Overview
One of the most notable art museums in Moscow is the Tretyakov Gallery, which was founded by Pavel Tretyakov, a wealthy patron of the arts who donated a large private collection to the city.[35] The Tretyakov Gallery is split into two buildings. The Old Tretyakov gallery, the original gallery in the Tretyakovskaya area on the south bank of the Moskva River, houses the works of the classic Russian tradition.[36] The works of famous pre-Revolutionary painters, such as Ilya Repin, as well as the works of early Russian icon painters can be found in the Old Tretyakov Gallery. Visitors can even see rare originals by early-fifteenth century iconographer Andrei Rublev.[36] The New Tretyakov gallery, created in Soviet times, mainly contains the works of Soviet artists, as well as of a few contemporary artists, but there is some overlap with the Old Tretyakov Gallery for early twentieth century art. The new gallery includes a small reconstruction of Vladimir Tatlin's famous Monument to the Third International and a mixture of other avant-garde works by artists like Kazimir Malevich and Wassily Kandinsky. Socialist realism features can also be found within the halls of the New Tretyakov Gallery.
Another art museum in the city of Moscow is the Pushkin Museum of Fine Arts, which was founded by, among others, Marina Tsvetaeva's father. The Pushkin Museum is similar to the British Museum in London in that its halls are a cross-section of world civilisations, with many plaster casts of ancient sculptures. However, it also hosts famous paintings from every major Western era of art; works by Claude Monet, Paul Cézanne, and Pablo Picasso are all sampled there.
The State Historical Museum of Russia (Государственный Исторический музей) is a museum of Russian history located between Red Square and Manege Square in Moscow. Its exhibitions range from relics of the prehistoric tribes inhabiting present-day Russia, through priceless artworks acquired by members of the Romanov dynasty. The total number of objects in the museum's collection numbers in the millions. The Polytechnical Museum,[37] founded in 1872 is the largest technical museum in Russia, offering a wide array of historical inventions and technological achievements, including humanoid automata of the 18th century and the first Soviet computers. Its collection contains more than 160,000 items.[38] The Borodino Panorama[39] museum located on Kutuzov Avenue provides an opportunity for visitors to experience being on a battlefield with a 360° diorama. It is a part of the large historical memorial commemorating the victory in the Patriotic War of 1812 over Napoleon’s army, that includes also the Triumphal arch erected in 1827. There is also a military history museum not to be missed, it includes statues, military hardware, along with powerful tales of that time.
Moscow is also the heart of Russian performing arts, including ballet and film. There are ninety-three theatres, 132 cinemas and twenty-four concert-halls in Moscow. Among Moscow’s many theatres and ballet studios is the Bolshoi Theatre and the Malyi Theatre as well as Vakhtangov Theatre and Moscow Art Theatre. The repertories in a typical Moscow season are exhaustive and modern interpretations of classic works, whether operatic or theatrical, are quite common. State Central Concert Hall Rossia,[40] famous for ballet and estrade performances, is the place of frequent concerts of pop and rock stars and is situated in the soon to be demolished building of Hotel Rossiya, the largest hotel in Europe.
Moscow International Performance Arts Centre,[41] opened in 2003, also known as Moscow International House of Music, is known for its performances in classical music. It also has the largest organ in Russia installed in Svetlanov Hall.
There are also two large circuses in Moscow: Moscow State Circus and Moscow Circus on Tsvetnoy Boulevard[42] named after Yuri Nikulin.
Soviet films are integral to film history and the Mosfilm studio was at the heart of many Soviet classic films as it is responsible for both artistic and mainstream productions.[43] However, despite the continued presence and reputation of internationally renowned Russian filmmakers, the once prolific native studios are much quieter. Rare and historical films may be seen in the Salut cinema, where films from the Museum of Cinema[44] collection are shown regularly.
[edit] Parks and landmarks
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There are 96 parks and 18 gardens in Moscow, including 4 botanical gardens. There are also 450 square kilometers (174 sq mi) of green zones besides 100 square kilometers (39 sq mi) of forests.[45] Moscow is a very green city if compared to other cities of comparable size in Western Europe and America. There are on average 27 square metres (290 sq ft) of parks per person in Moscow compared with 6 for Paris, 7.5 in London and 8.6 in New York.[46]
The Central Park of Culture and Rest, named after Maxim Gorky, was founded in 1928. The main part (689,000 square metres / 170 acres)[46] along the Moskva river contains estrades, children's attractions (including the Observation Wheel water ponds with boats and water bicycles), dancing, tennis courts and other sports facilities. It borders the Neskuchniy Garden (408,000 square metres / 101 acres), the oldest park in Moscow and a former Emperor's residence, created as a result of integration of three estates of XVIII century. The Garden features the Green Theatre, one of the largest open amphitheatres in Europe and able to hold up to 15 thousand people.[47]
Izmaylovsky Park created in 1931 is one of the largest urban parks in the world along with Richmond Park in London. Its area of 15.34 square kilometers (5.92 sq mi) is six times greater than that of Central Park in New York.[46]
Sokolniki Park, named after the falcon hunting that occurred there in the past, is one of the oldest parks in Moscow and has an area of 6 square kilometers (2 sq mi). From a central circle with a large fountain radiate birch, maple and elm tree alleys. A labyrinth composed of green paths lies beyond the park's deer ponds.
Losiny Ostrov National Park ("Elk Island" National Park), with a total area of more than 116 square kilometers (45 sq mi), borders Sokolniki Park and was Russia's first national park. It is also known as the "city taiga", where elk can be seen.
Tsytsin Main Botanical Garden of Academy of Sciences, founded in 1945 is the largest in Europe.[48] It covers territory of 3.61 square kilometers (1.39 sq mi) bordering the All-Russia Exhibition Centre and contains a live exhibition of more than 20 thousand of different species of plants from different parts of the world as well as scientific research laboratory. It also contains a rosarium with 20 thousand rose bushes, a dendrarium, and an oak forest with average age of trees exceeding 100 years as well as a greenhouse on more than 5000 square meters.[46]
Lilac Park, founded in 1958, is known for its permanent sculpture exposition and a large rosarium.
Moscow has always been a popular destination for tourists. Some of the better known attractions include the city's UNESCO World Heritage Site, Moscow Kremlin and Red Square,[49] which was built between the 14th and 17th centuries.[50] The Church of the Ascension at Kolomenskoye, which dates from 1532, is also a UNESCO World Heritage Site and another popular attraction.[51]
Other popular attractions include the Moscow Zoo, home to nearly a thousands species and more than 6,500 specimens.[52] Each year, the zoo attracts more than 1.2 million visitors.[52] The long days will also afford one more time to cover the immense wealth of historical, cultural or simply popular sites in Moscow.
Sports
Moscow possesses a large number of various sport facilities and over 500 Olympic champions lived in the city by 2005.[53] Moscow is home to sixty-three stadia (besides eight football and eleven light athletics maneges), of which Luzhniki Stadium is the largest and the 4th biggest in Europe (it hosted the 1998–99 UEFA Cup,2007–08 UEFA Champions League finals,and the 1980 Summer Olympics). Forty other sport complexes are located within the city, including twenty-four with artificial ice. The Olympic Stadium was the world's 1st indoor arena for bandy and hosted the Bandy World Championships twice.[54] Moscow will again be the host of the competition in 2010.[55] There are also seven horse racing tracks in Moscow,[45] of which Central Moscow Hippodrome,[56] founded in 1834, is the largest.
Moscow was the host city of the 1980 Summer Olympics, although the yachting events were held at Tallinn, in present-day Estonia. Large athletic facilities and the main international airport, Sheremetyevo Terminal 2, were built in preparation for the 1980 Summer Olympics). Moscow had also made a bid for the 2012 Summer Olympics. However, when final voting commenced on 6 July 2005, Moscow was the first city to be eliminated from further rounds. The Games were finally awarded to London.
The most titled ice hockey team in the Soviet Union and in the world, HC CSKA Moscow comes from Moscow. Other big ice hockey clubs from Moscow are HC Dynamo Moscow, which was the second most titled team in the Soviet Union, PHC Krylya Sovetov, and HC Spartak Moscow.
The most titled Soviet, Russian, and one of the most titled Euroleague clubs, is the Basketball club from Moscow PBC CSKA Moscow. Another strong Basketball club from Moskow is MBC Dynamo Moscow.
Moscow had more winners at the USSR and Russian Chess Championship than any other city. Some of them were the best players in the world.
The most titled Volleyball team in the Soviet Union and in Europe (CEV Champions League) is VC CSKA Moscow.
In Football, FC Spartak Moscow won more championship titles in the Russian Premier League than any other team, and were second only to FC Dynamo Kyiv in the Soviet Union. PFC CSKA Moscow was the first Russian football team to win an UEFA title. FC Lokomotiv Moscow, FC Dynamo Moscow and FC Moscow are the other professional football teams based in Moscow.
Because of Moscow's cold local climate, winter sports have a large following as well. Many of Moscow's large parks offer marked trails for skiers and frozen ponds for skaters.
Moscow also hosts the annual Kremlin Cup, a popular tennis tournament on both the WTA and ATP tours. It is regarded as a very prestigious tournament and is one of the ten Tier-I events on the women's tour and a host of Russian players feature every year.
Slava Moscow are a professional rugby union club, competing in the national Professional Rugby League. Moscow recently became home to the offices of the Rugby Union of Russia, formerly located in Krasnoyarsk, Siberia.
Moscow is the home of one club in the Russian Championship of rugby league, RC Lokomotiv Moscow. They often participate in the Challenge Cup the most prestigious knockout competition in rugby league.
In Bandy one of the most successful clubs in the world is Dynamo Moscow.
One of the best Futsal clubs in Europe, is the club MFK Dinamo Moskva.
Night life
There is a vibrant night life in Moscow. The major and one of the most popular nightlife areas is around Tverskaya Street.
The southern part of Tverskaya Street near the Manege Square and the Red Square area is known as an area with many expensive, luxurious bars and restaurants, and is considered to be a playground for New Russians and celebrities.
Tverskaya Street is also one of the busiest shopping streets in Moscow.
The adjoining Tretyakovsky Proyezd, also south of Tverskaya Street, in Kitai-gorod, is host to upscale boutique stores such as Bulgari, Tiffany & Co., Armani, Prada and Bentley.[57] Nightlife in Moscow has moved on since Soviet times and have today many of the worlds largest nightclubs.
