A stroll around our neighborhood, a trip to Gorky Park and a walk along the Moscow River completed our last day in Moscow. Smoking is much more common than I would see in Saskatoon. A scene with a group of people on an apparent smoke break is very common. Thankfully we didn’t encounter smoking inside.

A flash of red caught my eye as I was looking down to be sure I didn’t slip on the ice. Such an amazing talent to walk with heels like this on slush and ice.

Gorky Park occupies a large swath of land on the banks of the Moscow River given over to recreational and educational pursuits. Groomed walkways lined with towering trees make it a manicured rather than wild type of park.

The most intriguing and complex skating area I have ever seen dominates a large part of the park.  Wide channels lined with fences form a matrix with directional signs to help skaters navigate the maze. Loud speakers pump out an invigorating mix of music that just makes you want to move. Kiosks offer warming heaters and hot drinks at various places along side the ice. Great idea Moscow.

The Garage Museum of Contemporary Art is a new structure built to reflect the heritage of the original museum which was housed in a garage elsewhere in Moscow.  The architects were successful in creating the garage look as viewed from a distance.

We attended an interesting exhibit explaining an historical event when in 1985 Sotheby’s Auction in Great Britain created a huge stir in the art world when they held the first auction in Russia. This video of the auction was part of the display.

Eating lunch in the Garage reminded us of our new gallery in Saskatoon.  Large glass windows streaming sunlight onto the tables and an outdoor palette dominated by white made us feel at home.

Carrot ginger and Cod and potato soup warmed us up for a Red Velvet cake and coffee.

Leaving Gorky Park brought us out onto a large walkway leading all the way to the Kremlin.  Open water on winter rivers offers such a different perspective and totally different opportunities than rivers of solid ice. We noticed a boat seemingly designed to keep the river free of ice motoring along and breaking the river into large chunks.

Open water also allows for ducks and gulls to survive throughout a winter. Here are some of the inhabitants on the Moscow River.

Various stories surround this 98 meter high monument sitting on the edge of the Moscow River.  Made by a Georgian sculptor in 1997 it was supposedly made to honor Christopher Columbus and be placed in New York.  They turned it down as did St. Petersburg so because the designer was a friend of the mayor of Moscow it was placed here with the understanding that it would be reconfigured as a statue of Peter the Great and celebrate 300 years of the Russian Navy.  It seems to have failed on so many levels and to boot is ‘butt ugly” to my eyes.

The final leg of our walk takes us past more bridges and lovely, yet simple examples of public art.
Thank you Moscow for such a great experience.