St Petersburg

Well I write this from Estonia - so I'm now out of Russia and in the EU.  I originally thought I would spend about 2 months crossing Russia (and Mongolia) but in the end I spent 89 days out of the 90 days allowed by my visa.

Before leaving my last major stop was Saint Petersburg.  It turned out to be a spectacular city and certainly the most "beautiful" of the big Russian cities I've been - I can see why it is the tourist icon it is.

When you get to St Petersburg you realise how different it is to Moscow - its an "old money" versus "new money feel".  St Petersburg has a continuous array of beautiful old buildings, virtually no new buildings (at least in the centre) and the people seem to have blended in - traffic is less, flash cars are minimal, the whole place whilst very busy seems more relaxed and enjoying itself rather than desperately making and spending money.

The prime Saint Petersburg tourist attraction has to be the Hermitage art gallery located in the Winter Palace.  I knew this place was big - I hadn't realised how big; I spent a full day, opening to closing time in it, and only saw half of the rooms and galleries.  The Tsars (and later the Communist party) were serious art collectors - want to see a Rembrandt, a Titian, a Rubens, a Van Goch, a Da Vinci, a Monet, a Picasso etc etc - they are all there and usually half or dozen or more - also ancient Egyptian mummies, Greek sculpture, Scythian gold, Roman ornaments, the list is endless.  It is dazzling in its enormity with the art works being only half the display because the palace itself is an extravaganza.  You also get a chance to really appreciate it all because the crowds are huge and your allowed to just wander around freely, none of the art works are behind glass and only a few of the most valuable gold and jewel items have any form of intrusive security.  I couldn't imagine any major European museum or palace feeling as open - not feeling you expect to get in Russia.  Any way here are a few of the mandatory photo's to whet your appetite to visit yourselves.

[caption id="attachment_579" align="aligncenter" width="480" caption="The Hermitage from the outside."][/caption]

 

[caption id="attachment_580" align="aligncenter" width="480" caption="and by night. (My  hostel was only a hundred metres from where this was taken - it was like staying next door to Buckingham palace - but it was only $30 night)"][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_581" align="aligncenter" width="480" caption="A random room"][/caption]

 

[caption id="attachment_582" align="aligncenter" width="480" caption="And another."][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_583" align="aligncenter" width="480" caption="And being a palace it had to have a real throne - this is one of several scattered around."][/caption]

Continuing on the cultural theme I also visited a few more churches.

[caption id="attachment_584" align="aligncenter" width="480" caption="Church of the Spilled Blood (so called because it marks where Alexander II got blown up in the 1870's)"][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_585" align="aligncenter" width="480" caption="The interior is a mass of spectacular mosaics - spectacular because they have just spent 27 years restoring them."][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_586" align="aligncenter" width="480" caption="Kazan Cathederal"][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_587" align="aligncenter" width="480" caption="with a more traditional guilded icon interior ( in St P, unlike the rest of Russia, they seem to be unworried about you taking photo's inside the churches)"][/caption]

And because I am who I am also spent a fair amount of time in a car and bike museum  I found.

[caption id="attachment_588" align="aligncenter" width="480" caption="A 350cc Jawa - maybe for the next tour - plenty of luggage room."][/caption]

Also a military engineering museum;

[caption id="attachment_589" align="aligncenter" width="480" caption="Why we rightly scared in the 70's."][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_590" align="aligncenter" width="480" caption="and more reasons."][/caption]

And of course a ship;

[caption id="attachment_591" align="aligncenter" width="480" caption="The cruiser Aurora - which is preserved because the mutiny of the crew in 1917 was one of the important turning points in the October revolution."][/caption]

Another museum was where they did a lot of the original rocket research;

[caption id="attachment_594" align="aligncenter" width="480" caption="Recognise this? (its a Sputnik satellite for my younger readers - when they launched the first they built a few spares)"][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_595" align="aligncenter" width="480" caption="and what was inside - not a computer chip in sight (and precious few transistors even)"][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_596" align="aligncenter" width="360" caption="And a rocket motor from the manned space program (4 of these were on the first stage of the Vostok rocket)"][/caption]

And finally a few general street scenes.

[caption id="attachment_592" align="aligncenter" width="480" caption="St P has a large network of canals which give it real character - and boat trips are a lovely way to see the city."][/caption]

 



 

[caption id="attachment_598" align="aligncenter" width="480" caption="I said in an earlier post that Ufa felt like it was closing down for winter. By contrast people in St P seemed to be dertermined to make the most of reasonable weather and celebrate until the snows really started to fall."][/caption]

 

Anyway it was finally time to move on to cross the border and Russia laid on one final present for me:

[caption id="attachment_600" align="aligncenter" width="480" caption="On my way to the border this cold white stuff started pouring out of the sky!"][/caption]

 

[caption id="attachment_603" align="aligncenter" width="480" caption="and it continued most of the way to the border."][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_604" align="aligncenter" width="480" caption="Not a spetacular photo - but my last shot of Russia as I entered the border post. Farewell."][/caption]

Moscow

Four days in Moscow – what can I say about it. Firstly it's a city of financial extremes and excesses. I was told it is now rated as one of the most expensive cities in the world to live in. Walking around the centre it is obvious to see this is where Russia's new money is concentrated – there is more flashy money on general display than I've seen any where else in the world. As I walk down the street heading heading to Red Square and the Kremlin what is the first thing I see - three Bentleys parked outside a restaurant; and that was the tip of the iceberg; in my time in Moscow I saw a greater collection of exotic cars than I've ever experienced any where else – starting at the conservative end were several Rolls Royce's, a Maybach, countless Bentleys (it looked like they were the car of choice for many of the extremely wealthy), moving into the sportier brands there were top end Mercedes models the likes I have never seen in Australia, often sporting the 6.3Litre and AMG badges, V10 Audi's, M Series BMW's, by the dozen and then slightly, but not much, less commonly Porches, Ferrari's, Maserati's and Lamborghini's. Obviously the first thing you do in Moscow with your first million is buy a flash car – usually in gloss black or if you want the sinister look in matt black.

 

[caption id="attachment_555" align="aligncenter" width="480" caption="Obviously if the big boys have flash cars the police need them too - one Audi (black) and one BMW (white) with blue lights"][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_556" align="aligncenter" width="480" caption="Police having a discussion with one Audi owner about his driving style - I suspect Russian licences have fines and no points system as  the wealthy  bad drivers do not seem to be constrained by the very large number of traffic police."][/caption]

Along with the cars come the shops – all the top end brands are jammed right in your face as though buying Prada or Arami is the most natural thing in the world. The slightly unreal part of this is that many of these stores are inside the shell of an old shopping centre known as GUM. GUM was a soviet invention and was the state shopping centre – how the wheel has turned full circle.

[caption id="attachment_557" align="aligncenter" width="360" caption="The post-capitalism inside of GUM..."][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_558" align="aligncenter" width="480" caption="...where some pretty girls will sell you a Porshe."][/caption]

Going back to cars for a bit Moscows driving style takes some getting used to. Ninety five percent of the traffic is reasonably well behaved by Russian standards and follows the “assertive” driving style I've got used to in other Russian cities. Someone said to me the style is like driving with blinkers on – you only worry about what you can see directly in front of you and not whats alongside or behind. Thats a reasonable first pass at describing it but there are two other rules that come into play; firstly as soon as you are even the tiniest bit in front of the car alongside you all responsibility passes to them to keep out the way and secondly on all accounts you should try and pass the car in front as soon as possible (note this rule applies equally to semi-trailers following motorcycles in traffic where even the most thick headed should realise it will not make a blind bit of difference to your progress).  As I said 95% follow these rules and we all get used to them – the problem is the other 5% driving the previously mentioned flash cars plus a smattering of wanna-be's in 1600cc Lada's – who believe all the above includes driving at double the speed limit in heavy traffic and using the hard shoulder (and I suspect pavement on occasion) as an extension of the road. Rain is not considered a reason to modify these rules - and my trip into Moscow was in the rain.

The opposite side of the wealth shown by the cars and the shops, are the old people begging in the street. Whilst some of these look like (and I feel callous writing this) the traditional urban poor, many are dressed well in what were obviously once good clothes. I'm only guessing but they look like old school teachers, public servants and the like whose pension doesn't match their needs and they have been reduced to this to make ends meet. One wonders what horrors they must have gone through to reach this level of need.

Irrespective of the money, cars and rain though for me the highlight of being in Moscow was walking through the entrance arch onto Red Square itself and seeing the multi-coloured domes of St Basils cathederal in front of me and the Kremlin and Lenin's mausoleum to the side. Having tried to get to Russia in 1983, when I travelled through eastern europe to Australia, and at that time failing because it was only open to those on expensive organised tours which could not afford, to finally have achieved it gave a real sense of satisfaction.

[caption id="attachment_559" align="aligncenter" width="480" caption="Entrance arches - which I wouldn't have seen in '83 since stalin had them knocked down as they impeded the flow of workers and tanks in the marches through the square (they were rebuilt in 1992)"][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_560" align="aligncenter" width="360" caption="The iconic image of Moscow and Red Square - St Basils Cathederal (which Stalin also thought of knocking down)"][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_561" align="aligncenter" width="480" caption="Kremlin walls (from the river side of it - since there was scaffolding in the way from the Red Square side)"][/caption]

I mentioned rain several times already and it will remain a strong memory of Moscow – a constant background to my three days there. However it didn't stop me walking around and seeing a few of the more important sights so here are a few more of those tourist photo's.

[caption id="attachment_562" align="aligncenter" width="480" caption="Yes - it rained.  This is the main tourist plaza adjacent to Red Square"][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_563" align="aligncenter" width="346" caption="Stalin didn't just knock things down - he was strong on-building edifices; he had seven of these constructed and they don't look bad."][/caption]

One of the things I did want to see was the Peter the Great statue on Moscow river.  This is the way it is described in Wikipedia:

"The Peter the Great Statue in Moscow was designed by the Georgian designer Zurab Tsereteli to commemorate 300 years of the Russian Navy, which was started by Peter I of Russia. At 94 metres, is the eighth tallest statue in the world.

In November 2008, it was voted the tenth ugliest building in the world by Virtual Tourist.

In October 2010, Moscow authorities offered relocate the statue to Saint Petersburg, but this offer was refused."

 

[caption id="attachment_569" align="aligncenter" width="308" caption="Decide for yourselves.  I actually thought it looked better in real life than when photoed - you need to walk around it and see it from changing perspectives.  It was still not pretty though."][/caption]

 

[caption id="attachment_564" align="aligncenter" width="480" caption="Because of the rain I spent a half day in the State History Museum which has  as an exhibit this very famous globe of 1796. Australia was remarkably well represented; and for trivia buffs I noticed Canada was then called "New North Wales" "][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_565" align="aligncenter" width="480" caption="Not a traditional tourist site - but something I wanted to see because I had read about it many times - Lubyanka prison - the home of the KGB (and its predecessors and successors) and the centre of much of the terror of the Soviet regime during the 20's to the early 90's."][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_570" align="aligncenter" width="480" caption="And the Gulag Museum - which was small and hidden down a side alley. Russia is still working out how to deal with this part of its history. "][/caption]

One of the things you are told to see when in Moscow is the metro system.  Each of the major stations is a work of art in some form or another - and they truly are a wonder to behold and, at the moment, all are lovingly maintained andvirtually free of litter, graffiti or advertising.

[caption id="attachment_566" align="aligncenter" width="480" caption="The brushed chrome look."][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_567" align="aligncenter" width="360" caption="Mosaics"][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_568" align="aligncenter" width="480" caption="Or chandeliers and mosaics."][/caption]

From Moscow next stop was St Petersburg 700km north, where I currently am as I write this– but you'll need to wait for a couple of days until I have a chance to write that up. The trouble is my Russian visa runs out in a days time and so my focus is now on getting myself to the border with Estonia and getting myself out of the country before I overstay. And to think when I started this trip I thought my 90 day visa gave me a huge safety margin and I would be out weeks before it ran out.  To finish here are a couple of shots from the ride north.

[caption id="attachment_571" align="aligncenter" width="480" caption="The highway Moscow to St Petersburg is like the Sydney- Melbourne road in the early '80's. Largely 2 lane and passing through every small village. It takes two days to do the 700 km."][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_572" align="aligncenter" width="480" caption="Many of the villages on the road seem to be dying.  Lots of slowley collapsing houses and not much sign of activity - like everywhere people seem to be drawn to the big cities."][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_573" align="aligncenter" width="360" caption="Russia is full of monuments to WWII - but some on this road are especially poignant as they represent the battle front."][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_574" align="aligncenter" width="480" caption="Look how bare the trees now are compared to the pictures I posted 3 weeks ago. Winter is fast approaching - and with the temperature staying below 10 all day it felt like it on the ride North. "][/caption]

 

Still on the tourist trail.

 

 

[caption id="attachment_540" align="aligncenter" width="480" caption="Suzdal"][/caption]

Next stop after Kazan was Suzdal about 550km away.  Should have been an easy two days ride but it turned out to be anything but - a mixture of roadworks, rain and heavy traffic on inadequate roads made the first half anything but pleasant.  It was one of those days where I found that after 8 hours riding I had only covered 250km, that the light was going, and so was my temper and the temper of all the drivers around me.  I made one of my more sensible decisions and abandoned my planned stopover at Nihzy Novogorad, which was another 50 km down the road, and chose to camp in a convenient patch of wood in a field at the side of the road.  Not the most salubrious campsite, and the rain kept up most of the night, but I  slept well and awoke to a dry morning and still in one piece.

 

As it was the roadworks finished only another 10 or 20 km down the way and then the road turned soon after into dual carriageway virtually the first I'd seen in Russia - we were obviously getting closer to Moscow.

 

Suzdal is a small village and is lauded in the guidebooks for all the old churches and monastries it contains.  Apparently if you had money in the region in the 15-16th century you sponsered the building of a church  or monastery here.   It didn't disappoint; as well as the concentration of spires and domes from the churches it turned out to be the quintessentially pretty small Russian village.  It was built above a bend of a river and seemed to have survived the ravages of time remarkably well - both the churches and the houses were a pleasing mixture, either freshly maintained or aesthetically decayed.  It appears in the communist era most of the village was untouched by the various purges as the place was still used as something to show off to foriegn tourists and dignitories (though they did use one of the monasteries as a KGB prison).  Having said that it did however fall into considerable disrepair so its obvious theres been massive re-building in the last two decades and theres still plenty more to do.

 

Even after having read the the guidebook until you get to the place its hard to understand the concentration of churches and monasteries that exists there.  The village would be only 3 or 4 km long but there must be twenty onion domed churches within - wherever you look on the sky line a gilded or brightly coloured dome is sticking up.  Anyway here are a few pictures so you can see for yourself.

[caption id="attachment_541" align="aligncenter" width="360" caption="A typical Suzdal skyline"][/caption]

 

[caption id="attachment_543" align="aligncenter" width="480" caption="A wooden church - all built of logs."][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_544" align="aligncenter" width="480" caption="Spires, bell towers and domes"][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_545" align="aligncenter" width="480" caption="More domes"][/caption]

 

[caption id="attachment_552" align="aligncenter" width="480" caption="The smallest of the three monasteries in town "][/caption]

At one point in my wanderings through one of the monasteries the bells were being rung, a marvelous complex tune, and as I watched I realised it was all done by one man positioned up amongst the bells using his hands and feet to pull a spiderweb of small strings to lift and drop the clappers.

[caption id="attachment_546" align="aligncenter" width="480" caption="Campanologist (I think that's the right word for a bell-ringer) at work"][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_547" align="aligncenter" width="480" caption="Another general street scene - the village was incredibly free of cars for a tourist centre."][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_551" align="aligncenter" width="480" caption="More skyline"][/caption]

Whilst at Suzdal I also did a side trip to Vladimir, a much larger neighbour.  It too is famed for its churches and whilst one in particular was huge and spectacular being surrounded by a modern town did them no favours and overall the city was not particularly memorable.

[caption id="attachment_548" align="aligncenter" width="480" caption="The Assumption Cathederal, Vladimir (which, in case you are interested, apparently became the model for the more famous cathederal of the same name within the Moscow Kremlin)"][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_549" align="aligncenter" width="360" caption="Interior of the Assumption Cathedral in its gilded icon glory - generally they don't allow photo's inside churches but here there seemed to be some tolerances so I risked a few."][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_550" align="aligncenter" width="480" caption="Outside gilt as well - and look for the man wandering around inspecting the roof."][/caption]

As an aside, in visiting all these churches I've now seen several Russian Orthodox religious services.  They are quite different to what we are used to in our Christian churches.  They seem to last 2 or 3 hours - but people don't attend for the full time, they simply walk in at a time convenient to them, stand (for there are no seats), have 10 or 20 minutes of listening to chanting and liturgy and watch a priest waving incense, kiss the portrait of their favourite saint or prophet and then wander off.  Very user-friendly.

Anyway that's enough on Suzdal and religion, from here it was on to Moscow and I'll make that a separate post soon.