Russia Trip, July 11 - 24, 2002
River Cruise from Moscow to St. Petersburg
with the Association of Rice Alumni
Map of cruise route is at the bottom of this page

Our ship, the Novikov Priboy, docked at Moscow, NW of downtown on the Moscow Canal

Inside our cabin, with 25" wide beds and a bathroom that doubled as a shower.
We took most of our meals in the ship's restaurant.

Down in the Moscow Metro subway, decorated with art.

Relaxing in Moscow, west of Red Square, just off the Arbat, a pedestrian shopping mall.

In the Armory in Moscow.

|
One of many gilded-steeple churches in Moscow, the Annunciation Cathedral.

The fully painted interior of a Moscow church.

A side view of the famous St. Basil's, at the foot of Red Square

The walls of the Kremlin.  The weather was nice for most of our trip.

Another view of St. Basil's

Jim in front of Lenin's Tomb, Red Square (Kremlin walls behind)

Mary Inside the enormous GUM, directly off Red Square across from Lenin's Tomb
It was once the USSR's grim official, now privatized and upscale - capitalism has arrived.

Mary at our cabin door, donning her lifejacket in a disaster dress rehearsal.

The interior of the Transfiguration Cathedral in the town of Uglich, on the Volga River

In the city of Yaroslavl, further along the Volga, in the Church of the Epiphany, looking almost straight up

Off the stern of the Novikov Priboy (aka the "Hobnob"), on the Volga River

Our travel group, from the Association of Rice Alumni, in the Panoramo Bar on ship
(Mary at center, Jim at far right)

Approaching a lock (one of almost 20), early morning midway between Moscow and St. Petersburg
Taken around 4:30 a.m. - in July this region receives only 3 hours of darkness

The Resurrection Cathedral and Church of the Transfiguration (1714), extraordinary structures
built from wood without nails, with the cupolas (onion domes) shaped from aspen.
On Kizhi Island, Lake Onega.

A windmill and fence, Kizhi Island

Onboard ship, where you can eat off the decks, they are so spotless.  We didn't confirm this.

The occasional riverside settlement, probably of summer homes (dachas) for city dwellers

Early morning river view.  Much of the route was uninhabited, and river traffic was light.

A home on Svir Stroy, where we were invited in for food and vodka

The owner of the home, who grows much of her food in the garden around her house.
The tips she received from our group's visit were enough to cover one year's taxes on her home.

The Hermitage (or Winter Palace), in St. Petersburg.  Simply amazing on the inside.

Mary getting personal with Peter the Great (his head is to scale, body is not)

Looking north along the Canal Griboyedova from St. Petersburg's most famous street, Nevsky Prospect

Inside the State Museum of Russian Art, in St. Petersburg.

The gilded fountains at Petrodvorets (Peter's Palace, or Peterhof) outside of St. Petersburg

Returning from Petrodvorets to St. Petersburg via hydrofoil

The magnificent Church of the Spilled Blood, St. Petersburg

The route we followed along canals, rivers, and lakes, from Moscow to St. Petersburg.
We spent three days in Moscow, six days under sail, and three days in St. Petersburg.
Note the compass - the map is not oriented directly north.