things i forgot.

Things I saw!

St. Basil's Cathedral: The first building you think of when you think of Moscow! A totally unexpected inside. Lots of little rooms and separate little churches inside (which I didn't really understand), beautifully painted walls and little information tidbits underneath little exhibits on the walls, and more decorative gold moulding than I've ever seen in my life. Absolutely not what I expected St Basil's to look like on the inside.

The Kremlin: Pretty cool. Again, unexpected. Katie and I went inside because tickets to the Armoury were sold out (done in 2 hour shifts, limited tickets...). Inside is full of little churches with tombs and more gold moulding and icons on every spare surface. Everything was beautiful in a "Wow, this is historical and therefore really cool." But I don't know that it was life-changing. But it was the Kremlin, so it was definitely a well-spent afternoon.

Tretyakov Gallery: Went with Kelley, Jenn, Katie, and Grady. Spent several hours on my feet, looking at pictures and pictures and pictures and icons and more pictures and icons. Portraits, landscapes, and icons that have been around for hundreds of years. Icon examples: "circa mid 14th century" and "second half of the 13th century." All wooden with pigments in as good condition as you can expect from 700 years of wear and tear. Everything was wonderful, and we somehow made it through the whole museum, but I sat down I think... three times? In three and a half hours? So by the time we were done, I was happy to have seen so much art work (and I wrote down lots of particular paintings and artists that grabbed my interest), but a little grumpy because my feet hurt and I forgot my arch supports that day.

Seems random, but I have just recently discovered that because my arches are so high and always have been, they need some help. Thus I am forever moving the sole pair that I have (get it?) between all of my shoes. And my pair of short flat boots is slowly falling apart, which is very upsetting. So I need to buy new short boots. Shoe shopping in Moscow...? I'll keep you updated on both shoes and sight seeing.

M