Bulgakov’s Moscow | Carleton Moscow & Beyond 2014

Yesterday, on our last full day in Moscow, Taya, Almeda, and I spent the afternoon looking around more of the places mentioned in Mikhail Bulgakov’s The Master and Margarita. I’m a big fan of the book, so I have no qualms writing another Bulgakov blog.

My travel companions on the staircase in Griboedov’s.

We found the Griboedov House (named after a famous writer, whose name unrelatedly translates to “mushroom eater”), home of Massolit, on Tverskoi Boulevard, which is split by a lovely strip of parks and greenery.

Looking into the complex’s courtyard. Photo from http://www.masterandmargarita.eu/en/04mappen/gribojedov.html.

In the book, Griboedov’s was this really cool dining hall with live jazz bands and a generally hopping atmosphere. On the second floor of Griboedov’s were the rooms and offices of Massolit, a fictional writer’s union which the late Berlioz was head of. Several other unfortunate characters work for Massolit, and two of Woland’s henchmen pay Griboedov’s a visit at the end of the novel.
The building, sometimes known as the Herzen House due to its being the birthplace of Russian writer Alexander Herzen, is now home to the Gor’kii Literary Institute, a place for aspiring writers to study and hone their craft.

It was really hot yesterday; we stuck to the shade as much as possible. A fence and gates blocked us off from the courtyard on the side facing the boulevard, but we made the long, hot trek around the block to go inside.

The hallways were pretty narrow and dark, and honestly fit the book’s first description of Massolit pretty well. I could imagine luxurious offices behind all the doors. Now though, as one would expect, you’ll find classrooms here.

It’s always a pleasure to go inside some of the random buildings you encounter across Moscow. They’re usually not what you’d expect, but incredibly interesting.

Further reading/sources:
http://www.masterandmargarita.eu/en/04mappen/gribojedov.html

Vinzavod (or Winzavod)
For the Night at the Museum, a world-wide event in which museums and art galleries open their doors for free, I was with Lily and Dilara at Vinzavod. The buildings of Vinzavod used to be part of a winery and some of the mechanical structures inside have been left as decoration to add an interesting atmosphere. There are even galleries in old wine cellars! Lily and Dilara covered much of what we saw, and I would like to bring attention to the graffiti. As far as graffiti goes, perhaps what is there is not anything special, but since I rarely see any graffiti at home in Northfield, all graffiti stands out to me. Sometimes graffiti is vandalism, and sometimes it is art. The graffiti at Vinzavod is part of the latter. In fact, the whole area is dedicated to Viktor Tsoi, the now deceased leader of Kino, a soviet rock band.

Some of the graffiti we saw at Vinzavod.

Bulgakov Museum
On Wednesday (May 21) the praktikantki took us on a tour of Bulgakov’s House, now a museum. Bulgakov is the author of The Master and Margarita, a book we read for class. On the way up to the floor of the museum, the walls were covered with renditions of characters from the book.

Behemoth – a cat that acts like a human.

Another rendition of Behemoth. In the beginning of the book, Behemoth boards a trolley while standing on two feet and even holds out his payment to the cashier, but she refuses him, yelling that no cats are allowed. Behemoth decides to hang on the outside of the trolley, getting a free ride. “С котами нельзя!” “Cats are not allowed!”

A depiction of Woland, the devil, with Behemoth’s paw prints nearby.

The Patriarch’s Ponds Area
On Sunday (May 11), Gretchen, Almeda and I set out to visit Patriarch’s Ponds, which is the opening setting of Bulgakov’s book. We found this interesting line drawing on our way there: