Yes, I am still sulking over the fact that Germany has been knocked out of the 2018 FIFA World Cup. It was something that none of the media representatives in the jam-packed media centre of Spartak Stadium could believe. The collective gasp, followed by the pin-drop silence in the media centre, spoke volumes. The very next moment everyone broke into a babble about what they had seen. 

The palpable tension lingered on despite the fact that the atmospherics for the next match between Brazil and Serbia was building up. However, once I stepped inside the Spartak Stadium, the Samba Boys created a wonderful atmosphere and Brazil delighted with an equally eye-pleasing performance.

Earlier in the day, I had planned to go watch the exhibition related to the FIFA World Cup history, but when I got down at the destined metro station, one building caught my attention. It was the Russian State Library, the largest in the country and fifth largest in the world, with its collection of about 47 million books and documents. It also has the biggest reading room in Europe, where I sat and read one of the e-books titled The Artist about Spain’s Andres Iniesta. 

It felt little strange to be in world’s fifth largest library and read something on your phone. Why did I do that? Firstly, I was just a visitor and secondly, if you seek a particular document, the average waiting time is approximately an hour. The document has to be fetched from a separate building adjacent to the main library building. 

One more thing that attracted me about the library was the view out of a window — one could see the Kremlin and the structures of the Red Square. I’m glad I could explore Moscow a bit. I hope to explore more in the next two-three days. 

(The writer shares his travel and tour experiences, and also catches the fun and revelry during the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia.)