By Stephen G. Henderson , Special to the Sun|June 08, 2008
I'm a child of the Cold War -- the old one with the Soviet Union, that is, not the new frost toward Iran. So, a few months back, after I checked into Moscow's Hotel Baltschug Kempinski, a view from my room's window set my heart -- and nerves -- racing. Straight ahead were the brightly colored onion domes of St. Basil's Cathedral, as well as the forbidding fortifications surrounding the Kremlin.
It was a photo opportunity not to be missed. Angling my camera to get both sights into one frame, I climbed on top of a radiator cover. A moment later, it collapsed off the wall, and I came crashing down, bruising my arms, which smarted for the next several days. Moscow!
This mishap proved portentous, as this is a city of sharp (and bruised) elbows. It has something of the feel of a gold-rush town -- Moscow is crackling with con artists and nouveau riche poseurs.
Forbes magazine estimates there are 53 billionaires in Russia, worth a total of $283 billion, and a "second tier" of 103,000 Russian millionaires, worth $670 billion. Hardly a surprise, then, that the country's capital is muscling its way onto the world stage as a cultural center and playground.
Costly building projects, including the lavish renovation of the Bolshoi Ballet Theater and the recently-opened Ritz-Carlton Hotel, are visible everywhere. During my visit, Donatella Versace, Tom Ford and other fashion heavyweights were in town, participating in the Millionaire Fair, a trade show of luxury brands for newly rich Russians. Latest craze? Over-the-top weekend houses, or dachas, for the wealthiest Muscovites.
So rife is ruble-mania in Moscow that I was subjected twice in two days to the same con by a pair of crooks. One rushes past and drops a thick wad of money, while his partner engages a bystander (me) in eye-rolling incredulity at such carelessness, before enlisting assistance in returning this cash to its "loser." During the hearty gratitude that follows, the good Samaritan gets his pocket picked.
"Russians are a little like children. As soon as they discover something new - and right now, it's money - they get really, really excited about it," said Roxanne Chatounovsky, a marketing executive I met one evening while dining at Nedalny-Vostok, a popular chic restaurant in Moscow.
"Luxury brands only became available here about 15 years ago," she added, "but already there are now a lot of Russians who have made their money so easily, they don't even know what work is."
