Moscow at Night Sounds Like Rolling Thunder

Part 2 of our Thursday, May 17 was a tour entitled "Moscow at Night" which resulted in some surprises and some beautiful sights to behold, indeed. 

Our first surprise of the evening came about 30 minutes into the trip after boarding at 9:30 pm.   We fought the traffic to Sparrow Hill where we were earlier, except this time it turned out to be the nightly "Bike Night".  There were a couple hundred Muscovites on motorcycles of all kinds (mostly Hondas and BMWs, but a few good old American Harley Davidsons) gathered in the observation area, milling about, listening to loud music, ogling attractive young Russian women, and having a great time - just like at any American bike night except no one was drinking beer (thankfully).

The baddest looking guys in the crowd were sporting leather and denim jackets with American sayings (see photo at left) and/or Harley Davidson logos on them.  I struck up a conversation with a relatively clean cut Russian man who was riding an absolutely gorgeous 2013 Triumph.   His English wasn't great, but the shared language of motorcycling came through loud and clear.   He "got it" that I was an American and a Harley Davidson enthusiast, and I showered praise on his shiny black machine.   We understood each other quite well.

The Kremlin at night from the Moscow River

After descending from Sparrow Hill, we went to the Moscow River and boarded a boat for a canal ride around Balchug Island.   Sites included 16th. century buildings, skyscrapers, the Kremlin, Peter the Great's naval statue, and lovers . .  . everywhere in this city we see young lovers who, as in St. Petersburg, were too busy with each other to notice our passage.

One interesting site seen again and again while in Moscow was one of "Stalin's Seven Sisters". Built from 1947 through 1953, they are seven skyscrapers built under Stalin design and his watchful eye using techniques from American skyscrapers.   While we thought they were very interesting looking and, frankly, American-skyscraper-looking, the Russians apparently don't like them much.  


One of Stalin's "Seven Sisters"

 They do, however, compete heavily for the many apartments Stalin built for the people as they are larger, with high ceilings, and more accoutrement.   Those built later by Kruschev and Brezhnev were simple concrete boxes, with low ceilings and of very small size. 

Those built in the Stalin era fetch much greater prices and, like any other big city, those in Moscow proper go for big sums forcing many who work in Moscow to commute from as much as two hours away!  In a city of 15 million with as many as 3 million cars, you can imagine the chaos on the roads.  I'm sure that anyone who can take their Metro system (which was spectacular as earlier noted) does take the Metro.

Our final stop of the evening was a return to Red Square which was equally fascinating after dark, perhaps more so as I paid particular attention to Lenin's Tomb.  Earlier in the day I had googled it to learn more about it and, unlike my first trip to Red Square when it was raining, walked right up to it and recalled all the TV shots from the 60's and 70's, narrated by Walter Cronkite, showing the Russian leaders and generals standing on its balcony reviewing the troops, tanks, and missiles.  Up close it didn't seem so threatening but perhaps its edge was gone with the Soviets and further softened by my experiences with the kind, friendly Russian people on this trip.

Lenin's Tomb adjacent to the wall
of the Kremlin on Red Square.

They're trying to decide what to do with Lenin, now held in this tomb for 90 years.   The majority (about 60%) of Russians want to see him removed and buried with his mother in St. Petersburg.   "The Putin" is still in favor of keeping him there as part of Russia's history.  Meanwhile, the foundation is shifting and the roof just got repaired.   It will be interesting to follow this story in years to come.

Finally at midnight we got back on the bus and returned to the boat, another long day completed.   Tomorrow is our final day in Moscow and our sole activity is a trip to the Kremlin and the Kremlin Armoury, the museum of the Kremlin containing the history of the Russian czars and their "trinkets".   More on that to follow.