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Russia 2019 Day 5: Red Square & Moscow Metro

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AhPek Biker - Riding Adventures

Russia 2019 Day 5:

Red Square & Mocow Metro

Russia 2019 Day 5: 13th May (Monday)

Small Group (Non-cycling) Tour of Russia (Moscow, St. Petersburg & the Golden Ring Cities).

Day 5 - Moscow (Red Square & Moscow Metro):

Veliy Hotel>walk>Lenin Library Sta>ride Moscow Metro> Park Kultury Sta>Kiyevskaya Sta>Prospekt Mira Sta>Belorusskaya Sta>Okhotnyy Ryad Sta>walk>Red Square>St. Basil's Cathedral>State Historical Museum>Kremlin>Kremlin Armoury>Vladimir's Statue>GUM Moscow>Nikolskaya Street>Veliy Hotel.

This is page 5 of a 14-page blog. Click Here To Go To Title Page

< D4: Suzdal/Moscow | Go to Other Days | D6: Izmaylovskiy Market >

Route recommendations: Here are some tips on travelling to and around Russia:

1. Traffic Directions!

Driving in Russia is left-hand drive, and driving is on the right-hand side of the road. Do look to the correct side when crossing roads.

Speed limits are between 60 km/h within urban areas, 110 km/h along expressways, and 120 km/h on highways.

2. Getting to & around Russia.

This morning, Alex took us on a whirlwind railway tour to admire the architecture and artwork of the Moscow Metro stations, and later, we will visit the buildings within the Kremlin and also St. Basil's Cathedral.
Since Russia's "special military operation" into Ukraine, accessibility to Russia by air has been limited. But several airlines (including Emirates, Qatar Airways, Etihad, and Turkish Airlines) still operate flights to Moscow and St. Petersburg.

We flew return with Thai Airways from Kuala_Lumpur (KLIA) to Moscow (Domodedovo Airport) with short transits at Bangkok (Suvarnabhumi Airport). Presently, Thai Airways still flies from Bangkok to Moscow but now lands at Vnukovo Airport.

We booked hotels, train tickets, and several meals via the internet. Ground arrangements (and airport transfers) in Moscow were made through Alexander of Angel Tour, who can be contacted through WhatsApp at this phone number: +7926-435-86-87.

Ground arrangements (and train station transfers) in St. Petersburg were made through Tayna (contact no.: +7921-923-12-27), a local agent in St. Petersburg.

Travelling around the cities was in a 16-seater van. Travelling between Moscow and St. Petersburg was by the Red Arrow Sleeper Train and the Sapsan High Speed Train. Within Moscow, we got around using the Moscow Metro.

For out-of-pocket spending, we exchanged some Russian Rubles before leaving. We also brought along our Big Pay debit cards, as these can be used to withdraw Russian Rubles at ATMs. Debit and credit cards can also be used, but many smaller shops or market stalls only accept cash transactions. Click here for exchange rates to Rubles (presently 1MYR = 18.67 RUR, i.e. Russian Rubles).

3. Immigration & Customs Requirements

Tourists entering Russia will need a tourist visa, which can only be obtained via a TOURIST CONFIRMATION VOUCHER issued by a Russian travel agency or a Russian hotel that has the license to invite foreign tourists. This can be done through a local travel agency with affiliation to a Russian travel agency to obtain this invitation letter. The following is a list of countries that are visa-exempt to enter Russia.

For Malaysians, leaving and returning to Malaysia, getting through immigration is easier now. Just install and register MyBorderPass, and getting through will be a breeze. A QR code will be generated, have this scanned, and you're through.

4. Places & Things of Interest

A. MOSCOW METRO STATIONS
A whirlwind tour shuttling between several Moscow Metro stations (riding the Moscow Metro with a fair bit of walking in between) to view their nice architectural design, and beautiful painted & mosaic murals on the walls and ceilings inside (click here for more on the Moscow Metro). Listed below are the stations we passed through or visited, the ones with the star are those with beautiful artwork inside or nice entrance architecture:

a. Lenin Library Station, (Библиотека им. Ленина) (GPS: 55.75228, 37.61038).
b. Kropotkinskaya Station (Метро Кропоткинская) (GPS: 55.74571, 37.60502).
c. Park Kultury (Koltsevaya line) / Park Kultury (Sokolnicheskaya line) (Парк культуры (станция метро, Кольцевая линия) / Парк культуры (станция метро, Сокольническая линия)) (GPS: 55.73606, 37.59314).
d. ✩ Kiyevskaya (Filyovskaya line) / Kiyevskaya (Koltsevaya line) (Киевская (станция метро, Кольцевая линия) / Киевская (станция метро, Арбатско-Покровская линия)) (GPS: 55.74376, 37.56759), with the Kiev Victory mural.

e. Park Pobedy Station (Парк Победы) (GPS: 55.73709, 37.51397), the deepest and shiniest station.

f. ✩ Prospekt Mira (Koltsevaya line) / Prospekt Mira (Kaluzhsko-Rizhskaya line) (Проспект Мира (станция метро, Кольцевая линия) / Проспект Мира (станция метро, Калужско-Рижская линия)) (GPS: 55.77941, 37.63323).
g. ✩ Belorusskaya (Koltsevaya line) / Belorusskaya (Zamoskvoretskaya line) (Белорусская (станция метро, Кольцевая линия) / Белорусская (станция метро, Замоскворецкая линия)) (GPS: 55.77741, 37.58208), with white ceiling and nice flooring.

h. ✩ Teatral'naya Station (Театральная) (GPS: 55.75656, 37.61960).

i. ✩ Okhotnyy Ryad Station (Охотный ряд) (GPS: 55.75682, 37.61487), which leads to the Red Square.

B. RED SQUARE & THE MOSCOW KREMLIN
a. Red Square (Красная Площадь, Krásnaya plóshchaď) (UNESCO Listing) (GPS: 55.75393, 37.62079).

b. St. Basil's Cathedral (Храм Василия Блаженного, Khram Vasiliya Blazhennogo) (GPS: 55.75252, 37.62308), was formally called the Cathedral of Vasily the Blessed and actually consists of 12 churches.

c. State Historical Museum (Государственный исторический музей, Gosudarstvenny istoricheskiy muzyey) (GPS: 55.75533, 37.61784), & the adjacent Ressurection Gate (Воскресенские ворота, Voskresenskie vorota), also called the Iberian Gate (Иверские ворота, Iverskie vorota).

d. Kazan Cathedral (Казанский собор на Красной площади) (GPS: 55.75545, 37.61925), formally known as the Cathedral of Our Lady of Kazan.

e. Alexander Garden (Александровский сад) (GPS: 55.75222, 37.61361).

f. Moscow Kremlin (Моско́вский Кремль, Moskovskiy Kreml) (UNESCO Listing) (GPS: 55.75155, 37.61804), and the buildings within the Kremlin, including:

- Kutafiya Tower (Кутафья (Предмостная) башня) (GPS: 55.75254, 37.61278), formerly known as the Predmostnaya Tower, together with the Troitskaya Tower (Троицкая башня, Trinity Tower) (GPS: 55.75225, 37.61462), are the main entrances into the Kremlin.

- Amusement Palace (GPS: 55.75222, 37.61361),

- Patriach Palace, also known as the Church of the Twelve Apostles (Патриаршие палаты и церковь Двенадцати апостолов) (GPS: 55.75124, 37.61687),

- Grand Kremlin Palace (Большой Кремлёвский дворец, Bolshoy Kremlyovskiy Dvorets) (GPS: 55.75059, 37.61534),

- Dormition Cathedral (Успенский Собор, Uspensky sobor) (GPS: 55.75098, 37.61698), also known as the Assumption Cathedral - this is where the Tsars are crowned,

- Tsar Canon (Царь-пушка, Tsar'-puška) (GPS: 55.75146, 37.61793).

- Tsar Bell (Царь–колокол, Tsar-kolokol) (GPS: 55.75076, 37.61849).
- Kremlin Armoury (Armoury Chamber) (Оружейная палата) (GPS: 55.74957, 37.61341), a secured museum which holds the Russian Imperial Treasures.

- Diamond Fund (Алмазный фонд), a secured chamber within the Armoury Chamber,which holds the Imperial Crown of Russia, and other Russian Crown Jewels.

- the Kremlin Walls and Kremlin Towers.

- Spasskaya Tower (Спасская башня, tr. Spasskaya Bashnya) (GPS: 55.75254, 37.62142), known as the Saviour Tower, is the main Kremlin tower facing Red Square.

g. Nikolskaya Street (Никольская улица) (GPS: 55.75662, 37.62179).

h. GUM Department Store (ГУМ abbreviation for Главный универсальный магазин, Glávnyj Universáľnyj Magazín, literally "Main Universal Store") (GPS: 55.75469, 37.62152).

i. Vladimir the Great Statue (Памятник Владимиру Великому (Москва), Pamyatnik Knyazyu Vladimiru) (GPS: 55.74962, 37.61016), this is located just outside the Red Square.
j. Cathedral of Christ the Saviour (Храм Христа Спасителя) (GPS: 55.74463, 37.60549).

5. Food

a. Breakfast

Breakfast: Paid buffet at Veliy Hotel Mokhovaya (Велий Отель Моховая Москва) (GPS: 55.75104, 37.61031).

b. Lunch

Burgers & Milkshake from Red Square McDonald's (GPS: 55.75604, 37.61502)
c. Dinner
Ukrainian fare at Taras Bulba Restaurant (Корчма Тарас Бульба На Моховой, Korchma Taras Bulba) (GPS: 55.75064, 37.61007) - Stuffed Duck with apples & honey sauce, Steamed Perch, split pea soup , Borscht Soup, Russian blood sausages (Кровяная колбаса), etc.

6. Accommodations

Second of four nights at Veliy Hotel Mokhovaya (Велий Отель Моховая Москва) (GPS: 55.75104, 37.61031) (now known as Mirros Hotel Moscow Kremlin) in Moscow.

7. Communicating with Each Other

When travelling in a group, it's important to be able to communicate with each other, especially if one gets lost from the rest. Back then, it was not easy to buy Russian Sim cards, and our Moscow guide got the Beeline physical SIM cards (with 14days unlimited data) at 700 RUR (MYR 37.50) for us before we arrived.

Even now, it is not easy to purchase a SIM card. However, it is possible to buy Russian Sim cards online; just be aware of the restrictions posted earlier.

8. Communicating with Locals

At hotels and tourist spots, locals speak fairly good English. In the smaller towns, most locals speak only Russian. As such, it would be good to know some basic Russian.

9. Dressing

When entering churches and monasteries, it is advisable to wear long pants, especially for women. Ladies will also have to wear headscarves or veils. Caps and hats should be taken off when in churches and monasteries.

10. Weather

Daytime and nighttime temperatures in Moscow were 10°C and 1°C, respectively.

Useful weather forecast sites for Russia is AccuWeather. For more detailed weather, including cloud cover and wind speed, use Weatherspark and Ventusky.

11. Navigation

I used MapMyRide to track our routes and stops. Geo-tagging of places of interest was via FaceBook or Google Maps.

___________________________________________________________________________

PRELUDE

Yesterday, we left Rostov to head for Moscow, and en route, we stopped at Suzdal, another of the Golden Ring Cities, where we visited, amongst other places, the Suzdal Kremlin and Museum of Wooden Architecture.

Today, we kicked off the morning by riding the Moscow Metro to admire several of its beautiful stations. Later, we visited the Moscow Kremlin and the wonders and treasures within.

___________________________________________________________________________

DAY 5: MOSCOW RED SQUARE & METRO

Small Group (Non-cycling) Tour of Russia (Moscow, St. Petersburg & the Golden Ring Cities).

Day 5 - Moscow (Red Square & Moscow Metro):
Veliy Hotel>walk>Lenin Library Sta>ride Moscow Metro> Park Kultury Sta>Kiyevskaya Sta>Prospekt Mira Sta>Belorusskaya Sta>Okhotnyy Ryad Sta>walk>Red Square>St. Basil's Cathedral>State Historical Museum>Kremlin>Kremlin Armoury>Vladimir's Statue>GUM Moscow>Nikolskaya Street>Veliy Hotel.

(Zoom in to see more of Central Moscow)

(Click Here Russia 2019 Days 5: Moscow - Red Square & Metro Route Map)

Many of the posts below are linked to my Facebook postings during the trip and are embedded here with some comments. (NOTE: Click on respective posts to link to the FB post to read more details. If you can't see the posts, please log out of your Facebook first.)

After a hearty hotel breakfast, we walked along Mokhovaya Street, to head for the Lenin Library Station to start our Moscow Metro adventure. It was a cool morning, and although traffic was heavy, it wasn't noisy, and we had a pleasant walk. Mokhovaya Street is a part of Moscow's innermost ring road - the Central Squares of Moscow.

The above Moscow Metro Transit Map shows that it is an elaborate rapid transit system rivalling those in many of the world's major cities.

From road level, escalators, some very long, take one down to the underground stations.

At the station level, is where the beauty of the stations starts - this one with an impressive entrance arch.

Station hall with paintings on arched walls, decorative trimmings, and beautiful chandeliers.

Different stations with different ceilings, different chandeliers, all quite elaborate in design.

Each station has a different theme: this one with paintings of battles and wars in Russia's past.

Another one celebrates the workers - fishermen, foundry workers, and even lady pottery artists.

This one paid tribute to society's heroes - sportsmen and war veterans.

Most of the stations have beautiful ceilings with in-set paintings evenly spaced.

At the far ends of the stations are larger, full-height wall murals depicting different aspects and levels of society. The above montage has one showing some Russian traditional folk dancing.

Sometimes there are statues too.
For more on the Moscow Metro, click here.

Our last stop along the metro was at the Okhotnyy Ryad Station, and from there we exited up to the Red Square to begin the next phase of our tour day.
Red means beautiful — so beautiful a square. It is the city's most prominent landmark, with famous buildings lining it, such as Saint Basil's Cathedral, Lenin's Mausoleum, the State Historical Museum, and the GUM department store. It has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1990.

At one end of the square is the State Historical Museum, a museum of Russian history located between Red Square and Manege Square. The museum's exhibitions range from relics of prehistoric tribes that lived in the territory of present-day Russia, to priceless artworks acquired by members of the Romanov dynasty.

At the other end of the square is the renowned and iconic St. Basil's Cathedral!

The original building contained eight chapels arranged around a ninth, central chapel dedicated to the Intercession; a tenth chapel was erected in 1588 over the grave of the venerated local saint Vasily (Basil).

Officially known as the Cathedral of Vasily the Blessed, it is a Russian Orthodox church. It is one of the most popular cultural symbols of Russia.

The building, now a museum, was built from 1555 to 1561 on orders from Ivan the Terrible and to commemorate the capture of Kazan and Astrakhan. It was completed, with its colours, in 1683.

The cathedral has nine distinctive onion domes (each one corresponding to a different church) and is shaped like the flame of a bonfire rising into the sky.

The church has been part of the Moscow Kremlin and Red Square UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1990.

Not to be missed is the Kazan Cathedral, with its distinct pastel pink and blue colours. It's located at a corner of the Red Square, next to the State Historical Museum.
The cathedral was considered one of the most important churches in Moscow. Annually, on the anniversary of the liberation of Moscow from Poland-Lithuania, a solemn parade led by the Patriarch of the Russian Orthodox Church, and the Tsar of Russia carried a processional cross from the Kremlin.

1:15pm - Burgers & Milkshake lunch at Red Square McDonald's. The board menu was in Russian Cyrillic Script, despite that we were able to order through recognising the photos. Interestingly, the Big Mac Index is a price index published since 1986 by The Economist as an informal way of measuring the purchasing power parity between two currencies and provides a test of the extent to which market exchange rates result in goods costing the same in different countries. It compares the relative price worldwide to purchase the Big Mac, the flagship hamburger sold at McDonald's restaurants.

Since Russia's "special military operation" into Ukraine, McDonald's temporarily suspended all operations in the country on 8 March 2022. In May, the company announced that it would sell all of its restaurants in Russia, which were rebranded as Vkusno i tochka.

2:00pm - Queueing at the Kutafiya Tower, which, together with the Troitskaya Tower, is the tourist entrance into the Kremlin.

Beyond which is an extensive compound with several buildings, including the Grand Kremlin Palace. For much of the 19th century, it served as the official residence of the Russian emperor in Moscow, which was not then the capital of the Russian Empire. Presently, it serves as the official working residence of the president of Russia and also houses a museum.

Photos of several other buildings and a beautiful garden within.

Also, on the grounds are quaint, interesting things, such as the Tsar Canon which is a giant cannon, and a monument of Russian artillery casting art. Casted in bronze in 1586 in Moscow, by the Russian master bronze caster Andrey Chokhov. Weighing 39.3 tons and with a length of 5.34 meters, it was mostly of symbolic impact and was never used in a war.

And also the Tsar Bell, an 11.5-ton giant bell. It is the largest bell in the world, with a height of 6.14 metres, a diameter of 6.6 metres, and a thickness of up to 61 centimetres.

The bell is decorated with relief images of baroque angels, plants, oval medallions with saints, and nearly life-size images of Empress Anna and Tsar Alexei, who was reigning at the time the Tsar Bell was cast. It has never been in working order, suspended, nor rung as cracked during a fire after being completed.

Inside the Kremlin are several churches and cathedrals, including the Assumption Cathedral; where the Tsars are crowned.

Assumption Cathedral schematic drawing.

The churches & cathedrals are distinct and beautiful .....

..... with tall towers and large shiny golden domes.

..... shining brightly against a clear blue sky.

Some other details, including mini domes and entrances inset with well-crafted arches.

Also inside the Kremlin is the Diamond Fund and Armoury Chamber. Both of these are not to be missed as they display the Imperial Crowns & Jewellery, and the Royal Treasures. Sorry, no photography allowed inside, but trust me, don't miss going to view as they showcase one of the best imperial exhibits in the world.

Photo rendition of Russian Imperial Jewelry.

The Imperial Crown of Russia, which is adorned with 4,936 diamonds arranged in patterns across the entire surface of the crown. Bordering the edges of the "mitre" are 74 large white pearls. The crown is also decorated with one of the seven historic stones of the Russian Diamond Collection: a large precious red spinel weighing 398.72 carats, known as the Menshikov Ruby.
Shown above is a replica made by Russian jewelry makers, Kristall Smolensk, to celebrate the company’s fiftieth anniversary.

Spasskaya Tower, one of many Kremlin Towers along the Kremlin Walls.

Zoomed-in photo showing the detailed craftsmanship of the Spasskaya Tower.

Pretty lasses among the tulips of the Alexander Garden.
Contrary to popular belief, tulips did not originate in Holland but came from the highlands of Central Asia, spread through Anatolia, was popularized by the Ottoman Empire before spreading further west.

Isometric map of the Kremlin.

Just outside the Kremlin Walls, is the Vladimir the Great Statue, a 17.5-metre-high monument to Vladimir the Great, located in Borovitskaya Square.

He was Prince of Novgorod from 970 and Grand Prince of Kiev from 978 until his death in 1015. The Catholic Church and the Eastern Orthodox Church both canonised him as Saint Vladimir.

Further down at one end of Ulitsa Volkhonka is the Cathedral of Christ the Saviour. It is a Russian Orthodox cathedral, situated on the northern bank of the Moskva River. With an overall height of 103 metres, it is the third-tallest Orthodox Christian church building in the world.

But not all is sombre; further along are Street Art murals.

6:45pm - Dinner was Ukrainian fare at Taras Bulba Restaurant; a cheerful place just around the corner from our hotel, straw hats and colourful flowers adorned our heads for group photos.

The friendly waitress served our first dish with a wide, warm smile - it's Stuffed Duck with apples & honey sauce.

Other dishes included: Steamed Perch, split pea soup , Borscht Soup, Russian blood sausages (Кровяная колбаса, krovyanka). The blood sausages, made with pig's blood and buckwheat kasha, weren't to bad. It was definitely easier to eat than the Korean Sundae blood sausage.

9:30 - Time for some colourful fun at the Avenue of Stars at Nikolskaya Street in front of the GUM Department Store (abbreviation for Glávnyj Universáľnyj Magazín, literally "Main Universal Store").