April 30: Church Door

April 30: Church Door

This is a side door for entering Christ the Savior Cathedral.

April 30: Grass Seed

April 30: Grass Seed

A city worker is throwing grass seed on a common area between the sidewalk and street. All city workers dress in orange vests or jumpsuits.

April 28: Bears on the Playground

April 28: Bears on the Playground

I thought this teeter-totter was cute. It was carved out of wood. You will find ones similar to this throughout Russia. I would like to tell you where this one was, but I was actually lost when I was walking. It is somewhere near Novey Arabat.

April 27: Gone Fishing in the Moscow River

April 27: Gone Fishing in the Moscow River

This man is fishing in the Moscow River near the Moscow River. I know it is hard to see the fishing pole, but look close as it is there. I am not sure if I would want to eat fish out of the river due to the pollution. This street next to the embankment is one of the busiest in Moscow. I was only able to snap a picture with no cars as they street was closed for some government official.

April 26: Wooden Church

April 26: Wooden Church

This is a small wooden church located on the ground of Christ the Savior Cathedral.

April 25: View from the Kremlin

April 25: View from the Kremlin

This picture included four historical landmarks in Moscow: Kremlin wall, Christ the Savior Cathedral, The House on the Embankment (building with the Mercedes emblem on top, and the Moscow River (flowing next to the street and under the bridge).

April 25: Russian Wedding

April 25:  Russian Wedding

This is a picture I took on Friday of a couple coming to Red Square to take picture on their wedding day.  They arrived in a stretch limo to Red Square with their wedding party.  The Kremlin wall is in the background.

April 25:  Wedding Traditions 

It is very common for a couple to go to a well know park or historical site before their ceremony to have pictures taken.  As soon as the weather turns nice, you will see wedding parties every where having their pictures taken while drinking champagne. 

April 25:  Wedding Pictures in Red Square 
The couple is walking up to Red Square between the Kremlin Wall and St. Basil's Cathedral.

April 23: Men at Work

April 23: Men at Work

As I walked around the other side of the Kremlin wall, this scene made me laugh. One guy is working painting traffic barriers (far right) and the rest are sitting around eating and drinking. (It was 11:00 AM - way to early for lunch in Europe.) I have seen this same scene so many times before in America. Nice to know people are the same throughout the world.

April 22: Kremlin Wall

April 22: Kremlin Wall

This picture was taken along the road leading from the Moscow River to Red Square. The road (closed to traffic and only used during parades or official government business) runs between the Kremlin wall and St. Basil's Cathedral. The Cathedral would be directly to the right, just across from the tower.

The word Kremlin in Russian means citideal or fortress. However, the international community uses the word Kremlin to represent the Russian government.

I took this picture earlier this week. I could not believe the bright green grass. No leaves on the tree, but bright green grass....

April 22: Cow on the Street

April 22: Cow on the Street

This cow statue is located on Old Arabat street. It is located outside of a Russian cafeteria style restaurant called "Moo-Moo".  You can eat here for around 200 rubles ($7).
You know it was a slow day for me if I am taking a picture of a cow on the street.  One day a beautiful church; the next day a cow.  This is my life...

April 20: Cathedral of Christ the Savior

April 20: Cathedral of Christ the Savior

This cathedral is located on the banks of the Moscow River near the Kremlin.  The original cathedral was demolished by dynamite in 1931 (videos can be found on YouTube) and the foundation hole was flooded by the river creating an open air swimming pool.  

This replica of the cathedral was opened in 2000 and provides serves as a stunning reminder of what was lost.  It is absolutly stunning on the inside and worth visiting if you ever make it to Moscow.

April 20: Traveling

April 20:  Traveling Out of Russia

I was out of the country last week.  If you want to know where in the world this picture was taken, then click here.  Back to Russia tomorrow....

April 18: St Nicholas at Nikitniki

April 18: St Nicholas at Nikitniki

The church St. Nicholas at Nikitniki (1630) is located in Kitay-Gorod section of Moscow ( a few blocks from Red Square).  This is an excellent example of baroque Russian architecture.    The church use to dominate the skyline, but it is now located in a courtyard surround by modern buildings.  You can not see it from Red Square or any other surrounding streets.     

April 17: Back in the Metro

April 17: Back in the Metro

I took my first metro ride since the terrorist attacks. It was a bit eerie at first, but I quickly fell back into my normal routine and my thoughts quickly escaped to other issues at hand. 

This is a picture of a clock hanging above where trains exit the station. There is a clock at each station for in / out bound trains. The first number denotes the time (14:42 - 2:42 PM) and the second number is how long since the last train left the station. During peak hours, a train arrives at the station every 45 - 60 seconds. I have never waited more than 4:00 minutes for a train.

April 16: Board Games

April 16: Board Games

This is a picture of several well know American board games translated into Russia. The games displayed are Monopoly (location and board is in Russian), Pictionary, Risk and Life.

April 15: US Tax Day

April 15: US Tax Day

As today is tax day in America, I wanted to post a picture of some money. This is a picture of a $100 USD and three 1,000 ruble notes. The exchange rate for ruble to dollar today is 28.80 rubles to $1 USD. This mean the 3,000 rubles is worth about $100 USD ($103.80 to be exact).

You can click here to read more about American expats paying US taxes.

April 14: Flowers for Sale

April 14: Flowers for Sale

Several vendors line the street outside of an outdoor market selling flowers. The woman in this area use to to "set up shop" closer to the metro. However, they have moved to the side of the street since the bombing. My only guess is the do not want to be close to the police or the police asked them to move away for safety purposes.

April 13: Floor Cleaners

April 13: Floor Cleaners

You will find workers operating these machines in almost every public building in Russia. They are basically street sweepers for indoors. Workers push them around in stores to clean up the dirt and water tracked inside.

Some of the operators are ruthless and will practically mow you over if you are in their way. A group of my friends and I were talking the other day about how many times we all have been side swiped by one.

As I have two children who are outside all the time and I live in Russia, I would love to have one of these at home.  I need this industrial size version and not just the scoomba. 

April 12: Street Performance

April 12: Street Performance

I have not seen as many street performers in Russia as I have in other parts of Europe. There are plenty of street musicians, but not performers doing other things. I do not know why.

This is a picture of a man performing an act with a small crystal ball on Old Arabat Street. There were about 50 people, mostly locals, standing around watching him.

April 11: Russian Fables

April 11 : Russian Fables

Several monuments representing beloved Russian fables by Ivan Krylov are located at Partish Pond.  This moment represents a fable tilted the Fox and Crow.  

April 11:  Russian Fables 
The nose and hands of the characters are "polished" as many people are and the nose or hands of a statue when the pass by for good luck.
I took these photos yesterday when I was at the pond.

April 10: Patrish Pond

April 10: Partish Purdy

Patriarch Pond (Патриаршие пруды ), located near the central of Moscow, is a popular destination for both tourist and locals.   The area is consists of a pond, playground for children, walking path around the pound, and some sculptures dedicated to Russian fables.  However, the pond is most famous for being the opening location for the famed Russian novel "The Master and Margarita". 

The pond freezes solid in the winter allowing people the pleasure of ice skating on it.  No swimming is allowed in the pond during the summertime, but you will see people fishing from the banks.

These pictures were taken from opposite corners of the pond.  The yellow building located on the pond is now a restaurant. 

April 9: More Wet Paint

April 9:  More Wet Paint

People in Moscow tend to get excited when workers start the process of painting outdoor common areas and buildings as this is a sure sign of spring.  I find myself smiling when I see the workers hard at work slapping a fresh coat of pain on these various items.  You know warmer weather is just around the corner.

These workers were painting the back of a building at a market. 

April 8: Tram

April 8: People Entering / Exiting Tram

This is a picture of people entering and exiting a trolley located on the Moscow Tram system.

Moscow has one of the largest Tram networks in the world. A tram is an electrical powered car (trolley or tram) guided by railway tracks.  In English terms, this system is usually referred to as light rail.

Transportation officials estimate only about 7 - 10% of the population in Moscow uses the Moscow Tram system in their daily commute. People tend to rely on the networks of buses, trolley buses (electric buses not guided by tracks), and metro for transportation. However, the trams are packed as tight as the metro cars during rush hour and remain the only available option of public transportation for some people in Moscow.

April 7: Stop!

April 7: Stop!

A traffic light and stop sign in Russian. The white sign with four letters printed in black writing says "Stop!" in Russian.

April 6: Fresh Bread

April 6: Fresh Bread

One of the best parts of living in Europe is fresh baked bread! 

I also took this picture on Sunday at the same bakery where I took photos of the Russian Easter cake and eggs posted on April 5.   

I received an e-mail asking me what else the bakery sold and if I purchased anything else. The bakery offers the same types of bread and pastries you would find in any European bakery as well as a lot of local favorites (Russian black break, pirogi, etc.)

  I bought two loafs of bread (white and Russian black), one quiche, and some tiny chocolate chip cookies. My family has eaten most of the goodies, so I can not take a picture of them.  The Easter cakes were a bit expensive at this bakery and no one in the family is that found enough of them to spend $30 on a giant cake.  The Lieutenant just bought a mini-cake at our local grocery store.

April 5: Few More Easter Photos

April 5: Easter Window Display - View from Outside

I wanted to post a few more Easter themed photos for everyone to see. Easter was the the same day this year for Orthodox and Western Christian Easter. These days - both celebrating the resurrection of Christ - conincide every few years. You can click here for an explanation as to why the dates are different.

April 5: Easter Window Display - View from Inside

This photo and the one posted above were taken at the same bakery. The hand-painted eggs were geourgous and cakes cooked delicious. 

April 5: Easter Cake

This is a picture of a traditional Russian Easter cake. I am not sure if this is an Orthodox or Russian only Easter cake.  I think it tastes like a light think white cake with candied fruit, nuts, and raisins inside. The XB stands for "Christ is Risen"

April 5: Outside of the Cemetery

In Russia, it is traditional to honor the dead by decorating the grave. A few of my Russian friends have given me different explaintion as to why this is done at Easter. However, all of them agree place the flowers on your departed one's grave to honor them and signify your loved one is deserving to be resonrected in the second coming of Christ.

I did not take any pictures inside of the cemetery as it was packed. I felt this would be too intrusive.