Prelude to the Russian Winter

It was a call at 0645hr in Dubai that got me out of bed (hey this sounds like my last posting). 5 hours later I am in Moscow on the 7th November, Day of Accord and Conciliation, a national holiday in Russia. It was -7 degrees celsius and bits of snow were on the ground. I understood why the passengers were asking for drinks. With such need to keep warm who can blame them for alcohol binging.

The quiet bus ride to the hotel took over 2 hours and half the crew were sleeping. I actually enjoyed the ride with my travel-companion-iPod Shuffle. We met at the lobby 30 minutes after we arrived at the hotel and went out for some tasty comfort food at McDonald's just outside. A bunch of us never been to Moscow was determined to visit the Red Square, at least. Also I hear it's beautiful at night.

We took the metro and along the way stopped to take photos - the Moscow Metro stations are a tourist attraction with elaborate paintings and achitecture, even the trains were adorned with antique warm lights. When we arrived at the Red Square it was freezing and I had no sense of my fingers or toes but it was definitely worth the while. It was a breath-taking, surreal experience like everything around you popped up from a picture book. The Saint Basil Cathedral at the end of the square (we entered via the Ressurection Gate in the North) standing right in front of me!

There's no English or other languages there, no translation of signages, road names, billboards, etc. The result is a true authentic culture and I appreciate that. For some nostalgic reasons I begin to recall classical music thinking that musical notes must be the common language of the world.

I wrote this in the bus, now only 40 minutes into the drive to Domodedovo Airport. I am inspired and I remember what motivated me into this job for otherwise I may never have travelled to witness the sights of the world.



It's not even winter yet but to re-visit Moscow then I know it will be teeth-clenching, limbs-numbing and very painful... but it will be lovely to see Red Square all covered in snow. I will try and get into the cathedrals, the GUM, the Lenin's tomb and the museum.

Oh did I mention Russian girls are real hotties? Maybe that explains the infamous hooker population. Something went very wrong with its male counterparts though.

Go to my Picassa album to see the pictures.