Blogs from Russia, Europe - page 257

At nine o’clock sharp all of us were there: driver, guide and four of us. We got in the blue van. Plenty of space and one curiosity - the steering wheel is on the right, English style! Who knows how did that van end up here? We first crawled through the city traffic, but soon we were out of the urban area. All is so different once you are out of the city. After an hour or so we reached our first destination: a small hill next to a lake. We got out and hiked to the top of it. The view was impressive and there was a huge steel double cross on top of it. Vladimir told us that it is a frequent spot for the thunders to hit. Well, that was kind of ... read more

The second day in train went by in a matter of moments. Some chit chats, Trivial Pursuit games and few stops in villages. We got off the train to buy the fruits - forest strawberries and raspberries - from the locals that come to the platforms to sell it to the train travelers. Towards the end of the day we were approaching Yekaterinburg… also the weather changed though. It was suddenly stormy outside. An hour later, eight o’clock Moscow time and ten o’clock local, as the train entered slowly the city’s train station, the sun came out from behind the clouds. The train station here is very modern and new. Obviously recently renovated. With huge electric screens, even outside the train station, it is actually possible to see the train arrivals and departures from virtually ... read more

The morning was promising. Sunny with a tiny layer of clouds. The obvious destination of today is Red Square (Krasnaya Ploshchad) and Kremlin. We got off incredibly richly decorated metro, a museum per sè, and behind the corner we saw the Resurrection Gate (Voskresenskiye vorota) - a perfect frame for the view on the St. Basil cathedral - the world known cathedral with the funny coloured onions as towers. We walked through the red arch and got closer to the center of it all. The square is immense indeed, but maybe a bit less than expected. With in mind the thought of someone landing an airplane on this square probably the expectations themselves were exagerated. After we took few pictures we walked around it - as at this hour it is not permitted to walk ... read more

Summer 2004 antibodyman went to Russia. We took a picture in Moscow, red Square, a Vassily the Blessed Cathedral is on the background. We then took a trip to Far East of Russia, Sakhalin island, Korsakov, a coast of Okhotsk Sea.... read more

Our third day in the country started on a bit more of a somber note. We visited a cemetery that housed the remains of some of the greatest Russian minds. Puskin, Dostoyevsky etc. I was not really sure about the rest of them. Liga (the Latvian that was one of our student guides) went from grave to grave in awe. We recognized some, but she seemed to have an intimate regard for every tombstone she passed. There were only about four of us that went with her. The cemetery was actually rather small considering all the amazing people that were buried there. What I remember most about the morning was that it was overcast and foggy, which was most appropriate for the occasion. We went back to the riverfront as a group, split up and ventured ... read more