Victory Day

May 9, 2015

Victory Day is by far the most celebrated holiday of the year here.  Russia was instrumental in stopping the Nazi take over.  Still today, there are barricades marking the spot where the Russian army stopped the Germans from further invading the city.  It is something that the Russians are very proud of, as they should be!  This year marked the 70th anniversary.  For a week prior to May 9th, they shut down a variety of streets at certain times of the day so that they can practice the military vehicle parade.  It is MOST inconvenient but, it makes for an amazing show later.  They also do an airplane parade in the sky, like I have never seen before!  These people really know how to celebrate their holidays!  To those men and women who fought this battle, thank you for all that you sacrificed to protect the world from further devastation!

This year, we did not go the parade.  Chris was out of town and I had a death cold so, all the pictures are from YouTube, except the ones at the park which were taken the day before (May 8th).

 The kids got 2 days off of school in honor of Victory Day.  So of course, we went to Gorky Park.

They have finally turned on all the fountains.  I think the magic day for that is May 1st.

Compliments of Dalton

And here the moms sit on their devices, passing the time while the kids play.

These are the bridges that cross over the Moscow River.  They are mammoth and super cool.

The hammer and sickle which you can see almost everywhere you turn.

Spring Break

Since we had just traveled to the States, we decided to spend Spring Break relaxing in Moscow.  Chris was in DC for 2 weeks and the boys and I were pooped, so we had a stay-cation.

Gorky Park

It doesn't matter what time of year it is, Gorky Park is always fun!  Everyone brought skateboards, scooters, rip-sticks, you name it.  We brought them and we played.  They boys rode all around the park on the big open sidewalks.  There is also a couple of cool skate parks in the park and they spent a fair amount of time there too!  The weather could not have been better!

Hands-on Science museum

There is actually a really cool museum right by our church building.  I was very impressed with the amount of hands-on and smiling that was going on.

Mirror Maze

Cool water/wave display

Chair of nails.  Because of the distribution of weight, it did not hurt to sit on it.

This screen was a motion sensory wall.  When you moved, the shapes moved in the same way.  It was super cool!  I could have spent the entire time there.

More mirrors and lights

Pushkin Museum of Fine Arts

There was lots of amazing things to see here but, I will just include a couple of my favorites.

This lovely picture depicts the beheading of John the Baptist.  I wonder if there was a lot of bleeding when this took place...

Mummified cat

The Pieta by Michelangelo.  This sculpture moves me in a way that I cannot put into words!  It's just a replica but, it still moves me.  I remember the first time I saw it.  I was in college and was visiting an older grandma who we had adopted and befriended.  She had a small replica on her coffee table.  It was the first time I understood that there was a real relationship between us and our Heavenly Mother.  I know this is not meant to be our Heavenly Mother but, that is what I saw when I saw this for the first time.

My museum buddy and new BFF!  This is Michelle and she makes Moscow bearable!  

Dog Sitting

We had the privilege of dog sitting a Great Dane.  It was heavenly!!

Crayon Art

Moscow International Airport

This airport is leaps and bounds better than it was when I was here in '97 but the truth is, it still could use some efficiency upgrades.  Well actually, the entire city has some efficiency issues.  Here is just one example...  The sign that shows the arrivals and departures is on the same side as the chairs.  So, if you want to see if a flight has come in etc you have to stand up and walk across the hallway to look at it.  This may seem like it is not that big of a deal, and it is not but...  When 30 things a day go like this, it is exhausting!  It seems that nothing can be easy here.

I was sitting in the chair on the far left, waiting for Chris to come back from 2 weeks in DC and I noticed this machine next to me.  It is a vending machine, selling flowers.  A vending machine that sells flowers!  These people LOVE their flowers!  In fact, they have 24 hour flower stores, many of them.  I'm surprised that there is a demand for flowers at 2:00 am.   It is awesome to have something so lovely available at any time, night or day!  As long as you don't buy an odd number of flowers, you will be set for any occasion!

R & R

Our R & R began February 19th.  We flew out of Moscow, had a layover in LA and then on to Honolulu.  The entire trip lasted 26 hours.  It was too much time to spend on a plane!  But, man was it worth it!

Our first stop was Taco Bell, a fountain drink with ice!  Mmmmmm!

I can't help but think about the Brady Bunch goes to Hawaii!  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kh9dRcga8YE

I also kept looking for Magnum P.I. but no luck!

I continually kept saying, "I can't believe I am here!"

There are chickens and roosters EVERYWHERE!!

Cousin Camp formal attire.

Fountain Diet Coke WITH ice!!

"I can't believe I am here!"

Polynesian Cultural Center

Our dinner

Hawaii was fantastic!  We loved every minute of our time there!!  I am unsure why the entire world does not live there!  I would like to live there.  We had a great time, ate great food, and enjoyed the company most of all!!