by Olesya Ilinskaya, Moscow, Russian Federation
EERco Volunteer, MACs AUTUMN Pr., EVS e+ | Alexandreia, GR
My name is Olesya Ilinskaya and I am from Moscow – the most beautiful city and the capital of Russia. I wrote here for you about my city.
HISTORY
Since it was first mentioned in the chronicles of 1147, Moscow has played a vital role in Russian history. This date is the year of birth of the city. But the foundation of Moscow is attributed to Suzdal prince Yuri Dolgoruky. In 1156 the first references to the construction of a wall around a growing city called Moscow began to appear in Russian documents as did descriptions of the city being attacked by the Mongols in the 13th century. In 1156 the Prince ordered to erect a new wooden fort, the future Moscow Kremlin, on the steep Borovitsky hill that towers above the Moskva River. Moscow was first made a capital city in 1327 when it was named the capital of the Vladimir-Suzdal principality. It later became known as the Grand Duchy of Moscow. Throughout much of the rest of its history, Moscow was attacked by rival empires and armies. In the 17th century a large part of the city was damaged during citizen uprisings and in 1771 much of Moscow's population died due to the plague. Shortly thereafter in 1812, Moscow's citizens burned the city during Napoleon's invasion.
After the Russian Revolution in 1917, Moscow became the capital of what would eventually become the Soviet Union in 1918.
During World War II, however, a large portion of the city suffered damage from bombings. Following WWII, Moscow grew but instability continued in the city during the fall of the Soviet Union. Since then, though, Moscow has become more stable and is a growing economic and political center of Russia.
GEOGRAPHY
Moscow is located in Russia's Central Federal District along the Moscow River and covers an area of 2561 sq km.
Located in the UTC+3 time zone, Moscow has a humid continental climate. The hottest months are June and July, while the coldest is January. The average high temperature for July is 24°C and the average low for January is -12°C. On average Moscow has 194 days of above-zero and 103 days of below-zero temperature every year.
The city of Moscow is governed by one mayor but it is also broken down into ten local administrative divisions called okrugs and 123 local districts. The population of Moscow is 12 506 468 people as of 2018.
FAMOUS PEOPLE
• Alexader Pushkin – the author of the verse novel 'Eugene Onegin' and a lot of other pieces of art
• Peter the great – the czar who modernized 18th century Russia
• Fedor Dostoevsky --The author of “Crime and Punishment” and others
• TATU – Teen "lesbian" singing duo from Russia
• Sergey Brin – The co-founder of Google
• Michail Lermontov – Romantic writer, poet and painter
PLACES TO VISIT
The most famous sight in Moscow is the Kremlin (1). It is situated at the very heart of Moscow, overlooking the Moscow River to the south, Saint Basil's Cathedral (2) and Red Square (3) to the east, and the Alexander Garden (4) to the west.
Big theater (5) is a beautiful building in the center of Moscow where you may see traditional Russian ballet of opera, by the way tickets are really expensive. Central Park of Culture and Rest named after Maxim Gorky (6) attract people with its beauty and various of activities.
State Tretyakov Gallery (7) is the most famous art museum with works of artists up to the XXI century.
Moscow State University (MSU) (8) is one of the buildings of the Stalin skyscrapers. The appearance of the building will not leave indifferent.
Ostankino Tower (9) is a TV tower in the form of a rocket height of 45 floors with open observation square.
Not far away from Moscow you may visit cities of the Golden Ring (10). The Golden Ring is a ring of cities northeast of Moscow. The cities are famous for their old churches.
Moscow city (11) is a complex of high buildings where majority of offices are situated.
GUM (12) is the main department store, quite expensive by the way.
Everywhere you will go in the center of Moscow (13) you will find amazing architecture, well maintained clean streets, lots of museums and squares.
P.S. You will find pictures of places from 1 till 13 in the folder named <MUST VISIT places>.