On the Road

"The purpose of life lies at the intersection of the heart's deepest desires, the mind's keenest talents, and the world's greatest needs."

Russia

There are [133] photos in this gallery.

Heidi and I spent about a week in the Motherland (or at least the Motherland for Tajikistan), hitting up the main sights in Moscow and St. Petersburg and enjoying the stereotypically frigid Russian winter weather

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Catching our first of many trains upon arrival in Moscow Views[21] The older gentlemen beside us on the train into town were drinking beers (I think it was 2 pm?!). Welcome to Moscow :) Views[20] You can never have too many hammer-and-sickles Views[19] One of Moscow's many beautiful metro stations Views[21] Views[26]
 
Views[24] Views[23] Views[22] Views[21] And there she is... the curiously designed St. Basil's Cathedral and the Kremlin, dusted by a light snow in the Red Square, made for an iconic Russian moment Views[27]
 
Views[26] Views[24] Views[24] Inside Views[25]
 
Views[25] Supermodels and fashionistas abound... Views[25] Views[23] I saw on the news in the morning that there was a rally in the Red Square in support of Putin's economic stimulus package... we rushed to the centre but had just missed it. We still got to see rows and rows of KGB militisia and banners such as this one Views[25] Heidi made me do it. (Don't worry, I didn't buy anything, but was quite amused by the literal translations of the menu) Views[24]
 
The happiest girl in the world Views[34] The Lenin Library, just down the street from the Red Square Views[24] Views[23] An inset bust of my old buddy, Darwin Views[22] Another intricately detailed church that we passed en route to Old Arbat, the famous shopping district (though we didn't buy anything except Soviet propaganda swag) Views[20]
 
Views[24] In another of Moscow's beautiful metro stations Views[23] Views[23] Just that morning, I had read about the day-time murder of a Russian journalist and human rights lawyer. In the evening, we walked past the memorial where they were shot. Russia is the world's third-most dangerous place to work as a journalist (behind Iraq and Algeria) Views[22] No shortage of vodka on the shelves of, well, pretty much every shop in Moscow Views[20]
 
We even went to a gay club, complete with a drag show, and danced til 6 am. Even though our friend-of-a-friend that we were staying with told us that being gay in Moscow is still very stigmatized, the very fact that there are gay clubs was a huge difference from in Tajikistan, which subscribes to the whole KGB militsia on the beat Views[21] Cathedral of Christ the Saviour, built from 1839-1883. It was destroyed by Stalin, replaced by the world's largest swimming pool, then rebuilt in time for Moscow's 850th birthday in 1997 Views[19] Views[20] Views[18]
 
The entrance to the Kropotkinskaya/Lenina metro station Views[28] In the lobby of the Kremlin Theatre, where we went to see previews of Views[18] Ah, Bolero... LOVE that theme song! Views[24] Views[19]
 
Our first main sight in gorgeous St. Petersburg after an overnight train from Moscow... the Church of the Saviour on Spilled Blood/Church of the Resurrection. This beauty (which I thought looked more intimidating and, thus, Russian than St. Basil's) was built from 1883-1907 on the spot where Alexander II was blown up by the People's Will terrorist group Views[20] Views[23] Views[22] Views[23] The irony here is that I was just taking a picture of the sign when the woman in the fur coat walked by. Russians love their fur... I lost count of the times I nearly drowned in the fur coats on the metro Views[22]
 
The Mariinsky Theatre, St. Petersburg's equivalent of Moscow's Bolshoi Theatre Views[18] Views[23] Views[20] Views[21] The menu outside the Russian Vodka Museum and restaurant (we went into the museum and had a tour and tasting...) Views[21]
 
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