By boat along the only avenue without traffic jams
Moscow River Cruise
Moscow is a city of big distances. Everybody understands, that to see it one needs to move, but ups..! to move within a city together with its 10 mn residents may be tough, especially on a business day, especially in the center, especially by car.
I also dislike busy streets smelling of gasoline and dust, traffic jams and irritated drivers around. That’s why I suggest you see Moscow from its most ancient transport route – the Moskva river.
Your guide invites you to see the historical center of Moscow on a board of the famous river buses. During this unforgettable 1.5 hour excursion you will see Moscow Kremlin, Big Stone Bridge, Cathedral of Christ the Savior, Novodevichy Monastery, Red October Factory (Confectionary), monument to the Peter I, Krimsky Bridge, Gorky Park, Sparrow Hills, Moscow University, Ostankino TV Tower, Luzhniki stadium and many estates, palaces and churches.
We can start the excursion from the embankment of the Kievsky train station and finish it at the embankment "Novospassky" Bridge or from the embankment "Novospassky" Bridge to the embankment of the Kievsky train station.
Our boat will start at Kievskii railway station (near Ukraina hotel) and move towards Rossjia Hotel. Since Rossija will soon remain only on photos, I will call this place Zaryadie – the ancient name for the place, which will probably return to it after the massive reconstruction.
You can get to the first dock at Kievskii railway station by underground ( Kievskaya metro station), if you prefer to be fast and do not mind people around, or by taxi, if you mind people, but do not mind traffic.
Kievskii railway station is a neoclassical building, with the main front with columns facing the Moskva river. Its construction had started in May 1914, two months before the WWI broke out, and finished in 1920 in already Soviet Russia.
The architect Ivan Rehrberg chose the neoclassicism, combining antique tradition and contemporary engineering, when Moscow was bewitched by the decadent art nouveau. Rehrbeg believed that Russia was at the dawn of a new renaissance. Well, maybe it was…
The Europe Square in front of Kievskii railway station was open in September 2002 and symbolizes Russia’s partnership with EC. 48 columns hold flags of European countries, while the center is occupied by the biggest in Moscow abstract sculpture– the gift of Brussels – the Abduction of Europe . By twisting metallic pipes and interweaving them with steam and water its author Olivier Strebel fantasized the Zues’ head carrying Europe between his horns. They say that at a certain angle you can see Europe’s silhouette.
While you are approaching the dock, have a look at Borodinskii bridge. Named in 1937, the bridge changed its appearance several times, each time becoming wider and longer, extending over embankment to create roads under its arches. It’s style, however, dates to 1913, when the architects turned the memorable passage, by which the Russian army had retreated before Napoleon’s troops in 1812, into a memorial to Russian warriors, who later defeated the French army at Borodino.
Let your eyes follow the bridge to the skyscraper of the Foreign Affairs Ministry – sister of the Ukraina hotel , built in 1951. All in all you can find 7 so-called Stalin skyscrapers in Moscow, four of them – along this trip.
Also you will see two sites, where Stalin’s skyscraping ambitions did not materialize due to WWII and lack of funds after WWII – namely, Christ the Savior Temple and Rossija hotel (Zaryadie).
Now, that you are on board, your boat starts moving towards Bogdan Khmelnitskii pedestrian bridge crossing the river from Radisson SAS hotel. Look at it well, the metallic construction is as if enclosed in a glass casing. The trick is that the bridge was designed in 1905-07 and for many years served as a railway viaduct originally installed somewhat farther along your journey. In 2000, this 135 meter long and 1400 tons heavy construction was shipped here and restyled to make way for a modern bridge of the 3rd transportation ring. Now it is occasionally used for fashion shows due to its appropriate shape.
After you pass dwelling houses on both sides you enter into some kind of industrial zone, to the right Mosenergo Frunzenskaya Power Station, built in 1920s still scares by its aggressive environmental unfriendliness.
To the left, however, you see an interesting transformation of a Moscow district from industrially- to consumer-oriented. Lower factory buildings previously belonged to the Moscow silk plant and even before that (at the end of XIX century) to the French industrialist Albert Gubner.
Reconstruction started a couple of years ago, and already you see several restaurants and shops on the premises.
The auto bridge in front of you is a part of a mega-project of the 3rd transportation ring, meant to save Moscow’s traffic situation.
To the left, once the factory buildings cease behind a small park you see the domes of the New Maiden Convent . Founded in 1528, the Convent in its present shape represents the Russian Baroque style, characteristic for late XVII century, and hosts perhaps the best known Russian necropolis, which in itself can be viewed as an open-air museum of monuments.
Once you pass the bridge, the appearance of both banks changes, the right banks grows vertically, while the left remains low and offers a beautiful view of Luzhniki sports complex designed and built in the 1950s.
Straight ahead there is another unique construction – the two level metro-bridge, accommodating the Vorobyevy Gory metro station . This is the longest station of Moscow underground system and the only one on the bridge.
On the other side of the bridge to the left Luzhniki complex continues by Druzhba sports hall and open-air tennis facilities, while to the right you see first Andreevskii monastery and behind it on top of the hill two buildings of Russian Academy of Science crowned with strange orange installation nick-named “golden brains”.
By going around Luzhniki your boat made a U-turn and is now coming closer to the center of the city. After you pass the second on your way 3rd transportation ring bridge, you enter the area of Frunzenskii dwelling district to the left and Neskuchnyi (Not-boring) Garden to the right.
Frunzenskii dwelling district to your left is perhaps one of the most illustrative samples of the so-called Stalin big-style city planning, its reconstruction was completed in 1930-1950ss.
Frunzenskii dwelling district faces Neskuchnyi Garden on the opposite side of the river. Dating back to the late XVII century Neskuchnyi Garden is arguably the oldest landscape park of Moscow. One of its many pre-Revolutionary owners Prokophii Demidov made a botanical garden on his estate, while another owner called it Entertaining (Non-boring). In the XIX century the estate was purchased by the Emperor Nikolai the First. From the river you can spot several buildings remaining from different epochs. The mansion with columns dates to 1796 when the place belonged to the Orlovs, two round pavilions were built about 200 years ago as a part of the Golytsnyns’ hospital ensemble, while the terraced slope with a girl-swimmer prepared for jump on top and a fantasy grotto at the bottom appeared in 1937, when the park was decorated by symbols of happy Soviet people.
Look straight ahead. You will see another pedestrian bridge, which several years ago was moved here by the same reason as the bridge in front of Radisson SAS hotel, i.e. to make way for the 3rd transportation ring construction.
After this bridge the Garden gives way to Gorky Entertainment park and on the opposite side of the river you see a huge building with stone banners and state emblem on top. This is the headquarters of Russian Land Forces built in late 1940s by the same architect who later designed the new Moscow University building on Vorobyevy (Sparrow) Hills.
Krymskii Bridge ahead of you is the only hanging bridge in Moscow. Built in 1937 it is arguably one of the most beautiful bridges in the city.
Immediately after the bridge your eyes are captured by the formidable statue of Peter the First by Moscow contemporary “court” architect Zurab Tseretely. The popular legend tells that the monument was initially designed for Columbus and should have been sent to a certain foreign state as a present. However, something went wrong with negotiations and the Admiral ended up in Moscow with the head of another great navigator – the first Russian emperor.
Before the giant to your right there is another monster of the Moscow Central House of Artist. The site for the huge concrete building was freed by demolition of an old dwelling district Babii Gorodok (from Russian “baba” meaning both a woman and a pile hammered into the river bank to prevent it from sliding).
Across the river – Ostozhenka area – currently, perhaps, the most expensive dwelling district in Moscow. Pay attention to the last red-brick house on Prechistenskaya embankment immediately before the park of the Christ the Savior Temple . This is the so-called Pertsova dwelling house. Its original owner Mrs Pertsova leased apartments for residents and studios on top for artists. Built in 1905-07 this fairy tale house is a typical example of the Moscow art nouveau style.
On the opposite bank – the Red October Chocolate factory . Founded in late XIX century by a German entrepreneur Ferdinand von Einem, the confectionery is still producing Russian favorite chocolate. However, its destiny will likely be the same as that of the Gubner silk factory. Production will be moved to the outskirts of Moscow, while the factory buildings will be reconstructed for recreation and entertainment purposes. The recently stretched Patriarch’s pedestrian bridge is the first sign of the future aspect of the area.
The white mass of the Christ the Savior Temple to your left has a very dramatic history. Currently the biggest orthodox church in the world, the Temple was originally built in 1839– 83 on the site of an old convent. When the nuns were being moved from their dwellings, one of them prophesized that none of the new buildings would ever hold.
As if carrying out the prophesy the Bolsheviks exploded the Temple in 1931 to free the site for a huge skyscraper of the Palace of Soviets. They even managed to dig a huge hole and cast a concrete foundation. The Palace should have been toped by a cyclopean statue of Lenin with a reading hall in its head.
Ironically, the WWII adjusted the plans and the idle concrete foundation was later used for a huge open-air all-season heated swimming pool, which functioned till late 1980s.
Construction of the modern replica of the Temple started in 1994 and finished in 2000. The Temple has a museum telling the dramatic story of the place.
Across the river the imposing gray giant is meeting you on your way to the Kremlin. This is the famous House on the Embankment , built in 1931 for the then Soviet nomenclature as an embodiment of a new way of life. Its 505 huge apartments were soon filled with top military officers, officials, etc. This was perhaps the first house in Moscow, which had running hot water. The house was equipped with a laundry, food store, library, kindergarten, post office, bank and even the centralized cooking facility, since nothing should have distracted its dwellers from enjoying the bright Soviet present. However the bright present of many residents ended in late 1930s by Stalin’s party purge. In 1938 out of 505 apartments 280 were sealed by NKVD.
Once you pass the Big Stone bridge, the red brick wall of the Kremlin appears to your right. I will not dwell on this particular place, since the info can be found in any guide book. I will mention only that here the story of Moscow started in 1147.
I will not bother you much, while you are admiring the Kremlin in all its splendor, I will ask you just to turn your head for a moment to the opposite side of the river and have a look at the bell tour of XIX century . The church, to which this bell tower refers, is right behind it, but it’s older and smaller and not visible from the river. Ok, I leave you with the Kremlin...
After the Big Moskvoretskii bridge, you come close to the end of your journey. To your left you see the Zaryadie construction site. Things are moving too fast nowadays, so by the time you take this trip, I guess, you will see only the site, but not the hotel Rossija any more. Since the construction sites offer nothing particularly interesting, let’s look at the right bank of the river at Mosenergo power station MGES-1 . This in the first power station in Moscow, built in 1897 by the Society of Electric Light based in S.-Petersburg. Since then the station has been many times upgraded and is still functioning. Although now it is a historical monument and is wonderfully lit at night.
Your ship will advance a little bit father, so that you could get a glimpse of another Stalin sky-scraper – the dwelling house on Kotelnichenskaya embankment.
After the boat turns around and docks, step outside and walk up to the metro station of Kitai Gorod, if you need to go somewhere. If not, linger in the center of the city and enjoy it on your own.
