Happy 4th of July!

Happy Fourth of July, Americans. 

As the United States celebrates its independence from a monarchy, I celebrated my weekend visiting relics of a failed political system: Lenin, Stalin (that bastard),  Krushchev (that fool) Brezhnev, Andropov, and Chernenko.

On Saturday, I finally got to see Vladimir Lenin, or at least a waxy representation of him. I admit that I've wanted to view his body since I learned about him in high school history class. But then it was a cool idea because the Cold War was still on, Reagan was in office, Perestroika had yet to begin and it sounded risky and exciting. However, 25 years later it was a major letdown. It was as if I gained entrance to a state-sanctioned freak show to see a man's body whose ideals began evaporating the moment he seized power in 1917. I haven't figured out why Russia continues to treat Lenin nostalgically because he is the same man who immediately created the brutal secret police (the Cheka) and instituted the Red Terror against his opponents once taking power. He is no George Washington, yet his likeness is all around the city on busts, T-shirts, murals, paintings, etc.

Viewing his body was worth every penny. There is no charge to see Lenin. You have to stand a long line with other tourists. (Most Russians don't bother to view his "body" any longer.) Ironically, the line stretched all the way from Red Square to the McDonald's (I'm not kidding.) After queuing through the mausoleum, the formality I mentioned the other day has decreased considerably in the past five years according to my group leader. There are far fewer guards, the line became single file, the few guards in the mausoleum looked bored and were not at full attention. My guess is the "show" is getting old and in a few years they will finally bury this charade once and for all.

After standing in the bright sunlight for an hour, it is a shock to walk into the mausoleum because it is so dark. I began shuffling my feet on the marble floor because I knew there were steps coming up. The room is about 30 x 30 feet with a guard posted on each corner. The line queues around three sides of Lenin's sarcophagus. Once I entered the room I found myself staring at the guard to gauge his reaction to the tourist. He looked bored. I then looked at the "body." It is just as it appears in pictures. His skin is ghostly-white, his right hand is in a gentle fist and his left is laid out, palm down. As I passed the left side of his body I leaned in slightly to look at the skin on his face and it appeared as if it had way to much pancake makeup. Gross is the most elegant word I can muster. And, as I passed around him I consciously began thinking that I had NO reverence at all for this man. The only reason I am viewing the body is probably the same for many non-Russians, morbid curiosity.

Leaving the mausoleum the line is directed along the wall of the Kremlin where name plates list those people  interred in the Kremlin wall, and then finally you pass the row of highest Soviet honor, burial at the Kremlin. These include those that succeeded Lenin: Stalin, Brezhnev, Andropov, and Chernenko. Each has a marble bust. No matter which direction I looked at Stalin, I'm convinced his bust's eyes followed me. Very creepy, but fitting for the paranoid bastard. (Below is the marble bust of Stalin. Once again, I don't understand why Russia continues to pay any respect to this man's memory. I know there are old hard-line communist who would prefer Stalin to Putin, Medvedev and the current government, but at some point the bust has to go. There have already been many likenesses of Stalin that have been removed from the Metro and other places.)

On Sunday I traveled to view Khrushchev's grave at Novodevichy Cemetery, which is one the outskirts of the city. While the location is ancient and beautiful, it isn't as impressive as being buried at the Kremlin. Of course, if Stalin was buried in a publicaly accessible area, his grave would have been destroyed by now. For the leader of the Soviet Union I was surprised at how simple Khrushchev's grave is, especially when I compare it with other nearby graves of high-ranking Soviet political and military leaders. (More on this later.)

This is the first Fourth of July that I have every spent on foreign soil, and after having spent the past two days reflecting upon this country's terrible past experiences with brutal leaders, I am thankful for the United States, the Bill of Rights, elected leadership, and representational democracy. Despite the blemishes and the occasional hiccups, the U.S. form of government sure beats dictatorship and repression.

Khrushchev's Gravestone

Side Notes:

Besides visiting Novodevichy Cemetery on Sunday, I spent four hours in the morning riding the Metro taking photos of various decorations that were installed during Stalin's time. The pictures are published here. I will continue to take more photos next Sunday, when there are the fewest people in the Metro. I plan to use the photos to develop a unit on Stalin's use of architecture and propaganda from 1935 to 1953.

As an aside, it appears the mullet haircut, which had been on a steep decline in the U.S., is making its comeback here in Russia.  I've seen some major mullets this past week. (I feel like I'm back in Kentucky at times.) Also, camouflage seems to be a popular fashion print for both men and women. The trifecta will be a man wearing camoflage, sporting a mullet with a wad of chewing tobacco in his mouth. Yee-hah!