Oh man…I wish I had a pedometer on this trip! Joe is still in contact with a friend from language training who was born and raised in Moscow. He was our personal tour guide, showed us everything we wanted to see, a few things we didn’t, and everything in between. The three of us walked our tails off!!
St. Basil’s Cathedral and Red Square are obviously the icons of Moscow, so there are plenty of pictures of them here, as well as a few other gems! We took over 700 pictures during our 3.5 days in Moscow, so this is nowhere near a comprehensive display of the capitol of the largest country in the world!
Cathedral of Christ the Saviour – This is the tallest Orthodox Christian church in the world and it seems to always be visible, no matter where you are in Moscow. It has quite a history. In 1882 Tchaikovsky premiered the 1812 Overture here, the church was destroyed in 1931 and turned into the world’s largest open air swimming pool, and then it was finally rebuilt/reopened in 2000.
Fallen Monument Park – This is a really interesting park, which belongs to a museum, but is open to the public for free. The park contains sculptures that were removed from their original locations and probably doomed to a sad fate. There is everything from 16th century lions to Josef Stalin.
One corner of the park with the controversial Peter the Great monument and Cathedral of Christ the Saviour in the background.
Ancient sculptures and the ever-present hammer and sickle.
Damaged Stalin
The Kremlin & Red Square – The Kremlin is striking, whether from the outside or inside the walls. Sadly, the Bell Tower was closed for renovations, but we still got to see the amazing Armoury, many of the cathedrals, and even the paraffin-covered Lenin himself.
Red Square
St. Basil’s Cathedral through the State Historical Museum Gate.
The Armoury, Savior’s Tower, and Cathedral of Christ the Saviour
Rooftop behind the Church of the Deposition of the Robe
The Kremlin is still an active military installation.
Savior Tower at sunset
Archangel Cathedral, Tsar Bell, and Ivan the Great Bell Tower
St. Basil’s Cathedral – Moscow’s icon! This building is gorgeous from the outside, but surprisingly dark and cramped on the inside. There is no main hall, but several individual cathedrals on the second floor that can’t hold more than a dozen people. They are elaborately decorated, but nothing like the inside of the Church of the Saviour on Spilled Blood in St. Petersburg.
Ok…I have to go recover now. I seem to have misplaced my feet.