Groznyy, Chechnya, Russian FederationMIR Trip Notes: Day 7 - Grozny and Lake Kezenoy
Today take some time to explore more of Grozny, and meet with one of the city's traditional singing ensembles to hear their songs.
Drive some 55 miles out of town to beautiful high-altitude Lake Kezenoy-am, stopping first in Argun to admire its high-tech new mosque. The Haja Aymani Kadyrova Mosque, named after the Chechen president's mother, was inaugurated in 2014. The modern mosque is lit at night with hundreds of bright lights and a nearby fountain glows in the darkness.
Arrive at Lake Kezenoy-am, set at 6,000 feet, and shared by Chechnya and Dagestan. Reflecting the surrounding are mountains when the sky is clear, the lake us sometimes enveloped in fog. It is the largest lake in the North Caucasus.
Dinner and overnigh at the lodge, Kezenoy-am Hotel.
Kezenoy-Am Hotel, Kezenoy-Am Lake Russia,Phone: + 7 (928) 000-72-78
Meals: B,L,D
Driving time: 3-4 hrs.
July 21: Drive to Lake Kezenoy through mountains
of Chechnya
So breakfast started at 7 am but I was
a bit late because I had wanted to write up yesterday's blog since I
had extra time – having given up showering and washing my hair
because the water was too cold for me.
So I did manage to blog
on-line. (So I wonder what happened to it?) Then I went down to breakfast and joined Kay and others.
Kay ended up staying until I was finished. We had an 8:45 departure
so I made sure I was there shortly after 8:30 am. This has been a
very prompt group.
We had the minibus for our Grozny tour.
We met our new local guide the famous Vladimir – ethnologist,
journalist, producer and photographer, who moonlights as a tour guide
to make a living. He has two articles for National Geographic this
year and was editor of the Russian version of the magazine. So he
gave us some background and then we boarded the mini-bus for a city
tour. First stop was the mosque. I almost skipped this part to
visit the gardens next to the hotel, but Michel said we could stop
there later if we had time. We were to see a monument as well so I figured I
might miss something if I gave the mosque a pass. I hear some pop
music outside my window/balcony since I have the window open.
The monument was dedicated to the memoryof those deported and also to policemen who died in counter-terrorist operations. Vlad pointed out a bunch of holes dug into the ground and said that there had been monuments in those places and they were suddenly removed one night and no one knows what happened to them. It was interesting but I wouldn't have minded missing it. We also saw
a bombed out electrical station designed by a German man. Vlad told
us that the architect's daughter studied Russian to visit the site
when she was in her 80's. There was a story of a German or German
family that suffered a great deal as a result of being German in
Russia during the war.
We then visited two museums – the National Museum of the Chechen Republic that had photos of soldiers and dead soldiers and the Akhmad Kadyrov Museum with
lots of photos of the current president and his father. There was
also a fair bit of military memorabilia and children's pioneer camp
and other political things. Then we also passed a number of notable
buildings on our route, including a fake Macdonalds restaurant that
serves pizza because Chechens like pizza (and sushi).
We stopped for lunch where we were
served some Chechnyan food family style. I was very happy with what
I had – once I got some food – pumpkin Chechyan pie, noodles and
sausage, and a very nice salad. At Michel's request we stopped at at the Ramazotti Cafe owned by a friend of Vladimir's to which he has introduced his
friends and journalists. Vlad and Michel went around getting
everyone's order but skipping the invisible woman so I ordered mine myself –
a frappuccino. It was good. Then we went briefly next door to a
shop selling t-shirts and cell phone covers that they designed. No
soccer shirt for Theo – unfortunately. I couldn't even get him a
cell phone cover because I didn't know the size of his phone....even
if he would have liked one. When we came back, we got into a
conversation with a young man and woman. She (Linda) was an art student
and Davoud was a milk scientist or technician – he had another word
– he had studied it in college and was now working in Nal'chik in
K-B republic.
He spoke very good english and she too but she spoke
less – being shy – although she denied it. They were wonderful
to talk to . Kay asked if they were dating and Linda was equivocal
but Davoud seemed sure (or hopeful) that they were. We had some
photo ops before we left.
We then went to the top of a building
adjacent to our hotel that has an observation deck. We looked over
the city except for the direction of the president's palace. The
railing was marked red indicating that no photos were to be taken in
that direction. It is kind of a cult of personality as the son has
replaced his father as revered leader, after the father was
assassinated. The son was allowed to become president at 27
years even though the laws originally said 30. After that we walked
back to our hotel. Bob had skipped the city tour and gone to the
garden. He promised to send me some pics if I sent him an email
reminder a few days after the end of the trip. So I was Ok with our
tour not going to the garden. Or was I really??
We got our luggage out of the left
luggage room and met our Jeep drivers and loaded up and got underway.
The drivers do most of the work. It was good to see Rustam again.
The Jeep was pristine – the dashboard was polished to a shine
almost. We had a 3-hr drive to the lake in the mountains. But we
had a few stops to make. The first was the new mosque named after
the current president's mother. It is constructed of glass and
very modern.
The women in our group went to put on the dresses and
headscarves – either our own or borrowed – to go into the mosque.
We went to the ladies gallery. The mosque is quite beautiful with
lots of light and color. Kay was shocked that Vlad was drinking (nothing alcoholic though) while
in the mosque. We could look down on the main mosque floor and take
photos. Kay, Betty, Judy and I had our photos taken in our matching
– except for Judy- dresses. Anya graciously took a few photos of
us.
We made another stop at a spring with a
statue of a horse and a man. We stopped at an overlook at the lake
but by then it had misted over and we really couldn't see much.
After leaving Grozny where it was virtually flat, we headed for
distant mountains. Once we approached them, we crossed from one
valley to another over windy roads. Most of the mountains was
deforested. I asked and Rustam said it was due to animals' grazing.
If we stopped again – and we might have – I don't remember at the
moment.
We finally reached the hotel and
checked in. Most of our rooms are on the 2nd floor and we
had to carry our bags up. I took my daypacks and Rustam carried up
my bigger bag. Michel had said our rooms would be basic. They
aren't that bad – a little skimpy on the sockets. I couldn't find
the bedroom light switch hidden behind the wardrobe. But the
funniest thing is that the sink overlaps the toilet. The shower
appears modern and quite large.
We had 20 minutes to get downstairs for
dinner so that we could snag seats for the dance performance. Once
Jim and I had sat down to await the performance, Vlad told us that
the performers had forgotten about it and were trying to get here.
The rest of the group arrived, another table added on – on what
might have been the dance floor. I ordered too much food again –
Chechnyan dumplings and grilled vegetables – these were different in
that they were whole. I waited and waited for the dumplings. People
around me started leaving, so I drank down my water. Michel said he
would send the dumplings up when they arrived – he ended up
delivering them himself. They were quite good as were the
vegetables. There were quite a few meals that did not appear in a
timely fashion. Quite a few people were complaining. Kay skipped
dinner. She was still suffering from the effects of the banya experience.
I got back to my room and tried to find
the lights. I couldn't find the bedroom light so I knocked on
Betty's door and she showed me it was behind the wardrobe. Hence I
have had light to write up this blog. I did my facebook and gmail
photos for the day. I am tired enough that I will go to bed by 10:30
I hope and also hope I wake up in time to take a shower and wash my
hair without fail tomorrow. I hear someone using a microphone
outside my widow but the music and talking had stopped for a few
seconds – the music is now back. It sounds like a DJ or is it a
live band?? I will try to go to sleep regardless. (I had gone over this blog earlier but it seems that my edits were not saved. I wonder why? Maybe the same reason that the entire blog disappeared a day or two ago.))
2025-05-22