A few pictures from our three weeks long journey to
Henrik's Grandma and Grand Grandma during the summer 2007 and 2008, so far.
There are still around 1000 photos from 2007 and about 800 from 2008 for me to go through, I sincerely hope this
will be done during this second winter.
So, please be patient!
Stockholm/Arlanda
-- Moscow/Sheremetyevo
Aeroflot Sky Team's Airbus A319-111 with
registration number VP-BWJ
and named after the composer Alfred Schnitke got the opportunity, or honour, to take us both to and from Moscow. :-)
Both trips were eventless and very nice, except from some small
vibrations during dinner, and windy when landing on the return to Arlanda.
Oh, I forgot, at 35,000 feet the captain did put the engines on idle for a
while, descending, and making a few turns around a non-visible weather
system, probably to
let us enjoy our meal in peace and quiet, and that we sure did!
Thank you very much!
Waiting for dinner? Soon!
A few pleasant views at the
inflight to Sheremetyevo Airport north of Moscow.
I think this lake belongs to a
water system stretching far north of Moscow.
You can travel by boat for many days before reaching its end.
Even before we turned left to
the taxi lane, another aircraft landed behind us!
Moscow
москва
Or, a few chosen parts of this huge city! :-)
Can you imagine?
We found a free parking space as close as one can drive into the Red
Square just below the Saint Basil Cathedral
The limousine parked closer for
the compulsory photography session of a just married couple in front of
the Lenin Mausoleum, but only under supervision of a policeman. :-)
The first glimpse of Lenin's
Mausoleum.
Black Granite and Red Quartzite.
Very impressive!
It's open for visitors daily, but no photographing is allowed inside.
Yuri Gagarin's plaque in the
wall touched me most of all.
Baravitskie Varota (Baravitski's
Gate) to the right is for us foreigners the gate seen on TV during Sovjet times, where
dignitaries in big black limousines came crossing the Red Square in 60
miles/hour disappearing into this much too narrow gate!
Between us only, I have measured it up, and a big limo has about three
feet free space on each side.
I suppose only special drivers was allowed to use the gate! :-)
The Vasilij Cathedral, or in English Saint Basil's Cathedral with
Moscow River behind and below.
The Kremlin Wall alongside
Moscow River...
...ends in southeast with the Beklemishevskaya Tower,
and the Red Square begins...
...and here is this famous
balcony on Bolshoy Moskvoretskiy Most (Grand Old Bridge Over Moscow
River), which is the very same place practically all foreign TV-reporters
use when broadcasting news from Russia.
On our way past the Museum of
History towards Alexandrovski Park we happened to stumble over an
old friend that had stepped out of his office in the background for a
stroll in the park,
Good afternoon Vladimir Vladimirovich!
A pleasant reunion!
The Grave of Unknown Soldier.
Kremlin seen from inside the
Alexandrovski Park.
Outside The Manege
The statues depicts parts of Russian fairytales.
At all my six or seven visits to
Moscow has either the tickets been sold out, or the building been under
renovation, inside one year, outside another.
What I'm talking about?
The Bolshoj Theatre of coarse!
Moscow State University.
The red arrow points at the window where a web camera is placed. Enjoy the view here!
When I bubbling of happiness
shouted out that this was the third time I managed to photograph the same
ambulance in a few days, Margarita quickly damped my enthusiasm by
reminding me that 03 was the emergency telephone number for ambulances.
Sigh!
Electric buses is very good for
the local environment.
Several towers like this has
grown up the last ten years.
A nicely renovated building from
the eighties.
Probably a transport to the Zoo,
according to the mudguard. :-)
A different limo.
It's a rather complicated
electric power line network, for both buses and trams, which I believe
drive on separate systems.
A little tight!
Debenhams!?
Tram Café
Annushka.
Route N39
24 seats
Armenian cuisine, wine, beer
Reservation available
Mo-Fr 15-24, Sa, Su 12-24.
We were actually looking for the
café tram, but it was cancelled due to renovation of the tram! :-(
What a shower!
Note the Swedbank office on the corner. I think it is the only one in
Moscow.
swedbank.ru The Swedbank at home have promised they do still have the key to my
Old-Oak shaped money-box they gave me as a child half a century ago!
I believe in, and trust them!
Fastest vehicles in the fast
lanes!?
One way of getting your brakes
rinsed.
Wonder if he will try the brakes before he really needs them?
A United Russia!
This type of chain bridge was
first built across The Thames in Marlow in England, then across the river
Danube in Budapest, and here across Moscow River.
It's like a giant Meccano!
Outside the permanent circus
building (one of four different in Moscow)
Yes, Margarita did hurt her back
in a collision later on!
I never say, what did I tell you?
I'm not that kind of person.
Look, how scared the platoon of
soldiers are after their encounter with "Henrik the Terrible",
or, "Trigger Happy HenkePenke"
:-)
It was really fun, but it lasted
only a few more minutes more before it ceased to function. Sigh!
Meal MacFresh!
I promised the chef not to
take pictures with people visible.
I have kept the promise! ;-)
Big Tasty & Chicken Premium!
That wasn't too hard to read, eh?
Heading home after a whole day
downtown.
Flowers and fruits for sale.
Highrise buildings vs country
houses.
Old and new!
At the Zoo
The Zoo entrance is over there
to the left, at last!
Moscow Zoo entrance.
I'm beginning to get used to
find the best parking places, like this one just outside the entrance!
Lidija and Margarita.
Please, give me a breath of
fresh air!
...just a tiny pinch...
...thanks!
Oh! A rare sample of a
baby boy of the species Homo Sapiens Vareagi, at Moscow Zoo.
:-)
This is usually how animals
treats me when I'm trying to photograph them, they turn their side or
behind towards me.
They don't show me the respect I'm worth!
She's a Lady!
He's a brute!
But they sure had nice kids!
Look! Now she is spotting me...
...and then she turns away!
Can you believe this?
A Wolf in Moscow Centre!
She spots me...
...and turn the other way!
But here it's the opposite! I
will soon turn the other way, because the guy to the left spotting me,
demanded one hundred roubles for me taking this photograph!
He got nothing, Njeto! :-)
Yuri Kuklachev's Cat's Theatre
Театр
Кошек Юрия
Куклачева
Kutuzovskiy Prospect, Building No 25, Moscow.
If you ever get a chance to visit the theatre, no matter of
age or what language you speak, do take it!
You will not regret it!
In the meantime, do take a peak here at their
website
www.kuklachev.ru
Filming and photographing was only allowed before and after the
performance.
Yuri Kuklachev and his family has been taking care of and trained cats
and showed them at their theatre since the 1970:s, so practically
everybody under forty now living in the former Sovjet states are familiar
with Yuri Kuklachev and his cats!
A couple of thousand Americans and Englishmen have got the opportunity to
enjoy the show when on tour in their countries. It's only the rest
of us that didn't have a clue!
I'm trying to change that! ;-)
Moscow Railway Museum
The museum is located at the Rizhskiy Vochsal (Riga Terminal), in the
north of central Moscow.
View a placemark at Google
Earth
or, at Google Maps
The museum does apparently not have a website of their own yet.
Let's begin with a movie from
the steam train excursion.
The event begins at Noon with a guided tour through the entire outdoor
part of the museum consisting of two full length platforms with three
tracks, filled with trains from early last century until today, well,
yesterday then.
The humorous and dedicated guide talks (in Russian only) for an hour in
a way that not only train bums get interested, but anyone!
Before it's time for the steam train excursion one can visit the indoor
museum and enjoy their beautiful models in different scales, and most of
all, the fantastic model railroad in H0 scale! I believe it's built by professionals
and architects and is outstanding! Don't ever miss this exhibition if
you are in the neighbourhood!
A sort of once-in-a-lifetime-experience for us, but for Muscovites
living nearby it's just another day on the railroad! No one living near
the railroad can escape from the engineer's repeatedly blowing the whistle
at least thirty times during the entire journey! ;-)
The museum train departs every day at one o'clock (but be there before
noon), and run two stations down the Riga line to Krasni Baltietz (Red Baltic) depot
in a speed of around 60-65 km/h, where passengers leave the train at the
commuter train platform and take a walk across a bridge to the depot and
join the engine again, now without cars, and participate in the filling
of the tender with fresh water, and turning the engine on the
turntable.
After a nice chat with the guide and engineer, one of two only licensed
steam engineers in the entire Moscow region, passengers can take the
elektrishka (commuter train) back to the museum.
Did I mention that this event was all free of charge, no admission
fee for the museum, neither the guided tour, nor the steam train
journey!
This is a slide show with
the still pictures I managed to take between the movie shots.
It's sometimes rather difficult to take pictures and movies and at the
same time fully enjoy an event like this.
I did my very best. ;-)
Victory Park
Park Pobedy, Poklonnaya Gora, the Hill of Respectful Salutation or
Bowing Hill
The community
Razvilka have their own website, by obvious reasons in Russian only,
but this link goes to the resident's public photo
gallery of the
neighborhood.
Whoops!
The American F117 Night Hawk,
in a Moscow suburb!
How did this happen?
Kolomenskoye
Коломенское
The Royal Park
The first day of our visit
Henrik's Grandma Lidija took us to a bicycle store in Kohovskaya because
she wanted to give him a present, and together we picked out a wonderful
bike.
High glossy polished
lightweight pure aluminium.
It has three gears built in the hub, foot brake for the rear, and
handbrake for the front wheel.
Easy handling because of the low
weight, and despite it was a number or two too big for Henrik, a couple of
days later he jumped on it and disappeared just like he had not done
anything else in his whole life! :-)
When we came back
home to Sweden three weeks later, it showed that Henrik had grown out of
his three months old 16 inch bicycle, and it was impossible to ride
despite the luxury with both front and rear suspension.
Off we went to the bicycle store once again! But this time it was
impossible to find such a beautiful lightweight aluminium bike, it doesn't
seem to be hip here for the moment.
In the background...
...the Grand Apple
Tree Garden...
...with its enclosure for the
beehives.
Our Lady From Kazan.
The Virgin Maria Church.
The Red Gate.
Both the left and right wing are exhibition rooms.
The Bell Tower of Saint George.
Margarita.
By a reason I haven't got the full explanation of, I have under no
circumstances understood the reason anyway,
I just know I'm not allowed to post this picture.
So this is a non-existing picture.
Remember this!
World Heritage
Site of The Church of the Ascension
Across the ravine,
on a steep hill with Moscow river on the other side is John The Baptist
Church situated.
Built in I believe a transitional style between The Ascention Church and
Saint Basil's Cathedral on The Red Square.
It's under renovation, so a closer look have to wait till next visit.
Seen from the long walk, a
little to the left, the old oak tree and the apple tree garden behind.
Also seen from the long walk, a
little to the right, Peter The Greats cottage up in a glade in the grove.
Tsar Peter The Great's Cottage
Tsar Peter The Great's Cottage
дом Пётр I Алексеевич
Tsar Peter The Great lived in this house, while supervising the construction of his fleet in
Archangelsk. The cottage is re-erected here in the park of Kolomenskoye, the former Royal
estate, so beautifully managed, with its white churches and the old oak trees
that makes it so tranquil.
The monument over what the
industries in the former almost "secret" city Zhukovsky have
achieved.
Zhukovsky Air Base do have the longest airstrip in Europe, and one of the
longest in the world with its length of 5,5 km.
The Prioksko-Terrasny State Nature Biosphere Reserve
Приокско-Террасный
государственный
природный
биосферный
заповедник
This is the front cover from the
Park's broschure.
Visitors will probably not so often be able to get this close to a family of
Bisons.
Russian forest!
National Park
Entry
Prohibited
(Without a guide, I assume?!)
The differences and similarities
for the American Bison and its European counterpart Vicent.
The entrance to the park.
We all had to walk through this
house with a flooring of antibacterial wood chips to prevent spreading of diseases.
Our Guide.
I think Henrik was angry with
me, because I told him to be quiet when the guide spoke. It was forgotten
a few minutes later, both the anger and what I told him. ;-)
A big guy!
He is actually huge!
Have a view in the movie below, and compare his size with the guide
feeding him with snacks.
I think she mentioned a weight between 900-1200 Kg (1800-2400 lb).
...and this his counterpart, the
American Bison.
They are kept apart from each other, no mishaps are allowed!
The herds usually consists of
12-15 animals.
Out again, disinfecting the
shoes both ways.
The Prioksko-Terrasny State Nature Biosphere Reserve
Museum.
The Museum.
Welcome!
I can not explain all this, only
that the park is situated in a very special place that makes it
representing climate and growth zones from almost the northern taiga to
the southern steppe. It's possible because of its differences in altitude
from the heights down to the river Oka.
Former visitors had actually broke off
his tusks!
It was a rather small museum, made with
devotion.
The displays showed probably all
animals and plants worth mentioning from the area, maybe from the entire
northern hemisphere.
I believe it would take a very
long time to find every detail embedded in each display. :-)
Thank you very much for this remarkable day!
Heading back
After more than three weeks in
Russia, we had to go home.
An hour's drive on the ringway.
I wonder if IKEA have their own
road signs all the way out on motorways in other countries? ;-)
When entering the gate at
Sheremetyevo Airport it was a pleasant surprise to find the very same
aircraft that flew us over here, Alfred Schnitke!
To me an unusual view of Sky
City, connecting terminal 5 (the closest building) and terminal 4 (to the
far right) at Arlanda airport.
I'm more used to be inside watching out, seeing others fly away! :-)
Such a nice welcome!
It took us about an hour to get
our luggage, getting through the customs, finding the car, and finally out
on the entrance to the motorway looking up the sky seeing The Sky Team's
Airbus A319 departing back to Moscow.
A beautiful sight, with mixed emotions!
Strange, this Mercedes is not
for the average Swede. A more probable owner would be a Muscovite, but we
did actually pass it on the motorway from the airport towards Stockholm
city! :-)
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