Russia - Moscow City

We stayed in the Hilton Leningradskaya, converted from one of the Seven Sisters, large “wedding cake” style architectural pieces from the Stalin era.  It was pleasant enough as a place to stay with the exception of the price of beverages – local lager at £9/pint, Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc at £70/bottle, and cocktails were cheaper than beer, wine and bottled water!

Hilton Leningradskaya

The (expensive) expansive Lobby

Kremlin on the opposite side of Moscow River

Red Square

Lenin's Mausoleum (he looked a bit 'waxy')

St Basil's Cathedral

8 churches in 1

Tomb of the Unknown Soldier & Presidential Guard

(who must all be pure Russian and 1m 80cm tall)

All change

'Allo, you taking over?

Bye

Kremlin Clock Tower

Garden nearby

Kremlin in background, again

Cathedral of Christ the Saviour

(destroyed by Stalin, rebuilt in 10 years in the 90s, without State funds)

GUM shopping centre in Red Square

(nothing actually bought there, just for brand marketing)

Of course, some Russian dolls!

Bolshoi Ballet

Into the Metro

Rub the dog's nose for luck!

Statue of Chekov

Moscow State University

The City has changed dramatically since the fall of communism and much progress has been made in just over 20 years.  It is very clean and without litter, despite a lack of law and fines.  There is little to no obesity and everyone seemed very smartly dressed.  One of our rugby group was gripped judging whether the trim and attractive promenading young Russian ladies had longer heels than skirts! iPhones and foreign cars were everywhere and the city has a major traffic problem despite having 8 lanes each side on some of its ring roads, so financial well-being is evident on the surface.  But, we also saw blocks of Soviet style apartment blocks that looked pretty grim and some of the many road accidents were more than just bumps.

We had two walking tours with different guides and we felt we had tromped over most of Moscow by the end of them.  Value for money was high on a per km basis!  We saw varied architecture, from Red Square with the Kremlin, Lenin’s Mausoleum, St Basil’s Cathedral & The GUM Store, to Bolshoi Ballet Theatre(s), the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (another of the Seven), The Moscow State University (yet another), the Cathedral of Christ the Saviour and the Metro, yes the Underground!  It even warrants a full day tour of its own because of its architectural prowess.  It was hot, over 30°C both days, but the price of a hotel beer didn't seem to matter on our return!