If Lenin’s Mausoleum left you a little uncertain about the fate of the USSR, GUM is a useful reminder of its passing. It sits across from the Kremlin on the opposite side of Red Square. The faux-medieval building was designed in 1890 to house the “Upper Trading Rows;” now, it has been refurbished to hold designer shops like Moschino and Hermes. Locals call it a “window-shopping mall,” and from what we saw, most of the shoppers were tourists slurping overpriced gourmet ice cream cones.
