Moscow 2017

September 9th 2017

We got up around 8.30am and headed for breakfast in the hotel. Originally, we planned to do the hop on - hop off city sightseeing tour, followed by a relaxing stroll through the city.... I mentioned in a previous blog that this weekend is the celebration of Moscows 870th year, well the place is manic so our plans slightly changed!

We did manage to do the bus tour, but only part of it, as half the roads in the city were shut off. As we set off, the traffic was halted while a few armoured cars with police escort drove by at high speed; we are convinced one of them was Mr Putin as he was in Red Square not long after it. The bus tour is worth doing as it takes you out to a few places that you may not otherwise go to; for instance, the highest point in Moscow and the White House, made famous by Yeltsin standing on a tank in defiance of Gorbachev.




We did the whole circle then decided to go visit the Cathedral of Christ the Saviour; this church was made famous by the band Pussy Riot when then jumped on the alter and began singing songs against Putin. It is a beautiful church built in 1997. We climbed, I think 259 steps, to the top of the gallery and walked around the four sides. I also had a corn on the cob on a stick as I was starving, unfortunately, it seemed to attract pigeons so it was eaten within a few minutes.





After walking around for a little, or at least trying to, we decided to get back to the hotel so we could change for the evening ahead. Tonight was our last night in Moscow so we booked tickets to go to the Bolshoi Theatre. We quickly dolled ourselves up then headed back into the city. Everywhere was crazy, we couldn't even get into the cordoned off areas it was that busy! We started walking the other way and thankfully found a grill house for dinner. I had a chicken shawarma wrap with fries; it was huge but tasty!



After a quick dinner, we decided to start walking towards the Bolshoi Theatre as we knew we would have to go through one of the security cordons into the main area. It was only a 15 minute walk away but the streets were teaming with people; it was quite a scene to behold. We got to the the theatre about an hour before the performance and headed straight to the cafe (after another security check); it was over £25 for a 150ml glass of Moët so we didn't bother; I had a water instead.

We took our seats for the Moscow premiere performance of Masquerade; it was excellent, although it was in Russian so I didn't follow some of the story - that's what Wikipedia is for! The theatre was beautiful inside, I am so glad we went even though we were in the cheaper seats, still £55 each! The performers got a standing ovation and we took a few photos.



After leaving the theatre, we had to enter another security area in order to get to our metro stop; we thought we would have a beer/wine on the way. I had a red wine called "Cabernet Crimean Premium" which was an interesting mix between Lambrusco and ice wine; it was still drinkable!

We then made our way home on the metro which was at least a tiny bit quieter. It is now time for bed as I need to pack tomorrow; our Moscow adventure is almost over but another is set to begin!

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