Lucky Shot
Smoke billowing from a chimney outside Moscow but backlit from greenhouses.
Where's my home? No idea but this world feels like a cool place to call home.
Unfocused postings on whatever catches my attention, makes me think or demands that I point and shoot.
If you find yourself in Moscow, two restaurants you have to visit are Apartment 44 in Moscow, which was literally an apartment during soviet times where many families lived...
...and Pumba, which is an hour out of Moscow in the woods but worth the trip.
Traffic is so bad in Moscow that there's no doubt that OOH works here.
This is a beautiful drive through the forest just outside Moscow but there are so many posters that you could almost imagine a magazine taking these sites and publishing the whole magazine in OOH.
This picture was taken in a bar last night.
So I'm willing to take on the three guys who are clearly boxers but that guy on the top left - not a chance.
You can probably tell that I'm obsessed with the Metro in Moscow.
It was opened in 1935, so not one of the first metros in the world but it perhaps was one of the most challenging to build given the soil here in Moscow. Workers had to deal with sinking sand, underground rivers and limestone - one of the first tunnel sections to be built required the engineers to cross four river flows.What's also amazing about the construction of this metro is captured in this quote from the Moscow Metro history: 'Work was done mainly by hand since there was a shortage of pneumatic hammers and a lack of rock loaders. The main tools used by the miners were pickaxes, spades and bars. Trolleys were also pulled by hand.'The color pictures were taken this morning en-route to focus groups.The b&w picture shows the opening day of the metro in 1935 where people had waited overnight to be the first to ride the train at 7am.
With snow in Moscow comes a massive workforce that clear it from everywhere.
There are trucks all over town filled with dirty snow that gets transported out to a melting station. It's like an obsession and while grabbing a coffee today I saw just how far this obsession goes.
Propaganda is famous for being one of the first true nightclubs in Moscow post the collapse of the Soviet Union.
It's still very successful today and it is said that many people pause outside this club and reminisce about their new found freedom when they were young. Interestingly, it is the only club to survive from this period. The only other club of that time, took the unfortunate name Titanic and true to its name - it sunk. Propaganda, like many clubs in Moscow, is a great place to grab food during the day - it only changes to a club late at night.
I fell in love with Cafe Mania the first time I visited Moscow.
I'm a freak about coffee to the point of only going to Joe's in NY because they are the only ones to use Barrington coffee beans. So yes I have a problem but you've got to love a place like cafe Mania where they ask you when you want your coffee during your breakfast. And when you get it, conversation stops even if it's just for a second. It's mind altering.
Interestingly the broader picture shows Christmas decorations. I learnt this evening that the Mayor of Moscow will fine any establishment that doesn't feature decorations. He wants Moscow to be as beautiful as possible.
Personally, I don't think this city needs the decorations to be beautiful - just curious and patient eyes.
