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From Russia with love: September 2018
I’ve always wanted to see St. Basil’s Cathedral, I could see myself standing in Red Square staring up at those iconic onion domes. I knew that if I could see that, the rest of the sights and experiences in Russia would be icing on the proverbial cake. But it was better than icing. Extraordinary architecture of design and colour; exquisite mosaics and murals in churches, cathedrals and even subway stations; gold and bronze and gilded statues; history; religion; monasteries, monks and a daily bowl of the most delicious borsht.
My travel starting point was Saint Petersburg and specifically at the St. Peter and Paul fortress established on the orders of Peter the Great and is considered to mark the founding of Saint Petersburg. It does not have a pleasant history. The fortress was built on the backs of forced labourers who died during construction, and then the fortress was used to guard and torture political prisoners including Dostoevsky in 1849. and Trotsky in 1906. But notwithstanding some grim history, the architecture of Saint Petersburg is truly a sight to behold and the Fortress sets the stage for the rest of Saint Petersburg. It’s a wonderful walking city and by foot I was able to explore: Peter the Great's summer gardens, Church of the Saviour on Spilled Blood, Cathedral of our Lady of Kazan, Palace Square, the Hermitage, St. Isaac’s Cathedral, Nevsky Prospect, Palace of Peter I and the fountains of Peterhof, the grand palace and a treat at the Alexdriinsky theatre to see Swan Lake on the evening of my birthday no less!
But to get further afield, you do need to access to a vehicle. I organized a private tour with a local woman to Novgorod. Situated on the ancient trade route between Central Asia and northern Europe, Novgorod (about 250 km south of Saint Petersburg) was Russia's first capital in the 9th century. Surrounded by churches and monasteries, it was a centre for Orthodox spirituality as well as Russian architecture and became a UNESCO heritage site in 1992.
Back in Saint Petersburg it was easy travel to Moscow, a mere 4 hours on the Sapsan high-speed train, at 250 km/h. My sight-seeing started at the Kremlin and Cathedral Square aptly named for the great cathedrals that stand here - Cathedral of the Annunciation, Cathedral of the Assumption, and Cathedral of the Archangel. From the Kremlin it was easy to explore the other monuments in Moscow, in particular: St. Basil's Cathedral, Kazan Cathedral, GUM and the Bolshoi, the Metropol Hotel, and the Dostoevsky statue. I walked for the most part except to take in the grandeur of the stations on the Moscow subway line, specifically the ‘brown ring’, read more about that my GlobeTrotter blog: “Moscow — the Underside!”. But then also used the subway to travel to the Novodevichy Cemetery.
Burial in the Novodevichy Cemetery was second in prestige only to burial in the Kremlin Wall Necropolis. It’s the most prestigious cemetery in Moscow and the final resting place for many notable Russians such as Nikolai Gogol, Boris Yeltsin, Stalin’s wife and Anton Chekov. There are over 20,000 graves in this cemetery and wandering through the sections is akin to walking through an art gallery of beautiful statues, monuments, and sculptures to Russia’s writers, astronauts, poets and political leaders. The Novodevichy Cemetery didn’t disappoint this Tombstone Tourist (link to GlobeTrotter blog)
My last stop was about 75km to the northeast of Moscow to visit the town of Sergiev Posad and the Trinity Monastery of St Sergius. Founded in 1340 by the Russia’s most revered saint, St Sergius of Radonezh who was posthumously named Russia’s patron Saint. This was the residence of the patriarch and a working monastery of the highest Orthodox rank. Today the monastery is an active religious centre with a visible population of monks in residence.But perhaps the highlight for me on route to Sergieve Posad was my opportunity to meet Mr. Anatoly Mikhailovich Lovanov who I referred to in the GlobeTrotter blog as: The Maud Lewis of Russia.
The photo essay below, showcases those highlights from Saint Petersburg to Moscow. I came back from Russia with love indeed.