Tips & Tricks
Metro (local train) (Moscow): this is the fastest, most reliable and least expensive way to get to every place in the capital. Built during the Stalinist era, the Moscow Metro is famous for its architecture and history. Anyone visiting Moscow goes down to the “underground palace” clad in granite and marble to admire mosaic, sculptures […]
Alexander Palace (Dvortsovaya ulitsa, 2, St. Petersburg) – this royal residence (considered one of the finest neoclassical buildings in Russia), was completed in 1796. It became the residence of Nicholas I, and afterwards Nicholas II and his family. After the October Revolution, the palace interiors were preserved untouched as a museum to show the proletariat […]
Bolshoi Theatre (Theatre Square, 1, Moscow) – this is considered one of the greatest theaters in the world. The Bolshoi is the second largest opera house in Europe (after La Scala in Milan). Renovations were completed by 2011, which included restoring the Bolshoi’s acoustics to its original quality, along with restoring its original imperial décor. […]
Alexandrinsky Theatre (2 Ploshchad Ostrovskogo, St. Petersburg) – built in 1832 (to replace a smaller wooden structure), this building became the second most famous theater in St. Petersburg, and is home to the oldest theater company in Russia. Named in honor of Alexandra Fyodorovna, wife of Nicholas I, the Alexandrinsky Theatre was painted in the […]
Chainaya (1-ya Tverskaya-Yamskaya ulitsa, 29, Moscow) — hidden away in the backstreets of Moscow’s Chinatown, this was once a teahouse that has been transformed into a trendy bar (for those familiar with Moscow’s nightlife scene). Chainaya is the brainchild of bar supremo Roman Milostivy and it opened its very secretive doors in September 2011 – […]
Bon (Yakimanskaya Nab. 4, bldg. 1, Moscow) – this is an unusual place. Bon is an Italian restaurant that’s surrounded by Catholic church-style décor (by French interior designer Phillipe Starck). With the decent-tasting Italian dishes served here, the massed wrought-iron stands of dripping candles, the massive, extravagantly- carved chairs placed in corners, and the frescoes […]