Thứ Bảy, 18 tháng 5, 2013

Chiêm ngưỡng lại những tuyệt tác của nước Nga

Chiêm ngưỡng lại những tuyệt tác của nước Nga
The Great Russian Imperial Crown

The Minor Russian Imperial Crown

The Russian Imperial Orb

Moscow: Bolshoi Theatre at night

Above and below: legendary Bolshoi Ballet





Krasnaya Ploshad – Red Square (In Russian “krasnaya” means both the color and “beautiful”)

Another view of Red Square

Manezhnaya Square, Moscow

Above and below: The golden domed Kremlin cathedrals



Alexander Gardens by the Kremlin Wall. In the pond are sculptures of characters from the Russian fairy tales


Russian Tsars’ crowns, hats and scepters. With precious jewels, gold and rare sobel furs. The Kremlin exhibit.


The Savior Cathedral, Moscow. Seat of the Russian Patriarch.


Above and below: Magnificent Novodevichy Convent, UNESCO World Heritage Site



Above and below: images of the sumptuous Moscow Metro




Above and below: Famous bronze sculptures, Moscow Metro



Above: Russian porcelain exhibit in Moscow Metro


Moscow University, main building. One of the famous Stalin’s Seven Sisters – seven buildings constructed at strategic points throughout the city, and forming a ring around the Kremlin


Winter Palace, former residence of the Russian Tsars. Now The Hermitage Museum, Saint Petersburg


The Throne Room, The Hermitage


Beautiful Saint Petersburg


Neva Embankment, Saint Petersburg


“The Bronze Horseman,” Monument to Peter the Great, founder of Saint Petersburg


Magnificent Gold Singing Fountains of Peterhof


Above and below: The newly restored Amber Room, Catherine Palace, located in the town of Pushkin, near Saint Petersburg. Considered by some the Eighth Wonder of the World. The original Amber Room was stolen by the Nazis and had never been found




Above: St. Basil’s Cathedral and the Kremlin. The entire Kremlin / Red Squarecomplex is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.


By the end of 1991, the Soviet Union broke up, quietly and amicably. I watched in disbelief from afar as, for the second time in a single century, Russia went through a revolution; thankfully, this time peacefully.

Next time I visited Russia during the turbulent 1990s, it was a completely different country, where safety nets and societal structures so solidly built and proudly maintained during Soviet times crumbled and ceased to exist. The new world emerged in birthing pains, while those who couldn’t adjust were mercilessly swept along the wayside. Crime was rampant and fortunes were built overnight, many by openly illegal means. A new class of Russian oligarchsemerged, while the needs of simple people were neglected.

It was an eye-opening and very sad visit. The country I remembered, the country where I spent some of the happiest days of my life, and the one so many took for granted, was gone. And I was hardly the only one who felt this way.


Above: Novodevichy Convent, Moscow. A UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Although people in the West (due to biased media coverage and stereotypes they grew up with) would probably never understand this, many of us have fond memories growing up in the Soviet Union. Since the space in this post is limited, I won’t go into details (well, may be some other time). Suffice it to say that fond memories don’t happen out of the blue. They usually happen for a good reason, especially if such memories are shared by entire generations.
But the situation in Russia started changing dramatically once Vladimir Putincame to power in the year 2000. The Russian economy, which was almost obliterated during the 1990s, came back strongly and has been growing by leaps and bounds for the past decade. The ongoing economic, financial, political, legal, military, police and social reforms completely changed Russia’s landscape.


Above: Fireworks on Red Square, Moscow.

Russia has changed, but at the same time managed to preserve its heritage. The new and the old learned to co-exist and complemented each other. Starbucks and McDonalds, Gucci and Armani, Mercedes and BMWs shared streets with the long-standing Russian tradition.

The new Russia clearly emerged, molded out of past suffering and lessons learned. And although there is still plenty that needs to be done, one definitely gets the feeling that there is stability, that the country is on the right track and looking forward to its future.

I was so inspired by my trip that the story of GOLD TRAIN and Jade Snow’s Russian Adventure materialized on my computer as if by magic. I hope that I was able to convey in my book the complex feelings and impressions about Russia’s past, present…and future.

During my research trip, I concentrated on Russia’s two capitals, Moscow and Saint Petersburg, which are part of GOLD TRAIN‘s spectacular setting.

Below are some of the images and impressions from my trip.

Moscow:


Above: The Friendship Fountain at the All Russia Exhibit, Moscow. This is a huge and rather picturesque park with pavilions housing various exhibits, which I loved to visit as a child (during Soviet times called VDNKh).


Above: The famed Bolshoi Theatre just re-opened after a massive renovation.


Above: The iconic St. Basil’s Cathedral, one of the most photographed buildings in the world. Lenin’s Mausoleum (right) on Red Square — featured in GOLD TRAIN.


Above: Arbat, Moscow’s historic pedestrian artist district (notice the Starbucks on the corner).


Above: Alexander Gardens, named after the Russian Emperor Alexander I.


Above: Dancing in Alexander Gardens by the Kremlin Wall.


Above: Art on display on Arbat.


Above: On Moscow Street.


Above: Modern Moscow echoing the look and feel of the Kremlin and historic Russian architecture.


Above: Moskva City (Moscow City) under construction.


Above: The giant main building of The Moscow University. One of the so-called Seven Sisters, seven similar buildings, form a ring around the Kremlin and were built during Stalin’s time.


Above and below: Some of the stations of the spectacular Moscow Metro resembling underground palaces. The Moscow Metro is the second busiest in the world after Tokyo’s. And it carries 7-8 million passengers a day in grand style.


Below: One Moscow’s historic metro stations: Komsomolskaya Station.



Above: The Kremlin Guards.


Above: A golden-domed Kremlin cathedral.


Above: High-speed train Sapsan between Moscow and Saint Petersburg 

Saint Petersburg:


Above: Bank Bridge, one of Saint Petersburg’s spectacular pedestrian bridges.


Above: The Hermitage and the Neva River . The entire historic center of Saint Petersburg is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.


Above: The Hermitage, Grand Stairs.


Above: Peterhof, Peter the Great’s summer residence with its famous golden singing fountains. One of the most spectacular sights in Saint Petersburg, UNESCO World Heritage Site…and my personal favorite.


Above: Anichkov Bridge on Nevsky Prospekt with its famous horse tamers’ statues.


Above: Catherine Palace, summer residence of Catherine the Great — UNESCO World Heritage Site.


Above: The gorgeous Amber Room (Yantarnaya Komnata), Catherine Palace. Considered by some to be the ‘Eighth Wonder of the World,’ it was stolen by the Nazis during World War II. Starting in the 1970s, it was painstakingly recreated from the original drawings and reopened to the public several years ago.


Above: One of the famous Imperial Faberge eggs at Catherine Palace.


Above: Monument to the Russian writer, Alexander Pushkin (little birdies like him).


Saint Pete Metro is the fifth busiest underground transportation system in the world, carrying 3.5 million passengers a day, and the world’s deepest. Above: one of the many palatial Saint Pete Metro stations, rivaling the beautiful Moscow Metro.


Above: Saint Pete Metro. Sportivnaya Station with its Ancient Greek Olympics theme 


Above: Forward-looking Saint Petersburg. The new giant Gazprom Tower project, conceptual design.

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