  We construct a metric simplicial complex which is an almost isometric model
of the moduli space M(S) of Riemann surfaces. We then use this model to compute
the "tangent cone at infinity" of M(S): it is the topological cone on the
quotient of the complex of curves C(S) by the mapping class group of S, endowed
with an explicitly described metric. The main ingredient is Minsky's product
regions theorem.
