Kolomenskoye is one of the most beautiful places in all of Moscow.
Although only a short metro ride from the center, and situated close to one of the city's most industrialized areas, the park and its awe-inspiring buildings are so steeped in history that not even the Kremlin itself can quite so well evoke the Russia of old.
I arrived at Kolomenskoye along a street of drab Soviet tower blocks, I was first confronted by a rather gaudy collection of souvenir booths, and part of the magic of the experience is the way that this display of touristy tackiness fades from your memory the further you get into the tranquil, rugged beauty of the park.
The village of Kolomenskoe was founded in 1237 by refugees from Kolomna. In the 15th-17th centuries the village became first a Grand Prince's and then the Tsar's estate. Peter the Great was brought here for his own safety during the streltsy insurrection of 1682, and began his studies here. His daughter, Elizabeth, was also born here. Later, Alexander I studied here on his way to Moscow with his grandmother, Catherine the Great.
As it was the start of spring the park is covered in colourful tulips and flowers, absolutely stunning.
As I walked around I took tons of pictures of the flowers and as I was bending down to take a picture of some pink tulips a devious pigeon decided to do his business. He actually pooped all over my camera!!! My whole camera was covered in pigeon poop, it even got into the buttons, all over the screen and into the zoom! They say its good luck if a pigeon poops on you hope this means my pictures will be good!
I walked with my pigeon poop covered camera to a stream near by and tried to clean it all off. It got into the buttons and all over the lens and as I was bending down cleaning my camera my bag slipped and fell into the stream. After drying most of my bags contents and cleaning my camera I however commenced my exploring of the park with my pigeon poop camera.
The First magnificent building I came across was the Church of the Ascension of the Lord which is right next to the Moscow river.
It was constructed in 1529-1532 to commemorate the birth of Ivan the Terrible. Its unique blend of architectural styles has been attributed to the copying of much older wooden ecclesiastical architecture and to early influences from Italy. The church has a mystique and stark beauty that is only enhanced by its contrast with the modern cityscape that spreads across the opposite bank.
As I walked around the church the church bells started ringing. It was amazing to listen to the church bells as I gazed out over the Moscow river.
The most beautiful church in this park is however the pretty Church of the Icon of Our Lady of Kazan - with its bright azure domes and plenty of gold stars, a more instantly familiar image of Russian religion. It was built under Aleksei II in 1644.
My walk took me further into the park where I sat down in the orchard with a sweet ice-cream.
