Beautiful Moscow/Good Food!

OK - so about food - it was chilly yesterday so for lunch ordered hot chocolate and cottage cheese pancakes - the hot chocolate came with a glass of water with a straw - I can see why - it is about half a cup or more of rich hot fudge sauce and YES I did finish it but it was not a "light lunch"
Splurge dinner last night at Cafe Pushkin "evocative of 19th century Russian society" - this is my entree Pelmeni (meat dumplings with veal, pork, beef) with smetana (sour cream) as dipping sauce. Next picture is Ross' dessert - Pistachio cake...food was beautifully served and no it did not "break the bank".

I think Ross (who is not fond of art museums) felt like this after Tretyakov Gallery (I love art museums) - Mr. Tretyakov was a wealthy steel magnate "best steel in the world" who collected art, showed it in his beautiful home in which his addition was a gallery in itself and then donated it all to the city of Moscow.
Moscow subway - visited 3 and each one was different and beautiful, much like palaces. This was the Ukrainian one which had Ukrainian art on the walls. Metro opened in 1935 under Stalin to transform Moscow into the world's capitol of Communism showcasing Soviet success. Carries 8 million passengers per day (as many as NYC and London combined)
Luba our guide in one of the elevators in the subway. There is another area with a "special elevator) a level deeper that was a safe place for Stalin and other Communists to hide - called Metro 2 a top secret line linking the Kremlin to the airport and a network of bunkers.
Ducks in Sparrows Park - donated by Barbara Bush in 1991 from the children of the USA to the children of Russia.

I love backside - this is a typical Russian lady backside - maybe a "babushka" which is a grandmother NOT a scarf - it's just that all grandmothers wear scarves per Luba.
Rainy and temps in the 40s but what do you do when your wedding day is here in Sparros Park and so is the photographer.
Ice cream stop in GUM mall - bottom row of what looks like Pushups are said to be very good.

Famous Bolshoi theater currently under extensive renovation - tickets very expensive.

GUM mall in Red Square 10pm - beautiful - could be Disneyland or Hong Kong!!!


Red Square at night; St. Basil's in background, Kremlin walls on right. Notice setting up of stage for huge concert to kick of "1000 days to Sochi" Big deal in this country as the 2014 Olympics will be held there - apparently a resort area. Will be fun to watch in 2014! Next photo is from back seat of "our car" with Gregor the driver and Luba the guide - it is lovely to have the car and driver (using his Ipad while waiting) pick us up wherever we are. Luba's mother was a doctor - she has a superb command of English right down to the slang; learned this at a Russian University of Linguistics. Was a guide even in the days of communism.


Moscow's Kilometer Marker Zero - all distances are measured from here.

What's next - today is Sunday 9:30am and we will check out of our Assembleya Nikitskaya Hotel and take train to St. Petersburg at 4:30; plan to have lunch at a Russian restaurant near Red Square.
At Sparrows park a man tapped my arm and pointed to the ground where there was a small stack of rubles and yes it was mine even though this is a scam operation - Luba said he was a foreigner and it was ok - it was abourt $150 and I think it fell out when I took out my camera - we had been going to many metal checks etc everywhere and I may have put the money in my pocket - again a lovely moment. Luba says the income tax rate here is 13% with free medical care plus option for private policies. All students here need to read the Russian classics by Tolstoy (Anna Karenina etc), Dostoevsky plus many others. The US education system is very much lacking in comparison to many countries in science, history and culture.
While waiting in line at Lenin's tomb Luba called the police guard a "Dragon Woman" - not to her face of course - for pointing at us as she barely stepped over an invisible line. I did not dream about Lenin last night even though the preservation process makes him look very real! I can't remember if I already posted that the embalming process requires a redo every 18 months in a laboratory underground using glycerol and potassium acetate. Ho Chi Minh is in the same condition. Stalin was but his body was secretly moved from Lenin's side and buried in a grave.
There is a new mayor of Russia (they are elected by people-usually) APPOINTED by Dimitry Medvyev ?sp the President, (Vladimir Putin is the Prime Minister) - as to the election Luba says "anything can happen in Russia - some good, some bad".
Also in Red Square are buried many political and military supermen along with famous people like Yuri Gagarin and other astronauts, the scientist of the Sputnik etc. 50 year anniversary of space exploration here.