People always marvel at the glamorous palaces in St. Petersburg and its vacinities, especially those who have stopped at St. Petersburg on their Scandinavian ocean cruise itinerary and who have not seen Moscow. If you ask me which city is my preference, I would say Moscow, without hesitation. Nothing can represent Russia better than the grand Red Sqaure, the fascinating St. Basil's Cathedral and the solemn Kremlin (photo 11 - 33).

The tour only covered the capital of Russia for less than 2 full days, for on the second day we had to return to the ship by 2 p.m. So, they had 2 or 3 optional tours at the same time that morning. I'm still glad I selected the tour of Novodevichy Convent, an UNESCO site. But for me, the highlight was its cemetery which we only spent little time in. It's a cemetery for significant burials, a resting place for many important heroes in the Russian History, political leaders, successful artists, etc. The tour guide proudly told us that we could easily spend a whole day there admiring the various tombstones. He was absolutely right. All the designs are so artistic and captivating. This tour was even more eye-opening than the night tour to see a few subway stations which Moscow is also famous for. If I'm only allowed to use 1 word to describe the Novodevichy Cemetery, I may probably say.... inspiring.

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