The Moscow Experience

Over the course of the weekend, I had the pleasure of touring Russia's capital. Friday morning we left the dorms and headed to the train station where I rode my first high-speed train. I can officially say that trains have WAY more leg room than airplanes. Which is amazing if you're somewhat tall like myself. After checking in at the hotel, we got tickets and went to see the Russian circus. I absolutely loved it. The show was excellent and all of the different acts were full of extremely talented people. There were even a few animal based acts; my favorite being the one with seals doing dances and passing a beach ball around.

At the circus!

On Saturday we visited the Kremlin and saw Red Square; which was definitely the highlight of the trip for me. Actually seeing the places that are always on postcards is an amazing experience. I personally found the area outside the Kremlin to be more interesting than the actual inside. I'll never forget what it feels like to stand in Red Square looking at St. Basil's Cathedral.

Picture #1 from Red Square.

Picture #2 from Red Square.

In front of St. Basil's at Red Square.

Once we finished the Kremlin tour a small group of us went on a search for the KGB museum. Unfortunately, its been closed for renovation for quite some time now. We finished the day visiting Arbat, a street in Moscow that's loaded with souvenir shops (Or so I thought). I ended up going with another group to the largest souvenir market in Moscow. There are all kinds of stands selling different items and you can actually barter. I actually think bartering is a lot fun; I've learned a lot from that experience. After that we went to a very large park with a large statue of Lenin and some beautiful gold fountains. Originally, we were going to visit Lenin's mausoleum on Saturday but it was closed. Luckily we were still able to visit the mausoleum before heading back to St. Petersburg. Seeing Lenin's body was a combination of creepy and awesome. Inside the mausoleum it's very dark and there are three guards every one or two yards. On the way out, you can see the graves of different Russian leaders including Stalin. Seeing Stalin's grave gave me legitimate chills down my spine.

Lenin's monument at the park.

Map of the street market complex!

Overall, I had an amazing time in Moscow. However, I like St. Petersburg more in terms of architectural beauty and the metro system. The Moscow metro system is massive and I found it to be extremely complicated. Also, Moscow gives off a very Soviet vibe while St. Petersburg feels more imperial. Thanks so much for reading! And yes, I did get some souvenirs for everybody at the different markets. But, my lips are sealed as to what I got :P