The Greek seeks a Doctor

Recently I convinced the Greek it was time for me to have a little sabbatical from the monotonous daily ritual of life in Moscow. Don’t get me wrong we enjoy our life here but I need to get to my friends in Dubai and be pampered accordingly. It was time for some manicures, pedicures, massages and girl time at an affordable price unlike Moscow.The Greek can be a little too manly and noisy at times and it’s always nice we have a little break especially when living in a one bed apartment.

So off to Dubai I went to see the girls and eat all that wonderful Arabic food and most importantly shop and save at least 30% for the same goods in Moscow. I organised to meet some friends from Australia whilst in Dubai so the whole trip was going to be a great 12 day…… ME TIME!

I made sure the Greek had enough work shirts and I also spent the last four days stacking up the freezer with portioned controlled delicacies so he wouldn’t miss out on too much and deter him from the 100 fast food places outside out apartment. All was in place…yeah right?!
On the fourth day I got a photo on my mobile of a swollen foot, you guessed it, the Greeks! Was it a broken foot or a sprained ankle or even worse a blood disorder? It hasn’t been snowing so why would he fall?

The Greek decided to cook up a batch of spaghetti, stay with me, and he decided a great sauce would include a chicken liquid stock suitable for one litre of water. He had it in a frying pan with the juices of bacon. The rest is history and he ended up with his first attack of Gout…(rich man syndrome….as in rich food)!!!

For those that don’t know what that is, the best way to explain it is a swollen foot that has a thousand knives in the inside trying to get out. He couldn’t walk and I now know he can’t cook either. What it did do was for him to test out the medical and hospital system in Moscow.

He ended up taking a taxi to a European Medical Centre. It was modern clean and very well attended. The service was excellent. He had x-rays, blood tests and therapy all with in a time span of 45 minutes, not bad at all. They asked him to purchase a special sock to wear for 79 Rubles as he thought! It was a European Hospital and the price 79 was Euros! But it is a great relief for me to know we have a good medical centre here in Moscow that spoke English and were efficient.

So for the next two days the Greek hobbled, crawled and grimaced in pain while I was shopping and drinking away his sorrow with the girls in Dubai. By the fifth day one of the reasons that I didn’t miss Dubai started to take its toll, the HEAT, the temperature was nearing the 50 degree mark.

Anyway I am back, the Greek is back to walking normal, the weather in the city of Moscow is a perfect 22 degrees celsius even though the russians are complaining that someone stole their summer and we love the White Nights.

It is nice to be back……..but not for long as we prepare for a two week break to Greece!

Old Moscow Circus

One of the amazing things about living in Moscow is how different a city it is seasonally. Winter has one face and spring has another. One of our favourite shopping centres is on Tsvetnoy Boulevard called Tsvetnoy Central Market where I love the fashion and the Greek loves the food. This centre is attached less than 50 metres from the metro so during winter it is a mad dash to the entrance, but what a difference spring makes!

We decided to venture past the centre and see what else was in the surrounding area. Well low and behold we came across a building that had a life size bronze statue of a Charlie Chaplin type character and a convertible from the 40’s. People were taking photos and they had genuine smiles of memories from this imposing figure. Well as it turns out the building was………….a circus! Yes we stumbled onto the Old Moscow Circus in the middle of the city. For the Greek and myself it bought back childhood memories and the many times this troupe visited our homeland over the years and now here we were in front of what we believe to be one the world’s best circuses.
With a sense of adventure we skilfully overcame the strenuous ordeal of purchasing tickets in our bad Russian which consisted of smiles, grunts and sign language and a no credit card policy. Yes you have to pay in cash in case you ever wish to visit. For good seats we paid $50US each and the cheapest is the back row at $13US making it affordable for everyone.

In the lobby there were baby crocodiles, huskies, a cheetah and a Tiger all available for you to have your photo taken with them. We tried to take our own photo but this was met with a stern “NYET”!

We proceeded to enter the main arena and sat on what I would describe as one of the hardest seats I have ever sat on, we were in for a long night. I read on their very outdated website that it was a one and three quarter hour show…….more like two and a half hours! But this was all forgotten quickly, as there was a huge orchestra to accompany the performers, colourful lights, acrobats, bears……yes that’s right poor booboo bears, dogs, ferrets, foxes, lions, magicians and a sense of euphoric nostalgia that only the old Moscow circus could deliver.

But then it struck me as to why I hadn’t been to a circus for such a long time, CLOWNS, they scare the bejeevies out of me! I never told the Greek this before and now I had to face up to them and tell him the secret I had hidden. Why do these people put on funny clothes and make-up and feel the only way they can entertain you is by beating each other up; but what scares me the most is that parents force you to watch them! As I prepared to see these scary monsters appear I was relieved and pleasantly surprised to see they didn’t exist in this fashion in a Moscow circus. Don’t get me wrong they have clowns but they have no scary make up and are funny without beating themselves up, what a relief.

Any way our Circus experience was worth every rouble and I would put it as a must do when visiting this incredible and yet surprising city we currently call home!