London Lite, A Bling Break in Red Hot Russia
5 Sep 2008
But I also like my holidays with a large dollop of drinking and decadence. And if ever there were a city to fulfil these twin aims, it is Moscow, right now. Glam new bars, restaurant, shops clubs and hotels are springing up around the city, which has become one of the most expensive in the world. Beneath the coloured domes of St Basil's Cathedral and the spires of the Kremlin, a five-star Moscow is rattling its diamonds.
Culture
Iconic, awe-inspiring and massive, nothing quite prepares you for your first glimpse of Red Square - the domes of St Basils's on one side, the Kremlin on another, and hundreds of tourists and locals strolling across the cobbles in between. We first visited after dark and on a balmy august night, it was hard to imagine the rallies, revolutions and firing squads the square has witnessed.
I quickly decided on my favourite land marks: Stalin's "Seven Sisters", the seven Stalinist gothic-style skyscrapers that were constructed in the Forties and Fifties as academies and apartments building for the regime's elite.
Stalin famously had grand plans for an eighth - the Palace of the Soviets - which would have been 415 metres high topped with a statue of Lenin with rubies for eyes and a helicopter landing pad in his outstretched hand. Tragically, the foundations were never even laid.
The beast palces to view the city and admire all this architecture is from Sparrow Hill, the site of the imposing Moscow University building. During the day, the promenade is filled with souvenir stalls and by night couples, friends and families gather to stroll and watch street performances. Tourist must-sees include the Kremlin (£8 entry), with its myriad churches, gardens and museums, and the Trtryokshka Gallery (£5).
We had a driver for the weekend, essential if you wan to see a lot in little time, but don't miss the Moscow Metro - the stations are works of art, decorated with chandeliers, frescoes, friezes and busts of Lenin and it costs less than 50p a journey.
Sleeping and Eating
Many of Moscow's hotels have not yet shaken off the scratchy bed sheets of communism, but a few chic new joints are springing up.
We stayed at the Golden Apple, the city's only boutique hotel. Prices start at £400 a night for a double room, but there are cheaper options ? a private double room in the new Home Hostel is £40.
For all its progress, Moscow's restaurants are still and experience. Few people speak English and there seems to be no direct translation of 'customer service'. In Cafe Pushkin the food was good (we ate red caviar and pelminis - little filled dumplings) but they ignored us for the first 40minutes then brought main courses before we?d finished our starters.
Nor is it cheap: expect to pay £50 a head for three courses without wine in decent restaurants. Bottles of wine start at around £60, so we went native and drank vodka with dinner. There are few mid-range places, but look out for branches of 'My My', a canteen-style restaurant where you can get lunch and a beer for around £7.
Cocktails
Beyond the budget of most of us is the £10,000-a-night presidential suite at the Ritz-Carlton. But us mere mortals can drink in the hotel's rooftop O2 bar. The most ostentatious rooftop bar I've ever sipped in, it has enormous white sofas, an outdoor dance floor and heart-stopping views over the Red Square. You'll need to reserve a table 24hours in advance, and cocktails start from about £20, but it is truly magical.
For New York style loft bar drinking, try Manon. We perched at the bar and pondered how to snag an oligarch who could support the lifestyle we were getting used to
We'd heard great things about clubbing here - sadly, it wasn't to be. Not once, but twice, we were denied entry subject to "face control". At first, we laughed - what was wrong with our faces? They are readily welcomed in London, New York and Ibiza. When it happened again, we realized the Iron Curtain may have been drawn aside, but in Moscow, the velvet rope now wields even more power.
Three nights in Moscow start from £1,999 with Black Tomato (www.blacktomato.co.uk) which includes flights, transfers, visas, accommodation
