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Diplomatist Publisher and Managing Editor were in Russia on business between the 9th and 20th of September 2001. William Hawke shares his and Linda's experiences in Moscow and St Petersburg with the Diplomatist readership.

We arrived right on time at the Moscow airport and were transported promptly to the Hotel Rossiya (Russia), which is situated just beyond the eastern boundary of Red Square. The trip in took us along the Moskva River and past the shining domes of the old cathedrals within the walls of the Kremlin.

The Hotel Russia has pretty good rooms and with its prime location, we were surprised that the tariff was only $51 for double accommodation. In the late morning we took our first of many walks on Red Square. Being a Sunday, the large number of tourists was supplemented by local Russians enjoying family outings.

The Russians don't say that Red Square is the largest in the world, but do claim that it is one of the world's largest. All we can say is that it is massive. The square is clad with dark gobble stone and is located in front (on the north side) of the Kremlin. The yellow walls and green roofs of the government offices can be seen over the front walls, and there are two massive towers on each end of the wall facing Red Square - one housing a clock. In fact, there are 24 unique towers in and around the Kremlin. Lenin's tomb is situated outside the walls facing the square, as are benches for officials to observe the annual May Day parade.

The Cathedral of St. Basil - one of Moscow's most photographed structures - is situated on the eastern border of Red Square. Originally built in 1514, its present day appearance took shape between 1796 and 1804 and is a first rate example of Russian classical architecture - hence its image on the canvasses of artists who sell their masterpieces all around Red Square.

The former Upper Trading Arcades (now called the State Department Store) was built between 1889 and 1893. It is a stately cream coloured structure and houses an upmarket shopping mall. It dominates most of the northern perimeter of the Red Square. Also to the north is the Kazansky Cathedral, a recently reconstructed beautiful little church, which was built in the 1630s but destroyed in the 1930s due to an expansion of Red Square.

The western end of Red Square is dominated by the State History Museum. It is a distinctive red brick building with turrets, ornamental patterns and numerous decorated gables. If the visitor is willing to depart with 100 roubles (about Rs 150/-) a reincarnation of one of the Tzars and his consort stand outside and are available for group photos. We gave them the bye. The circumferential tour of Red Square ends with the double turreted Voskresenskiye (Resurrection) Gates, which stand beside the History Museum along with a chapel specially built for the Iberian Icon of the Mother of God. We became very familiar with Red Square, because we crossed it every morning on our way to check email at a huge 200-PC Internet cafe on the other side.

We went inside the Kremlin walls on two occasions. The first was to visit the main and oldest square in the Kremlin - Cathedral Square that has witnessed all the most important events in the history of Russia. It was here where foreign ambassadors were greeted, and ceremonial processions from the Cathedral of the Dormition were held when the tzars were crowned, among many other major events. Surrounding the square are the Ivan the Great Bell Tower, the Palace of Facets, the Cathedrals of the Dormition, the Annunciation and the Archangel Michael, and a number of other monuments of Russian architecture. We were spellbound by the grandeur inside the cathedrals the oldest of which dates to the 14th century - simply indescribable in one short article. On the same day there was time to visit the Diamond Fund Exhibition - a priceless and heavily guarded collection of state jewels.

Another visit inside the Kremlin walls was to the Armouries where thrones, garments and crowns of the tzars; old weaponry; jewellery and priceless ancient artefacts are displayed in an exquisite two-storied exhibition hall. Again, a few short paragraphs are insufficient to describe what we saw, but take my word or call me later. I'll attest to the fact that a trip to Armouries is a worthwhile segment of Moscow site seeing.

Nor is one's visit to Moscow complete without ballet at the Bolshoi Theatre (built between 1821 and 1825). On the night we went we were fortunate enough to see Don Quixote. Running parallel with the display on the stage is the grand architecture inside and outside of the theatre hall. I don't think that there is a bad seat in the house. Some are just better than others. Our vantage point was from the second balcony of four or five. Between acts we treated ourselves to champagne and Russian caviar in the foyer. Although we were dressed appropriately for the occasion, some of the patrons of the Bolshoi from a bygone era would probably turn over in their graves if they saw some of the audience dressed in blue jeans and tee shirts. But Russia is living in changing times where money is tight, so I assume that the clothes one wears to attend the ballet is secondary to the greenbacks ($40 to $200) that are parted with for the tickets.

Another sight that is well worth seeing is the Cathedral of Christ the Saviour, located near the banks of the Moskva River, not far from the Kremlin. During the days of communism, the church was gutted and turned into a public swimming pool. Reconstructed since 1991, the Cathedral in now one of the largest in Europe with a capacity of 10,000 people. The opulence inside defies the written word - breathtaking!

For years, Linda had dreamed of visiting the palaces and cathedrals of St Petersburg and I'm happy to say that her birthday was spent on a visit to the summer palace of Catherine the Great. We left Moscow on a midnight train, which arrived in St Petersburg at about 8AM. First class tickets at about $50 each obtained a very comfortable private two-bed compartment along with box lunches and flowers. The cabin, corridors and toilets on the train were spotless.

Our residence for two nights in St Petersburg was the Hotel Moscow. Knowing that tour operators in hotel lobbies are overpriced, we purchased a city guide booklet, checked the advertisements and hired an English speaking tour operator at two-thirds the price. For a hundred bucks each we got about 15 hours worth of guided touring time spanning Friday, Saturday and Sunday.

Our first tour (Friday afternoon) was to the palace and park ensemble in the coastal town of Peterhof, where an extraordinary display of Russian architecture - the Summer Palace of Catherine the Great - is the main attraction. The first grand example we saw was a cascading fountain across from the main entrance. The palace was virtually destroyed during WWII, and a massive effort of the Russian government over the decades since has restored it to its original glory. One can compare the finished rooms against a photo of each particular room showing the devastation and indicating what they had to work from after the war. The highlight of the Palace tour was the famous and beautiful Amber Room, which was still under restoration. Originally built by Germans and a gift from the Prussian King, it was dismantled by the Nazis and its treasures never seen again.

On Saturday, we experienced more of the same with a tour of the Pavlovsk Palace. Catherine II had this palace built (start date 1782) for her son - the future Russian Emperor Paul II. Again it was a magnificent example of restoration, with photos indicating the effort involved.

Sunday was a busy day with a city tour, an excursion through the Summer Palace of the Hermitage, ballet in the evening and a midnight train back to Moscow. The point of most interest during the city tour was the Peter and Paul Fortress, which stands in the historic centre of St Petersburg. It is a unique example of Russian fortification construction from the early eighteenth century, and an architectural ensemble that has combined the seemingly incomparable. The stern might and grandeur of military engineering stands in immediate proximity to the refined lightness of the amazing SS Peter and Paul Cathedral, on the gilded spire of which hovers a golden angel - the symbol of the city and its guardian. A solemn moment was spent in the Catherine Chapel of the Cathedral, where we saw the tomb of Emperor Nicholas II, his wife Alexandra, their children, the family's doctor and three servants, who were shot by the Bolsheviks in 1918. The Russian government had the remains buried in the chapel in 1998 - eighty years after the gruesome event at the start of the Revolution.

In the afternoon, we had the pleasure of visiting the State Hermitage Museum, which is claimed to be one of the oldest and largest museums in the world. Presented in 5 historical buildings - architectural masterpieces by themselves - the museum contains over 3 million items from prehistoric to modern times displayed in over 400 halls. Weeks would be required to view everything so we chose to visit the Winter Palace of the Tzars, where with only three hours at our disposal, the guide whisked us to the most significant displays. St Petersburg with about 50 museums could accurately be called the "City of Museums". With only three days at our disposal, we were happy with our choices.

We had seen Act III of Swan Lake in New Delhi during the German Festival, but on our last evening in St. Petersburg we had the pleasure of seeing the whole thing. I must admit that there is a stark difference between viewing the masterpiece in Delhi's Siri Fort Auditorium and St Petersburg's Alexandrinshy Theatre, which runs in parallel with Moscow's Bolshoi in magnificence. This time we would be the source of old patrons dismay, because we were dressed for the train ride back to Moscow, which would start shortly after the ballet.

All in all, our trip to Russia was marvellous. If asked to provide one single word that would best describes our personal feelings about Russia, it would be 'FAITH". The Russian Orthodox Church, survived underground for eighty full years, and then rose again to its present day status in just ten years. The reopening and restoration of the churches and cathedrals to their present glory is a feat that only the most faithful of the faithful could achieve. We were truly impressed and recommend Moscow and St Petersburg as tourist destinations.

All photos by Author