A Postcard A Day - Tuesday 18 February 2025 - T for lots of books and an underground shopping centre in Moiscow

Hello lovely peeps,

Wow, that week went fast. And although it was a fairly routine week, it flew by.

And here we are on Tuesday. The T-Party. I will feature a drink later, but first a postcard:

It shows Manege Square in Moscow. Wikipedia writes: The Manezhka (as it is familiarly known) had its origins in Moiseyevskaya Square, which was formed in 1798 in consequence of the demolition of the medieval Moiseyevsky Monastery which had stood on the banks of the muddy Neglinnaya River since the times of Ivan the Terrible. Although the river was later culverted, the neighbourhood remained crammed with public houses and taverns, which gave the area its infamous nickname of "Moscow's belly".

A decision was reached in 1932 to pull down these "ugly relics of the bourgeois lifestyle" in order to make room for Communist meetings and demonstrations. As a result, the 19th-century Grand Hotel and several Neoclassical mansions by Osip Bove were dismantled, whereupon the Moiseyevskaya Square was expanded to its present size and renamed Manezhnaya after the Moscow Manege it now abutted upon.

Notwithstanding its new name, the eastern side of the square came to be dominated by another building, the newly built Hotel Moskva, a hybrid of several styles, most notable for its huge proportions and uptight look.

In August 1991, Manezhnaya Square (its name by then restored) became a venue for great demonstrations celebrating the fall of Communism after the abortive Soviet coup attempt of 1991. More recently, it made the news in connection with riots following the Russia national football team's defeat at the 2002 FIFA World Cup. The place became a stage of rioting again in December 2010, when thousands of youth representing football fans and/or those who support nationalist slogans held a rally at Manezhnaya which turned violent. It made the square's name common in media when it comes to growth of nationalist sentiments in modern Russia.

During the 1990s Moscow mayor Yury Luzhkov had the square closed to traffic and substantially renovated. The centrepiece of the refurbished square is a four-story underground shopping mall and parking lot, surmounted by a rotating glass cupola, which forms a world clock of the Northern hemisphere with major cities marked and a scheme of lights below each panel to show the progression of the hour. On the top of the cupola is an equestrian statue of Saint George and the Dragon, the symbol of Moscow.

Another innovation is the former river-bed of the Neglinnaya River, which has become a popular attraction for Muscovites and tourists alike, especially on sultry summer days. The course of the river (which now really flows underground) is imitated by a rivulet dotted with fountains and statues of Russian fairy-tale characters, as sculpted by Zurab Tsereteli. In 1995, Vyacheslav Klykov's equestrian statue of Marshal Zhukov was unveiled in front of the State Historical Museum to mark the 50th anniversary of the Moscow Victory Parade of 1945, when the Soviet commander had spectacularly ridden a white stallion through Red Square and Manege Square.

Have any of you been to Russia? I haven't. It doesn't attract me much.My son and daughter in law wanted to go to St Petersburg on their honeymoon, but they didn't get their visas in time and afterwards they never went.

The stamps are spectacular:

The one on the right is a painting by S.V.Monashov called 'Firebird'. On the left is the locomotive of the Ruskeala Express.

On the Internet I found this: This unique retro train, the only one in Russia powered by a steam locomotive, takes you back to the late 19th century. Luxurious carriages with imperial interiors immerse you in an atmosphere of history and elegance.

▫️The route winds through picturesque Karelia, ending at the famous Ruskeala Mountain Park, where breathtaking marble canyons and nature’s magic await.
▫️For a special experience, don’t miss the retro-style photo compartment! Capture moments that will be the highlight of your gallery.

Well, nothing much has happened here in southern Spain. I've been reading in the sun. It's really nice when the sun is out and it is cold inside but warm outside in the sun. So every afternoon I allow myself to read.

The last book I finished a couple of days ago was really good. It was a thriller called Postcard Killers by James Patterson (together with Lisa Marklund). 

It's about a serial killer killing young couples and then sending a postcard to a newspaper. Right from the start we know that the killers are actually a couple, seemingly husband snd wife, who travel all over Europe, befriend other couples and then kill them. Then there is an American detective who travels to Sweden and a Swedish female journalist who gets involved.

I enjoyed it very much and found it difficult to put down.

The other book I am reading (I read more than one at a time as I have one book on Kindle and another one lying about the house) is Never by Ken Follett. It is a 'fat' tome and when I saw the word 'political thriller' I decided that was not my thing. But Ken Fllett always spins a good yarn so I started it and got hooked as it is not terribly political. 

This is what I found online about it: "Set in a version of the present day, Never charts several different major events with the power to cause a global upheaval: a pair of agents trailing terrorists in the Sahara; a Chinese spymaster with political ambitions; a woman being trafficked by people smugglers; the United States' first female president navigates a minefield while dueling her blustering political opponent. Eventually, events spiral that could lead to conflict that could cause the end of the world." I have nearly finished it (One more chapter to go) snd I have loved every exciting bit of it. 

Then last month I read The Bookshop Ladies:

Joy Blackwood has no idea why her French art dealer husband has left a valuable painting to a woman called Robyn Tessier in Ballycove, a small town on the west coast of Ireland, but she is determined to find out.

She arrives in Ballycove to find that Robyn runs a rather chaotic and unprofitable bookshop. She is shy, suffering from unrequited love for dashing Kian, and badly in need of advice on how to make the bookshop successful.

It's very much a woman's book. Not really my cup of tea but it was a feel-good story with loveable characters set in Ireland.

Another book about friendship is this one I read recently:

Jo Sorsby is hiding from her past when she agrees to run her uncle’s beloved stationery shop. Glimpsing the lives of her customers between the warm wooden shelves, as they scribble little notes and browse colourful notebooks, distracts her from her bruised heart.

When she meets Ruth, a vicar running from a secret, and Malcolm, a septuagenarian still finding himself, she suddenly realizes she isn’t alone.

I liked this one better although it's another women's book. It was quite moving in places and the characters were really well drawn. I could visualise them and I felt like I knew them.

Then there was The Swimmer:

Socially awkward Chloe Cooper divides her time between dog walking, bartending, caring for her ailing mother, and at a safe distance, watching people and inventing the stories of their lives. Like Chloe's new neighbors: glamorous influencer Jemma Spengler and Jemma's husband, Adam, a renowned surgeon. They're attractive, wealthy, and in a house of open windows, so exposed.

A move to the Pacific Northwest is supposed to be a fresh start for Jemma and Adam. It's a renewed commitment to a marriage fractured by secrets. A chance to work through the tragic losses in their past. For Jemma, however, this new beginning also comes with an unnerving sensation that she's being watched.

I started reading this but I have set it aside and haven't finished it. I found it weird. Well, the protagonist is weird.Has anyone read this? What is your opinion?

Now as today I'll be joining the T-Party hosted by Elizabeth and Bluebeard, I need something drink related.

This looks like me in the morning....

I'm going to leave you with another photo of my cat Ronnie:

Sorry this blog post was rather long. 

Happy T-Day all,

Lisca