After crossing the expanse of Siberia we came to the western
realm of Russia. Here we visited the cities of Moscow, St Petersburg, and Novgorod.
And there was more vodka…
Moscow:
The capital city is a beast. It took me a few days (I had
six in total) to get some sort of grasp on the place. In my time I wandered the
red square, which is the centre point of town which faces St Basils church (yeah,
that crazy and colourful one above) and the Kremlin (ancient and present government
headquarters). This part of the city was amazing and the onion dome churches
blew me away. I also had time to visit a pro-communist march at the ‘Victory
Day’ public holiday parade, in which I got caught on the wrong side of the
barricade and for a while was walking down the street amongst the flag waving
and song chanting communist supporters. And I even had a red shirt on that day!
I was amazed and a little bit concerned to see how many young people, my age,
who were marching with flags and photos of Stalin. They are a significant
minority, but it just goes to show the communist old days are looked upon as
the good old days by many people, some who weren’t even alive. 
St Petersburg:
The ‘second capital’, known as the ‘window into Europe’,
this was my favourite Russian city because it was like walking through a
museum. And the museum in the city was one of the best ones I’ve ever been to. It
was bloody cold at the time, but I was just happy walking around the canals and
seeing the churches. I had never expected a Russian city to look so much like
Venice. 
Novgorod:
This is the ancient capital and the oldest inhabited place
in western (and maybe eastern) Russia. Yeah, the heritage was interesting, the
churches were cool, the graveyard was pleasant and the river was pretty, but
all I wanted to do was get naked. And I did.
A Banya is a Russian bathhouse where you go for a thorough
scrubbing, a sauna, a soap, and to be whipped across the back, legs, arms and
feet by birch leaves. If your tough, they’ll bring out the oak leaves. I was
the only one in my company who wanted to do this so I got dropped off at the place
by myself and lets just say the hour that ensued was…memorable. I’m glad I did
it because it was probably the most genuine and local thing I could have done
in that town – judging by the looks of the forty something naked men, mostly
old, they don’t get many foreigners into these places. And its a staple of Russian
culture. But the things I saw, both funny and frightening, will stay with me until
the day I die…
I don’t have a picture of forty naked men with me squeezed
in the hairy and sweaty bunch, so here’s a picture of me wandering a graveyard
instead.
What did I eat in Russia?
Buckweat, potato, Borshe soup (beetroot based broth), fish
soup, piroshky, chicken kiev and the thing I liked most, especially with a
vodka shot, was lard. Just good old fashion fat. Yum. For breakfast salami,
cheese, tomato and hot dog style sausages were the norm. (oh how quickly I came
to miss spicy Asian food).
I also ate pickles.
I drank vodka, and I know it sounds dumb and typical, but
this Russian stuff was actually way better than anything I’ve ever tried at
home. It was smooth. And this is how you drink it. Pickle in one hand, vodka in
the other. Three steps:
1.
Sniff the pickle until that salty stench is all
the way down the back of your throat;
2.
Gulp down the vodka until your eyes water and you’re
on the verge of gagging;
3.
Bite into the pickle and chew it vigorously,
neutralising the burning effect of the spirit.
When there’s no salami and cheese, this is the breakfast
ritual. And that’s how life expectancy
can reverse.
From Russia with love.
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