The Moscow Experience- Part 2 and WOW!

Still long...but very well worth it!  Wait until you hear about the $3000 per hour room...

My first evening in Moscow was an amazing dive into the beauty and history of the city.  It started with drinks atop the Ritz Carlton Hotel with a stunning view overlooking the Red Square.   Audi had bought out every inch the Ritz had to offer in terms of real estate for product placement, and so the whole front drive of the Ritz was lined with brand new Audi cars, literally parked there to show off.  The best part, though, was that there was also an Audi parked on top of the hotel in the middle of the sky bar.  I laughed at how fun it must have been getting that car up there.

Rustam was the most amazing host I ever had the pleasure of being led around a city by.  He had an intricate plan all laid out which included to-die-for drinks, amazing sights, history, culture, and gourmet food literally served from the clouds.  He told me the plan in detail, and then asked me throughout the evening if I remembered the plan and next steps.  I always did, in detail, and he got a kick out of that. 

After our posh drinks atop the Ritz Carlton, we moved on to the Red Square.  That was fine with me because while the drinks and views from the bar were awesome, the place was crawling with super-model gorgeous women, and, no joke, my self-esteem was in the negative.  I'm not being dramatic, these women had jumped right out of magazine spreads to walk around the hotel... and I tried not to stare, but honestly I didn't think such aesthetic perfection was humanly possible.  I'm not saying it was natural in all cases, but it was certainly possible.

We walked around the Red Square, and there I saw St. Basil's, the State Historical Museum, Lenin's Mausoleum, and the GUM Mall.  Mall, by the way, is not descriptive of the riches and beauty captured within this building.  It's a landmark, not just a mall.

Rustam took us through the streets to an old pub where we could see a section of the red wall that surrounded the original city of Moscow.  We went through a labyrinth of twists, turns, doors and hallways before coming out onto the terrace of this pub, where the original wall still stood.  I felt so fortunate for such a knowledgeable guide, and one who paid such amazing attention to experiential detail.  He also walked at an extremely quick pace, and most who know me know that I can keep up with world class power walkers, but let me tell you, this guy was a challenge. 
From the old wall pub, we walked past another incredibly expensive mall, and this one boasted the worlds most exclusive car brands.  Aston Martin, Ferrari, and Mercedes were all represented. 





















We passed the KGB building, breathtaking state buildings and theaters, and were then on our way to pick up the car, as the bars were calling. Rustam had a particular bar in mind, called The Last Drop. I was intrigued.

We picked up the car and started on our way.  We might as well have been bank robbers being chased by the cops.  I felt like I was in the middle of Grand Theft Auto.  He was officially the most insane driver ever, and with my seat belt very securely fastened, I enjoyed a screaming e-ticket ride through the streets of Moscow. 

We parked in front of the "Federal Agency for Mass Media", and I laughed because that was the first time I remembered that Russia's government was slightly different from the ones to which I was accustomed.

 The door to The Last Drop was a solid, black, steel door in the middle of a brick wall.  There were no markings of any kind.  Rustam opened the door and led us down a stair case, to an old city pub and a decked-out bar in the back of it.  There, an unassuming bartender took us on a drinking experience I am unlikely to ever match. 

It started with a tequilla bomb, for which I was made to put on a hard hat. That was fun! This was followed by a Bakckisaray Fountain, fruity and fizzy. Next, the bartender asked what flavors I liked, and after answering a series of alcohol related taste questions, he very confidently made me a 4 layered shot.

 To construct this masterpiece of a drink he delicately layered the alcohol, slowly pouring one liquid over another and using a spoon to keep them separated. This shot didn't have a name, so I named it for him- "The Russian Climax"...going along with the naming theme of drinks already on the menu (I see you shaking your head). 

When I took the shot, my mouth was filled with the flavors of warm apple pie, vanilla bean ice cream and caramel sauce.  I put the glass down and a little chill went up my spine.  Then I asked if I could lick the glass, and they all laughed. 

The finisher was a drink called "Red and Fast", which was a series of two shots.  While you took the first, the bartender set the second shot on fire and swirled it around in a glass with his hand over the top.  You then had to sniff the fumes from the glass from under his hand three times, which sent the sinuses into complete explosion, and finish by taking the second shot.  At the end, my eyes were watering and I was choking slightly, but the sensation of it was, I'll admit, a bit exhilarating.

OK, on to dinner.  BUT, with one stop on the way.  The Novodevichij  Monastery was an incredible fortress of a building overlooking the river, and because the night was quiet and still, you could see the amazing reflection of the building in the river.  The area was peaceful, reflective, and I felt such nostalgia being here, like being escorted through a fairy tale.

Now, for dinner!  Rustam took us to the Moscow Academy of Science, which was a very impressive high-rise building overlooking the city.  On the very top floor of which was an outdoor restaurant where you could literally eat in the clouds and look down upon the glowing city below.  I had a fabulous glass of wine, a delicious cheese plate starter, and then deer tenderloin with foie gras, served with a side of skillet tender caramel apples and a coffee and cranberry sauce.  Heaven.  Between the food, the company and the view, I felt like absolute royalty. 

 

 















It was after midnight by the time we left the Academy of Science, and we had one more stop on the way back to the hotel.  There are a series of buildings in Moscow called the Seven Sister Towers.  They were built during the time of Stalin, and are an impressive representation of the power he held at the time.  These  beautiful buildings are now either office buildings or hotels, and the one we stopped at in particular had become a Radisson.

The lobby boasted a huge diorama of the city, accompanied by an audio account of the historic main buildings.  We then went to the top of the hotel, 30 floors up, and walked around the 2-level restaurant and Mercedes bar, where Moscow's elite took their dinners and after-hours drinks.  There was a room in the hotel Rustam was trying to get to in particular.  He had never been there himself, but had heard that at the very top of the hotel, on the 33rd floor, there was a room you could rent by the hour, at a cost of $3000, which was designed for the most romantic of occasions, marriage proposals.

After Rustam spoke to one of the attendants at the Mercedes bar, we were escorted into an elevator and he hit the button for the 33rd floor.  As soon as we were out into the hallway, we were greeted by an attendant, who's sole vocation was to make sure lost patrons found their way back into the elevator and down to the floors below.  Rustam spoke with her, all in Russian, of course, and she took us to a staircase, which wound its way up into THE room.  It was dark as we approached the entrance, and I noticed two things before my eyes could register anything- it was very cold, and I smelled a variety of fresh flowers.

At the top of the stairs she turned on the lights, and a majestic, white palace of a room was revealed. The ambient temperature was in fact cold, because the room was filled from ceiling to floor with fresh cut, white flowers of every variety and arrangement. A chandelier of fresh white rose petals hung from the ceiling. A table was set for two, and near it was a table arranged with white rose arrangements and a bottle of champagne. There was an antique dresser on the far side adorned with the most elegant white bouquets. The room was made of windows all around, and you had a 360 degree view of the city below. We joked and asked how many women said no after being brought into such a fantasyland. The attendant laughed and replied, "not many". 

The only way to follow up an experience like that was with a drink at the Mercedes bar, which Rustam insisted on.  I ordered a Peach Bellini, my favorite special occasions drink, and when it came from the bar, the Mercedes logo was dusted in nutmeg across the foam on top.  It was the perfect drink to top off the perfect Moscow evening.  I never felt more fortunate and graciously blessed, for the evening had truly been a once-in-a-lifetime experience.