This is a view looking back toward the entrance of the famous open-air market. It was a fascinating place to visit and shop in. It was basically a large ‘flea’ market such as we have here in Pearland, TX, but of course the products are exotic. We were told not to use US currency because the citizens there weren’t supposed to take it and we might be caught up in a police sting. However, one of the young entrepreneurs said he had to buy is supplies with US dollars, so he should be paid in US. Many of the merchants could speak English, but some could speak very little. There was a small entry fee for customers. There was undoubtedly a rental fee for the booths, since there were people lined up along the sidewalk leading from the subway station to the market entrance for about a tenth of a mile trying to sell their wares.
The products ranged from old military uniforms and aircraft components, to the traditional ‘nesting’ dolls, to crystal eggs, KGB watches (they said), to pirated music and computer program CDs. They had world leader nesting dolls and famous sportsmen nesting dolls. Of course there was jewelry and fur caps at many places.
As I have mentioned elsewhere, the Russians were celebrating Christmas in January since the Greek Orthodox Christian church kept the holidays on the old calendar longer than the rest of the world did. This is the Christmas tree and another row of booths off to the right. This view is more to the south of the entrance.
Although we had been warned not to try the food, Raul and I bought some shish-ka-bob for a snack. (It was the most recognizable food that we saw.) As we started to walk away from the vendor and old lady with a broom motioned us to the dining area and indicated that we should take the two vacant chairs with these fellows. I noticed that the red jacket had a KANSAS label sewn above the pocket and pointed it out to the fellows. I’m not sure they understood stood what Kansas meant, but the other fellow said the jacket was from Germany and the fellow wearing it had been to several cities in the mid-western states. They offered us a drink of vodka from their Styrofoam cup.
This view is inside the Kremlin. The Kremlin tour is a story by itself. The yellow brick buildings are supposed to be the government offices. The large cannon on the left is supposed to be the largest cannon that has never been fired in war.
This bell is supposed to be the largest that was never rung.
Our tour guide talks to Raul. He and I were standing in the street leading out of Red Square, when she suddenly appeared out of the snow. She was dressed in black. She offered to provide a tour through the Kremlin and the Amory for $15 each. I think we had to pay her way into both in addition. I’d have to check my notes to be sure. She provided an excellent three-hour tour. She talked constantly in perfect English, but if we asked an unexpected question, she had difficulty answering. She tried to slip us into the Armory ahead of the waiting line, but the ladies there wouldn’t let her.
There were several of these beautiful old church buildings inside the Kremlin. I think every Czar had his own. The tour guide seemed to have an interesting story about each. After the tour, we left her, toured the mall (shown on another page), and then walked back to Red Square. A fellow with fur hats to sell came straight for me (they all seemed to know that I would be an easy mark) and I a bought a hat. As the fellow left, the same tour guide slipped up out of nowhere and said, “You don’t have to buy something from all of them.”
It is difficult to photograph the subway stations and anyway we had been warned to be careful about photographing things. Each subway station seemed to have a different motif. All of the system that I saw was clean and nice, but looked a little old and rundown. The statue was as close to the military as I wanted to photograph.
Some Russians in yet another part of the subway. I had gotten brave enough to try a photograph of strangers. The people were friendly. On two occasions young men stood and offered me their seats. On one ride a young girl, about 7 or 8, with a cardboard sign hanging from her neck entered the back door of the subway car. She walked silently to the front, got off at the next stop, and entered the back door of the car ahead of us.
Some of our group in a different part of the subway.
The Starlight Grill. Just what it looks like; a dining car restaurant. English spoken here! It made a nice break from the Russian cuisine. It had a regular American dinner menu. We went there several times. It was a long walk and a short ride on the subway. We really enjoyed the food and atmosphere of a real American dining car grill in the middle of Moscow.
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