While Dave's parents were in town for Evelynn's baptism, we spent a lot of time hanging out with the kids, and helping out at school (I was still pretty preggy sick), but we also got to show them around town a little.
We went back to the honey festival.
Rows and rows of honey and other bee related products.
We spent some time trying different kinds of honey, and then...
...went across the street to Tsaritsyno.
This was an old palace built by Catherine the Great (I love how rulers are nicknamed, Peter the Great, Catherine the Great, Ivan the Terrible. I wonder what I would be called...). We've never been inside, but I don't think she ever lived it in either, so I guess in a way, we could be considered royalty - Sjauna the Ridiculous...
The grounds are really pretty to walk around, and there are newlyweds everywhere taking pictures.
Grandma and Evie making some creations that Evelynn can use with Kit.
We found a cute little restaurant (if only you knew how impossible that is) with yummy Russian food (again, if only you knew...). We ate borsch, shii (a yummy soup, i don't know how to spell it, and i can't find a link for it), and pelmeni, and wanted to go back for more!
Inside St. Basil's Cathedral.
These guys were singing to try to sell cds.
It worked. We bought one. It sounded beautiful.
(and the links are just for Wikipedia, by the way, which may in fact give you more information about these places than I have learned after going to it three times. Let's just say the English audioguides are a little lacking.)
A lot of the buildings in Russia are built with wood and plastered and painted to look like brick or something else. The funny thing about this wall is that it looks like it's brick painted to look like... brick.
Everything is always a conundrum in Russia.
In a Palace in St. Petersburg, we found wood that had been carved, then dipped in plaster, then gold-leafed.
Dave and Barb are cute.
Outside St. Basil's.
Pronounced goom. Along one side of Red Square, it was the Government Universal Store during Soviet times, now it's just a super upscale mall.
And across Red Square, the little brick structure is Lenin's Mausoleum, where you can go to see Lenin. Dead Lenin. Supposedly with all kinds of chemicals and whatnot that has kept his body preserved for the last 87 years. Interesting. He looks great for his age. No pictures allowed.
And behind the brick wall, the Kremlin, including a museum and some cathedrals. If this seems confusing to you, because you thought the Kremlin was a person or people, you're right. The President of Russia lives here, and the word is sometimes used to refer to the Russian Government. For example, imagine, "The White House is over there saying... blah blah blah."
Eating lunch at Stardogs, which I love solely because it looks like Crapdogs in English.
You can get all kinds of funky on your hot dogs here. In a tortilla, in flatbread with mashed potatoes, pickles, french fried onions, crazy. I usually get it in a roll with mustard and mayo, but the mustard is so spicy, I can only get half way through, before I give it to Dave.
Barb and Grandma playing with matryoshkas.
We did lots of shopping for matryoshkas. Dave's parents came with a big shopping list, and I think they got all they needed. Plus a little more.
We also went to an awesome Russian dance show and Dave took them for a quick trip to St. Petersburg.
It was great to hang out with family, and we really enjoyed their visit. We missed them the minute they left.
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