Vladimir and Suzdal

With less than a month left to go, another excursion is marked off the list. We traveled to Vladimir and Suzdal this weekend by tour bus. The tour bus part reminded me so much of my travels to Europe but I actually stayed awake on the bus tour! :)
In Vladimir, the highlights included all of the cats that I saw and the playground. Yes, we saw some cathedrals and those are nice to look at and appreciate, but the memorable moments come with doing fun things with your friends like sticking your hand in a fountain and cutting your finger on a soviet playground. After spending a few hours in Vladimir we went to a large grocery store called Globus. This store was amazing. It was large, clean and had everything you could possible need plus a place to eat. My friend Doria and I bought macaroni and cheese to cook for dinner. After shopping we went back on the bus to Suzdal.

When we got to Suzdal we pulled up down an dirt road and got off the bus. There were a lot of old houses, beautiful green grass, mud, clean air, and I smelled horse poop right off. If I closed my eyes I would have thought I was back home. Suzdal reminded me so much of where I grew up. It was a small town with not many places to eat, a river, wooden bridges, gravel and farm land. I had forgotten how wonderful it felt to be someplace quiet and relaxing. The hostel was the best. I encourage anyone that goes to Suzdal to stay in a hostel called Godzillas.
http://godzillashostel.com/suzdal/
Doria and I started cooking our Macaroni using an electric tea pot to heat the water and then letting the pasta sit in the hot water. We started cutting up the cheese when I realized it was Parmesan cheese and it would never melt. We literally ran through the woods and up a hill to get back to town to buy cheese. On our way we saw a fox! We ran back and made some delicious macaroni and cheese. We finished the night by playing a Russian card game and tasting 'medovukha' which is a honey based beer or alcohol that is made and is very popular in that area. To me, it tasted like an apple juice but with honey.
The next day we toured the rest of the town seeing a wooden village, learning how Russians lived in the past, and visiting a cathedral and a monastery. After, we had an hour or so,  so we ate business lunch at a restaurant and then went to a craft fair. At 3pm we were back on the bus and heading back to Moscow. We got home around 8:30.

I really liked Suzdal because it reminded me a lot of where I grew up. I really love being outside with fresh air and green grass, or sitting over a bridge looking at the water. I even like walking on gravel and petting horses in a field. I guess no matter where I move to or how far I go away from home, there is a little piece of home in every country and Suzdal was definitely it. I literally felt like I was 10 years old again.
If anyone is in Russia and looking for a nice quiet place to get away for a weekend, Suzdal is definitely the place!