International Business Center of Moscow

Hey Guys! Wow! It's almost Christmas over there in America. For those of you who are wondering, Russia celebrates a different Christmas, Rozhdestvo. There seems to be some disagreement between the calendars of the Western Christianity and Russian Orthodox Christianity. Russians celebrate their Christmas on the 7th of January, so it is still going to be a while before I get to experience an authentic Russian Christmas. Just went snowboarding all day today and am completely exhausted, so I guess this will be a bit short. There aren't really any pictures of me on the slopes, but I suppose that's for the best. I spent a great deal of time on my backside. I suspect tomorrow may be quite a painful day for me. Anyways...

The first pictures I wanted people to see are of a region west of downtown Moscow, called Mezhdunarodny Biznes Tsentr, or International Business Center. This region is where most of the skyscrapers are going up in Moscow (or were going up, many construction projects here have been put on hold). I really love this area of Moscow because it is an area of new construction surrounded by old Stalinesque apartment blocks. Although this is one of my favorite regions in Moscow, some people believe it to be some sort of an eyesore. There are plenty of people who would prefer to preserve Moscow's sense of history through maintaining the historical architecture of the city. I tend to think they are wrong. More than anything, I think Moscow has come to embody the rapid changes that have taken place in Russia over the past few decades. Just as economic stagnation has given way to rampant growth and economic possibilities, so must the architecture of old give way to the architecture of modern times. I have always loved skyscrapers, perhaps more for what they represent than for their aesthetic qualities. I see them as being as much a landmark for human achievement as they are an attraction for tourists. Well, here they are:

And here are a couple of pictures from the eighteenth floor of an apartment building in the area, where one of my students lives:

And a quick picture of me, because I rarely include pictures of myself here:

And here's another picture of me, this time not alone. The lovely young lady standing to my left is someone I've recently met and has grown to be very dear to me. Her name is Vicka. (And I feel inclined to mention that the coat in the picture is not hers. I have been told that her coat is far cuter.)



And expect some very special holiday updates, full of interesting (hopefully) information about Russian culture and such. Coming very soon!