One evening we went to the Pushkin Cafe. It's a super swanky restaurant. It's a total tourist attraction in that it is modeled after an aristocratic Russian home. It isn't actually a historic building of any kind. But, since Pushkin is a famous Russian and we wanted to try some Russian desserts, we went. We went there after eating a traditional Russian meal at a small local restaurant by our hostel. The employees didn't speak English, which we figured they wouldn't, so we resorted to our usual pointing and smiling. I ended up with chicken noodle soup. Oops. And a mushroom filled pastry. Oops. I ate as much as I could! Christina ended up with meat filled dumplings. We aren't entirely certain what kind of meat it was, but she said it was good!
Most of the places we've gone have an English menu. Most of the people we've encountered seem to be more upset that they don't speak English and can't help us as easily than we are that we don't speak Russian. We aren't particularly concerns about it because so much more communication happens non verbally than through words. Tone of voice goes along way, too! Obviously we appreciate when we can speak English with someone and can ask for help easily, but it's not a requirement of traveling.
On our last day in Moscow, we went exploring outside of the city center. We rode the metro out to a park northeast of Moscow. We walked and walked through the snow and enjoyed a slice of winter. This park was absolutely huge. Clearly Muscovites are used to winter so they don't let it get in the way. There were so many families out especially fathers and their kids. They were ice skating and playing on the snow covered playgrounds. There were go carts, too. We saw quite a few snow men, too. There were even kids riding bikes! The strangest thing about this park were the carnival rides. I'm sure in the summer it's bustling but it was a bit like a scene from a horror movie - carnival music playing, rides running, but no peopler. Picture a swing creaking in the wind on a cold misty day and you'll get the right sensation!
We also visited another Kremlin, the Izmailovsky. Next door is a HUGE souvenir market. The stalls were mostly full of nesting dolls ( matryoshka dolls) and fur hats (which yes, people really do wear). But there were other trinkets, scarves, and wood carvings. There were artist stalls and food vendors. We didn't stay long because our feet were soaked from our walk in the park.
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