Russia 2008: Will I See Pasha?
It's crazy I know, but it could happen. I know he hasn't been there for ages but maybe now he has the money to take that flight back home? IT COULD HAPPEN. And I could totally meet him and he could teach me a thing or two about shaking those hips, rawr.
Okay, okay... so before this trip, all of the horrible problems from work had just begun... and I look haggard as hell in the pictures... I could not enjoy my food so much. Oh, and I wasn't inspired to take pictures of the food because it majorly consisted of tomatoes, beef, mixed together.. not really attractive plating if you ask me.
This is their airport. SLOOOOOW immigration, there's something wrong with it.
Neva River
St. Petersburg, near Nevsky Prospekt
Matryoshka dolls
Saint Isaac's Cathedral, the largest cathedral in St. Petersburg
Mosaic of St. Peter, one of the famous religious articles in the abovementioned cathedral
On the way to St. Peter and Paul's Cathedral
Tombs of the royal family of Nicholas II
St. Catherine's chapel
The Church of the Savior on Blood -- where Alexander II was assassinated. The Baroque architecture is interesting. I have a few to zero ideas about Orthodox Catholicism except that they have churches like these and that they only have icons and have lengthy mass celebrations.
Peterhof Park. Really similar to the fountain park I visited near Milan.
Some couple got married there. Aw.
Ballet about Sleeping Beauty. I know that this wasn't going to be a hit with the kids and the oldies. I think they dozed off.
But for me, personally, it amused me.
Now if only I can find my hot Russian latin ballroom dancer...
10:00. In the evening.
I took this one at our hotel.
Inside the Hermitage Museum. This is the gallery of the 1812 war heroes.
The apparently famous peacock clock made by Peter Carl Fabergé. So you know, gilded gold, precious stones.
Paintings by Titian -- I think this piece is "Diana"? Feel free to correct me.
The biggest vase in the vorld.
Oh God, I know this is the Madonna and Child but I can't remember who painted it, either Leonardo or Raphael.
St. Basil's Cathedral
Icons galore
Cathedral of Annunciation inside Kremlin
The Tsar Bell. I hate that I didn't get a picture of myself here.
Mommy the Terrible. Heh.
Kiddies.
Gorgeous Moscow Metro. I remember this since I played the Hitman games awhile back.
I am messing up since I can't remember where I took this photo of the football stadium where that one big event of football took place (I don't watch).
Ugh, dad... seriously...
I think that my brother has a crush on our tour guide at St. Petersburg... I mean, if you compare her to our tour guide at Moscow... Her name is Svetlana (how Russian), she's sweet, she even cried when the kids said goodbye to her.
...yeeeah, I think you're not going to be hitting that anytime soon. However, don't mess with Catherine the tour guide, she'll cut you. And... I think she's more well-versed in Russian history than Svetlana and nababara niya yung ibang relatives ko, hehe! She's a funny, curmudgeonly, tour guide! I would love for her to be my dad's secretary, oh boy, that would make me deliriously happy.
The war museum.
Complete with papier mache pop-ups gallery. Catherine gave us walkthrough of the wars.
We also went to the circus.
In front of a restaurant.
Where, I guess, Russian Olympic hopefuls are trained, heh.
Not one of my relatives, but my tita's friend's son.
Going home.
I was thinking of buying propaganda posters like these:
...to plaster in my room... but I thought a lot about it... and I decided not to because it will just clash with my Madonna and Moulin Rouge posters... I mean here are the non-conformists and oh, there's a communist poster beside it. Clashes with the theme. But I would like to plaster one in our branches, they need communism.
So I didn't get to see Pasha... or any cute ballroom dancers for that matter. I know some of you are thinking that "but those ballroom dancers are so gay!" --- niet! Gay or not, they're still pretty amazing and yummy. Although that was one setback, all in all, the trip was pretty awesome. I thought it was going to be too cold but no... thank God I didn't buy woolly mittens or anything of that sort. It's so expensive there. What else.... we didn't get to run into KGBs... the people were pretty okay, but not the most helpful people I've met. I wouldn't mind going back there.