More Moscow Marvels

Our Moscow weekend with Tyson was definitely one for the books. We experienced some of Moscow's finest marvels – inside the Kremlin and St. Basil’s Cathedral – as well as a few choose-your-own adventures.

The Kremlin was a powerful and fascinating place, with many evocative reminders of Russia’s rich history. A few of the Kremlin’s notable sites are: Ivan the Great Bell Tower, featuring the world’s largest bell (the ‘Tsar’s Bell’); the Tsar’s Cannon, a massive (40 ton!) ornate showpiece cast in 1586; the Patriarch's Palace, which provides a glimpse into the life of a XVII century Russian Orthodox Church leader; and several gold-domed cathedrals from the XV-XVI centuries.

My favourite part of the Kremlin was the Armoury, which houses not only armour, but also a remarkable collection of Tsarist riches and artifacts. As a former tomboy, I hate to admit it, but the highlights for me were the Cinderella-style carriages (and winter sleighs) and the extravagant garments including Catherine the Great’s coronation dress from 1745. Jerel and Tyson joked they must have altered the waist afterwards to make her look extra slim as no human’s waist could actually be that small! I also got a kick out of the collection of Faberge eggs and the display of crowns, many of which had fur lining!

The three of us also shared a venturesome trip to the suburbs of Moscow to take in a classical concert at the Arkhangelskoe Estate. On the metro leg of the journey, Tyson joined me in pulling a mischievous prank – sneaking to the next car of the train when Jerel fell asleep. You should have seen how quickly Jerel moved when he woke up at the next station and found two empty seats facing him! He was a great sport and forgave us quickly after we ushered a confused Jerel into our train just before the doors closed. It was pouring rain during the second leg of our journey, and we endured what felt like a never-ending gypsi taxi ride with a chatty man from Azerbaijan. He was very friendly but was disturbingly uninterested in watching the road while he drove, and was also very reluctant to wind up the windows despite the muddy tidal waves from passing cars that were literally drenching us…and to top it off, the seatbelts didn’t work. Tyson and I were both white-knuckled by the end of the ride but Jerel somehow managed to keep his cool (…something to do with years of LA driving?). Thank goodness we were headed directly to a classical concert… by the end of the 90 minutes of wonderful Baroque music, seated in a beautiful intimate room overlooking the estate grounds, we were all mellow and smiling again!