Moscow

Here is a picture tour of my four days in Moscow:

6 am train from the Vnukovo airport to Moscow

In front of the Bolshoy Theatre

After watching the Victory Day parade we went to see some of the other celebrations around the city. There were lots of people everywhere, including people singing and little crowds would join in the songs. We saw a lot of hammer and sickle symbols, and red stars. All around the little park  outside the Bolshoy Theatre, veterans were sitting in their uniforms with all their medals. People would come up to them and bring them a carnation and talk to them a bit. There were lots of kids dressed up in uniforms too.

Two boys presenting carnations to a veteran

One veteran with many medals, and also so many carnations he had other people to carry them for him!

The History Museum on the Red Square, all decorated for Victory Day

Red Square decorated and crowded on Victory Day

The next day we went on an excellent walking tour around the city centre. Afterwards I visited the Kremlin. I had no clue what to expect, but it turns out that what is open to the public are all the cathedrals. So I visited about 6 different orthodox Cathedrals, all pretty much the same.

View past the cannon to a few cathedrals

I went back by the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, and was just in time to follow the new soldiers coming for the changing of the guards. It was funny to watch them, I could not march like that - they kick their legs so high! Here is another place you can see all the flowers left for Victory Day.

Changing of the guard at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier

Next I went into St. Basil's Cathedral. While from the outside it looks pretty similar to the other orthodox cathedrals, inside it is not. There is no main room, but instead is a complex maze of different chapels. Still, definitely one of my highlights of the trip. 

View from the stairway out to the Kremlin

Another highlight was the Metro:

Many of the lines are so deep! I had trouble taking a picture, because you can not really see the end in a photo.

One of the beautifully decorated stations. Some others had statues, mosaics or stained glass.

Saturday morning we went to the flea market. This place was huge! You had to pay 10 rubles (about 25 cents) to get in, but once inside there was everything. There were stalls of things for tourists, some with art work, and others with antiques. I bought some presents, and also some souvenirs. I found one stall that had a bucket of old soviet pins. You could sift through them and they were only 20 rubles each. I spent quite a while looking through them all and picking out some with the red star and hammer and sickle. 

One of the aisles inside the flea market

St. Basil's Cathedral at night

Last morning - up to Sparrow Hill. We went up thinking it was a good place for a view of the city, which it was, but the best was seeing one of the 7 Sisters (the communist building in the background).

Then Sunday afternoon it was back to the airport for the flight home to Frankfurt. And unfortunately back to the bad weather ... seems like winter after 30 degrees and sunny!