Life & Style | Travel
A making of Moscow memories
Russia remains steeped in history, communist or otherwise, even as it moves forward to a modern identity.
- By Robin Esrock
- Published: 23:39 May 16, 2008
In Russia, communism might have collapsed but the fossils of its power are still impressive — grand architecture engraved with the designs of hammers and sickles to awe people with the power of the state.
But Moscow, Russia's capital, is, nonetheless, a city of hip fashion and dazzling culture.
With only a few days to explore Moscow, I couldn't wait for three hours in a queue to see Lenin's stuffed corpse in Red Square. So I did as the locals do — bribed someone and walked in.
Swirls of imagination
The Red Square holds Moscow's best landmarks. St Basil's Cathedral looks like giant ice-cream sundaes striped with raspberry and blueberry swirls while the 500-year-old Kremlin fort's gigantic brick walls belie their age.
As Russia embraces a free-market economy, the fact that thousands of tourists line up to see Lenin is somewhat embarrassing to the new government, not to mention the communist paraphernalia available in every street market.
When Stalin fell out of favour, his stuffed body was removed from the mausoleum and buried outside the Kremlin walls. Lenin might join him but for now, the founder of communism lies peacefully.
Over coffee, I meet some young Russians who tell me President Putin is popular and that Muscovites truly see themselves as different from the rest of Russia.
The overall atmosphere was neither as controlled nor as suspicious as I had imagined. But how could I not get a buzz exploring the ballroom metros of Moscow, pretending I was a secret agent? Built in the 1930s, each metro stop seemed grander than the previous, with huge statues, mosaics and tall, hand-carved ceilings.
The escalators seem to descend all the way to hell and trains pull off with a savage abruptness — the epitome of brutal Russian efficiency.
Circus entertainment
I head off to the Moscow State Circus — tickets are cheap and that's where Cirque du Soleil finds many of its star performers.
The acrobatics were jaw-dropping and a gorgeous contortionist twisted our imagination into knots.
After checking out a sensational open-air travel-photo exhibition (outdoor art decorates the city) and lining up to see the Kremlin, I boarded a train for the jewel in Russia's crown, St Petersburg.
Combine the striking churches of Prague with the beautiful buildings that sit alongside the Danube in Budapest, add the canals of Amsterdam with the colour of Copenhagen, and you get St Petersburg.
Among Bohemian bars and decadent restaurants, I wonder that this pristine place was once the scene of the Second World War's most horrific siege.
The 900-day Nazi blockade of Leningrad (as it was then known) killed over a million people in the city.
How so many cathedrals and palaces survived is a miracle, more so as postwar communists turned many of these into warehouses.
After cleaning up for the G8 summit in 2006, the city today looks the best it has in its turbulent history.
New amid the old
The Nevsky Prospekt bustles, the old town's canals sparkle alongside bright buildings, the Church of Our Saviour on Spilled Blood stands like a supermodel and the Hermitage Museum houses three million art pieces.
I often judge a city by how long I can walk around before getting bored. Discovering one great sight after another, I walked St Petersburg till I got blisters.
— Robin Esrock is a freelance travel writer and co-host of Word Travels, an upcoming travel series on National Geographic Adventure. Visit www.wordtravels.tv
for more information
Share this article
More from Travel
Bringing you the world at your doorstep
Popular in Travel
Life & Style editor's choice
-
An urban adventure in Cebu
Cebu City has loads in store for thrill and adventure seekers
-
The woman with 90 pets
With two horses and a herd of deer, pet care takes on new meaning in Barsha
-
Riding the wave: Fjords of Musandam
John DeSouza goes to Oman to tell you all you need to know about this hotspot
-
Destinations
Spoilt for choice in Durban
Rediscover life's simplest truths by riding on some of the highest tracks in the world
