the rough guide to moscow

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After a few weeks here, the bizarre becomes normal and you realize that life is – as Russians say – bespredel (without limits). Traditionally a place for strangers to throw themselves into debauchery, leaving poorer and wiser, Moscow’s puritan stance in Soviet times was seldom heartfelt, and with the fall of Communism it has reverted to the lusty, violent ways that foreigners have noted with amazement over the centuries, and Gilyarovsky chronicled in his book, Moscow and the Musco- vites. No excess is too much for Moscow’s new rich, or novye bogaty – the butt of countless “New Russian” jokes. As the nation’s largest city, with some twelve million inhabitants (one in fteen Russians lives there), Moscow exemplies the best and worst of Russia. Its beauty and ugliness are inseparable, its sentimentality the obverse of a brutality rooted in centuries of despotism and fear of anarchy. Private Introduction to Moscow In Siberia, they call Moscow “the West”, with a note of scorn for its bureaucrats and politicians. To Westerners, the city looks European, but its unruly spirit seems closer to Central Asia. For Muscovites, Moscow is both a “Mother City” and a “big village”, a tumultuous community with an underlying collective instinct that shows itself in times of trouble. Nowhere else reflects the contradictions and ambiguities of the Russian people as Moscow does – nor the stresses of a country undergoing meltdown and renewal. 00 Colour intro MOSCOW.indd 4 10/31/08 4:14:51 PM 5 | INTRODUCTION | WHAT TO SEE | WHEN TO GO and cultural life is as passionate as business and politics are cynical. The irony and resilience honed by decades of propaganda and shortages now help Muscovites to cope with “wild” capitalism. Yet, for all its assertiveness, Moscow’s essence is moody and elusive, and uncovering it is like opening an endless series of Matryoshka dolls, or peeling an onion down to its core. Both images are apposite, for Moscow’s concentric geography mirrors its historical development. At its heart is the Kremlin, whose foundation by Prince Dolgoruky in 1147 marked the birth of the city. Surrounding this are rings corresponding to the feudal settlements of medieval times, rebuilt along European lines after the great re of 1812, and ruthlessly modernized in accordance with Stalin’s vision of Moscow as the Mecca of Communism. Further out lie the fortied monasteries that once guarded the outskirts, and the former country estates of tsars and nobles, now well within the 880-square-kilometre urban sprawl encircled by the Moscow Ring Road. Moscow’s identity has been imbued with a sense of its own destiny since the fourteenth century, when the principality of Muscovy took the lead in the struggle against the Mongols and Tatars who had reduced the Kievan state to ruins. Under Ivan the Great and Ivan the Terrible – the “Gatherers of the Russian Lands” – its realm came to encompass everything from the White Sea to the Caspian, while after the fall of Constantinople to the Turks, Moscow assumed Byzantium’s suzerainty over the Orthodox world. Despite the changes wrought by Peter the Great – not least the transfer of the capital to St Petersburg, which Slavophiles have always abhorred – Moscow kept its mystique and bided its time until the Bolsheviks made it the fountainhead of a new creed. Long accustomed to being at the centre of an empire, and being misled that their society was the envy of the world, ̆ Cathedral of Christ the Saviour 00 Colour intro MOSCOW.indd 5 10/31/08 4:14:54 PM 6 Muscovites felt the disillusion- ments of the 1990s more keenly than most Russians – although some have prospered beyond their wildest dreams. All this is writ large in Moscow’s architecture and street life. The Kremlin’s cathedrals are Byzantine, like its politics. Ministries and hotels the size of city blocks reach their apotheosis in the “Seven Sisters” – Stalin-Gothic skyscrapers that brood over the city like vampires. Limousines cruise past babushki whose monthly pensions wouldn’t cover the cost of admission to a night- club (the city has more casinos than any capital in the world). Fascists and Communists march together, bankers live in fear of contract killers and life is up for grabs. From all this, Muscovites seek solace in backstreet churches and shady courtyards; in the steamy conviviality of the bathhouse; and over tea or vodka. Discovering the private, hidden side of Moscow is as rewarding as visiting the usual tourist sights. What to see D espite its size, Moscow’s concentric layout is easier to grasp than you’d imagine, and the city’s famous metro ensures that almost everywhere of interest is within fteen minutes’ walk of a station. Red Square and the Kremlin (Chapter 1) are the historic nucleus of the city, a magnicent stage for political drama, signifying a great sweep of history that includes Ivan the Terrible, Peter the Great, Stalin and Gorbachev. Here you’ll nd Lenin’s Mausoleum and St Basil’s Cathedral, the famous GUM department store, and the Kremlin itself, whose splendid cathedrals and Armoury Museum head the list of attractions. Immediately east of Red Square lies the Kitay-gorod (Chapter 2), traditionally the commercial district, and originally fortied like the Kremlin. Stretches ̄ Souvenir stalls around Red Square | INTRODUCTION | WHAT TO SEE | WHEN TO GO 00 Colour intro MOSCOW.indd 6 10/31/08 4:14:56 PM 7 of the ramparts remain behind the Metropol and Rossiya hotels, and the medieval churches of Zaryade and the shops along Nikolskaya ulitsa may tempt you further into the quarter, where you’ll nd the former headquarters of the Communist Party. The Kremlin and Kitay-gorod are surrounded by two quarters dened by ring boulevards built over the original ramparts of medieval times, when Moscow’s residential areas were divided into the “White Town” or Beliy Gorod (Chapter 3), and the humbler “Earth Town” or Zemlyanoy Gorod (Chapter 4). Situated within the leafy Boulevard Ring that encloses the Beliy Gorod are such landmarks as the Bolshoy Theatre and the Lubyanka headquarters of the secret police – with its “KGB Museum” – while the Zemlyanoy Gorod that extends to the eight-lane Garden Ring is enlivened by the trendy old and new Arbat streets, with three Stalin skyscrapers dominating the Ring itself. Beyond this historic core Moscow is too sprawling to explore on foot, which is why our division of the city is based mostly on transport connections and ease of access. Krasnaya Presnya, Fili and the south- west (Chapter 5) describes a swathe which includes the former Russian Parliament building (known as the White House); Tolstoy’s house and the Novodevichie Convent and Cemetery; Victory Park, with its war memorials and Jewish museum; and Moscow State University in the Sparrow Hills – the largest of the Stalin skyscrapers. Across the river from the Kremlin, Zamoskvareche and the south (Chapter 6) are the site of the old and new Tretyakov Gallery’s superlative collection of Russian art. Here too you’ll nd Gorky Park, the Donskoy and Danilov monasteries that once stood guard against the Tatars, and the romantic ex-royal estates of Tsarit- syno and Kolomenskoe – the latter known for staging folklore festivals and historical pageants. Taganka and Zayauze (Chapter 7), east of the centre, likewise harbour forti- ed monasteries – the Andronikov, Novospasskiy and Simonov – and the erstwhile noble estates of Kuskovo and Kuzminki, but the main lure for tourists is the Izmaylovo art market. Moscow’s Northern Suburbs (Chapter 8) cover a vast area with a sprinkling of sights. Foremost is the VVTs, a huge Stalinist exhibition park | INTRODUCTION | WHAT TO SEE | WHEN TO GO 00 Colour intro MOSCOW.indd 7 10/31/08 4:14:59 PM 8 with amazing statues and pavilions, in the vicinity of the Ostankino Palace, Moscow’s Botanical Gardens and TV Tower. Outside Moscow there’s scope for day-excursions to the Trinity Monastery of St Sergei, the Abramtsevo artists’ colony, Tchaikovsky’s house in Klin, Lenin’s estate at Gorki Leninskie, and the battle- eld of Borodino (Chapter 9), where the battle is re-enacted every September. Further aeld, the historic towns of Vladimir and Suzdal (Chapter 10) are graced by splendid cathedrals and monasteries attesting that they were the seat of a principality when Moscow was merely an encampment. Suzdal is one of the loveliest towns in Russia, and denitely merits an overnight stay. It’s also possible to visit the Aviation Museum at Monino air base, en route to Vladimir, if you take the trouble to get permission ahead of time. Moscow’s skyscrapers Among Moscow’s most distinctive landmarks are the “Seven Sisters” – Stalin skyscrapers bristling with statuary, spires and illuminated red stars, which form an arc around the city centre. These totemic symbols of Soviet power were intended to surround the never- built Palace of Soviets that was envisaged as the tallest building in the USSR, topped by a statue of Lenin that would raise its height to surpass the Statue of Liberty and the Empire State Building put together. Although this colossal edifice never materialized – and the Cathedral of Christ the Saviour that was demolished to clear the site has now been rebuilt to affirm the victory of Christianity over Communism – the Stalin skyscrapers still dominate Moscow’s Garden Ring. Today, they have inspired a new generation of skyscrapers, from the neo-Stalinist Triumph Palace in the northern suburbs to the futuristic twin towers of Gorod Stolitsa in the Krasnaya Presnya district, and the Gazprom Building in the southern suburbs. ̆ Glass portrait of Lenin | INTRODUCTION | WHAT TO SEE | WHEN TO GO 00 Colour intro MOSCOW.indd 8 10/31/08 4:15:02 PM [...]... Ireland to Moscow, and the cheapest way to get there from either Belfast or Dublin Is via England – ideally Manchester or London The best options from Dublin are to Manchester on Ryanair, and from there to Moscow on Transaero, which will cost from around €200, or Dublin to Heathrow on BA or BMI, then Aeroflot to Moscow, from around €250 From Belfast the cheapest option Is with Ryanair to Manchester then... Alternatively, there are through-trains from Brussels four or five days a week that enable you to connect with a Moscow train at Cologne Taking Eurostar through the tunnel, you need to arrive in Brussels in time to catch the 5.25pm highspeed Thalys train to Cologne, where you change to the 10.28pm train to Moscow, which arrives two nights later It’s a good idea to bring food and drink for the journey, since there’s... Please take the time to visit our website and make your trip climate neutral, or get a copy of the Rough Guide to Climate Change for more detail on the subject www.roughguides.com/climatechange | Getting there of Moscow, St Petersburg, the Golden Ring, Siberia and the Russian Far East Mir Corporation US T800/424-7289, W www mircorp.com Small-group tours on themes such as Siberian shamanism or the Gulag... documents to send Others steer you towards visa brokers, with the consulate taking a cut of the profits Apply as far ahead as possible, because the cost of processing your application rises the faster it’s done With all applications, you need to submit two photos (signed on the back) and your passport Applying to the consulate rather than through a travel agent or visa broker, you’ll also need to include the. .. a more leisurely journey to Moscow, with stopovers en route, aboard the Beetroot Bus, an enjoyable compromise between packaged and independent travel Since you can join the bus in either city, it’s ideal for people arriving in Moscow on the Trans-Siberian, or in St Petersburg from the Baltic States, who plan to visit the other city later From July to September, the classic tour (£400) features three... £257 The Paris to Moscow train costs about £230 one-way On top of these fares, don’t forget to factor in the cost of a Belarus transit visa (see p.28) There are various European rail passes, but none covers Russia, Belarus or the Baltic States With InterRail, for example, their Global Pass can take you as far as Warsaw or Helsinki; the onward fare to Moscow is about the same from either city (about... in Moscow next morning The fares are €37 one-way and €65 return You can buy tickets from Baltijas Autobusu Linijas in the bus station (T371/721 4080) and check schedules on Wwww.eurolines.lv There are currently no direct coaches from either Lithuania or Estonia to Moscow, but there are services from both Vilnius and Tallinn to St Petersburg, from where you can get a train or a further bus onto Moscow. .. Travel runs private “nostalgia” trains from Moscow to Mongolia for the Naadam festival (£3995), and along the Silk Road from Beijing to Moscow (£4815) From the US, Mir Corporation offers Beijing to Moscow by the Silk Road in a luxurious private train for $10,995 From Australia, China-based Monkey Business Shrine Tours arranges no-stopover trips from Beijing to Moscow, via Manchuria (from A$1563) or Mongolia... while Intourist has a three-night tour for £530–630, or £750–990 in a superior hotel Several operators offer two-city tours of Moscow and St Petersburg: the cheapest eight-day package comes from Intourist (£990–1240) Both Intourist and Go Russia run tours combining the two cities with historic towns on the Golden Ring, such as Kostroma, Uglich, Suzdal and Novgorod, which start at around £630 From the US... about the same latitude as Edinburgh in Scotland, but its climate is closer to that of Edmonton in Canada (a bit further south), due to its location far from the sea, on a great continental land mass Summers are hot and winters cold by Western European standards – although the dry, often sunny weather makes the latter tolerable, if not pleasurable ̆ The Space Obelisk at the VVTs | INTRODUCTION | WHAT TO . Ivan the Terrible – the “Gatherers of the Russian Lands” – its realm came to encompass everything from the White Sea to the Caspian, while after the fall of Constantinople to the Turks, Moscow. skyscrapers, from the neo-Stalinist Triumph Palace in the northern suburbs to the futuristic twin towers of Gorod Stolitsa in the Krasnaya Presnya district, and the Gazprom Building in the southern suburbs until the Bolsheviks made it the fountainhead of a new creed. Long accustomed to being at the centre of an empire, and being misled that their society was the envy of the world, ̆ Cathedral