"Born in Moscow..." a Moscow Travel Page by kris-t

"What is there to compare with the Kremlin, with its girdle or crenulated walls, with the golden domes of its cathedrals reclining on its high hill like the crown on the brow of a terrible sovereign…It must be seen, and seen again… And all that it conveys to the heart and to the imagination must be felt".

These were the emotions that welled up in the heart of Mikhail Lermontov, Russia's great early 19th century poet, when attempting to describe the Moscow Kremlin.

At the centre of Moscow, beneath the walls of the Kremlin, lies Red Square. Its history dates back to the distant past. Over the centuries, the square has changed its name many times. It was first mentioned in the chronicles of 1434 as the Trade Square, then, after the devastating fire of 1493, it was renamed Fire. In the 16th century they called it Trinity (after the church which formerly stood on the site of St Basil’s Cathedral) and in the 1660s it was given the name 'Krasnaya', which at the time meant 'beautiful', 'best' or 'main'. You can see here the statue of Minin and Pozharsky (the leaders of the People’s Volunteer Corps in 1612), the Mausoleum of Lenin, the Upper Trading Rows (including the State Department Store (GUM)), the clock at the Savior (Spasskaya) Tower - showing the most correct Moscow time, the History Museum, the beautiful Cathedral of the Intercession (the Church of St Basil the Blessed), Kazansky Cathedral and many other outstanding pieces of Russian architecture.

Tverskaya Street - a Soviet masterpiece. In the years of Soviet power, Tverskaya began to undergo a transformation: it was widened to two and a half times its original size, multi-storey administrative and apartment buildings were constructed, and at the same time, the most valuable of older buildings were moved to other places. Apart from the architectural and historic sights, there are many exhibition halls, theatres and all kinds of shops and cafes on the street.