Day 54

13 June 2013

Moscow

I hadn't used the internet or checked my email since a week ago and was I need of a pc. My host told me that the pc "had broken down and doesn’t work anymore". So this morning I acted like a real expert and pulled all the wires from the back; reconnected them all again and, there you go! It all worked again. Keeping a blog I do mainly for myself so I have a record of my activities; family and friends can read it along with me as this save me going over the same thing several times. I have met people who don’t keep a diary of any sort and usually say that they remember things. Well good luck to them. I often say: where were you 7 days ago, and then they find out they often don’t know the answer. Anyway the blog can be turned into a book at the end of a journey. I usually use www.blurb.com as they have a very good system. (just go to that website and type in my name and you see why) Around 12 noon all was done and could I leave for the city centre.

After working out the metro connection and writing those down I first headed for the Red Square but alas it was still partly closed as they were tearing down the barricades and the stands. Obviously there had been some sort of concert there yesterday. St Basil’s church was accessible though so I could at least go there. The church is synonymous with Moscow and the Red Square.

After checking out the famous Moscow shopping centre I had decided that I needed to make a choice where to go and decided which museum I would visit. As I am going to a kind of war museum tomorrow I did not want to view any bad stuff today I headed out of town to the Aeronautics and Space museum . The museum was built for the display of materials which had to do with the USSR space program and the honor given to the dozens of cosmonauts who participated in the space race. Although many items were replicas there were many authentic items like some space craft and space suits.(and the ones who died ) I found this all very interesting as I was part of it from the beginning. I remember that my Dad and I stood outside watching the sky when the first ever man made satellite became visible in the evening sky. I was about ten years old then. The Russian”Sputnik” was soon followed by other satellites, one of them even had a dog on board. A while later they sent another one with a dog followed by the first Russian man first man in space: Uri Gagarin.

After visiting I went to the nearby exhibition park. I was astonished that an exhibition centre could be so beautiful. Instead of just putting down buildings they designed each and every building in a different way. The first buildings erected were to represent the satellite states of the USSR. So every (dominated) country had their own building. In the middle of the park is a beautiful fountain surrounded by golden female statues, again representing the satellite countries. The centre seemed to be used all year round , well at least during the summer period, as the parkland were full of people and bikes. Scooters, tricycles, pedal quads, roller blades etc could be hired at several points.

It seems that the Russian love statutes and sculptures as they are just anywhere you look in any direction. They don’t do things half hearted either If you look at the design of the space centre you see what I mean. They designed a rocket blasting off into space right on top the building. When I walked around the building I saw that looking from one direction it looked just like the real thing with the smoke trail below the rocket (see pics)

They way back presented me with a challenge as I had to change Metro lines twice. Two trains I got in had no electronic warning signs to see where I was going, so I had to position myself near a map and translate the writing first and then listen if I could pick up the name in the midst of all the noise.

It is now clear to me why some of the stations are so deep underground. The lines run on two levels, where they cross you have to go down another very long escalator. This morning I timed the one I got on first. The escalators move faster than usual as you have to get on just a little quicker. To get down took 3 minutes 10 seconds to be precise.

Tomorrow my last day in Moscow, at night I will be taking the night train to St Petersburg (formerly Leningrad)