Russia

Moscow

There are so many things of which I didn't get pictures...some of the AMAZING restaurants ($300-400 a head) and the night clubs ($40 to get in and $500 for the woman of your choice). Crazy.
It seemed the population was either extremely wealthy or extremely poor. I didn't see much of a middle class. There was also a LOT more women than men, and you could tell the women were working it...short skirts, tight tops and lots of high heals.

Best line of the week: I told one of the women with us that I needed to go to the gym after seeing all these skinny Russian chicks. To which she replied, "Why? Don't you like breakfast, lunch and dinner?"

Here are a few pictures.


There are statues all over Moscow...tributes to anyone deemed honorable.
This one is a tribute to the common man, soldier, in Red Square.

A typical street view. This is a huge walking city. The Metro system is very used. Traffic is insane...it is pretty much a free for all. I would NEVER drive in Moscow.

This is a view through the gate at a platform in Red Square where Ivan the Terrible made speeches, many overly dramatic, to the gathering crowd. (Red Square, now a gathering place for concerts, parades and such, used to be a little city of wooden shacks inhabited by those who worked within the walls of the Kremlin.)

GUM is a very upscale shopping mall. It was originally built as a market place for those who lived in Red Square, but was used as office and military space when Stalin was in power. It has now been reconditioned for the currents shops, but still maintains it original architecture.

This one is pretty self explanatory.


These two are of one of the restaurants we visited. It was just lovely, but the food, well, I have had better. One doesn't go to Moscow for the food.




St. Basil in Red Square
This was built and refurbished several times. It has been added to and colors have been changed. Historically correct churches were white with gold tops. The inside paintings have been re-done, but are generally the same.
Church in Russia is typically 3 hours long, standing in one place the whole time.

The HUGE cannon that was shot to let everyone know if the Kremlin was under attack.

Don's favorite dining establishment. He calls them "crap dogs." The translation is really "star dogs."

Our hotel...it was really strange that it was only this dark 4 hours a night. We would be out to dinner, wearing sunglasses, at 10pm.

Guards at the Unknown Soldier of WWII memorial.