It was the inaugural SQ flight to Moscow. We were pretty excited about it and had long wanted to discover Russia - the once taboo place to be in. What do we all know about Russia? Dodgy? Cold? Siberia? I didn't know much so this was definitely an eye opener. The history is way too deep for anyone to grasp in a single breadth so I shall not bore the reader to death. More information can be found here:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Russia
https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/rs.html
Ours was a CTC group tour mainly made up of the elderly folks who had some spare cash and time to roam around the world.... 1st stop: The Red Square in Moscow! Red Square Red Square - that familiar bricked expanse in the heart of Moscow is located just outside the Kremlin, along its Eastern wall. Think of Red Square, and you'll undoubetdly recall pictures of those May Day parades, from the years when the Soviet Military displayed its might, respectfully passing before the Soviet leadership atop Lenin's tomb. But Red Square's history stretches back way before the Communist Soviet Union, back to the days of Czarist Russia. In the late 15th Century, people came to this square, called Torg, or marketsquare, to purchase food, livestock, or other wares. By the late16th Century, it was renamed Trinity Square, and served as the main entrance to the Kremlin. The Red Square of today is more than 500,000 square feet of open land. A place where people gather to celebrate official state events, to be photographed in front of favorite sites, or just to drink in the historic splender.
St. Basil's Cathedral At the Southern end of Red Square, just outside the Kremlin, sits the cathedral of St. Basil the Blessed. Perhaps on the most familiar and glorious sites associated with Moscow and the Kremlin. (more info here)
This is the famous underground train stations. Opened in 1935, it is well known for the ornate design of many of its stations, which contain outstanding examples of socialist realist art. We had a chance to stop by a few stations to experience the busy train rides and explore the allure and beauty of the stations. Each station is unique in design. They are so lovely, intricately designed and exquisite. It certainly looks more like an art gallery than a train station. Some stations (akin to our Raffles Place) is terribly busy at the peak hours and trains whizz by every few seconds. Get a strong foothold otherwise you will literally be swept off your feet!
Yes these are lamps, wall mosaics found at various stations! 
Porky pig for lunch. But only managed to take appetisers :(We travelled from Moscow to St Petersburg via overnight train. Shared by 3 of us in a cabin, it was a tough night with narrow corridors and cramp creeky beds. For those travelling alone, pls pls lock your cabin. We have heard many horror stories where people break into your cabin while you are asleep and steal your belongings.
We rocked our way to St Petersburg the next morning. I definitely prefer St Petersburg. It is more cultural, simple and clean. It has got this strong rustic cultural flavour to it. Not as busy and hassle free from what you see in Moscow.
In Russia, expect to walk and see lotsa palaces and cathedrals. Forget about shopping and scenic landscapes. Here, immerse yourself in the rich Russian history of the Tzars, the rulers of Russia, the different eras, cathedrals of varying opulence and the different winter and summer palaces. See, so much that I can't quite describe them well. We waited in the queue in the cold to enter the Catherine Palace. Apparently, during Elizabeth's lifetime, the palace was famed for its obscenely lavish exterior. More than 100 kilograms of gold were used to gild the sophisticated stucco façade and numerous statues erected on the roof.
Below: The Peter and Paul Cathedral is dedicated to Saints Peter and Paul, the patron saints of the fortress (Saint Peter being the patron saint of the city). The current cathedral is the second one on the site. The first, built soon after Peter's founding of the city, was consecrated by Archbishop Iov of Novgorod the Great in April 1704. (Wikipedia)
Swan Lake is a ballet, by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, composed 1875-1876. The scenario was fashioned from Russian folk tales as well as an ancient German legend, which tells the story of Odette, a princess turned into a swan by an evil sorcerer's curse. Most of us went for this and boy! The theatre was packed!
We also watched the Moscow circus. It was entertaining but more like a cheap thrill. Something like what you will pay to get to see at make-shift amusement parks in HDB vicinities. But it was very traditional, engaging poodles, lions and other animals in the show. Brings back memories of the circuses I used to go with my parents when I was little. Paid a little price for it to get into a tentage held at some open field in make shift chairs and bare grass floor.
There's nothing really much to shop in Russia. We just walked, hanged around and bought some chocolates. Below: this is one of the main shopping street. But supermarket shelves are packed with Vodka! Russians drink Vodka like water. Mainly they enjoy it and also to keep themselves warm but they tend to get a bit too rowdy...
You've heard of white nights. Typically in St Petersburg due to its geographical nature, they experience white nights - nights that don't turn dark! What could be more romantic than a walk along the banks of the city's rivers and canals in almost broad daylight, no matter what the time of day? No other major European city can rival this experience nor the atmosphere on the streets of St. Petersburg during the summer months - lively, friendly, romantic and bustling with people throughout the night as well as the day! St. Petersburg is the world's most northern city with a population over 1 million, and its stands at such a high latitude that the sun does not descend below the horizon enough for the sky to grow dark. In fact night becomes curiously indistinguishable from day, so much so that the authorities never need to turn the city's streetlights on! We came out of the Swan Lake ballet at 11pm and it was still bright! Seemed like a matinee.
Their days in the calendar are mostly filled with cool, chilly winters and autumns. Summer time is the only time where they can get out to get a bit of warmth. Otherwise, it's long cold winters...unbearable! Imagine Siberia...
In Russia, never miss the Russian Dolls souvenir!! A matryoshka doll, a Babushka doll or a Russian nested doll, also called a stacking doll, is a set of dolls of decreasing sizes placed one inside the other. "Matryoshka" (Матрёшка) is a derivative of the Russian female first name "Matryona", which was a very popular name among peasants in old Russia. The name "Matryona" in turn is related to the Latin root, "mater" and means Mother. So the name is closely connected with motherhood and in turn the doll has come to symbolize fertility.
See the gifts that I've bought back.. :)
Well done! back to Singapore now.
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