Why Russia, and why travel solo?

You may have heard that at the end of May I am traveling to Russia. I will be solo to a degree. My adventure begins on May 22 when I fly to Moscow. There I will have 2 days before I meet up with my group. The organized trip includes 3 additional days in Moscow, 5 days on a small river ship on the Volga river, and 3 days in St Petersburg.  I’ve added 2 days in St Petersburg, as well. Door to door the trip is 17 days.

Why, Russia?

Russia has held my fascination since I read Nicolaus and Alexandra in High School. Add into the mix several historian fictions I’ve read on the fascinating imperial rulers of Russia, my love for Russian Orthodox icons, and a curiosity about it’s people and culture. The result is a deep desire to see Russian treasures and walk in places steeped in 1000 years of a complicated mix of deep faith, artistic beauty, and tumultuous history.

This will be my second trip to Moscow. In 1995, Larry and I went with a group from SAIC. The Soviet Union had just fallen and the Russian Ministry of Science invited SAIC to consult. It was November and Moscow was as bleak as I had imagined. Everything seemed to be in a drab palette of Soviet colors – except for the riot of colors in and on the churches and the famous onion domes on their grand churches. The Russians had begun to inventory their treasures that had been held within the ancient Kremlin walls. The Kremlin is the seat of the Russian government, but to fully appreciate what is behind those walls and picturesque towers we must remember that it has been the heart of Russia and called the ‘third Rome’ for 900 years. In that red brick fortress are 4 astronishingly beautiful cathedrals, numerous small churches, palaces, towers, and museums. Within these ancient buildings are unimaginable treasure – including magnificent frescoes, icons, jewels, thrones, crowns, Fabrege eggs, armourments, tapestries, carriages.

St Petersburg is a jewel of a city. For 200 hundred years it was the center of imperial life for the Romanov Tsars, until the Bolshevik revolution in 1917. From here the last Romanov tsar abdicated, Lenin and Trotsky seized control, and the Russian Communists came to power. The central government was moved back to Moscow and the sparkling jew on the Baltic was neglected for decades. In 1991 with the fall of the Soviet Union, St Petersburg saw a religious and cultural revival. The majesty of the Russian Empire can still be seen today in opulent palaces, museums, cathedrals, monasteries, and waterways. The most famous museum is the Hermitage which began as Catherine the Great’s private art collection. It now holds over 3 million exhibits. The Imperial country palaces of Peterhof, Tsarskoe Solo (Catherine Palace), and Pavlovsk’s great palace are all on the outskirts of the city. This will be the season of White Nights.  The sun slumps toward the horizon at night but never fully sets and the night sky takes on a whitish grey color.

Between these 2 great city are the Volga River and the numerous towns and villages. Many of these are important medieval towns which served in the Golden Ring to protect Moscow. Here I look forward to strolling in quiet towns and seeing more characteristic onion-doned churches and monasteries that contain rare frescoes and icons.

I am excited. Around our home there are several piles of books with content that covers Russian history, culture, and art. Lots of words and lots of glossy beautiful photos.

Why travel solo now?

Finding a traveling companion with similar time and interests is a challenge.  Thirty years of heavy business travel ruined any joy that Larry associates with airplanes and hotels. Natalie and I will be setting off on adventures in the years to come.  However, soon she will be in classes and travel will be squeezed in between semesters.  Russia isn’t high on travel wish lists for my friends.

Time is precious and there are no promises that my circumstances will allow me to travel freely. I can now, I have now. So off I go.