There are always some shady persons in Red Square - even a few foreigners!

As can be seen, Red Square is not red - the brick walls of the Kremlin (off the photo to the right) are red. Actually the "Red" part is either a purposeful or accidental translation error. The Old Russian word for "beautiful" was the same as the word for "red". In modern Russian, there is little difference between the two words. "Red Square" was originally named "Beautiful Square". One is not sure the original name applies any more than the current one. Perhaps the word similarity causes many Russian women to choose red for their most attractive wardrobe items - or maybe the cause-and-effect is reversed.

The light-colored building on the left is "GUM". During the Soviet era, GUM was the largest department store (government-operated of course) in the country. It is still probably the largest single retail building but now it houses the stores of businesses from all over the world - most of them "exclusive" or with well-known names, such as "Nike," Clinique, Abercrombie & Finch, etc. For some reasons, stores selling women's clothing and cosmetics predominate.

The ornate building in the background is St. Basil's cathedral - it is at one end of Red Square.