Moscow on the run

2nd of two parts

MANILA, Philippines - It’s not hard to find a building, a monument or an establishment that has cultural or historical significance or is just plain interesting. Some of the key attractions in Moscow are within walking distance of each other, making it an ideal destination for those who have limited time to stroll around the city.

One of the areas with several attractions is Red Square, the 800,000-square foot city square that is considered the symbolic center of Russia.

• Explore Red Square and nearby attractions

 Originally called “Pozhar” which means “burnt out place,” Red Square is a silent witness to several key events in Russian history. It served as the venue of parades, public prayers, demonstrations and even public executions of people who defied authority. The public square’s present day name means “beautiful” in Slavonic and had nothing to do with communism. 

Red Square is the home of several Russian landmarks, including the mausoleum of Vladimir Lenin, the leader of the Bolshevik Revolution. The stone mausoleum contains the preserved body of the Russian leader and is open Tuesday. Wednesday, Thursday, Saturday and Sunday from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. except holidays. Entrance to the mausoleum is free. A team of scientists was tasked to preserve Lenin’s embalmed corpse, an activity that costs 13 million rubles (about P11.3 million), according to news reports.

From Red Square, one can see the eastern wall of the Kremlin, said to be the oldest part of this city. The complex, whose name means “fortress inside a city,” is located on the high bank of the Moscow River and has 19 towers and four cathedrals. Other major sights in the Kremlin are the Dormition Cathedral, the Ivan the Great Bell Tower, the Tsarina Palace, the Arsenal, the Grand Kremlin Palace and the President’s Administration Seat. 

But Red Square is not just about historical landmarks and places of worship. Located on the eastern side of the square is the GUM, said to be the most famous shopping mall in Russia. Interestingly, the department store – a symbol of capitalism – is directly opposite the mausoleum of Lenin, the leader of the revolution that put the communists in power in Russia.

“Since the fall of communism, several other shopping centers and hypermarkets have sprung up to rival it in prestige, but GUM retains its status as a consumer Mecca for visitors to Moscow,” an article posted on the website moscow.info read.

Other landmarks in Red Square are the State Historical Museum and the Resurrection Gate and the Chapel of the Iberian Virgin, where a Marian icon believed to be miraculous is venerated.

Not far from Red Square is the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, a war memorial along the Kremlin Wall that was built in honor of Soviet soldiers who died during World War II. The monument is adorned with bronze sculptures of a soldier’s helmet and a laurel branch, which has been associated with military glory. In front of it is a five-pointed star casted in bronze from which emanates the eternal flame.

Located 3.7 kilometers from Red Square is the Teatralnaya or Theater Square. Three theaters – Maly Theater, Russian Youth Theater and the Bolshoi Theater – are in the square, hence its name. Directly opposite the Bolshoi Theater, where the world-famous ballet “Swan Lake” premiered, is the monument of philosopher, economist and political theorist Karl Marx.

Some of the city’s attractions are not near Red Square but they are still accessible by public transportation like taxis and the Moscow train system.

 • Ride the trains and admire the art works

 Using the Moscow Metro has three advantages: its fare is way cheaper than taxis, it gives the traveler a glimpse of daily life in the city and it also allows one to appreciate the stations, which are also known as the “underground palaces.” 

According to a Moscow travel guide published in 2012 by P-2 Art Publishers, more than 20 varieties of marble, labradorite, granite, porphyry, rhodonite, onyx and other natural stones were used to decorate the stations.

The train stations also serve as underground art galleries because they are filled with sculptures, paintings, bas reliefs, stained glass panels, mosaics and murals.

One of the most popular stations, the Ploshchad Revolution, has 76 sculptures depicting Soviet people including workers, soldiers, students and peasants. Some of the sculptures have been associated with superstitious beliefs. For example, rubbing the nose of the dog in the “Border Guard with a Dog” sculpture is said to bring good luck (perhaps that explains the discoloration of the bronze dog’s nose).

While some complain that the Moscow Metro is noisy and crowded, many are convinced that it is not just a means to reach the city’s tourist spots, but is a tourist spot in itself.

If you do not know how to read Cyrillic but want to ride a train, it would not hurt to ask for directions in case you get lost. Bringing a map or a mobile phone with a navigation app will also help. The navigation tools helped me and two colleagues find Café Pushkin, a cozy restaurant that is very popular with tourists and local celebrities. 

 • Experience Café Pushkin

If there’s one word that best describes the Café Pushkin experience, it would be “throwback.” This three-story café on Tverskoy Boulevard brings its customers back to the 18th century, when aristocrats ruled Russia. 

From the outside, the establishment does not look like a commercial establishment. One may think that the salmon-hued building is just an old, elegant mansion if not for the signage on the right of its entrance. But entering the café one will be greeted with antique paraphernalia and decorations of detailed woodwork. 

The founder of the café is artist and restaurateur Andrei Dellos, who got its name from a popular French love song. The establishment provides a Czarist Russian atmosphere but is relatively new, opening shop only in 1999. 

On the ground floor is the “pharmacy” filled with medicine containers. The section serves as a reminder that the address of the establishment was once the site of a pharmacy owned by Germans V. Mai and L. Fischer. Among the items that can be found at the “pharmacy” are an English bouillotte or bottle shaped like a locomotive, silver cups, a meat grinder and a typewriter from Hamburg.

The Library at the Mezzanine lives up to its name. It is filled with bookshelves containing the works of authors like Voltaire, Shakespeare, Dante and Dickens.

Café Pushkin, which is open 24 hours, has something for everyone. It offers salads, soups, meat and fish delicacies, pastries like pancakes and home-made pies, a wide array of desserts like cake and ice cream, coffee, tea, fresh juices and wine. Some items in the menu are a bit pricey but the ambiance of the place and the experience would more than make up for the cost. 

Places like Moscow will make one realize the similarity between traveling and seeking knowledge. The more you explore, the more you become aware that there are many places you still have to see and things that you still have to learn. For this reason, this city certainly deserves a second look – and much more. Photos byALEXIS ROMERO