We eventually got to Paveletskaya station in Moscow -
where we found our way to the Metro and finally to our hotel where they very kindly allowed us to check in so we could grab a few hours sleep. By midday were up again and headed off towards the center of Moscow. The weather was awful so we found the closest Metro and bought a couple of 10-trip tickets which cost 150 rubles, or about £3 ($7.50 AUD) - a bargain in any currency. The Metro really is quite spectacular - every station is different and the features include elborate chandeliers, marble, granite and sculptured friezes - as amazing as any gallery or historical site we have seen.
As well as being cheap and beautiful, it is also incredibly efficient and simple to use - no zones, so for 15 rubles, you can go anywhere on the system. Very impressive.
We made our way to the center of Moscow to find the Kremlin closed and Red Square all fenced off - no doubt something important going on. Outside the Kremlin -
The weather was still miserable so we took off to GUM, a large shopping complex just off Red Square which is another example of amazing architecture - this one housing some very expensive designer labels. After a bit of browsing, we wandered around and found the Moscow World Art Fair where Nick let me persuade him to go in - the weather probably worked in my favour here. This was truly scary - works by Chagall, Picasso, Matisse, Dali, not being exhibited, but being sold. Apparently a Picasso had been purchased during the week for a record amount. A bit out of our league but fascinating to think that people (Russian people, newly wealthy from the purchase of dirt cheap, previously state-owned, institutions) were coming to buy.
After this we went back to the hotel where we met Henry, a friend of a friend who was in Moscow after his motorcycle broke down in Siberia on his trip across Europe. He had been in Moscow for almost two weeks waiting for it to be repaired (someone was going to Italy to pick up the parts for his Ducatti) and compared to us was a local expert so we followed him very willingly to some small place we would never have found in a million years. He claimed only to speak 'a little' Russian, but managed to order us food and drinks (including vodka, of course, which is served - strangely - in grams) which we were extremely grateful for. By 11pm, Nick and I were struggling to stay awake so we headed back to the hotel for some long-overdue sleep.
On Sunday we went to Izmaylovo Market. After an initial stop at another market more like the Queen Vic (to where we had followed the crowds from the train station), we found the much more interesting 'art and culture' market we had read about in the Lonely Planet next door. We walked around for ages, checking out the curious mix of religious iconography, Soviet military artifacts, pirate DVDs and babushka dolls -
We also had some great lunch - Russia does a mean kebab (interestingly, a lot of Russian food shares its heritage with Turkish and Greek). After some purchases, we headed back into central Moscow to go to the State Tretyakov Gallery - more than 50 rooms of impressive Russian art. By then it was time for dinner and we went to the famous Cafe Pushkin -
We originally intended to go to the roof-top cafe however it was closed and since it was still early they overlooked our jeans and runners and suggested we eat in the restaurant downstairs - any later and they would have turned us away without a second thought. Again, the architecture and decor were simply amazing and accentuated perfectly with a string quartet. The service and food were exceptional and a quick bite turned into 3 courses and coffee. Still quite cheap by London standards, and worth every ruble.
On Monday we woke to some very welcome sunshine and headed off to Red Square (above - the GUM building behind) and the Kremlin. There are a number of buildings which make up the Kremlin, most of them still in use by the government, as well as three cathedrals (Assumption, Archangel and Annunciation) another church and the world’s biggest bell. After the Kremlin, we went to St. Basils, the church in Red Square famous for its extremely brightly coloured facade.
Inside it is equally bright and full of religious paintings and decorations on every surface.
Quite amazing. We then had some lunch, did some more shopping and decided to go to Gorky Park - more a photo op than anything as it is now best known as a fun fair. Fortunately, it is located across the road from the contemporary art gallery which was closed, but has a great garden full of fantastic sculptures. Unfortunately it was pouring rain so not the best time to be outside. After that it was back to our hotel to pick up our bag and off to the airport.
