Please excuse my brief absence from my blog but I had a funny experience last week, a British person stowed away on a plane and I had to look after them for their visit!
More like that I had the pleasure of welcoming & introducing my Mother to Moscow last week. She came from the 10th to the 15th and stayed in a lovely hotel right in the centre of Moscow opposite the Bolshoi theatre! Mummy had a chandelier in her bedroom & a great view of площадь революции (Revolution Square).
We had a cultural overload during the 5 days of her visit and I showed off all the more glorious aspects of Moscow including the Kremlin, Alexandrovski Gardens, The Cathedral of Christ the Savior, the Bolshoi Theatre, Victory Park, Cafe Pushkin and the Russian History Museum. We also took a moment to remember all those who have fallen in battle at a Remembrance Service held at the Anglican Church in Moscow. There were a number of diplomats & various other important military people there too. It was lovely service and was truly an honor to be able to remember the fallen among such welcoming people, as well as a bunch of charming Brits! Sometimes a brief respite from the stress of Moscow & the bustle of life in Russia is needed, and a little piece & quiet with some fellow Brits was just what I needed!
My mom's hotel even had a fountain in the middle of the main restaurant! This made for an interesting dinner. We were just flabbergasted by the decor of the room. The hotel was MASSIVE, had long corridors, glorious chandeliers & mirrors, fabulous ornate furniture, but still seemed intensely empty.
There was a photo gallery on the 3rd (or 2nd floor for us Brits) floor of all the famous people who have visited & stayed at the hotel. There was also "rogues corner" as Mummy so delicately put it, with pictures of Lenin, Stalin & other Communist Party members. The hotel was used as a headquarters for the Soviets from 1917 onwards and was only returned to being a hotel later on when Stalin wanted to show off Moscow to foreigners.
