What!? You are going to Russia?
What will you do there?
Why Russia?
You going alone? Without the husband and kid?
I got all these reactions when I mentioned to a few friends that I will be visiting Russia for a week with my mom and her group who will come to Moscow from Mumbai. The visa application was very smooth from Germany. I sent all the documents along with my passport to the Russian Embassy in Berlin and got the visa in a week delivered home. Visa happened two months ago in March and the date to travel was 25th May. My dear hubby had already booked flights for the trip and he encouraged me to go alone while he and his mother offered to take care of Tanay.
The flight to Moscow went well being a direct flight. I reached Moscow from Frankfurt in about 3.5 hours. My mom along with Sunil kaka (He is the one who is a meticulous planner and takes people to different countries. My mom and he worked in the same office and since then they have been traveling within and outside India together with families) had come to receive me at the airport. The first thing that hit me when I got down in Moscow was that it was huge. Huge roads, huge buildings. Coming from a small town like Karlsruhe in Germany, it was very overwhelming for me to be there. The roads were full of traffic. People were driving the way they want. But no one was honking surprisingly! The chaos was quite smooth and without any accidents or mishaps or road rage. It took us about 30 minutes to reach the hostel and the hostel room was a dainty one with two beds and a cupboard. The toilets were outside and there was no Wi-Fi! It was a very cheap and basic hostel which is good to just sleep over. After meeting all the others (all senior citizens but young at heart!) in the group and having dinner, mom and I slept in one room, ready to take on Moscow the next day.
It was a Sunday when we chose to see the Metro stations in Moscow. They are a tourist attraction and groups from all over the world come to see the different stations. Sunil Kaka had already studied everything from the "Lonely Planet" book and marked the places we would go to. After having breakfast, we all started exploring the different metro stations. Every metro station was unique, it had a theme. One was bedecked with blue marble stones, another in red, another in white. One station had only glass paintings adorning the walls. One had only brass statues of people and animals. One station had a theme of peasants and farmers with their different instruments used in Farming. Another station had paintings, very detailed, elaborate paintings of different situations and people. We were wonderstruck at all these stations. All the stations were spic and span, clean, maintained with no traces of vandalism or human touch. All the stations were crowded, people were just running from here to there, but there was not a trace of misusing that property. Being tourists there, we had a lot of time on our hands and we were relaxed. We took time, lot of pictures, sat there, admiring the beauty and after a point realized that the beauty can't be captured in the photos. The eyes soaked in the sheer art and captured all the moments which can't be really replicated in the photos. We then visited a local fruit market where we tried to communicate with people who couldn't speak English. With signs and the online translator, we managed to buy some local fruits and enjoyed eating them. In this hustle-bustle, Sunil Kaka lost his precious Lonely Planet book. We tried to locate it, but as the train network is vast, it was difficult to get the book back and we were also going to the next city in 2 days. Lunch and dinner was home-made chapati, parathas, etc. I am used to eating outside, but they get bored eating outside. So they had carried everything with them. Hats off to them. They had re-created Mini Indian food stalls in Moscow.
The next day, we took the hop-on and hop-off bus to go around Moscow. The most famous place there is Red Square, the city square. It has almost all the buildings in red and has the famous Saint Basil's Cathedral which looks like a castle from a Disney film. It's colorful and doesn't really look like a cathedral from outside. We strolled along the square for a long time. We bought a few souvenirs there, eat an ice-cream, sat in the garden, saw the different flowers there. We also did a boat tour for about 40 minutes and saw the different buildings from the boat. We also visited the famous Gum Mall which was earlier a palace and is now converted into a huge shopping mall with different brands from all over the world. We wanted to also watch Ballet in the famous Bolshoi Theater, but unfortunately, there was no show on Monday when we were in Moscow.
On Tuesday, we took a train to Saint Petersburg and reached there by evening. The hostel was nice and big but only one kitchen had a cooking range and there used to be a tough fight with the other students staying there when it came to cooking. We were on the main road in a prime locality in St. Petersburg. It was very crowded, busy, a shopping street in fact. With a lot of cars and people and great buildings, it seemed like I was walking in the streets of Mumbai. We explored the street on the day we came. But it was cold and windy, so we retired early.
On Wednesday, it was raining. So we got off the hostel a little late. We walked the long street, did some window shopping. The ladies got into Zara, H&M and shopped to heart's content. The currency in Russia is Rubles. And it is at par with the Indian Rupees. So it didn't feel a great deal to spend on items and things in Russia. We also visited a small chocolate museum and were pleasantly surprised to see different shapes and sizes of chocolates. I wanted to buy one for Tanay, but decided to do it on the day I would go back. We also shopped for basic things like fruits, yogurt, bread, etc. On that evening, we went to a Russian restaurant nearby. A Russian girl was singing live with music and there were many other people around. We couldn't find much on the menu as we don't eat any meat or fish. Bharti Mavshi, my mom's best friend doesn't even eat an egg. So she had to settle with a mushroom soup and some salad. We ordered pancakes, a soup, a Russian delicacy and a dessert at the end.
Thursday and Friday were spent in the hop-on and hop off bus. We first took two rounds of the entire city and then decided to get down at places which looked interesting. At the bus stop, when we were buying tickets, someone picked the purse from Swati Mavshi's closed sack. Thank god, she had removed the amount for the tickets (close to 4k) in her hand and kept the remaining 100 or 200 Rubles in the purse. We didn't even realize who was the person who was standing with us and vanished into the air along with the purse. We got down at the Hermitage Palace as the first sight-seeing place. It is a huge palace with close to 160 rooms. We tried to cover as much as possible in 3 hours. It was very crowded and had tourists from all over the world. We saw many Indian groups there, especially from Mumbai. Indians travel all around the world now. Earlier it was difficult. Money was less, but now the middle class has prospered and goes all around the world on a budget trip.
We saw the famous cathedrals. They were very beautiful from inside. Very artistic, colorful, full of grandeur and pomp, it didn't really feel like a Christian church. It was more like a museum, pregnant with gold wall hangings, pictures from different phases of Jesus's life. There was no calmness or serenity there, I thought. It was a tourist attraction, after all. How could it be quiet? The walls were painted beautifully, but again, the camera fell short to note down all the details and the hues of different colors in the paintings. I stopped after a short while and just sat there observing and absorbing the grandeur in my head. The vastness, the hugeness, the grand scale of the churches and cathedral there made me feel very small in front of it. The enormity of the city, of the country in general, made me realize how small and trivial mankind really is. Everyone was on a move, constantly, going somewhere, to some destination. There was not a moment of silence and stillness. I believe, people were making the most of the lovely weather. Make the most of it while the sun shines!
The people were friendly, there is a lot of poverty too. Pickpocketing is common in tourist places. It happens in most of the famous tourist destinations. Moscow and St. Petersburg looked clean, though very crowded with cars and people (students, tourists, citizens). St. Petersburg has a great nightlife. It is daylight till about 10:30 pm and in June it was white nights! We also strolled the streets at 11 pm where it seemed it was just 7 pm. People were on the streets, talking, laughing, drinking.
On Saturday, all of my mom's friends came to say goodbye to me as I was going to leave for Frankfurt. They gave me Khaau (eatables typical in Maharashtra, which I won't get to eat in Germany for a long time). Thank you all the Mavshis and Kakas for making this trip memorable. I will cherish all the moments we spent together laughing and chitchatting. It was a good break for me. It was a good time with my mom and her friends who pampered me with love, attention, and food.
What will you do there?
Why Russia?
You going alone? Without the husband and kid?
I got all these reactions when I mentioned to a few friends that I will be visiting Russia for a week with my mom and her group who will come to Moscow from Mumbai. The visa application was very smooth from Germany. I sent all the documents along with my passport to the Russian Embassy in Berlin and got the visa in a week delivered home. Visa happened two months ago in March and the date to travel was 25th May. My dear hubby had already booked flights for the trip and he encouraged me to go alone while he and his mother offered to take care of Tanay.
The flight to Moscow went well being a direct flight. I reached Moscow from Frankfurt in about 3.5 hours. My mom along with Sunil kaka (He is the one who is a meticulous planner and takes people to different countries. My mom and he worked in the same office and since then they have been traveling within and outside India together with families) had come to receive me at the airport. The first thing that hit me when I got down in Moscow was that it was huge. Huge roads, huge buildings. Coming from a small town like Karlsruhe in Germany, it was very overwhelming for me to be there. The roads were full of traffic. People were driving the way they want. But no one was honking surprisingly! The chaos was quite smooth and without any accidents or mishaps or road rage. It took us about 30 minutes to reach the hostel and the hostel room was a dainty one with two beds and a cupboard. The toilets were outside and there was no Wi-Fi! It was a very cheap and basic hostel which is good to just sleep over. After meeting all the others (all senior citizens but young at heart!) in the group and having dinner, mom and I slept in one room, ready to take on Moscow the next day.
It was a Sunday when we chose to see the Metro stations in Moscow. They are a tourist attraction and groups from all over the world come to see the different stations. Sunil Kaka had already studied everything from the "Lonely Planet" book and marked the places we would go to. After having breakfast, we all started exploring the different metro stations. Every metro station was unique, it had a theme. One was bedecked with blue marble stones, another in red, another in white. One station had only glass paintings adorning the walls. One had only brass statues of people and animals. One station had a theme of peasants and farmers with their different instruments used in Farming. Another station had paintings, very detailed, elaborate paintings of different situations and people. We were wonderstruck at all these stations. All the stations were spic and span, clean, maintained with no traces of vandalism or human touch. All the stations were crowded, people were just running from here to there, but there was not a trace of misusing that property. Being tourists there, we had a lot of time on our hands and we were relaxed. We took time, lot of pictures, sat there, admiring the beauty and after a point realized that the beauty can't be captured in the photos. The eyes soaked in the sheer art and captured all the moments which can't be really replicated in the photos. We then visited a local fruit market where we tried to communicate with people who couldn't speak English. With signs and the online translator, we managed to buy some local fruits and enjoyed eating them. In this hustle-bustle, Sunil Kaka lost his precious Lonely Planet book. We tried to locate it, but as the train network is vast, it was difficult to get the book back and we were also going to the next city in 2 days. Lunch and dinner was home-made chapati, parathas, etc. I am used to eating outside, but they get bored eating outside. So they had carried everything with them. Hats off to them. They had re-created Mini Indian food stalls in Moscow.
The next day, we took the hop-on and hop-off bus to go around Moscow. The most famous place there is Red Square, the city square. It has almost all the buildings in red and has the famous Saint Basil's Cathedral which looks like a castle from a Disney film. It's colorful and doesn't really look like a cathedral from outside. We strolled along the square for a long time. We bought a few souvenirs there, eat an ice-cream, sat in the garden, saw the different flowers there. We also did a boat tour for about 40 minutes and saw the different buildings from the boat. We also visited the famous Gum Mall which was earlier a palace and is now converted into a huge shopping mall with different brands from all over the world. We wanted to also watch Ballet in the famous Bolshoi Theater, but unfortunately, there was no show on Monday when we were in Moscow.
On Tuesday, we took a train to Saint Petersburg and reached there by evening. The hostel was nice and big but only one kitchen had a cooking range and there used to be a tough fight with the other students staying there when it came to cooking. We were on the main road in a prime locality in St. Petersburg. It was very crowded, busy, a shopping street in fact. With a lot of cars and people and great buildings, it seemed like I was walking in the streets of Mumbai. We explored the street on the day we came. But it was cold and windy, so we retired early.
On Wednesday, it was raining. So we got off the hostel a little late. We walked the long street, did some window shopping. The ladies got into Zara, H&M and shopped to heart's content. The currency in Russia is Rubles. And it is at par with the Indian Rupees. So it didn't feel a great deal to spend on items and things in Russia. We also visited a small chocolate museum and were pleasantly surprised to see different shapes and sizes of chocolates. I wanted to buy one for Tanay, but decided to do it on the day I would go back. We also shopped for basic things like fruits, yogurt, bread, etc. On that evening, we went to a Russian restaurant nearby. A Russian girl was singing live with music and there were many other people around. We couldn't find much on the menu as we don't eat any meat or fish. Bharti Mavshi, my mom's best friend doesn't even eat an egg. So she had to settle with a mushroom soup and some salad. We ordered pancakes, a soup, a Russian delicacy and a dessert at the end.
Thursday and Friday were spent in the hop-on and hop off bus. We first took two rounds of the entire city and then decided to get down at places which looked interesting. At the bus stop, when we were buying tickets, someone picked the purse from Swati Mavshi's closed sack. Thank god, she had removed the amount for the tickets (close to 4k) in her hand and kept the remaining 100 or 200 Rubles in the purse. We didn't even realize who was the person who was standing with us and vanished into the air along with the purse. We got down at the Hermitage Palace as the first sight-seeing place. It is a huge palace with close to 160 rooms. We tried to cover as much as possible in 3 hours. It was very crowded and had tourists from all over the world. We saw many Indian groups there, especially from Mumbai. Indians travel all around the world now. Earlier it was difficult. Money was less, but now the middle class has prospered and goes all around the world on a budget trip.
We saw the famous cathedrals. They were very beautiful from inside. Very artistic, colorful, full of grandeur and pomp, it didn't really feel like a Christian church. It was more like a museum, pregnant with gold wall hangings, pictures from different phases of Jesus's life. There was no calmness or serenity there, I thought. It was a tourist attraction, after all. How could it be quiet? The walls were painted beautifully, but again, the camera fell short to note down all the details and the hues of different colors in the paintings. I stopped after a short while and just sat there observing and absorbing the grandeur in my head. The vastness, the hugeness, the grand scale of the churches and cathedral there made me feel very small in front of it. The enormity of the city, of the country in general, made me realize how small and trivial mankind really is. Everyone was on a move, constantly, going somewhere, to some destination. There was not a moment of silence and stillness. I believe, people were making the most of the lovely weather. Make the most of it while the sun shines!
The people were friendly, there is a lot of poverty too. Pickpocketing is common in tourist places. It happens in most of the famous tourist destinations. Moscow and St. Petersburg looked clean, though very crowded with cars and people (students, tourists, citizens). St. Petersburg has a great nightlife. It is daylight till about 10:30 pm and in June it was white nights! We also strolled the streets at 11 pm where it seemed it was just 7 pm. People were on the streets, talking, laughing, drinking.
On Saturday, all of my mom's friends came to say goodbye to me as I was going to leave for Frankfurt. They gave me Khaau (eatables typical in Maharashtra, which I won't get to eat in Germany for a long time). Thank you all the Mavshis and Kakas for making this trip memorable. I will cherish all the moments we spent together laughing and chitchatting. It was a good break for me. It was a good time with my mom and her friends who pampered me with love, attention, and food.
Being a fellow traveller, while reading i thought we were just going through the trip physically, once again. The narration is so sweet, catchy n real. I personally recommend those having liking for history, art, architecture and peace must visit the two Russian cities.
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