5/27: Tour of Tsarist Architecture and Sailing the Moscow River

On Sunday, Olga took us on a tour of the Zamoskorechie historical district, which was an area home to several merchants and textile workers in the 18th and 19th centuries. We toured plenty of cathedrals and even got to go inside a couple of them as they were doing their Sunday morning services. We went into St. George's Church and the Church of Mercy. It was amazing to go into St. George's Cathedral. It was as if everything I had ever thought about what a Russian Orthodox service would be was coming to life. The church was illuminated mostly by incense candelas (with the exception of a large candelabra above the alter). Men were chanting melodiously in the corner. A woman in the back was at a table of bread and tea (for what I figured was transubstantiation). The walls and ceilings were covered head to toe with dioramas of saints and holy figures. It was an uplifting experience for sure and made me miss temple at home. The Church of Mercy was memorable for its history. It was founded by Grand Duchess Elizabeth (sister Alexandra, the last Empress of Russia). After her husband, Sergeii Alexandrovich, was assassinated, Elizabeth sold all of her belongings and founded the Church to celebrate the teachings of saints Martha and Mary. Inside were pictures of Tsar Nicholas II and his family, Anastasia, and Elizabeth herself. The most memorable part of the church was the priest drenching everyone in holy water as they stood in a circle. While most of the people in our group went towards the circle, our groups Jewish caucus (Sam, Isaac, and myself) stood back. It wasn't until a tiny old lady covered in a black robe came up to us and pushed us towards the crowd that we finally moved forward. Prodded further by the lady, we ended up within footsteps of the priest. Sure enough, he splashed a least sixteen ounces of holy water on all of us. I think this was God's way of telling us that we have been touring too many churches. Oh well, you live for the experience.

Beef Gelatin 

For lunch, we went to an all-you-can-eat buffet type restaurant. A lot of it contained ethnic Russian food. I attempted to try a little bit of all of it, but most of the food I disliked. Olga insisted that I try this dish that looked like ground beef trapped in clear gelatin. I took a bite, but didn't try anything more than that, because it tasted more grotesque than the century-old duck egg that I once at for an Iron Stomach competition. Apparently, the dish is very traditional. We asked the MSU students about it, and they said that they always have it on New Years and everyone finds it delicious. I decided to stick with carrots, potatoes and rice after that. I suppose beef jello is an acquired taste.

The rest of the day was a bit rushed. We walked a while to go to the October Revolution Chocolate Store, wandered around a bit, and then went back to Gorky Park to rest our feet. Next we boarded a boat that provided us an hour-long cruise down the Moscow River. It was nice and relaxing, but more of a photo opportunity than an educational experience. For dinner we went to a mall near the Kiev Train Station. Everything was extremely expensive (Moscow is the most expensive city on earth after all). Instead I tried borscht for the first time. I never thought I would like the taste of beet soup, but it was actually pretty good. The borscht was a pink soup with beef, cabbage, celery, potatoes and probably some other vegetables. It was salty, but the beet taste was cooked out of the soup, probably improving the quality in my opinion.