Kremlin and Red Sqaure

(Accompanying pictures on facebook!)

Wow… just wow. Today was such a whirlwind. I was bombarded with multiple beautiful churches, fabergé eggs, communist buildings and monuments, an Italian art collection, the Moscow metro, and a mall under Red Square.

To begin, we had a very suspicious looking Russian breakfast that was frighteningly reminiscent of a high school cafeteria. Instead of offering the standard kasha (buckwheat porridge) and tea, the ladies decided to make our group an egg quiche, canned peas, and plastic-looking hot dogs to accompany yogurt, tea, and chocolate croissants. The prepared food option was thus quite annoying – but, alack, it is breakfast, and it is free. Will request kasha tomorrow.

After that and a short orientation meeting (I now have a Russian student ID!), we walked a half an hour as a group to the metro station to visit the Kremlin and Red Square. The Moscow metro is awesome. A metro pass costs less than one dollar, can be used for two trips, and the distance is not significant – you only swipe it to get in. You could travel two stops down, or to the other side of the city – same price. Many of the station names are still very Soviet as well, such a Proletskaya.

When we got there, we quickly discovered that Russian security guards are very, very lax. They waved the women through without checking our purses (or at least mine… again, I guess I look unthreatening). The first sight when one walks into the Kremlin is the Arsenal – it has a huge pointy top. Quite striking, really. Our tour guide then took us around the exterior of the buildings, exhibiting tsarist palaces, patriarchal cathedrals, and Soviet government offices inhabited by Lenin. It was very confusing mentally to view a Russian cross right next to the red star, and plaques dedicated to Lenin all along Tverskaya Street, as well as plaques for Catherine the Great.

Anyway, to the part I enjoyed most. We visited all of the churches in Cathedral Square in the Kremlin, after the tour guide left us. This meant that I largely assumed the church tour guide responsibilities by default. They were beautiful, and were very holy – there were many relics, as well as patriarchal and tsarist graves. It was odd and seemed wrong that the government uses such holy sites as a tourist attraction rather than having cities there – but this is no longer Holy Russia, despite the tendency to return to it (speaking of which- everyone always told me that only the oldest of babushka wore headscarves on the street now, and this is not the case – many women wore them, and while certainly more older women wore a scarf, I saw many younger ones as well. It does not carry the same stereotype here, but is, I suspect, an indication of highly religious tendencies). Anyway, after meditating in the churches, and enjoying the presence of the fabulous and peaceful (albeit restored, not original) icons, at least one miracle-working (and explaining iconographic details for everyone who asked…), we progressed to the Fabergé workshop museum.

It was quite fear-inducing to move from medieval Russian churches to gifts from Tsar Nicholas to Alexandra on the cusp of the Revolution, beautiful and touching as they may be. Seeing the date “1917” printed just made me tremble.

After a brief stint with the Romanov baroque art collection, it was off to Red Square. St. Basil’s is beautiful, and looks in person every bit like it does in the pictures. The cupolas are incredibly intricate, and the detail is rich. I later went inside with some others, and all of the chapels are no less astounding. They all seem to abound with Trinity icons. There was also a room that was essentially an altar candy store – they had a reliquary, a gigantic Chalice (I applaud the priest who held that!), an altar Gospel book, multiple Communion spoons, altar spears, and other fun stuff that properly shouldn’t be in glass cases. This was also a perfect day for Red Square, because Lenin’s mausoleum was blocked off for a concert. Don’t really need to go see his body preserved like holy relics anyway.

Then spent some time in the Kazanskiy Cathedral, while the few others I was with went to GUM (the gigantic classy mall in Red Square – saw pictures, it was gorgeous). The first and foremost thing this convinced me of: in DC, I go to a Russian church. They were having a Vigil while I was there – I first determined what it was, then examined the area. Exact same clothes and robes as we use, same candle stands, nearly the same choir tunes (St. John’s is better – grander, and slower – these were rushing through the service horrendously)… in short, it was Orthodox, and I was at home. I knew exactly what was going on, and was very comfortable. It was so happy. But had to leave early to meet others and hang out more.

We finally ended up exploring the mall under Red Square more, playing in the fountain next to it, and taking far too long than is acceptable to figure out how to get to Pushkin Square.

I’m sure I missed something in this, as we simply did so much. But hopefully, my pictures will suffice to fill in the gaps, large as they may be.

As to thoughts on this, I generally reflected on the overall tragedy and dry ironies of Russian culture. It is fitting that Lenin’s mausoleum be blocked, and the beauty of the churches told me a lot about the subconscious fundamentals of the culture, which perhaps had not quite sunken in yet. Russians value their history, and desire richness in that which they love and devote themselves to. Many icons decorating the walls were grim, and those with me did not understand – this is not a reflection of the times, and it is not art. A harsh Pantocrator is exactly what is sometimes needed for salvation, and it should not be shocking to think of Christ as Judge. While He is the Lover of mankind, He is also our Judge, before Whom we stand with fear and trembling, justly deserving His condemnation rather than His mercy. This sobriety deeply inculcates the culture of these churches, and I think is perhaps why the Russians have survived so much tragedy throughout history. They have the mindset needed to do so, if they constantly keep in mind the judgment of the soul. To abandon this would be alien to nature.

The intersection of history was so very odd as well. The Kremlin was an explosion of Russian history all wrapped up into a little ball, with some trying to contradict the rest, but ultimately still being repudiated by the Russian people. Soviet culture has perished, but its relics remain as a reminder of the past.

And, a general impression – there a ­lot of people wearing baptismal crosses around here. It’s shocking, until I remind myself that I am surrounded by Orthodox, from the lady sitting next to me on the metro, to the security guards and insane taxi drivers and beggars on the street. It certainly gives a different perspective to think about. They are familiar with my basic world view, if they’ve ever been to church in their lives. So wonderful. And possibly why most of the women are so incredibly sweet.

Finally, to put the icing on the cake – walking out of the metro, I saw a monk. A legitimate Russian monk. Taking the metro. Teeheehee. Official status: good day. Possibly the best in a long, long time.

Therefore, I think the best description of today is a Russian resilience to the abandonment of truth. It reminds me of an anecdote I once read. In the heart of Soviet Russia, when a priest stood in front of a crowd and proclaimed “Христос Воскресе!” the crowd knew how to respond. Воистину Воскресе.

P.S. Extra credit- what was the original meaning of the name of Red Square? ;-)