Volgograd

My life is complete.

Mostly kidding, but I do feel like I crossed a major item of my bucket list.

Fun Facts:
-Volgograd's name has changed three times. Tsartsyn was the name before 1925. In 1925 the name was changed to Stalingrad and as per de-Stalinization, the name was changed to the current Volgograd.
-It's located on the Volga river. Just to clear that one up.
-It mostly famous because of the Battle of Stalingrad, the most deadly battle in all history.
-There are two structures that still exist in Volgograd from before the war: A preserved building, and a tree
-The Mamayev Kurgan, a massive war memorial complex with the tallest non-Buddha statue in the world, is there.
-The city is around 100 km. long, stretching along the Volga.

Getting to Volgograd was the absolute longest train ride ever. It was exactly 24 hours from Kazan to Volgograd and I couldn't wait to get off the train. This trip also marked my first time couchsurfing. My host, Roman, met with me at the train station and led me to his apartment. Roman was a really nice guy who knew quite a bit about the city. It was great chatting with him about history, politics, and just small talk.
My main purpose for going to Volgograd was to see the Mamayev Kurgan. I have been completely in love with that statue ever since I found out about her a couple years back. Since train tickets are so cheap here, and who knows when I'll be back, I absolutely couldn't miss this opportunity to visit.
Riding into the center of the city, the train passes directly in front of the Mamayev Kurgan and you get this wonderful view of the statue on the horizon for a good half hour. Needless to say, I was practically peeing myself on the train.

Actually visiting the statue is a completely different experience. The complex is located on a hill and the MetroTram literally drops you off at the base of this hill. There are 200 steps leading up to the top, symbolizing the 200 days of the battle, along with ramps. Get some street meat at the base, you know, for energy.
After about half the steps, you get to the first lake. The next set of stairs is in this corridor of reliefs where they play all sorts of patriotic music.
The next lake is the "Lake of Tears". In the summer, the lake overflows. Along the side of this lake, there are multiple statues representing the various stages of the battle. The last one being two Russian soldiers throwing a snake, Germany.

Past this lake is the entrance to the hall with the eternal flame. There is a changing of the guard about every hour or two, I think. The guards march very slowly up the ramp and are perfectly synchronized.  The inside of the hall is almost completely mosaic. During the day, really creepy music is played and the echo produced is quite unsettling.
And there she is. There are now but a few ramps between you and the statue. The ramps are lined with various grave stones.
The statue is self-supporting and does not have any sort of foundation; it is simply sitting on top of a hill. To put her size into perspective, from foot to torch the Statue of Liberty only comes up to the Motherland's waist. She is gigantic.
When I was there, I couldn't stop taking pictures. I was considering uploading an album of just her, but who really wants to look at a 100 pictures of the same thing?

While in Volgograd, I also went to the Panorama Museum. The museum is a history museum of the Battle of Stalingrad. Next to it is the only building still remaining from before the war, the remnants of a mill. The museum itself is fantastic, one of the most well-done museums I've been to in Russia. In the museum, they have Vasily Zaytsev's sniper rifle (the sniper on which the film "Enemy at the Gates" is loosely based), and the sword of Stalingrad (the sword given to the city by Winston Churchill). The very top of the museum is a 360 degree panorama of the city during the war. It's painted on the walls and on the floor they have constructed dugouts and other 'war thingies'.

I spent the rest of my time walking down the main streets and the embankment, which in any city, is something I find enjoyable.

Overall, Volgograd was a very pleasant to place to visit; it's cheap, the people are nice, and it's just a good place to walk around. That being said, there really wasn't too much to do and I'm glad I was only there for two days.