I would like to share my impressions about Moscow and Russia from my visit here in August-October 2005. The following text will be devided into sections of different impressions of Moscow and people in this city. Moscow architecture, people's behavior, ancient traditions, wild dogs on the streets, beauty of Moscow history, perverts in subway —— I intentionally do not want to make any connections between those short parts of the text, because all those things exist parallel to each other in Moscow life, without affecting one another and without contradicting one another. Enjoy!
Moscow seems to be a city in which one comes very close with all that is finest and all that is most frustrating in Russia. Along with ancient cathedrals that are being restored and opened for religious services, innovative theaters, better economy, much more freedom and restoration of Russian traditions, Moscow is still experiencing problems of a city coming to terms with the confusions of rapid social change.
In Moscow you will for sure visit Kremlin and Red Square, and walk around this area. Subway station "Ploshad' Revolyuzii"** is in 1 minute walk to Red Square. The Kremlin is Russia's self contained city with a multitude of palaces, armories, and churches, a medieval fortress, the heart of modern Moscow. Most of the city had been inside the Kremlin walls until the 16th century. Afterwards, the Kremlin became the official Tsars residence with just several most powerful nobles and a head of the Orthodox church, who lived inside. Kremlin fortress was one of the most fortified in Europe. The red brick walls with 20 towers were never captured by the enemies. The main tower of the Kremlin with chimes on it is called Spasskaya Tower**.
click on the images to enlarge!! **—these photos are mentioned in the text. |
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Red SquareDOWN| |
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Beautiful night lights in the center of Moscow.DOWN| |
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Spasskaya** Tower and Kremlin** wall.DOWN| |
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|UP White Russian and Red Square**. |
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|UP Manejnaya square close to Kremlin**. |
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|UP Red Square** and St. Bazil's cathedral. |
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|UP Old convent. |
Plan a 1 hour walk around Taganka** region (subway station "Taganskaya"). Taganka is a name of south-eastern central part of Moscow situated in-between river Yauza and Moskva-river. Start your walk from the subway station, pass the theatre (on your right) and go down the street toward Moskva-river. You need to get to Goncharnaya ulitsa (Goncharnaya Street). Here you will experience an amazing feeling of finding yourself in the ancient Moscow of XVII — XVIII centuries. Those two and even one-floor wooden houses were left untouched by reconstructions of Moscow started before Revolution, and Soviet regime had mercy on this place as well. For about 400 meters (1/3 mile) on Goncharnaya Street you will see very ancient houses and also will finally walk to Afonskoe Podvor'ie — an ancient monastery. Being badly ruined during the Soviet era, now this monastery is fully rennovated to its initial beauty. You will love old Moscow architecture of that place (see the pictures)!!
Have a walk to a Red Egg house (subway station Turgenevskaya)**!! It is located close to Chistie Prudi, at Mashkov Street. This 4-floor private building was built by the architect Sergei Tkachenko, following the exact form of famous Faberge Easter eggs. |
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Taganka's** house with wood carving decor.|DOWN |
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Afonskoe podvorie — old convent. Taganka** |DOWN |
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Red-and-Round**. Subway station Turgenevskaya. |DOWN |
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UP| Convent and Stalin's house. Taganka** |
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UP| houses close to Taganka** — Taganskaya subway station. |
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UP| My favorite Red-and-Round** private house in Moscow. |
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UP| Park close to Kremlin. |
The cars never stop for pedestrians in Moscow. Well, almost never. Even if you are standing beside 'Pedestrians Crossing' sign and have two small kids with you. In this case you'll have to wait and wait smelling the emissions of the cars (gas is not cleaned properly in Russia and nobody cares about engines' emission) until all of the bastards will finally drive away. I am wondering how do the owners of those cars feel like in such situations? Oh, of course they feel cool — hey, we are on top of the word and wearing white toxido, and everybody else (Mom with two kids standing beside me with Ra) is covered in shit (it is a translation of one sad Russian proverb — Everybody is in shit, and I am wearing white toxido — the proverb reflects Russian modern life and traditions rather good unfortunately).
Traffic** is horrible in Moscow. On the roads with two lines, drivers form 5 lines (on both of the shoulders and over the dividing line actually!! Sometimes drivers go so close to the opposite side of the traffic, that they break side mirrors on the driver's side (imagine that those both cars often go 100 km/hour = 60 miles/hour and faster). Male drivers make fun and cut female drivers. Everybody is speeding, and when they are stopped by police, they give them bribe (usually 300 rub = 10$) for speeding and drive futher. Many of the drivers are drunk (even though police is trying to minimize driving under influence), and even more young drivers are on drugs (marihuana is very popular in Moscow, and it is considered very safe to drive after smoking it, because police can almost never figure it out..) |
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Playing for money on the streets. DOWN| |
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Beauty and the Beast.DOWN| |
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Subway station "Ploshad' Revolyuzii"**.DOWN| |
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|UP Truck decorated by an old Armenian guy. |
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|UP Ati-bati -- Russian troops. |
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|UP traffic** is always BAD in Moscow. |
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|UP Unexpected connection. |
Each of Moscow subway** stations has unique design, ornaments and often sculpture, and if not for (many) passengers you would get a feeling of being in a museum. Take a ride to the most famous subway stations — "Ploshad' Revolyuzii"** (blue line), "Novoslobodskaya" (brown circle line), "Mayakovskaya" (green line), any of those will astonish you!! Try to visit Moscow subway between 5am and 6:30am; or noon and 2pm; or 9pm and 1am — so you could enjoy the beauty of the stations without being pushed by hurried bodies. Most of the times when I was taking subway after 10:30pm from th center of the city, I saw groups of foreigners with their guides admiring at the beauty of Moscow subway!
There are LOTS of perverts in Russian subway**. It was like that before as well (years 1986-1997), but now it feels especially strong after coming back from friendly Florida. Those perverts would take rides on subway during day hours, when lots of kids and students are coming back from schools/colleges/universities. Because it is always rush hour (well, from 7am till 11am and from 3pm till 9 pm) in Moscow subway those perverts are safe among other people's bodies and it is very easy to pet people without getting anybody's (sometimes even victim's!!) attention. So those perverts would get close to a school girl (or to a guy, as my guy-friends told me), and would start petting their victim. It is very difficult to move away due to MANY other people standing very close to you all over, and for many young girls and guys (again I know this from lots of stories of my friends) it is impossible to complain aloud because it feels too shamefull for them to admit that they are aims of those bastards.
This petting happened to me few times during previous years, and one time during this visit. Before I was always loudly protesting (even though perverts usually would play innocent and offended by such 'insults'), sometimes even scratching his hand with nails. This time I sharply turned to him, and he got scared and turned to the exit. I followed him (because it was my train change station as well) and reported that old man in his sixties to police-patrole in subway. Well, needless to say that the episode ended in clumsy laughs of a young policeman and the old guy wispering some very rude words about me (which I partly heard) into policeman's ear, then I guess that pervert gave policemen a bribe (it is a universal end of most of the criminal cases in Russia). I was not suprised about this whole situation — and I guess it is kind of scary.
click on the images to enlarge!! |
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Old garden gates. DOWN| |
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Famous mall on the Red Square — GUM (pronounced goom). DOWN| |
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Russian Eagle. DOWN| |
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|UP Ukranian restaurant 'Taras Bulba' |
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|UP Entering Red Square**. |
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|UPVorob'ievi Gori subway station, panoramic view of Moscow**. |
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|UP View from Izmailovsky park**. |
In Moscow you will see schools of big wild dogs everywhere (small ones get torn apart by the big ones, so the strongest and the meanest survive). Lately, walking right beside Kremlin wall with my friend, we saw a huge group of big dogs living and playing and attacking bikers right there!! Those dogs will attack you almost for sure if you ride a bike or roller-skate and there can be more than 8 of them at one time around you. In these cases you should stop moving and try to throw something into the dogs: your camera, your backpack or whatever you hold in your hands!! You should similtaneously scream on top of your lungs. This can scare the dogs away (not necessarily though).
Once I went with my dog Ra to Izmailovsky Park** (subway station "Partizanskaya") — a huge natural park in Moscow, which is in about 30 minutes walk from my place. We had wonderful time there, but on our way back we've been attacked by two HUGE and beautiful dogs (looking exactly like golden retreivers) who jumped and showed teeth in front of Ra and me, and barked sharply. For a happy moment I thought — "two of them, and two of us, we will make it!!", but almost right away the rest of the dog's school ran out of the forest — how beautiful they ran, the first one (the Leader obviously) — dark grey with some almost orange spots on its back, and the last one reminding german shepherd, that dog number eight. They galloped out of the forest one after another, and surrounded me and Ra.
I've got deadly scared. Ra unmistakenly detected the Leader and jumped on him (can you beleive it, my small — in comparison with those dogs — Ra?!!....). In one instant I saw the rest of the dogs getting ready to jump over Ra, so I screamed like totally insane (I never screamed like this in my whole life) and holding my backpack by its strings I smashed it onto the dogs. I did not stop screaming. Three dogs were fighting Ra, and the rest of them turned to me — and I had a vision of my death in their merciless eyes (now, how about it?!! Well, it was very very scary, really..). And then suddenly somebody (there were few people in that alley of a park) threw something into the dogs and another woman's crazy and wild scream joined mine. Two women were on our side now!! In less then few minutes the accident was over. Wild dogs turned their backs to us and jumped back to the forest. Ra got few deep scratches and now his back legs and back are covered with scars (not too visible, and all this did not make him feel or look bad fortunately, he was quite proud of himself!!!!) I was shaking (literaly) all over, weeping and very very scared. One of the women patted me on my shoulder and told me: "It's OK now, they ran away!" For few minutes I was too numb to realize the fact, that she was talking to me in English!! I just came from States and it sounded pretty normal for me. It turned out that these women were two Americans who walked in this park also, and saw me and Ra beign ready to be eaten alive. Wow!! Two Americans!! I doubt that Russians would help us (sorry guys!!..), at least there were some other people, but they preferred not to interfere. Maybe Americans helped us because they did not actually realize (like Russians with their multiple dog experiences) that those dogs could bite them and even eat them (such cases happened in Moscow). Anyway, thanks again to those ladies!!
On a positive note: do not worry if you just walk around by foot — dogs will ignore you (until you try to pet them, but you won't, will you?!!). Many Russians (including me I guess, no matter how wierd after the previous lines it sounds) feel sorry for the poor creatures; some people even feed these dogs and their puppies. So every year there are more and more wild dogs in Moscow (even despite many Korean people in the city who could make use of these dogs, just kidding..). Few years ago I've heard about some governmental program aimed to sterelise those dogs, but probably it turned out to be too expensive to do so, so every year the number of dogs doubles. |
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Toy-buildings close to Vernisaj — Russian souvenir market. DOWN| |
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In park bathrooms they use UF-light, feels interesting!! DOWN| |
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Wild dogs** attacking bikers. DOWN| |
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|UP In Izmailovsky park**. |
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|UP Me and Ra** on a boat. |
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|UP Kremlin and wild dogs**. |
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|UP So cute indeed, those Kremlin dogs**. |
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