By Wendy Perrin

Congrats to winner Seafarer and runner-up Tracker1312 for guessing the mystery museum pictured in Thursday's post: Moscow's Pushkin Museum of Fine Arts.  Its collection contains 750 replicas of the "world's best art":  About a century ago, the head of Moscow State University decided that his students, who were too poor to travel outside Russia, ought to be exposed to the world's artistic masterpieces anyway. So he sent Russian artists to museums and monuments worldwide and had them create exact replicas of what the University deemed were the greatest sculptural and architectural works.  Pretty weird, huh?

As you stroll through the Pushkin, you see everything from the Louvre's Venus de Milo to the Accademia's David to the British Museum's Elgin Marbles to parts of the Parthenon, Assyrian palaces, and medieval churches. It's a real trip -- and, surprisingly, a distinctly Russian experience.  My article about Russia--which lays out the perfect 8-day iconic itinerary for exploring the highlights of Moscow and St. Petersburg--is in Conde Nast Traveler's upcoming March issue.

In the meantime, you can read one of the many first-hand accounts of travel to Moscow at Real Travel.  User Matthew's highly-rated account describes the city as "one of the oddest places I've been to in my short, untraveled life."

Hopefully tomorrow I'll be able to post the first photos in the WHERE IN THE WORLD IS WENDY?  game. Since I'll be on the move and in a different locale each day, you'll get to make a new guess daily. Good luck!

By Wendy Perrin

Okay, I've managed to wangle a brief Internet connection unavailable to the other guests here (without telling anyone I'm from Conde Nast Traveler; I'm here incognito, of course, per the magazine's policy of "Truth in Travel").  Although I can't start the WHERE IN THE WORLD IS WENDY? contest yet, at least I can provide some feedback about your museum guesses (click to see the mystery museum pictured in Thursday's post).

Nobody's put their finger on the right museum yet. It's not the British Museum in London, the Ashmolean in Oxford, the Accademia in Florence, or the Museo del Opera del Duomo in Florence. 

So let me give you another clue:  Think Eastern Europe.  And remember my first clue: It's a museum in a city I've blogged about while traveling there. (Since this blog is less than six months old, that means I was in that city within the past six months.) 

Hang in there, Seafarer. You too, Kiwiwriter, SuzR, Dmerchant, 2ruse, Rdcerini, JNelson113, Maryjane, and Susan2. Love your guesses!  And I promise, Gadejens, it is absolutely not the Louvre!

By Wendy Perrin

I just arrived at the first stop on my trip itinerary, psyched to post my first photo in the WHERE IN THE WORLD IS WENDY? contest . . . when what do you think should happen?  The Internet access in this place is kaput and won't be fixed until Monday at the earliest!!!

There is absolutely no way to get on the Web, which means there is no way to blog or post photos.  (I wrote this post on my trusty TREO).

You can't imagine how annoyed I am about this.  Boy oh boy is this place where I'm staying going to have egg on its face once its identity is revealed!   Especially since it makes such a big deal of promising cyberconnectivity.

I'll reveal everything at the end of the contest on February 19th -- a contest which now can't start until Monday. . . or whenever the technology gods allow. Sorry about the delay, folks.

By Wendy Perrin

Good guesses, everyone, but no cigar . . . yet.  The museum pictured in yesterday's post is not the Capitoline, the Uffizi, the Louvre, or the Victoria & Albert. Here's a clue for you: Although reader Seafarer's guess is not correct, she's definitely on the right track!  Good thinking, Seafarer. More guesses, anyone?

Can you guess where this is?

Or how about this?  Hint: It's downstairs inside the same museum.

Like guessing games?  You'll love what I've got planned. Starting tomorrow, we'll be playing a game called WHERE IN THE WORLD IS WENDY?

Every day, for the next 11 days or so, I'll be posting a photo (or maybe a few) from the trip I'm on, but I won't tell you where I am.  You'll have to guess.  Since I'll be hitting several different countries, you'll need to make several different guesses.  Just click on "Post a Comment" below to share your guesses. (It's a very informal contest.) The winner will be the person who comes closest to guessing my exact location on the greatest number of days of the trip. The prize: Lunch with me at the restaurant of your choice, either in New York or wherever you live.

As for the location of that museum pictured above, here's a hint: I took these photos on one of the trips I've blogged about. Mull it over for a couple of days, and I'll give you the answer this weekend.