I heard about this city before. Mainly from the news and many Hollywood movies . It’s a place of cold, gloomy with western spy infested streets. The women were ugly and the men were dirty and smelly . I’ve never dreamed to visit this awful place. Being communist with the iron curtain policy, it also shut the doors for outsiders.
But I was here nevertheless, with many thousands of other tourists trying to know and understand why Moscow is a great city. It is a city of immense scale, deep history, and powerful presence, making it “great” by many definitions. Its greatness comes from a unique combination of imperial grandeur, Soviet might, and a modern, vibrant energy.
We arrived early in the morning and greeted by Olga, a beautiful Russian lady in her 50s. The weather was about right for a late summer;not so hot, a bit windy and kinda wet. As we drove around the city Olga narrated the facts and figures about what we saw.
The scale of everything in Moscow is awe-inspiring. The wide avenues, massive buildings, and the general sense of space are overwhelming and contribute to its feeling of grandeur. The architecture from the past was well preserved and made you wonder whether all these were the result of their struggles to protect the country. Some 28 million soldiers died in WW2 fighting against the nazi. I felt small and insignificant comparatively; my people and my country have a long way to go.
We waited in the wind and cold for a change of guards. I was pushed and stared at just for blocking someone’s view. In two minutes the thing finished. That’s it. OMG! I felt so stupid. But the face-turning part was cute! hahaha. I wanted more of that but it was only a change of guards ceremony not a dance show.
We moved on to the Red Square, which is pnext to the Kremlin. The tomb of Lenin was there and also the famous St. Basil’s cathedral. Historically, the church was built to celebrate the winning of a battle with Kazan Khanate. The Tartar muslim were defeated in 1818 and has become part of Russian empire ever since. I searched deep for a little guilt in my soul for being here conspiring a glorification of some sort but couldn’t find anything. The connection was lost and the Tatars and us just two different species altogether. I hope this trip will change that and to finally realise the true facts of history.
