contents: description - map - places - special facts - walking around
Zamoskvorechie - "The Old Moscow"
Zamoskvorechie is the true Moscow residential area, which has retained the unique feel of the city.
 Click on the highlighted Zamoskvorechie area to see the map. |
Zamoskvorechie can be translated to Russian as 'Behind the Moscow river', that describes exactly where it is: behind the river to the south. Zamoskvorechie is probably the biggest residential area in the center of Moscow: it gives a good feel of what people live like, besides, there are some interesting contemporary art galleries, Tretyakov's art gallery, and the weirdest clubs in Moscow. This area has a distinct Moscovitan aura and it's just a pleasure to walk around its narrow streets and courtyards. metro: Novokuznetskaya (green), Tretyakovskaya (orange), Paveletskaya (circle), Oktyabrskaya (circle), Polyanka (grey), Dobryninskaya (circle); area: center south |
What to Find There:
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About Zamoskvorechie Area
Long time ago Zamoskvorechie area was where most of the Moscow merchants lived. This was the green area, which looked more like a countryside. Most of the merchants owned the large areas with rich decorated houses, huge gardens, warehouses - to look after the business, and even vegetable gardens. The foreigners or even non moscovites were not accepted here. Only old well-known merchant clans lived in the area. Furthemore, most of them were "staroobryadtsi" - the traditional movement in Ortodox Church, to be translated like "old way of devotions". The main idea is "conservatism" forever, no western meals, clothes, entertaiments, ways of business. But also: trust your partner, rather invest in business than spend money for luxury, help the poor. That is why, these people were the richest and well-known ones.So this area kept the "real" Russian spirit for centuries. Only communists, who demolished most of the old buildings and churches, who crushed the clans, managed to get rid of this special spirit. Meanwhile, even now, this area is the only one, where you can feel the old, non-westernized Moscow.
