Thu23Jun16: Volga River Boat Cruise

Our clothes are getting stale so it's time for another hand wash, but Luba offers to do them in the hotel washing machine.  We accept gladly.

Our breakfast today is coffee plus a ham & cheese bliny at Tepemok, the counter staff now smile when we walk in the door and get the English menu ready for us to ponder.  Our choices aren't as exotic as some they offer, but maybe tomorrow...





It's a short walk down to the Metro station, descend underground, and travel two more stops on Line #6 under the Volga and down to the Oktyabrskaya station.  In trying to find an operable ATM I defy ten lanes of traffic (no median) and cross the main street to another bank branch - nobody honks, they just don't slow down while you're stopping & starting & weaving amongst vehicles.  Now that we're rich again, we walk down to Gorkiy Park, a large but quiet little riverside oasis in the middle of Moscow. 

All the Volga River boat tour boats seem to have a landing in this area, so we buy a ticket and wait for the next river shuttle.  CCK Lines is the most popular and frequent fleet, cost is 1,000p (CDN$20) for and adult One Day Hop-on Hop-off ticket; later we realise that Seniors can ask for a Privileged ticket - maybe next time.

It's a relaxing slow journey down the Volga, with a great view of the beautiful orange brick Kremlin walls and gold-domed cathedrals as we pass by, then a backside look of St. Basil's Cathedral on Red Square.






We disembark at the line's southern terminus, pass through a riverside park, and up a slope to the crumbling structures of Krutitskoe Mission.  Today there are several dozen young artists scattered around this church/mission complex, some working with oils & others with watercolours, some with easels & others sitting on the ground with the canvas in their lap.  Building construction is red-fired brick with the standard gold domes, with the gateway wall of blue & yellow terra cotta tile designs and religious figurines painted on the gates and entrances.  Very historic, very artistic.

Back to the quayside we board the next CCK boat heading north, past the Kremlin again and Gorkiy Park, this time disembarking at the Moscow State University dock.


A riverside park extends up the hillside toward a large ski jump, we arrive just in time to watch two kids (boy about 10, girl about 15) practice their jumps with long wide skis, sliding down a metal track, and launching onto a green fabric landing area.  Wow!  And then the two of them climb back up the hill carrying their skis and helmets, they stopped to check the video that their coach had on his camera, and then they jumped again.

At the top of the hill is an observation deck/platform opposite the front gardens of Moscow State University, one massive Stalinesque stone monster building.







Down to the riverside and onto the next northbound CCK boat.  We tie up at Kievskiy dock for a short time, then turn and return south down the river.  This time Kathry and I disembark at Bolshoy Us'tinsky Most, are bemused by the road traffic congestion at 'rush hour' (i.e. 6:30pm) in Moscow, then climb the gentle grade 500m up towards our hotel.

Supper tonight is at a deli restaurant where there is a long display case of food selections; customers choose the type & quantity of each of the pre-cooked meat, vegetable, and carb courses and pay for the meal by weight.  Very smart idea.  And the dessert dishes looked fabulous (although we restrained ourselves).
Tonight a 1.5L 'barley sandwich' will be the reward after our four-storey climb to a spacious inviting room at the Old Moscow Mini-Hotel, during tonight's Euro2016 football matches. Cheers!