Moskva River Cruise, Russia!

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we had a truly amazing experience last night cruising along the moscow river (the cruise referred to it as the ‘moskva river’ because that is how you pronounce “mockby” or “moscow” in russian)! we went through the radisson royal hotel, which is absolutely jaw dropping. i couldn’t believe this was a radisson hotel when i first set eyes on it. i am still having a hard time.

wife blog raddison russia moscow sunsetwe are styaing with our family friend, farah, who works and lives in russia so she knows all the amazing things to see and do-such as this. she knew the best time to set sail was on the 9pm tour because the photos beforehand would be spectacular and the city at night all lit up is beyond magical. she obviously knows what she is talking about.

the reason for this special outing and the main reason we are in russia is to celebrate my in-laws 40th wedding anniversary! 40 years is a loooong time and they are truly still in love, care deeply about one another and set an amazing example of what a healthy marriage can look like. happy anniversary mark and kathy- i love “y’all!”

wife blog in-laws moscow river cruisei struggled with asking strangers on the street to use my fancy camera to take a picture of us (i tend to be overly paranoid of someone taking off with it and we all know i can’t run very fast) but it turns out the man we asked happened to be from california-small world! here’s the group of us before the dinner cruise.

from left to right…myself, my husband ravery, father-in-law mark, mother-in-law kathy, iranian mother farah, sister-in-law ashley and farah’s son-sam! someday i will learn not to stand like i’m 8 years old-but today is not that day.

wife blog moscow river cruise group shotshout out to ashley for taking my new favorite picture of us! good work SIL. i realize that because we both have dark-framed glasses it makes us look similar but please do not say we look like brother and sister-that’s totally gross.

wife blog great photo chelsea and ryan avery moscow river cruise boatsthe 2-hour cruise took us all around moscow. we saw moscow state university, luzhniki stadium, gorky park, the kremlin, the cathedral of christ the savior (Храм Христа Спасителя, Khram Khrista Spasitelya-pictured below) and so much more. this is the tallest orthodox christian church in the world, standing at 103 meters or 338 feet!

IMG_9275it was 49 degrees out but the cruise line gave us super cozy and fashionable blankets so the temperature really wasn’t bad. it also helps when the waiter has a massive crush on your sister-in-law and gives us all double the blankets.

wife blog moscow river cruise russia with blanketsof course-  no russian anything is complete without the assistance of vodka. it’s much more sippable when it’s in adorable little glasses (although i still always feel the burn down my throat-kind of like reverse heart burn). i can totally see why people drink a lot of vodka here, especially when it drops to negative 30 degrees because that clear liquid warms your bones.

wife blog moscow river cruise russia vodkaalthough this photo isn’t the best quality-red square, the kremlin and st. basil’s cathedral was out of this world lit up at night. the architecture in moscow is truly breathtaking.

IMG_9287when we floated back to our original take off point, the radisson royal hotel was lit up incredibly beautiful and that purple boat you see below is how our boat looked too.

wife blog raddison moscow river cruise lit upwe had a fantastic evening on the water celebrating love, family and exploring the world! lots of laughs, lots of learning and seeing this massive city from a unique angle. i highly recommend seeing any city from the water and i feel so blessed to have married into such a quality family that can go on trips together.

the new wifestyle: it’s important to take time to acknowledge the success and hard work of people committed to each other and celebrate love!

questions:
1) have you ever been on a riverboat cruise? where at?
2) what’s your drink of choice?
3) prettiest hotel you’ve ever seen?

7 Comments

  1. Leanna

    September 10, 2013 at 11:51 am

    Congratulations Kathy and Mark. What an exotic way to celebrate. Chelsea, I love all your photos. I truly enjoy following along with you and Ryan on your round the world trip. I’ll be seeing you in Eugene, not quite as exotic, but closer to home.
    Hugs, Leanna

    • chelsea

      September 11, 2013 at 12:02 am

      i will pass along your congratulations, leanna! we are having a great time in moscow! thanks for always reading and commenting-we miss our TM mama! cannot wait to squeeze you in eugene!

  2. Dad - Clint Turner

    September 10, 2013 at 12:10 pm

    Hi Chelsea – Just read your blog and really enjoyed it. The river cruse was a special way to celebrate Mark and Kathy’s 40th Anniversary. I really enjoyed your photos and I’m sure it’s great to experience these things in person. Have fun and stay safe. I love You – Dad

    • chelsea

      September 11, 2013 at 12:03 am

      yay! it’s another comment from the dad 🙂 you would have really liked the river cruise dad-it was excellent and a gorgeous city. you would definitely appreciate the landscape around here too!

  3. Paula Howley

    September 10, 2013 at 12:42 pm

    ONe question for you first! Why did your in-laws choose Russia to celebrate?
    And you look drop dead gorgeous in that dress.
    1) have you ever been on a riverboat cruise? where at?
    I grew up on the Detroit River (stop laughing) so I cruised that river a few times on this ship called the “Boblo Boat” which used to take people to an island amusement park. Good memories of that place.
    On Thursday this week my family and I are going on an “inlet cruise” to Princess Louisa Inlet which is considered one of the most beautiful anchorages in the world. You can only access it by boat or plane. Check it out! scroll down to the 2nd pic for a beauty shot.
    http://www.user.dccnet.com/rdarcy/cruise4.html

    2) what’s your drink of choice?
    It used to be Chambourd but I don’t even remember how to spell it. I also LOVED flaming ouzo. And white wine. And coffee with Bailey’s. And a cold Smirnoff Ice in the summer. Now I guess it’s coffee with vanilla creamer! lol ( i also indugle in some de-alcoholized wine here and there)
    3) prettiest hotel you’ve ever seen?
    I once stayed at this hotel in Nashville that had an amazing courtyard. It was so massive that the balconies looked out on to it like it was the real outside. The whole roof was skylight and there was a giant pool and palm trees with white lights on them everywhere. It was magical!

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