind you of your sightseeing vacations throughout Europe. Moscow was no different. We were fortunate to have clear weather that day. Outside the gates, there was a statue of Joseph Stalin, the USSR’s leader, riding a horse outside the Great Patriotic War Museum. We then went to Red Square, also known as Krasnny Ploschad in Russian. The path from the garden to the Red Square was hilly, paved with stones and traversed by generations of forefathers and great figures. And we arrived at the famed Red Square!
Unfortunately, we were unable to see the Lenin Mausoleum because deconstruction work for the Victory Day procession was happening. To be honest, those moveable buildings (which were engraved on May 9th) constituted visual pollution. Red Square has a history. Every year, millions of visitors and civilians visit the Red Square. It is the heart of Moscow. I realize Red Square is important to Russian readers. I first heard about the Red Square as a child, when an amateur aviator landed there and was imprisoned for unauthorized entry into the Soviet Union. He was widely regarded as a hero.
Mum and I made the most of our time in Moscow, snapping numerous photos to prove we were there.
Red Square.
We visited Saint Basil’s Cathedral. The edifice appears to be imposing, similar to what you see on television or in tourist publications. As a Russian author correctly notes, there is no other Russian structure like this. It was built under the command of Ivan the Terrible. The Cathedral, as shown in the photo, is made up of nine domes. The central dome is dedicated to Our Lady (The Virgin Mary), with eight chapels constructed around it. Each one commemorates a saint or a Biblical event. (For instance, Saint Gregory and Saint Balaam). The ninth one was built over the grave of St. Vasily (Basil). The church was built to honor the victory against the Kazan Tatars. (St. Basil is also known as the Fool for Christ.)
We circled the cathedral, admiring the mosaics and its outside structure. To enter, you must purchase a ticket for 1000 rubles. After getting the ticket, I went inside while Mum waited outside. The interior of the cathedral is magnificent and beautiful! With several iconostasis gracing each church and extensive descriptions in both Russian and English, it couldn’t be easier! I leave this section with a lot of photographs.
As the weather deteriorated, it began to rain unexpectedly. By that point, I had finished examining St. Basil’s Cathedral. It rained for around 20 minutes, after which we walked to the underground hypermarket. It was massive, with shops selling fashion and watches, restaurants serving Russian, Turkish, Korean, and Chinese cuisine, and EUROSPAR. As I previously stated, the latter is our saviour in Russia. Of course, this EUROSPAR is larger than the one near our place. After purchasing our lunch, we heated it in the supermarket’s shared microwave oven before eating. By now, I was used to Russian cuisine. “You from India?” one of the cashiers inquired in terrible English.
The State Historical Museum was next on my schedule, and it explains Russia’s history from the prehistoric Stone Age to the present. Before proceeding to the Scytho-Siberian realm, one will study about the cultures of Volosovo, Serovskaya, Tagar, Karasuk, and Glazkov. It describes the effect of Coban and Sauromatian civilization before demonstrating how they inspired the Chernyakhov and Zarubintsy cultures. The Khazar dynasty and Golden Hordes, which played significant roles in Russian history, are also highlighted. The remaining rooms are named after the Tsars and the rulers of Rus, Novgorod, and Pskov. Every 5 minutes, you will witness guided tours in Russian that describe the occurrences. School tours are also offered, and you may see a curious student taking notes as the teacher discusses the significance of key events. One of them spotted me as I was looking and attempting to comprehend the history. He took a selfie with me! I was unable to explore additional rooms in the museum owing to time constraints. (I’ll probably visit them later.) The museum, like all state historical museums around the world, has figurines, jewelry, portraits, iconostasis, and vestments. I would recommend that you visit this museum and spend some time learning about Russia’s history, which will take approximately 4 hours. It’s not just Communism and Tsars. At the exit, you will notice Lenin’s Rolls Royce! We postponed our visit to the Great Patriotic War Museum until another day because we did not have enough time. (Oddly, we didn’t see it on this trip.)
Which Russian museums do you need to spend more time?
- State Tretyakov Gallery (and the new one), Moscow
- State Historical Museum, Moscow
- The Hermitage, St. Petersburg.
Trust me, you will be amazed and content. They are pearls of this country, so do not ignore them.
After spending some valuable time in the morning, it’s time to engage in some fun. The Bolshoi Theatre was my favorite, and I wanted to watch an opera or a ballet there. However, due to the war, reserving tickets online proved difficult. You need a Russian bank account to complete the transaction, which was difficult when I tried to book them from my country. The war had an effect on the theater. Despite the war, certain people, including conductors, musicians, and actors from all over the world, continue to perform here. Unlike others, I shall not describe the Bolshoi Theatre since I was disappointed. (In contrast to the Mariinsky Theater in St. Petersburg). It is nearly impossible to see an opera or ballet here unless you have a Russian acquaintance with whom you can get a ticket and prepare to do it at least two months before your intended trip. If you want to remain for a few days and expect to buy an opera ticket right away, you are mistaken! Russians from all over the country come here to see their favorite play (opera/ballet), which is usually fully booked. Such demand, indeed. There were few internet chats or forums where people discussed purchasing Bolshoi Theatre tickets. The Bolshoi theatre website has a schedule of events that explains the ticket prices based on location and availability. After seeing the Museum, we went to Teatralnaya Ploschad and attempted to locate the ticket counter using the Yandex Maps application, but were unsuccessful. After knocking on a few doors, we arrived at a nondescript location. A long line! Alexander, a man standing in front of me, assisted me till I did not purchase the ticket. He was pleasant, spoke broken English, and attempted to communicate with me while I spoke broken Russian. He was a college student from Rostov-on-Don Technical University who had previously watched several shows at the Bolshoi. I waited in line for about an hour before entering the ticket office, just to find out…. What? The tickets became available just after a month! It was completely demoralizing, and I felt crushed, sad, and angry all at the same moment. I thought about it, “I am the real tourist here, how come none for us, the real tourists….” (The same thinking occurred at the Grand Peterhof Palace. I was completely lost until Mum came to my rescue and informed me that there were a couple of kids exiting another theatre near the ticket counter. That was the RAMT.
The abbreviation for the complete name is “Russian Academic Youth Theatre”. Natalia Satz, an opera director, founded the theatre in 1921. It was geared toward children and young adults. As soon as we entered, I walked to the ticket office and asked the lady behind it whether there were any evening shows. “Anything,” my thoughts said. “No, no, I want to know if there are any musicals here, for the day” . After a lengthy talk, the woman informed us that she had reserved a ticket for the musical “Scarlet Sails,” a Russian romantic plot (fairy tale), at 18:30 hours. She instructed me to be in the main hall on the first level at 18:00 hours.
Mum and I walked to Teatralnaya Ploschad for a snack of “blinis” before returning to the RAMT at 18:00. I asked the attendant in the cloakroom for directions to the musical. Because it’s a youth theatre, many of the employees are young people. She giggled at me, told me, and as I turned back, I noticed she was talking loudly with her pals about who the heck I was. How did I know that? Because the Translate app did not stop recording. I went to the first floor, and the hallway was vacant. I approached another worker at an associated cafe, who advised me to wait for the third bell, which marks the entrance inside. I sat on the couch, waiting for the bells to sound. Because the performance was in Russian, I went to Wikipedia to learn more about Scarlet Sails. People began trickling in. They were mostly families, well-dressed, with youngsters who were eager to see the musical. And I was wearing an Adidas jacket. A Russian family approached and sat next to me. I couldn’t help but notice the father was concerned about his finances, which he was constantly checking on. The two toddlers sat quietly while their mother applied last-minute make-up.
The three bells rung at 5-minute intervals. The audience walked to the theatre. My seat, #2, was on the mezzanine floor. After some initial misunderstanding, I found the correct one. What are the confusions? I had found my seat, but there were a number of students seated there, including mine. They ordered me to proceed to the ground level, where they had supposedly booked. When I asked the usher to assist me, those students swiftly left!
The musical Scarlet Sails is based on the film of the same name from the Soviet era. The primary character, Assol, is the daughter of a seaman named Longrel. Her mother died during her early youth, thus she was raised by her father. He makes a living by selling carved wooden miniature boats. Arthur Gray, the son of a nobleman, traveled out to sea and arrived at the village where Assol lived. Both adored each other, which is what the musical conveyed. As expected, the musical was entirely in Russian, yet I comprehended the tale because to the cast’s colorful, accurate acting and the props they employed. (The primary prop was a wooden ship on a circular revolving platform; the “ship” is bisectable.)
It took almost two hours with a 15-minute interval. In my perspective, it gave some form of amusement in the evening. After the show, I checked my phone and noticed the battery was rapidly depleting. I found my mother at the bus stop in Teatralnaya Ploschad. It was 21:00 hours. Even at night, the scene was quiet. We returned to our flat via M2 bus and a 1-kilometer walk, followed by our usual ritual of stopping at EUROSPAR for purchases. And we went to bed around 23:30.
May 12th, 2023: This time, we awoke at 09:00. You’re familiar with the drill. This time, our itinerary is scrawled on the back of a shopping bill.
- Go to Moscow Botanical Garden and VDKnH.
- Then proceed to Park Pobedy (Victory Park)
Mum will be excited about today’s trip because she enjoys gardens and parks. This time, instead of walking to Komsomolskaya Ploschad, we went in the opposite way, towards Prospect Mira. The term prospect refers to an avenue. We took the ‘M9’ bus to Vladykino and needed to get out near Ostankino, which is where the Moscow Botanical Garden is located. The road to our destination was lined with flyovers and high-rise buildings before transitioning into meadows and big parks. The entrance to the botanical garden was unremarkable. No entrance costs!
We wandered around the botanical garden’s walks and trails, admiring what nature had to offer. Not many people come here. There was a young lady walking her pram, several elderly women sitting on the benches, and other people finishing their morning jogs. This is a popular region for riding. We walked to a building near a little pond. It appeared picturesque. The pictures below will give you a sense of how the botanical garden is. A lot of beech, spruce, and pine trees. My walking speed has slowed because I need to use the restroom. I was frantic to find a restroom. The paved roads became paths. Few persons were present.
Clearly, I noticed Mum’s face and can tell she is dissatisfied with the garden. Because it’s all trees and plants, no flowers. When I remark that Mum like gardens and parks, she wants to see flowers. Like what we observed in Alexandrovsky Sad. I was walking towards the toilet (marked as ‘WC’ on Yandex Maps). We walked a few more paces in the oppressive heat (I was sweating profusely for the first time since arriving in Russia) until we arrived at the restroom near the amusement park.
We turned left at the T-shaped junction, and the road widened. I saw more people here, and I knew we were getting near to VDNH. We observed a ‘Cinema Museum’, a white edifice with wonderfully constructed exteriors. I checked about it with an official and discovered that it was a collection of Soviet-era animated cartoons, slide films, and manuscripts.
What is VDNH? This trade exhibition, also known as the All-Russia Exhibition Centre, has been held in Moscow since 1935. The Russian acronym VDNH stands for “Vystavka dostizheniy narodnogo khozyaystva”. In English, it is known as the Exhibition of National Economic Achievements. It is near the Ostankino TV Tower. When we entered, some pavilions were being renovated.
We walked a few more paces till we reached the Golden Spike Fountain. VDNH features various information boards with QR codes that describe each exhibition and natural wonder in Russian, Chinese, and English. A’sun-bathing area’ with comfortable chairs could be found near the pond. Many people were certainly sunbathing, dressed in beach clothes. The landscaping was stunning. There was a gate into the smaller ‘Ostankino Park’. As a result, the VDNH, Moscow Botanical Garden, and Ostankino Park form a unified unit, and I recommend spending a day here. We retraced our steps back to the road leading to the cinema museum and went toward the pavilions. As I previously stated, some renovation work was occurring. Many of the workers here had excellent quarters and came from Central Asian countries. We watched a parent and daughter enter a structure, and I assumed it was the entrance of the VDNH. I was mistaken. It occurred to be a cosmonautic museum, with separate admission costs for each exhibition and museum. (I didn’t like this concept, and I saw it in Peterhof too.)
There were other things to see, but I believe that the cosmonautic museum was worth seeing. (Sorry, I didn’t enter). There were a few of eateries nearby (Restomarket, if I recall properly), and we ordered two cups of coffee for 200 rubles each! A significant number of pupils attended the museum. Truth be told, these coffees tasted like tea. A copy of the Soyuz rocket and a Tupolev plane were on display in the center of VDNH, near the museum. Many pavilions were finely made and embellished with the USSR’s official seal in gold. Other museums nearby were the Museum of Oceanography, the Museum of Virtual Arts, and the Historical Museum, all of which were modern. The loudspeakers blared forth old Russian tunes and announcements.
It was 15:00, and we needed to eat. Another wonder at the VDNH were the state pavilions, which were designed to reflect the culture of each former Soviet republic. I saw pavilions for Belarus (which looked beautiful), Azerbaijan, Armenia, Abkhazia (which originally represented Lithuania), Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan (which I thought looked amazing!), Kazakhstan, Karelia, Moldova, and Ukraine. There was a restaurant (Kafe Belorruskaya) inside the Belarusian pavilion, but the cuisine did not fit us. The Armenian one had the Ararat restaurant, which did not suit us as well. We ate at the area adjacent to the Uzbek pavilion, which had around ten restaurants. Around these pavilions was a massive fountain known as the “Friendship of Peoples Fountain”. This was the headquarters of VDHH. The fountain is unique since everything that was constructed has a message. The fountain bowl is topped with a golden sheaf of wheat and sunflowers. Surrounding the sheaf are 16 statues of girls representing the Soviet republics. Why 16? The fountain was created at a time when the USSR consisted of 16 republics. Each girl held the agricultural plants that were most often grown in their own republics.
Other buildings dedicated to oriental art, optics, atomic energy, and robotics surrounded the pavilions. Not to forget the Central Pavilion! Also present is a statue of Vladimir Lenin. It was ideal for taking shots because of the lovely setting. The path leading to the VDHH entrance was decked with flowers, which Mum evidently appreciated! The gate was grand, with a statue of a couple clutching a wheat sheaf. Outside the gate, there were obvious additions: the ‘V’ and ‘Z’ symbols, painted half in Russian, and the St. George’s Cross. We visited the Worker and Kolkhoz Statues from the VDNH gate, which are always a must-see!
After returning to the VDNH gate, we were really pleased with what we had seen. Indeed, a massive one! And it was 15:30. We could have taken the electrobus back to the city center because there was a bus terminal. The depot was adjacent to a tram line heading to Ostankino, but we decided to test the overhead, slow-moving metro from VDNH, which runs every 10 minutes. This was not true for the Moscow Metro. This one ends at Timirzayevskaya. We could view the TV tower in greater detail from the cabins (which could accommodate up to six people apiece). When we arrived, there was an issue. This platform was not connected to Moscow Metro’s main underground lines. The path leading to it was under construction. As we arrived, our next stop was the Park Pobedy. (It means Victory Park in English)
We arrived at the Park Pobedy metro station and stepped outside to see it. It was positioned near to Poklonnaya Hill, which provided a good view of Moscow. Its elevation is 172 meters, and it has been a historical site since Napoleonic times. As we approached the obelisk, we noticed a newly built St. George’s church. Next to it was a tiny fountain, followed by a nicely manicured “1941” made up of red tulips. Of course, you can’t miss the statue of St. George Slaying the Dragon with the obelisk (142 cm tall). The weather was overcast. It drizzled for a while, but even so, the view of Moscow was stunning. Behind it was the “Eternal Flame”. The staircase goes to the park. As we stepped down, we could see the Victory Park building, which housed the cinema.
Mum was exhausted and urged me to go to the park and return within 15 minutes. And certainly, I returned in an hour. During my walk at the park, I received missed calls from Mum. I could tell she was becoming increasingly agitated with each passing minute. I walked and jogged in the cool weather, and it was 18:30 p.m. The Soldat Alley was the primary alley in this area, from which various branch roads diverged. As usual, the landscaping was fantastic. I turned towards the park’s Great Patriotic War museum. The path went from paved to brick-laid to muddy footpath. It was around 1.2 kilometers. As I was going, I noticed an animal racing towards me, looking ferocious. I wasn’t sure what it was! I hurried back to Soldat Alley.
My strained legs fortunately did not give way. My feet began sinking with each step as I ran down the muddy trail. My heart raced with fear, and I wondered if I’d make it through this. The thick woodlands and foliage, along with the element of mystery, made this brief excursion to the museum perilous. Thanks to my adrenaline, I made it to Pamyaty Alley, where I was safe. Panting with every breath, I realized it was growing dark and I needed to find a way back to my mother. As I walked, I noticed the Holocaust Memorial Synagogue. There were numerous statues throughout the park. A photo I took at Park Pobedy became problematic later (in the left lower corner). (Read this in Part IV: Troubles brewing…?)
Many young people were skating down one end of this alley. Some people were jogging. And I resumed jogging until I reached Veteranov Alley, where I turned towards Truda Alley and reunited with Mum. Truda Alley had a statue with human figures collapsing like dominoes. Mum was furious with me. And as I took one last look around the Park, I noticed the UN insignia on a statue. We strolled back to the metro station and opted to catch the bus back to Komsomolskaya Ploschad. The fountains leading to the obelisk were lit up with a red hue. Indeed, Victory Park was an incredible experience!
Our excursion came to an end with the same procedure back at our apartment. While I was returning, I texted Daria that because we had booked train tickets to St. Petersburg for 14:00 hours, we would leave the apartment and hand over the keys at 13:00 hours after lunch. She seemed to agree, but that was not the case. We shall learn the other lesson tomorrow.
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