Only in Russia (part 4)

At first, I thought that it would be another disastous addition to the Moscow cityscape (since it is obvious that the last reasonable city planner in Russia has been in office years ago before the Glasnost); but the building which is still in construction turned out to be an indoor ski slope. (You can see this on the way to Arhangelskoye)

The result of brilliant Russian thinking, European materiel and Tadjik craftsmanship

In Dubai it makes sense, in Saudi Arabia it is totally logical because it is burning hot in the desert and the arabs don't want to waste time to flex their skiing muscles in switzerland (although golden clad, their supersonic jets also take time to reach the Alps); but in Russia ,where the Mother Earth hides under meters of snow agonizingly for months (before uncovering itself in the muddy thaw season), building an artificial ski slope looks like another crazy post-soviet russian extravaganza.

Soon Moscow will boast about another horrendous add-on to the horizon, Seven Sisters are already crying in shame.

Bu actually it is not. Moscow totally lacks elevation (like all the slavic heartland from the Polish border, Ukrainian basin and Russian plains (in short, the lands that Germans seized in a matter of months in 1941 Barbarossa Campaign) ) and elevation drives the gravity that makes the skiers enjoy the sport. So many Russians go to abroad for alpine skiing. The rich (I mean the real rich) go to Switzerland and the poor (if any) go to Turkey.

There is another ski-thing near Moscow University (in Sparrow Hills)

This lack of ski-able elevation in the neighborhood of the Moscopolis must have triggered some real-estate appetite so they have started building this odd-looking ski-thing. I wonder if they will have any kind of face control: I guess only prominent skiers with their Gucci ski-goggles and D&G skiwear with golden padded Rossignol skis will be allowed in...

Our President skies, so shall we