Since our event in Yekaterinburg was still in the evening, we had some free time to go around the city on Day 02.

As we already did a quick tour the day before, we had no itinerary that day and decided to just walk around.  We stayed at Novotel, which was really convenient because it’s just walking distance from the bank, the mall, and Yekaterinburg’s attractions.

This is our view of Vysotsky Skyscraper from our room.  Vysotsky is the tallest building in Russia outside of Moscow.  Technically, it is not the tallest structure in Yekaterinburg as an unfinished TV tower that I shared on my previous post holds this distinction.

After changing some USD into rubble, we decided to look for a mall because my colleague, Olga, needed stockings.  Thankfully, she’s Russian so I needn’t worry about asking for directions and just had to follow her lead.

We passed by the unfinished TV tower that I mentioned earlier on our way to the mall.

The weather was dreary, so the skyline looked bleak.  And boy, was it cold, but not too cold, so it was okay (it’s actually a nice experience for me as I have always lived in a tropical country where it’s always hot).

We also passed by this river, which I think is the same river that flows into the Weir.

As I was working on this post, I noticed that if only we went straight ahead, I would have been directed to the same locations we visited a day prior. I can tell by the river and the dome-shaped architecture; by the way, the dome-shaped building is Yekaterinburg Circus, one of the city’s landmarks (the unfinished TV tower is beside it and both are visible from the main photo from this post).

Walking around Yekaterinburg was actually relaxing because of the cold weather.  That, and because of views like the river and these colorful trees.

I don’t know what this building is, but Olga said it’s some sort of government building.

This is just another random shot taken while waiting for the stoplight to turn green.

In a way, Yekaterinburg reminded me of our province.  It’s obviously still not as urbanized as Moscow or St. Petersburg. And yes, my hometown also has some electrical wires that are evident in the above photo.

Aaand finally, we reached our destination, which was Yekaterinburg Greenwich Mall.  It’s right at the city center and at its entrance was this sculpture.

Inside the mall were other statues like the ones below, though I was more interested in its ceiling of gifts.

After Olga bought her stockings (I couldn’t believe I forgot my hair ties so I had to buy a pack at almost USD 5!), we had lunch.

We ate at the mall’s food court where we got to pick among their already prepared food.  I really had no idea about what I was putting on my tray, but I did my best to choose what seemed familiar to me: some sort of chicken pie, lasagna, salad, and of course, dessert.

Thankfully, my meal was really good, especially the chicken pie and the dessert.  Russia’s sweets actually became my favorite during this trip.

On our way back, we passed by the same route and these were just some of my views.

I also got to see these old wooden houses. Too bad the views were ruined by the many electrical wires.

Come Day 03, we had an early flight to St. Petersburg so we didn’t get to see more of Yekaterinburg, but I did get to take photos from my bus’ window seat.

The clouds were looking so defined that day.

And I don’t know what these trees are, but they sure looked pretty.

A typical view at the still rustic Yekaterinburg.

And lastly, one of my favorites from this set: