Clearly not satisfied with force-feeding you, dear readers, a monthly selection of Russian paintings, I have taken to sharing my art-loving ways on YELL.RU. So, if you are as much of an appreciator of pretty things as I am, and if you are ever in Moscow, read on to learn for ways to maximize and diversify your art intake in Russia’s capital city (SPOILER: there are cocktails!).
The State Tretyakov Gallery is always written about as the top Russian art destination. Yet the collection, 150 years old and 2000-works large, is so much more than a visual anthology of the best Russian art works. A visit to the Tretyakovka is the most comprehensive education one can get about Russian history, culture, and that famed and infamous Russian Soul.
And:
Tucked away on one of the less exciting stretches of Moscow’s Garden Ring, the Folk Art Museum, as it’s also known, is a diamond in the rough. From regional peasant dresses to carved housewares, from toys to decorative items, here you will find examples of everything associated with traditional Russian folk culture. The thematically-curated exhibits will take you from the steppes of Krasnodar to the forests of Siberia. The venue is intimate, blissfully crowd-less, and shares the space with a fun little Museum of Modern Russian History, itself worth a tour.
And:
It seems like half of Moscow’s restaurants aspire to be art cafes, so the term as applied in this city is somewhat nebulous. Nevertheless, if you want to have a coffee while looking at something interesting and pretty, Moscow has no shortage of spots to satisfy both demands.
More, including aforementioned cocktails, here: http://en.yell.ru/moscow/articles/232/
Fine, here is a little taste…
Home & Away 
I’ve just had raspberries for breakfast 🙂 The presentation wasn’t quite like yours….
At first I felt rather silly ordering a round of shots for myself. Then I tasted them – and was more than delighted by not having to share!
hey Anna
when will you do a post on your Latvian/Estonian adventure? Id love to read it and see the pictures of all the mushrooms and berries;)
Yes Anna, when!? I don’t want to see mushrooms and berries – want to see Riga and hear about ME 🙂
Such a narcissist… worry not, we will get there 🙂 Though… it will be mostly mushrooms and berries 😛
Bah 😉
Haha. Next up (after 2 “catch-up” posts) is going to be my trip to Belgium and the Netherlands, then probably another short Russian interlude, and then it will be the Baltics! I definitely did not expect Crimea to take 2.5 months of postings :))))) But worry not, there will probably be a whole total of 5 Baltics posts!
I prefer to drink my art as well.
But in Moscow you can do both at the same time so easily!
I need to go back to that cocktails place. They were DIVINE.
Do you mean double fisting?
Jesus Christ. Nothing THAT crass 😛
I think I’m adept at carrying artwork, one in each hand….
Any blogger worth their salt would recognize a fine cocktail as art – brava!
I had both of the mentioned cocktails tonight – the grapefruit mafia and the raspberry shooters.Yummmmmm……………