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My least favorite part of this trip was the inevitable city bus tour. We enjoyed beautiful weather and had an excellent guide who told us the name of every building that we passed along with a driver who manuevered through impossible traffic with considerable skill. Knowing that we would not be able to get back to many of the sites I attempted to take a few pictures. As one can easily see I managed to capture the seat belt reminder as well as a prime selection of unwanted reflections. I am proudest of the photograph of the Bolshoi Ballet building which was undergoing renovation and draped with a Samsung advertisement. If I had my way the bus tour would be eliminated in favor of another church, museum, or just plain free time.
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Moscow, the capital of the Russian Federation, is a city of more than ten million people. It is one of the largest cities in all of Europe. No one knows for certain how many people live there in as much as census figures undercount illegal residents. It has a strong economy and attracts people looking for work from all over the Russian Federation and from the former Soviet Republics as well. It has repeatedly been ranked as the world's most expensive city for expatriates and has more billionaires than anywhere else in the world. A standard hotel room can go for as much as $1,000 per night in the center of the city and a flat in a prime location can easily cost tens of thousands of dollars per square meter. Architecturally it reminds one of the beauty and the beast. There are a large number of extremely beautiful buildings and an equal number of extremely ugly ones. All of it is fascinating, mysterious, and slightly intimidating for a child of the Cold War.
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