Russia/Poland July 28, 1998, Tuesday

On my morning walk along side the Volga Canal I passed other river cruise ships like mine tied up to the dock—sometimes there were three deep—and a whole fleet of water taxis and excursion boats. The cranes (cargo) and industrial water front areas were next. Every so often a self propelled barge loaded with cargo would float by. At 8:30 breakfast (which was dry cereal, cheese, and lunchmeat) I was given my packed for the city sight-seeing tour.

Our capable Russian guide (she spoke English well) took us on an interesting tour of the many excellent buildings with Russian architecture, such as a walled church and monastery built in the fourteenth century.

After the city tour (as an extra) we toured Arbat Street, a walking street where stalls hawking tourists abound. Then we were given tokens and taken underground into the metro system. The escalator took us deep below the city streets. The trains traveled at least seventy miles per hour and very close together. Much design and expense went into the building of the stations. One had numerous statues against the portals and lighted ceilings with mosaic artwork in the center of each dome. We stopped at three stations, each with a uniquely different theme. Our guide would, above the roar of the train, shout to us some facts and history of each station. It was exciting and exhilarating.

Back on the boat we were to eat dinner at 5 p.m. and go to the circus at the Kremlin but for some unknown reason the circus was cancelled. The dinner hour on a regular basis was 8:30 p.m. but the food was ready so we ate early. My table was changed to one with six place settings. At first I was alone. The salad of vegetables and head cheese was good. There was a dish of halved hard boiled eggs. I took a half to eat with my salad. I was eating the tasty green soup when the hosted instructed me to break up the egg into the soup and add some dressing. It enhanced the flavor.

When my table partners arrived, it was like I was in a whirlwind. They were two middle aged couples from Belgium. They talked and laughed and wasted no time on etiquette, but attacked the food. They were lusty, enjoyable folks. One of the men said he was a professor and had been in Russia in 1972.