History UsefulNotes / Moscow

* Museums and theatres. A lot of them. Really. Some of museums, though, belongs to organisations, that do not care about public access, and so are hard to visit.

The most famous part of Moscow is the Red Square. The name actually predates the [[UsefulNotes/RedOctober October Revolution]]. The Russian word ''"krasnaya"'' means "red" but formerly also meant "beautiful," and it was in this sense that the word was originally used (in fact, from the 18th century almost to the 20th century the iconic red bricks of the Kremlin were painted white). It's smaller than it was, with some of the churches that were bulldozed by the Communists now rebuilt. It is a pedestrian area all year round, bar parades.

The most famous part of Moscow is the Red Square. The name actually predates the [[UsefulNotes/RedOctober October Revolution]]. The Russian word ''"krasnaya"'' means "red" but formerly also meant "beautiful," and it was in this sense the word was originally used (in fact, from the 18th century almost to the 20th century the iconic red bricks of the Kremlin were painted white). It's smaller than it was, with some of the churches that were bulldozed by the Communists now rebuilt. It is a pedestrian area all year round, bar parades.

The other most notable features are St. Basil's Cathedral and [[BigFancyCastle the Moscow Kremlin]]. Kreml' (anglicized to "Kremlin") means "citadel" in Russian and is not unique to Moscow. Many Russian medieval towns sprung up around kremlins and still exist today. However, only the Moscow Kremlin is well-known outside Russia. Some foreigners also mistake St. Basil's Cathedral (the one with the famous onion domes) for the Kremlin, due to its iconic status and their proximity to one another (the Cathedral being located barely 50 meters from the Kremlin gates). The latter, the seat of the Russian presidency (the government, as in "cabinet of ministers", sits in a building confusingly known as the White House), is highly recognizable (not so much as St. Basil and its onion domes, though) and has formed an EstablishingShot for many movies.

The other most notable features are St. Basil's Cathedral and [[BigFancyCastle the Moscow Kremlin]]. Kreml' (anglicized to "Kremlin") means "citadel" in Russian and is not unique to Moscow. Many Russian medieval towns sprung up around kremlins and still exist today. However only the Moscow Kremlin is well-known outside Russia. Some foreigners also mistake St. Basil's Cathedral for the Kremlin, due to their proximity to one another (the Cathedral being located barely 50 meters from the Kremlin gates). The latter, the seat of the Russian presidency (the government, as in "cabinet of ministers", sits in a building confusingly known as the White House), is highly recognizable (not so much as St. Basil and its onion domes, though) and has formed an EstablishingShot for many movies.

All joking aside, this is becoming less true as the Soviet period recedes further into the past. Particularly visible with the Moscow International Business Center - a newly-constructed commercial and financial district with sleek, ultra-modern skyscrapers similar to those found in the United States or China (though ''not'', funnily enough, the rest of Europe, which has consistently avoided building tall skyscrapers in its major centers. Eight of the top ten tallest buildings in Europe are all in Russia, and seven of those are in the Moscow Business Center.)

The most famous part of Moscow is the Red Square. The name actually predates the [[UsefulNotes/RedOctober October Revolution]]. The Russian word ''"krasnaya"'' means "red" but formerly also meant "beautiful," and it was in this sense the word was originally used (in fact, from the 18th century to almost the 20th century the iconic red bricks of the Kremlin were painted white). It's smaller than it was, with some of the churches that were bulldozed by the Communists now rebuilt. It is a pedestrian area all year round, bar parades.

All joking aside, this is becoming less true as the Soviet period recedes further into the past. Particularly visible with the Moscow International Business Center - a newly constructed commercial and financial district with sleek, ultra-modern skyscrapers similar to those found in the United States or China (though ''not'', funnily enough, the rest of Europe, which has consistently avoided building tall skyscrapers in its major centers. Eight of the top ten tallest buildings in Europe are all in Russia, and seven of those are in the Moscow Business Center.)

[[CaliforniaDoubling Moscow must be one of the most doubled cities in the world]]. You know the stereotypical Hollywood depiction of a totalitarian city with concrete, brutalist architecture and grey, overcast skies? Moscow actually looks like that.
* All joking aside, this is becoming less true as the Soviet period recedes further into the past. Particularly visible with the Moscow International Business Center - a newly constructed commercial and financial district with sleek, ultra-modern skyscrapers similar to those found in the United States or China (though ''not'', funnily enough, the rest of Europe, which has consistently avoided building tall skyscrapers in its major centers. Eight of the top ten tallest buildings in Europe are all in Russia, and seven of those are in the Moscow Business Center.)
* Helsinki, Finland is known for frequently playing Moscow in American films made during the Cold War.
* Even Russian movies sometimes have to double Moscow when the setting is "Old Moscow", which could mean either Soviet Moscow before UsefulNotes/WorldWarII, Imperial Moscow before [[UsefulNotes/RedOctober the Revolution]], or wooden Moscow before the Empire. [[UsefulNotes/TheCityFormerlyKnownAs St. Petersburg]] is most commonly used for the first two, while the third is usually doubled by one of the [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Golden_Ring_of_Russia Golden Ring cities]].