|
![]() |
![]() August 1998 It’s a bit difficult to write this story. I was - as always - slowly pushing the deadline to later and later again time, and eventually the crisis sent Russia rocking wildly, and the story still was not ready. Of course, ruble exchange rate falling through the floor or the President’s sacking another Prime Minister does not interfere much with what I do at home at night. But the spirit around has changed a lot, all these summer feelings of leisure and sunny dreams have vanished.It takes considerable effort to look back and not to think of the gloomy present. Reminds me of the view I found not too far from the house where I live. This Moscow vysotka where my apartment is located, one of the temple-like skyscrapers built after World War II, is still kept in nice shape - while some buildings around literally fall apart. The view of freshly painted spire from what remained of the window of another house in the neighborhood is just right for the title picture this time... |
Many small cafes and beer stands open in the open - sometimes even on the water. What can be better on a hot afternoon than a good misty glass of cold light beer! And believe me, some brands of Russian beer are great! After decades of oblivion, old recipes of brewing are again in use.
The houses, of course, are not new dachas. Rather, they are suburban cottages, real single-family houses of Russia, where people live all year round. I like the one with a Russian flag at the gate. If the flag was bearing stripes and stars, the house would be looking absolutely in place on a photo brought from a trip to the States. Elegant, clean, built to last. Interesting, will it really last? And Marina with one of her favorite cats. For city kids, dacha time means a chance to play a lot with the animals, to run in the woods, to sit in the evening by a real campfire. And the kids do enjoy all this change of their lifestyle a lot.
We spent one Saturday at the bike market in Sokolniki and found a powerfully looking bright red machine. Marina was closely watching a mechanic tuning up the bike - and I must admit that the result was impressive. I rode Marina’s new bike one Sunday and enjoyed the feeling. Even am a bit envious now.
I do not like McDonalds much - but when coming back from a long bike ride outside of Moscow, it’s nice to sit and take some snacks at their tables...
Days are getting shorter in the second half of summer. And shorter days mean earlier nights. All central streets in Moscow now feature not only bright lights, but a very artistic lighting of most buildings. This lighting makes facades look more decorative than daylight, crowds of tourists and Moscow yuppies fill the streets, hookers line the sidewalks like vendors on a flea market. Summers nights in Moscow downtown are great time. Time to relax and enjoy the city after the heat of business hours, after traffic jams and overcrowded metro, after the rush that marks any huge urban center. At night, Moscow slows down a bit. Just enough to feel the change of pace and enjoy the night rhythm, not sleepy but not rushing either.
And that speed of course meant some risk - and one boat did not make it in one piece. What remained, a rescue team slowly moved to docks (you see the process in the photo on the left). Fortunately, the pilot of the vessel was not hurt, the boats had been really well designed!
|
|
|
...Billboards, banners, other ads of all sorts that in some areas of Moscow block the view of anything else, and beggars in the same streets, standard contrasts of any big city.
And a fundamentally Russian toilet in the park, collective outhouse for four seats. A tourist attraction of sorts, in some other countries it would take serious efforts to find such a cozy place. It at least offers a roof in the rain. While for the homeless spending the nights on the boulevards, August with its rains spells disaster. And the financial crisis changes the careless and merry looks of Moscow street cafes. All of a sudden they become empty and sad on the last weekend of summer. Sunny times are over, the fall is coming. Hello autumn. Andrey - asebrant@glasnet.ru |
|Moscow Life home page | All 30+ Moscow Life stories | Most recent story here | |