Last day in Moscow and  flight to Berlin

OK so after my marathon walk around Red Square, I was inspired to see Lenin's tomb the next day (Sunday). The idea of this sort of grossed out the girls. I thought it was great. In addition to seeing him embalmed, you got to see the graves of the premiers and other important revolutionaries. Stalin, Andropov, Chernenko, Brezhnev. John Reed, an American, from the movie Reds. (Alert - don't see it - it's horrible) We are not allowed to take photos of Lenin, but there are plenty on the web so have at it. The ironic thing is that Lenin expressly wanted to be buried and not embalmed. There is a movement out there to bury him. I got there forty minutes early and was pretty close to the front of the line. Any later and you were waiting at least an hour in line.

I walked back over to the Pushkin and checked out the exhibit on the Pergamon Temple of Zeus. As you know I went to Pergamum this summer and saw where the Temple of Zeus was, until, I was told, the Germans arranged with the Ottoman emperor to take it as a gift to the German people from the Ottoman people. So they crated it up and transferred it to Berlin. The exhibit here at the Pushkin gives a representation of what it must have looked like  as new without damage. (More later on the German point of view later when I report from the Pergamonmuseum in Berlin)

It was pretty cool really, depicting the Greek gods in a war against the Giants. The gods pretty much beat the heck out of em.

Tanya gave me a ride to Grisha's station, and Grisha picked me up in his car and took me to his home, where I met his wonderful wife Susanna and their daughter Mariam, who was having her 18th birthday party with all of her friends.

Now as some of you know I have an 18-year-old daughter as well, and I'm not sure she'd be game for having a friend of my cousin's husband who speaks no English over to her birthday party. But there I was, so how to make the best of it?

I am a socially ept (look it up) guy, so I brought flowers (pretty lame ones I admit) and chocolates (recycled from those the girls had given me) to dinner and pretended that they were for Mariam. All was going well. These were upper-class Russians (Grisha is a professor of Economics at Moscow University) and Mariam's friends spoke English pretty well actually, which goes to show the nature of the changes taking place in Russia in the last generation. I fit in perfectly, despite the fact that the clothes I was wearing (my one good set) had already been worn the day before, and that when I was passed a kind of Russian bread (kinda like naaan) I thought that that was my portion so I put the whole stack on my plate, when actually I think I was supposed to take one piece and pass it along. I asked about that but they were too polite to ask for it back so I was stuck having to try to eat a whole mess of Russian bread (I was trying to be polite). I did my best.

Meanwhile, Grisha kept filling up glasses of champagne for everyone and everyone around the table had to stand up and say something touching and poignant about the birthday girl, and then everyone drains their glass. Grisha then asked me to speak (I'm no fool - I was of course expecting this). So I expounded on how rotten it was that the Rusisans were keeping our spymaster under protection in the Moscow airport and their UN veto was allowing the Syrian government to oppress its people (actually I didn't really say that though it would've been funny) I mentioned how ever since I had known Mariam she had struck me as one of the most pleasant people I had ever met. Also 9and I was serious here, that Russia is a place of smiles! (It was true - everyone was laughing and enjoying themselves). Anyway, I did OK and got past the moment quickly, but I am going to incorporate the toasting/roasting of the birthday person by all present at our next family gathering (September 24,2013 - Summer's birthday) Ice cream was next with strawberries (think Captain Queeg - look it up) - thye must have kept filling my bowl four times. My politeness was reaching its limit, but they BEGGED me to eat.

Anyway, Mariam understandably asked Grisha and Susanna to take me away to see the lights of the city at night. I was in the back seat, and although it was wonderful, jet lag was kinda making me fall asleep. I was trying so hard nnot to, but it was really tough, They mercifully took me home and I crashed hard.

Next day I cleaned out the apartment and went off to the airport and Berlin. I am very impressed with the public transportation system in Moscow, and with the hospitality of the Russian people. It really was great.

Side note: I actually laundered some of my clothing in the sink and dried it out on some contraption they had. Then because Mr. Ted McGill wasn't on this trip I had to fold my own clothes after washing. (inside joke alert - never mind)

Oh yeah...the one problem was that I was going to mail the postcards from the airport in Moscow and ha ha they have no mailbox at the airport so all the money I spent on Russian stamps was a complete waste. I will mail them from Germany. (Actually, now in the future I know I mailed them from France - so you get double postage)

Sorry no pics on this post. My camera was out of commission for a bit. back on in Germany.

P.S. Thanks for all the comments. You guys are awesome. Especially my family.