Compass points East: my Experience in Moscow.

Last August I left the sun of Italy and I landed in a windy and rainy Moscow. When I announced that I was going to spend my Erasmus in Russia, many of my friends were astonished. "You'll freeze to death", "There is nothing to eat" (primal concern as I'm italian), "Russians are not friendly people" are only some remarks that were echoing in my head as I was landing.

So why did I choose it? I wanted my Erasmus to be different from the "classic" Spain-UK-France experience. I wanted to push myself further with a different culture, a different language and see how it would have been. Also, I never considered Russia before because we don't study much about it, its history, so I started to be genuinely interested in it. Plus the university I chose, MGIMO, the Moscow State Institute for International Relations, is the most elitist and prestigious university in Russia. But to be honest, I can't quite understand how I made what at the time felt such a brave choice.

So how was it? My life in Moscow left me with the impression of having lived a vivid dream. Six months are quite a long time and now that they are over, they feel so distant as if belonging to another life. What I remember most about my experience is the tiny, significant moments, the details that I will carry with me forever: the first rainy day on the Red Square, the big stones of the pavement shining under my feet; the bells from Kazan Cathedral, whose sound is so different from the gloomy echo of the ones we have in Europe, as they sing like thousands of nightingales. Walking at midnight by the Moscova river, three layers of clothes on and the snowflakes that create a soft aura around the buildings, as if i was standing in front of a mirage in a cold desert; the sky above the Cremlin at night that is not always dark, but sometimes, because of all the lights, deep red (and one can appreciate the irony of it). The colorful winter lights on Tverskaya Street, this is wonderland. My friend walking barefoot in the snow; the golden dome of the Cathedral of the Spilled Blood; the orthodox priests, covered in precious stones like gods, chanting antique rhymes. The cold snow and the hot gretchka, the traditional buckwheat dish that my Kazakh roommate used to serve in winter mornings. Even the Soviet buildings in the outskirts of town, they look so tall and grey (but deep down you love their serious attire).

Russians don't believe in smiles, they are so quiet and the metro is always very silent. But after a while you realize that for them a smile is something that comes from the heart so you really have to feel it and the silence in the metro between Prospekt Vernedskogo and Biblioteka Imeni Lenina doesn't bother you anymore, it's just the strange comfort you feel around strangers calling you "tavarish" (comrade). The language itself, sounding so smooth and beautiful in your mouth when you actually manage to mumble some words.

Many say that Moscow is not as beautiful as Saint Petersburg but through the affectionate eyes of a six-months Muscovite, I saw that there is much to discover and if you are bold enough to go outside the tourist routes, places of incredible beauty await you. Moscow is a city costantly looking for its identity, waiting to embrace either West or East, a bridge between two continents that is in reality part of neither as it doesn't share a tradition with Asia and was always treated as "other' by Europe.

Moscow and Russia gave me so much in terms of personal growth and there I was lucky enough to meet people who made this time unforgettable and made me feel at home. I really felt like i belonged there and I can't say that about many other places.

My recommendations: for food, try Russian pelmeni (kind of ravioli), blinis (little crêpes), strogonoff beef, but try also to discover more about other CIS countries like Uzbek, Kazakh (plof rice! ) and delicious Georgian food (and for Georgian the top place is Saperavi Cafe near Chistye Prudi). If you're Italian don't be so disappointed in the Soviet Ice Cream (Marojenoye).

For places, The Red Square is an obvious choice but try to walk around Tverskaya, Kitai Gorod and Chistye Prudi at night is just amazing to visit. The State Museum in the Red Square and the 1814 Museum are my favourite. The park of Tsaritsyno is beautiful in autumn but also Park Pobedi is very nice and the museum about WWII is interesting. VDNKH hosts a permanent exibition from Soviet countries and in summer has fountains and pavilions but in winter there are also ice skating rinks all over town!