March 26: Bright Blue Sky

March 26: Bright Blue Sky

The sky was a brillian blue today in Moscow. It was a bit crisp out side as the temerature was 40 F (+4.5 C) and it was windy. However, it was a great day to be outside.

This winter as had a lot of sunny days and, even though the winter sun has provided no warmth, I have really appreciated these days.   There was nothing but grey skies day after day last winter for 3 - 4 months.

This church is located off of Tverskya near Belaruskaya train station. I do not know the name of the church. I was walking along thinking about the blue sky when I saw the church.  I thought it would make the perfect backdrop to the blue sky, so I snappd the picture.

March 25: Sea of Green

March 25: Sea of Green

I was so happy today to see a patch of green grass appear from under the melting snow.

March 23: Frozen Showers

March 23: Frozen Showers

After a full-day of spring rain, the water freezes in the drain pipes at night. This is the part of the year where you have to be very careful where you walk. The rain and melting snow freeze at night on the sidewalk and roads. You never know where there will be a patch of black ice.

March 22: Spring Showers

March 22: Spring Showers

Spring has sprung in Moscow a couple of days late. It rained most of the day and the temperature was a warm + 4 C (40 F). This is a welcome change after the cold winter weather.

Although a good portion of the snow has been removed from the city, there is still a lot of snow piled-up in various places. The rain did a great job of melting the snow and the street are flooded.

March 5: And the Snow Starts to Melt

March 5: And the Snow Starts to Melt
This is what happens to the streets and sidewalks of Moscow when the mercury climes a couple of degrees above ZERO. It is a big, wet mess in the city! I have to navigate through this puddle every day on my way to the metro.

March 3: Snow is All Gone

March 3: Snow is All Gone
What happen to the snow? Did it all melt? The answer is NO!
The snow was removed from the street as I mentioned here and here.

I took the picture below February 21 and posted on this site. It was taken at almost the spot as the picture above. You can use the red building on the right as a reference point. There is a 10 day elapse between these two pictures.

February 26: Buried in the Snow

February 26: Buried in Snow

Snowplows clearing the street have almost buried this car in snow. This car has been moved at some point this winter as there is not a lot of snow accumulated on the top of the car and the windshield has been cleared. The owner will need to get a shovel and start digging. This would be a good job for Mike Rowe of Dirty Jobs fame on the Discovery Channel.

February 24: Wet Clothes Drying

February 24: Wet Clothes Drying at School
After playing in the snow, my son's class hang up their clothes to dry. Notice the pants and gloves in the cabinet next to the coats. The white object located in the bottom of the cabinet is a heater used to help dry the clothes quickly. All children are required to wear a snowsuit, hat, gloves, and boots to / from school each day.

February 22: Storm of the Decade - Part II

As forecasted, almost 20 inches of snow has fallen in Moscow in the past 24 hours. This makes the 4 day accumulation total approximately 26 - 27 inches.

February 21: Heavy Snow
The residents of Moscow go about their life as this was any ordinary day. All stores are open for business and public transportation is running on time.

February 21: Snow Remove Vehicles
Snow remove vehicles work as fast as possible to remove the snow. They do not wait until after the storm as it would be to difficult to remove at one time and to easy travel during the storm.

February 21: Digging Out
Snow plows clearing the streets encase cars parked along the street in snow. This man is shoveling the snow around his parked car so that he will be able to move his car.

February 21: Removing Snow from Building
This man is removing snow and ice from the roof of the building. This is done on almost all buildings in Moscow to prevent falling snow and ice from hitting people standing or walking on the street. Several people in Russia are severely injured and / or killed each year from snow and ice falling off of a building.

February 21: Car Wreck
Despite the fact Muscovites are use to driving in treacherous conditions, car wrecks still occur.

February 21: Coffee Break
Alex and I take a break from walking in the snow storm to enjoy a hot cup of coffee.

February 21: Storm of the Decade

In the past 12 hours, 6 - 8 inches of snow has fallen in Moscow. The forecast calls for another 20 inches to fall by the end of day tomorrow.

February 21: Convoy of Snow Plows
During or after a heavy snow fall, snow plows will travel in a convoy formation to push as much snow as possible to the side of the street. You can see the third plow in the formation about to turn the corner.

February 21: Snow Removal
A bucket loader is used to move snow from the side of the street into dump truck or a designated point on the street.

February 21: Helping Hands
This machine is called "Helping Hands" in Russian. Snow is pushed up a conveyor belt (located on the left) by metal hands and is dumped in the back of a dump truck. The snow is then removed from the city.

February 21: Man Shoveling Snow
A man shoveling snow outside of a store during the snow storm. The snow needs to be removed as quick as possible in order to prevent an icy build-up and allow people to walk on the sidewalks.

February 21: Chemical Spray
A chemical to melt ice and snow is sprayed onto the main streets in Moscow. This will prevent the ice from forming for approximately 24 hours. Locals say the chemicals are sometimes so strong that they will melt a hole into the bottom of their shoes.

February 6: Dirty Side of Snow

February 6: Dirty Side of Snow
This is is what happens landing on a street in Moscow!

February 3: Perfect Parking Spot

February 3: Perfect Parking Spot
Due to the poor driving conditions in the winter (ice, snow, tire requirements, etc.), there are some people who park their car for the winter and do not drive. This car has not been moved since late November.

January 31: Snow Removal

January 31: Snow Removal - Step 1
Shovel snow into a big pile via a small bulldozer (orange) and manual labor

January 31: Snow Removal - Step 2
Scoop snow via front loader and transport to blue trash bin.

January 31: Snow Removal - Step 3
Put snow into trash bin for collection. All of the snow on the streets and a good majority in parking lots is removed from the city. Snow can not be piled up on the sides of the street as there would be not enough room for the cars to drive and park.

January 29: Frozen Water

January 29: Frozen H2O
This building is in the process of being demolished due to roadway expansion. Notice the icicle formation on the outside of one of the windows - the third column (from right), third row (from bottom). This icicle was formed by water leaking out the window. Several of windows were broken or removed once the building was vacated for salvage and to ensure people did not congregate (drink) inside of the building prior to demolition.

January 28: Dirty Snow

January 28: Dirty Snow
A woman walking on the sidewalk next to a pile of dirty snow.

January 25: Shovling Snow

January 25: Shoveling Snow

A building maintenance man shoveling snow outside of an apartment block. The language school I attend is located on the first floor of this building.