Today I am halfway through my trip
to Rome and
Russia, after spending 3 days in
Italy, and 3 days in
Moscow.
Both the
Italian quilters and the
Russian quilters have gone out of their way to make me feel very welcome.
Sunday I gave a power point presentation at a quilt exhibition in
Moscow, to a full house with standing room only. The
Russian quilters were rapt with attention as I showed images of quilts from
Colorado, Houston, Tokyo,
Melbourne,
Ireland
and England. Then I photographed their quilts and their fashion show, and
promised to add some of those images to my presentation for next time, along
with the
Italian quilts I saw a couple days earlier.
I've been treated to
Georgian and Ukrainian
cuisine while visiting Moscow, and yesterday my hosts drove me out to an ancient monastery complex
outside of Moscow, where I was able to visit one of the most sacred sites in
Russia.
Today was a day I will never forget. I photographed the lake is
said to have inspired Tchaikovsky's Swan Lake, and paid my
respects at cellist
Rostropovich's grave. I visited the churches and museums of The Kremlin –
was totally blown away by the costume and textile exhibit there – and then
viewed the gorgeous interior medieval frescoes and multiple rooftop golden
cupolas of the Kremlin's Cathedral
Square. Truly, I have never seen anything like this. The riches boggle the
brain.
Then this evening I was driven out of town again to a dinner in a
private home. I was given a private
concert of Russian classical pieces, by an 86 year old UNESCO Gold Medal
Laureate pianist. (and holocaust survivor) They handed me a bunch of fragrant
white flowers, sat me in a chair next to his white baby grand, and he played
several pieces for me. Wow!
Then we had an amazing spread of homemade Ukrainian specialty foods,
served on a lace tablecloth, with an autumn centerpiece. Then my hostess (who
owns a quilt shop) brought out her collection of 18th century chatelaines.
This was a day that I will never forget.
And… it all came from
a mutual love of quilting.
If I am lucky I'll get 4 hours of sleep
tonight – then I'll have another day and evening of sightseeing and quilting
camaraderie. I am being taken to a textile museum which is closed for
renovation, but we have an appointment for a private showing of the collections
tomorrow afternoon.
Thursday I take a train to St Petersburg, where I'll
fulfill my dream of seeing the Hermitage in person.
Be sure to check my blog for daily updates
(please be patient if I fall behind for a couple days!) and of course there will
be plenty of photos to follow.
Many thanks to my hosts in
Moscow, and all my new quilting friends in Russia!
* This is a closeup of the
multicolored and faceted cupolas of St Basil's Cathedral in Red Square, Moscow.
Doesn't look like it was inspired by a quilt design?
