Moscow is the capital of Russia. Moscow, which is Russia's largest political, industrial, research and cultural center, is located on the banks of the Moskva River (between the Oka and Volga rivers).

The real flavor of Moscow is situated in all the small nooks and crannies on every street. Russian contrasts are more present here than in any other city in Russia. Ancient monasteries and ultra-modern monoliths stand side by side. This city is very popular with foreign guests visiting our country. It is believed that the city is eight and a half centuries old.

The first record of it in the chronicles is dated in the year 1147, and its history starts with a legend about the Prince Yury Dolgoruky («Long-armed»), who became the founder of the city. Many centuries ago the city was built on seven hills. It is rather difficult to discern them now, with the only exception of Borovitsky Hill where one of the twenty Kremlin towers stands.

Adjoining the Kremlin in the east is the huge Red Square, originally a marketplace and a meeting spot for popular assemblies; it is still used as a parade ground and for demonstrations. On the west side of Red Square and along the Kremlin wall are the Lenin Mausoleum and the tombs of other Soviet political figures; on the north side is the completely rebuilt Kazan Cathedral (constructed in the 17th cent., razed by Stalin, and rebuilt in 1993); and at the southern end stands the imposing cathedral of Basil the Beatified (constructed 16th cent.).

One of the most exuberant examples of Russian architecture, the cathedral has numerous cupolas, each a different color, grouped around a central dome. In front of the cathedral stands a monument to the liberators Menin and Pozharski.

To the East of Red Square extends the old district of Kitaigorod [Tatar city], once the merchants' quarter, later the banking section, and now an administrative hub with various government offices and ministries. Tverskaya Street (formerly Gorky Street), a main thoroughfare, extends N from the Kremlin and is lined with modern buildings, including the headquarters of the council of ministers; it is connected with the St. Petersburg highway, which passes the huge Dynamo stadium and the central airport.

Near the beginning of Tverskaya Street is Theater Square, containing the Bolshoi and Maly theaters. Encircling the Kremlin and Kitaigorod are the Bely Gorod [white city], traditionally the most elegant part of Moscow and now a commercial and cultural area; the Zemlyanoy Gorod [earth city], named for the earthen and wooden ramparts that once surrounded it; and the inner suburbs. In the Bely Gorod is Christ the Savior Cathedral; demolished in 1931 to be replaced by a never-built Palace of Soviets, it was rebuilt in the 1990s. A notable feature of Moscow are the concentric rings of wide boulevards and railroad lines on the sites where old walls and ramparts once stood.

The Kremlin (translated from Greek, the word means «a steep hill») and Red Square definitely are the main Moscow sights, symbols of the whole of Russia.

You will have a chance to get know the history of the city and visit the main places of interest - the Red Square, the Moscow State University, the Bolshoj Theater, the Triumphal Arch and go along the main Moscow streets: Tverskaya, Novy Arbat Avenue, Kutuzovsky Avenue, Sadovoje and Bulvarnoje Rings.