Moscow Madness

It may not be a art gallery in the true sense of the word, but the Moscow Subway is a tribute to the visual arts. Many of the stations in the central area, boast some of the most impressive sculptures, mosaics, frescoes, chandeliers and marble. The crowds are overwhelming, pushing, shoving, rushing. Mothers with strollers, lovers hand in hand or beggars with cups. It would have been easy to loose our guide so it was necessary to be vigilant at all times. After all it was Saturday and tourist season is in full swing. 

Have you ever seen a Russian smile? Well neither have I. An exaggeration I suppose but no one seems particularly happy. Sullen and grumpy looking, their unflattering attitude does not go unnoticed despite the streets being extensively decorated. Strings of crystal decorations spanned a number of streets in anticipation of  the festival.

Unfortunately for us, much of Red Square, as was Lenin's Tomb, was off limits due to a military music festival. However even if Vladimir Lenin is in a mausoleum, the changing of the guard takes place on an hourly basis. Click on my short video Changing of Lenin's Guard for a taste. St Basil’s was visible from a distance but again disappointing it was off limits today. We have been assured we will get another opportunity to see this iconic symbol of Red Square on another day. This will be a highlight for me!

Much of our time was spent concentrating around the Kremlin extremities and the GUM department store. I’m not a shopper by any sense of the word, but the GUM walk about was an experience from an architectural point of view. The variety of high end retailers and their brands, along with traditional ice cream and a water fountain filled with watermelons and melons was not a replacement for strolling around Red Square, but it was more or less a replacement itinerary.

The Moscow River which flows through the middle of the city is extremely busy with tourist boats going in every direction. In an attempt to keep the boats sailing through winter an ice breaker is utilized to keep the ice from impeding the ever present flow of river traffic. 

The day concludes with a regional folkloric concert at a small venue. It featured many traditional instruments in addition to song and dance. It was extremely entertaining and you can click on my short video at  Balalaika concert for a taste of the balalaika. Fun Fun Fun!!

Aeroflop.....Not At All

What do you think of when you think of Aeroflot? Me too. However I have to say the experience was overall a positive one. When I first learned that our connecting flight from Paris was to be on Aeroflot, I was extremely skeptical. However my concerns were put at ease, when I learned from a friend who works for the UN  that all flights into and out of Russia were, by international regulation, flown on an Airbus or Boeing equipment. In our case it was an Airbus 320. The staff was much more helpful and accommodating than Air France and the in-flight meal and presentation was much more appetizing. Russian wine is pretty good as well. Our attendant reminded me of one of those Russian dolls with a very round face and bright smile. The only criticism was the hideous orange uniforms they wear.

It was a kind of a strange feeling flying into Moscow with scattered villages and towns below, surrounded by vast stretches of forests. The Airport is named after the famous Russian poet Alexander Pushkin. Somewhat dated but a new terminal is under construction.  And guess what. The visa performed as it was supposed to. All according to plan and not a hitch.

Beautiful sunny day and the trip to our ship Viking Rurik, was uneventful except for that the traffic was horrific. More on the ship on the days to come, but just to say this will be a memorable experience, Captain Igor is calling and breakfast is beckoning. Off on a walking tour today and more to report on that tomorrow.
До скорого

Viva La Visa

If anyone tells you that going to Russia is easy, then they evidently haven't been to Russia. The process for getting a visa is long and tedious. First you have to get a letter of invitation from the tour operator. This is followed by having to write a letter of introduction and then completing a very long application form. Included in the application form, you have to list all of the countries one has visited in the past 10 years. In our case, not a simple matter. I had to attach a separate sheet as the application only allowed up to 16 entries and with the help of an expired passport and an additional sheet of paper, our list came up to 32 country entry stamps. And don't make any mistakes for the application will be returned and you will have to start over. Once all the paper work is completed, a trip to a visa processing office is in order, paying the customary fee for which Mr Putin insists on. You have to leave your current passport for processing which will take up to a month. While being border bound, you cross your fingers that all is in order. When you are notified by email that you can return to pickup your passport, all along praying that the visa has been issued, you only breath a sigh of relief when you see for yourself that the visa is indeed pasted into your passport. There is no grace period and it is firmly stipulated that your entry date into the country and exit date are expressly listed. No wonder I registered with the Government of Canada where and when we will be entering and exiting for fear that some over zealous government official might be a little over ambitious. Talk to you next time from Red Square if all goes according to plan and the visa does what it is supposed to do. Спасибо за прочтение