The Further Adventures of Moscow Man

Happy Labor Day!

It appears that the weekend just tuckered everyone out.  It really was a non-stop funathon but the reports I’m getting from Cindy and others, is that everyone wishes they had today off just to rest!  The boat ride yesterday afternoon was grand fun, once we figured out where the boat was.  We took a bus from the housing area to the boat dock, which was right across the river from the amusement area of Gorky Park. There were three buses; each from one of the housing areas but there was no boat at the dock.  We all just mingled while the organizers tried to find out where the boat was, only to discover about ten minutes later that the boat was where it was supposed to be and we weren’t.  “Everyone back on the buses”, came the concerned voices of our organizers and off we went into Moscow traffic.  Several U-turns later, we were at the appointed place and we all piled on to the riverboat.  AAS, in their usual classy way, had catered the event with tons of tacos, tortillas, salads and all the fixings for making our own rolls, wraps or tacos.  There was lots of ice-cold beer and wine and water and just as soon as the last person was on the boat, we were off.

Moscow is a city that is best seen from a boat!  You can see all of the major buildings, cathedrals, monuments, parks and palaces, without the distraction of cars or buses.  It was a beautiful afternoon, with lots of sunshine and blue skies and about 60 degrees, just perfect for a three hour relaxing day on the river.  It was a good time to get to know lots of people that I had met in passing, but haven’t had a chance to really engage in conversations.  My conclusion thus far is that these are really bright and motivated people and every one of them has a keen sense of humor, which I think is essential to thrive in the international school sector. 

St.Basil's from the boat.

One of the couples that I got to talk to at length, live on the top floor of our apartment. Marc and Barbara are French Canadians, who love food and wine and are interesting to boot. They had been talking about pates and the lack of them here in Russia, as luck would have it I still had some of my chicken liver pate so I invited them to the apartment after the boat ride.  We had a lovely conversation about their experiences in Morocco, especially during Ramadan, and they very much enjoyed the pate, crispy blinis and the red Bordeaux. I think they left about nine thirty and we got to bed a little past ten falling asleep immediately, pleasantly exhausted. 

Yesterday morning I surprised Cindy and made a raisin/flaxseed/bran/apple loaf for her breakfast.  Most of the time I leave the baking to Cindy, but she has no time to even open a box of cookies, so I thought it high time we had a little Sunday treat. It turned out pretty darn good; I think I’m finally mastering the art of the Russian oven.  I served the loaf cake or whatever you might call it, with some local apricot jam that is just plain fantastic. I also had a big plate of fresh figs, bananas and plums and highly recommend placing a small amount of apricot jam in the center of a halved plum; oh my, it is a taste sensation.

Once Cindy was on the road to school, I started the Monday cleaning routine. First the kitchen, then did a load of darks and just for fun, I redid the bathroom as per Cindy’s instructions. I moved a wooden freestanding shelf from the floor to the back of the shower, where here is a two by four foot tiled surface. It really frees up lots of space in the bathroom and makes things a bit easier to organize. Once all of that was done I tied on the sneakers and took off for a two and a half hour walk.  My oh my, the things I discovered.

My objective was to find an alternative route for Cindy to take when the traffic is really horrible around this neighborhood.  I tried to follow the route taken by the bus driver on Friday and think I know how to do it, except part of it is on a highway that has no sidewalk. I walked past the Polish Embassy and once again the lines for people wishing to get visas was huge, at least I think that is what they were waiting for.  Proceeding past the embassy and crossing a very big street, running with great fear in my heart is perhaps the right way to describe the crossing, I came upon a huge, red/pink brick building on the other side of the street.  I couldn’t figure out what it was but it took up the entire block, so I peeked in one of the windows.  It was cavernous and filled with railroad cars that are being repaired and retrofitted. I’ve got to figure out how to get into that building and look around because the quick peeks I had looked like it would be a really cool place to explore.  Speaking of trains, my path took me over the railroad tracks that lead to Beloruskya Station. Man, they have some really old trains, and I’m not talking about lovely antique rolling stock. These are well worn and not terribly well maintained cars and locomotives. 

Train Yard Repairs

Once over the tracks, I couldn’t continue on the ‘shortcut’ route, so I just followed the road I was on knowing that it would eventually intersect with Leninsky Prospekt, which is the main drag between our apartment and AAS.  The traffic was very heavy and the road had the usual assortment of shops and business, when all of a sudden there was this little gem of a park to my right, filled with flowers, paths and benches.  I thought I would sit a spell and look around so I entered the park and after a few steps I notice a huge, really huge, building right there in front of me. It had a classical façade with lots of columns and it was crowded with statues of horses. (Plenty of pictures at the online version: www.embeesmoscow.blogspot.com

Royal Hall

Royal Hall Salon

Upon detailed investigation I found out that this was the Royal Hall, which is the entrance to a racetrack for trotters and a big one to boot. It was fun to look around and I can’t wait to find out when the season opens. My grandfather loved to play the ponies and once in awhile he would take my father and me to Yonkers Raceway, which is a half-mile track for trotters in New York City.  I really loved the excitement of the track and all the colors and smells and when he won, which I don’t think was often, I got some swell treats.

The Track

The Track with the ponies

I spent some time just looking around and once again marveling at how, in minutes, I could walk from a busy urban street, to this quiet and lovely retreat.  As I expected, I eventually came to the main drag and turned towards home, only to discover yet another treasure.  Here, set back from the sidewalk and protected by a tall wrought iron fence, was another jewel of a building, all mustard colored with white trim around the windows.  I walked in the joint like I owned it, to discover that is the main campus of the International University of Moscow  It is a beautiful place dedicated to training the new breed of business leaders in Russia.  I’ll make sure to go for an official visit.  They also have an active exchange program that takes US college kids who want to learn the Russian language in an academic environment.

I swung by the grocery store and picked up a few things for dinner and then went to my café and was greeted warmly by the young kid who manages it. He takes great pride in building me my macchiato and I enjoyed just sitting there with my free copy of the Moscow Times, which featured a picture of the Boys from Bahrain taken at the Military Tattoo. 

The Boys from Bahrain

Cindy has meetings that will keep her at school until about seven so again I must subject you to a missive minus her editing.  Enjoy the last rays of summer, Cindy and Wm.

Cindy's Wheels