Travelog for: Charly6

Dear Mum

You won't believe what happened today! We (Ulani and I) joined my host's mother to the kindergarten cause she works there; we had a lot of fun with the children and my host's mum took beautiful photos. Then she left the children for 2 minutes unattended with the camera and they broke it. Now there aren't any photos left . My host will check if she can transfer the photos from the memory card but she doesn't hold out much hope...

Anyway we will make some new photos this weekend! Please don't be sad!

Best
Charly

Dear mum

Today we went for a walk in Prinzersdorf. It's a small village close to St. Pölten.

The river you can see in the photos is called Pielach.

Best
Charly

Due to the fact that we take the train so often the conductor offered us a special ticket today!!!


I am freezing so much but I think it is also very cold at home!


Charly

Today we went to Versailles - unfortunately it was forbidden to take photos inside the building but I can assure you the rooms were amazing.

Charly

We went to Paris today. Due to bad weather conditions and the fact that my host knows the city already very well we only went to see the most important sights.

Charly

Paris 2/2

We went to Eurodisney!!! It was a birthday present for my host! Because it was so cold we did not have to wait infront of the attractions which was great - we went to both parks (also the Universal Film Studios)!

Charly

Eurodisney 2/2

I'm on my way to Finland right now!

Best
Charly

Hello!

Warm hugs from Finland! I arrived to Nonnariina yesterday. I have had great time, until I miss you!

I  met anorether toyvoyager, Kuzma! Kuzma is rabbit and very nice

Today I get change to do some winter things that people in Finland do. I and Kuzma made a snowman! It was so funny. We also made a snow castle and played hide and seek. In the picture I have just found Kuzma at snow castle. 

At afternoon Nonnariina made skis to me and Kuzma and we went to ski. It was little bit difficult but funny. Nonnariina had made ski track to yard. It was hard to get up hill… And then lose my ski! Kuzma helped me. And I falled several times. We also slided downhill with skis.

We were tired after skiing so we slept little and then we drank warm chocolate.

So I have a lot of pictures to share with you!

Have a great day!

-Charly6-

Hey, mom!

I've arrived in Russia yesterday - sorry that didn't updates immidiately - my host's family prepared for a feast – it’s Orthodox Easter today! In Russian it is named Paskha.
My host isn't too religious, but we visited her grandma and had a lot of fun.

It's religious feast at first, so the main action happens on a Saturday night - people put on their best clothes and come together in dark churches that symbolize a gloomy world without the light of faith. In the past, satanic creatures were believed to turn especially evil in the night before Easter. People didn’t dare to go outside after sunset as they feared every cat could be a witch and every dog a devil!
So, it’s interesting, that there is not Easter rabbit in Russia! They don't go search eggs; they just change them with their friends and family and kissed 3 times. My host’s grandma don’t paint eggs – she bought special plastic paintings and stick them with boil water. Looks so beautiful!


And there is special food on Sunday: Paskha and Culich
(Easter - is made from spesial cottage cheese, nuts and raisins
Little easter cake - is a bread with a lot of sugar and candied fruit.) Mmmmm, yummy!



Should pay more attention - what great embroideries are created by the grandmother! It’s her hobby and all walls of the apartment are covered with such “pictures”! And pillowcases on pillows too were embroidered by her. Super needlework!

Hi, mom!
This weekend we’ve visited Kremlin!

Wow, I think, I should come to Moscow again, because it is such a wonderful place and has such an interesting history! My host thought that I should know everything about it, but of course, now I can remember only a small part. 
You can see, first we were standing in a small queue near the white Kutafja Tower (from the word “fat clumsy woman”) and had a chance to take photos on the swallows’ tail – they are situated on each access road of Kremlin.

And the Troitskaya Tower - the tallest tower of the Moscow Kremlin. Its current height on the side of the Alexander Garden together with the star is 80 m. Today, the gate of the tower is the main visitors' entrance into the Kremlin. And the view is so beautiful!

Here you can see the Kremlin Senate, a building within the grounds of the Kremlin. Initially constructed from 1776–1787, it originally housed the Moscow branch of the Governing Senate, the highest judiciary and legislative office of Imperial Russia. Currently, it houses the Russian presidential administration and is a highly secured and restricted area closed to the public. At present, only the southern corner façade, opposite the Tsar Cannon can be viewed.

Then we saw the most interesting exhibits of this museum – the Tsar-Bell and the Tsar-Cannon. 
The Tsar-Bell was made of bronze and it is currently the largest bell in the world, weighing 201,924 kilograms, with a height of 6.14 metres and diameter of 6.6 metres, and thickness of up to 61 centimetres. The bell is decorated with relief images of baroque angels, plants, oval medallions with saints, and nearly life-size images of Empress Anna and Tsar Alexey. Unfortunately, before the last ornamentation was completed, a major fire broke out at the Kremlin in May 1737. The fire spread to the temporary wooden support structure for the bell, and fearing damage, guards threw cold water on it, causing eleven cracks, and a huge (11.5 tons) slab to crack off. The broken piece weighs 11,500 kilograms, you can compare it with the crowd around – it’s as tall as a man! Some people believe that on Judgement Day, it will be miraculously repaired and lifted up to heaven, where it will ring the blagovest (call to prayer). 

The Tsar-Cannon was cast in 1586 in Moscow, by the Russian master bronze caster Andrey Chokhov. Mostly of symbolic impact, it was never fired in war. Per the Guinness Book of Records it is the largest bombard by caliber in the world. The very low ratio between its calibre and the length of its barrel makes it technically not a cannon, but a stylized mortar. The Tsar Cannon weighs 39.312 tones and has a length of 5.34 m. Its bronze-cast barrel has a diameter of 890 mm, and an external diameter of 1,200 mm. The spherical cast-iron projectiles located in front of the cannon - each of which weighs 1.97 tons, were produced in 1834 as a decoration. 

Then you can see The Ivan the Great Bell Tower - the tallest of the towers in the Moscow Kremlin complex, with a total height of 81 metres. It was built in 1508 for the Russian Orthodox cathedrals in Cathedral Square, which do not have their own belfries, and is said to mark Moscow's precise geographic centre. The Ivan the Great Bell Tower today contains 22. Of these, 18 small bells hang in the base and in the middle of the bell tower. Of the four large bells, one is named the Upsenskij Bell, and weighs 65.5 tons. It rings traditionally among the largest religious festivals such as Easter, and was made in the early 16th century.

Next building with great triangle golden roof and domes is The Cathedral of the Annunciation (Blagoveschensky sobor). It was originally the personal chapel for the Muscovite tsars, and its abbot remained a personal confessor of the Russian royal family until the early 20th century. Compared with the other major Kremlin cathedrals, the Annunciation Cathedral has slightly smaller dimensions. It is also built in a more traditional style, as it was created by local architects from Pskov, rather than Italian expatriate architects. The most characteristic feature of the building is its nine golden domes, and roof with rich kokoshnik ornamentation in an ogive form. 

This beautiful cathedral with frescos is The Cathedral of the Dormition (Uspensky sobor). The Cathedral is regarded as the mother church of Muscovite Russia. In its present form it was 1475-79 at the behest of the Moscow Grand Duke Ivan III by the Italian architect Aristotele Fioravanti. From 1547 to 1896 it is where the Coronation of the Russian monarch was held. In addition, it is the burial place for most of the Moscow Metropolitans and Patriarchs of the Russian Orthodox Church. However, one of the most important cult images of the Russian Orthodox Church, the Theotokos of Vladimir kept at the Cathedral from 1395-1919 is now at the Tretyakov Gallery. Near the south entrance to the Cathedral is the Monomach Throne of Ivan IV (1551).



Verkhospassky Cathedral with eleven small golden domes was constructed by tsar Michael Fedorovichem in 1635-1636. From this temple the ladder conducted to a seigniorial platform where decrees, orders of the tsar were read to boyars, and the tsar presented boyars and near people birthday pies. Divine services in it aren't made.

The Cathedral of the Archangel is a Russian Orthodox church dedicated to the Archangel Michael. It was the main necropolis for members of the Tsars of Russia until the relocation of the capital to St. Petersburg. It was constructed between 1505 and 1508 under the supervision of an Italian architect Aleviz Fryazin Noviy on the spot of an older cathedral, built in 1333.

The Grand Kremlin Palace was built from 1837 to 1849 on the site of the estate of the Grand Princes, which had been established in the 14th century on Borovitsky Hill. Designed by a team of architects under the management of Konstantin Thon, it was intended to emphasize the greatness of Russian autocracy. The Grand Kremlin Palace was formerly the tsar's Moscow residence. Thon's palace is 125 meters long, 47 meters high, and has a total area of about 25,000 square meters. It includes the earlier Terem Palace, nine churches from the 14th, 16th, and 17th centuries, the Holy Vestibule, and over 700 rooms. Now it carries out a role of smart president residence of Russia. Important nation-wide ceremonials pass in its halls, such as delivery of the state awards or credentials. You can see that big national flag is lowered on the spike. It means that Russian president is out now, but he could come back every minute! 

Hi, mom! It was cold but sunny today, so I decided to visit one of the busiest squares in Moscow - Komsomolskaya Square (in the honour of the Komsomol - Communist Union of Youth) with gorgeous Stalinist architecture.
Look at beautiful metro (subway) station. You've already prepared for something sublime from here. 



Do you know, who was the first man meeting us there?  There are a few monuments of Lenin in Moscow, most of them were broken with the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991. I think, it's a really bad idea, because all statues have architectural and historical value and it's a crime to destroy them. Do you agree? 

It is often referred to informally as Three Stations thanks to three ornate rail termini situated there: Leningradsky

Kazansky



and Yaroslavsky,. Unfortunately, Yaroslavsky is closed now, so you can’t see it. 
You know, that this square greets most visitors arriving to Moscow from Saint Petersburg and the whole northwestern Russia (through Moscow-Saint Petersburg Railway), the Volga region, and Siberia (through Trans-Siberian Railway). 
And there is a small park in the center of this area. The ncie view of stations opens from here, there are small benches and it is possible to take rest, waiting your train

Also I visited small group of monuments and fountain that stay on the square, to commemorate the Russian minister of transportation - Pavel Melnikov - who superintended the construction of the first railways in Russia. 





Opposite to stations there is a hotel - a huge Stalin skyscraper. There are only 7 tese buildings across all Moscow and they are fantastic! But I do not think that all visitors can lodge here - it is very expensive 

And last but not least my impression was the view of Saint George and the dragon - one of the most celebrated saint in Moscow. He was the patron saint of Yury Dolgoruky, who founded the city of Moscow. The name "Yury" is Russian for "George".  And now the Coat of Arms of Moscow depicts a horseman with a spear in his hand slaying a basilisk and is identified with Saint George and the Dragon. Isn't it interesting? 

Hi, mom!

Today we went to the concert of my host’s favorite Russian folk rock band “Melnitsa” – “Windmill”.  It was founded in 1999 by Natalia "Hellawes" O'Shea and Alexey "Chus" Sapkov around the remnants of a local folk band 'Till Eulenspiegel'.
The band fuses Russian, Irish and other North European folk influences with guitar pop/rock. Natalia "Hellawes" O'Shea, the lead singer and primary songwriter, is an academic and a specialist in medieval European languages and cultures by day. Her expertise lends the typically complex fantasy-laden lyrics a degree of authenticity. Texts are based on national (Russian, Celtic, Scandinavian, Balkan), and also medieval ballads and legends.
Well, photos are not so good, but I have a lot of fun! 
In the beginning it was necessary to defend huge queue in Arena-Moscow club.

Inside there was too many people therefore we appeared far from a scene. But look, what a beautiful light show! 

We could buy T-shirts and posters with symbolics of group, jewelry in celtic style and many musical instruments.

I couldn't make satisfactory photos of me and singer of the group, but it is impossible to ignore, such an authentic look. 

My host asked me to give references to songs of "Windmill" - I don't know, is it legal? I hope if it is impossible – somebody will send me a message  . This group has not official clips, therefore these videos are fans’.
This song is called "Werewolf". It is about a soldier who lost his peace. He hears whisper from a door on the street - it urges to leave doubts, to release an internal animal to freedom. Thus, the soldier has a girlfriend who cries and asks him to remain. But most likely, he won't obey.

This song is called "Dragon", it tells us about a dragon.  Now he is very old and lies, protecting a treasure. Shine of gold reminds him of his darling who died many years ago. And he starts to dream of the country very far away, where still live his majestic relatives, the most beautiful beings of the World! But some heroes feast in a palace and they are going to kill the dragon - till Christmas.

Hi, mom!

Today the weather is so fantastic and warm that we decided to go to park. Do you remember that Moscow isn’t just megalopolis but also a green and pretty place? I do now!
We chose a park called “Park of Friendship” 
In the 1957th year in Moscow passed the VI World Festival of Friendship between nations. Planting of trees by participants was an every year tradition of such festivals. In Prague, at the V Festival Avenue of Friendship was open. In Moscow the whole park was decided to open. Now park very well-groomed, avenues are laid out by gravel or asphalt, trees and bushes are beautifully cut, there are playgrounds, cafe.

There are endless amount of flowers here. Generally it is tulips, but wild dandelions bring brightness.



Also there are a hundred of monuments and sculptures. As it’s the Park of Friendship, all monuments are devoted to one subject.
It is a monument to the Indian writer and philosopher Rabindranath Tagore (the sculptor - G.Pal). It was open in 1990 and is adored by skateboarders.  The Indian is dressed very modestly and simply. From a low granite pedestal wise and sad old man looks at us. The sculptor skillfully transferred a reflected light of philosophical thought in eyes and the press of long reflections on a face of the writer.

Two-figured decorative sculptural groups "Fertility " - two female figures, in difficult spiral movement the holding over the heads basket of fruits.

The Kirghiz national hero Manas the Magnanimous, according to the legend, united all Kirghiz many years ago. And now his task - to connect the people of two friendly countries, the Kirghiz Republic and the Russian Federation.

In April, 1975, in 30 anniversary commemoration from the date of liberation of Hungary from fascist aggressors armies by Red Army, Budapest Park of Friendship and the monument of the vengero-Soviet friendship was open. In day of solemn opening of the monument citizens of Budapest decided to transfer a copy in gift to Moscow; and exactly in one and a half years, on September 15, 1976, in the Moscow Park of Friendship there was constructed a "twin" of the Hungarian monument.
The friendship between Russia and Hungary is displayed in a material choice for a monument also. It is revetted with tiles of pirogranit. This ceramic material, is made only in the Hungarian city “Pech”.

As we are walking nearby, it is necessary to visit the river station!
The North River Terminal or Rechnoy Vokzal (River Station) is one of two passenger terminals of river transport in Moscow. It is also the main hub for long-range and intercity routes. It was built in 1937.
This station is an example of communistic constructions. The stateliness of new communistic religion is emphasized with the sculpture "Waterway" meeting us at the entrance in park. There are no more places in Moscow where are such strong and exciting snow-white girls holding in a hand model of the yacht moreover with a wave. 

The park near the River station is full of children attractions, but now it’s evening therefore the majority of them are closed. It is "ice hill" - I don't understand, is it really filled in with ice?? 

Bzzzzzzz, I’m flying round Earth! 

And again, flowers, flowers, flowers!! I feel spring in the air!





The building is costructed in the form of the huge ship. The most characteristic architectural elements of the building — a high spike and a wide central ladder. The spike is topped with a star which in 1935 — 1937 was on the Spassky tower of the Moscow Kremlin. The sickle and a hammer are inlaid with the Ural semi-precious stones.



The entrance is decorated with maiolicas representing «Moscow of the future».

What a fine view of the dormitory areas of Moscow! If I live nearby, I would walk in this park every day!



Huge cruising motor ships constantly depart from the mooring to St. Petersburg, Astrakhan, Rostov-on-Don. My host told me that she floated by such motor ship several times - for a week and more - to the different cities of Russia. Ah, I hope, I can travel thus too!

We are leaving this fine park. I am lucky that I was in Moscow in the spring and could visit such peace and cozy place.