Conversational topic: Moscow

Moscow, the capital of the Russian Federation, is one of the largest and most beautiful cities in the world. The total area of Moscow is nearly one hundred square kilometers; its population is over 10, 5 million. The city is situated in the centre of the European part of Russia on the Moscva River.

Moscow was founded more than 800 years ago by Prince Yuri Dolgoruky. It was first mentioned in the records dated back to the year 1147, as a small frontier post. Moscow rendered a great service to the nation by uniting the country and giving it a single government. In the 13^th century Moscow was the centre of the struggle of Russian lands for the liberation from the tartar yoke. In the 16^th century it became the capital of the new united state. Now Moscow is a political, economic, educational and cultural centre of the country.

Moscow is the railway, highway and international airway crossroads. A wide network of railways connects the capital with the farthest parts of our vast country as well as with major cities of Europe. Its air routes link it with all the countries of the world. The Moskva River water transport artery connects Moscow to five seas: the Sea of Azov, the Baltic Sea, the Black Sea, the Caspian Sea, and the White Sea.

The city has an up-to-date transport system. The quickest and the most convenient form of transport is the Metro which links up all the main districts, carrying more than 5 million passengers daily. It has more than 140 stations. Great attention is paid to the comfort of passengers and to the architecture of the stations.

Moscow is a scientific centre of world significance. Numerous educational establishments and research institutes such as the Academy of Sciences of Russia, Moscow State University, many higher schools and colleges, thousands of libraries are located here. One third of the country’s academic workers are concentrated in Moscow. More than one million undergraduate students and some 50,000 graduate students are doing their studies in the Russian capital.

There are more than 150 museums and exhibitions filled with historical and artistic treasures. They are all very popular with Moscovites and visitors from other cities and countries. The largest museums are the State Tretyakov Gallery, the State History Museum and the Pushkin Museum of Fine Arts. They contain a wonderful collection of Russian art and works of prominent European artists and those of ancient East, Greece and Rome. Around 300 international exhibitions and fairs are held in the capital each year.

Moscow is famous for its drama, opera and ballet. The Bolshoi and Maly theatres, the Moscow Art and Vakhtangov theatres have won universal recognition. The Moscow Chaikovsky Conservatoire is the country´s leading school of music.

There are a lot of beautiful palaces, cathedrals, churches and monuments in Moscow. The Kremlin is an outstanding historical and architectural monument that serves as a symbol for the whole Russia. It is the most attractive sight. The Moscow Kremlin is magnificent with its wonderful red walls and towers crowned with ruby stars. It is still the national and politic center of Russia, the official residence of the President of the Russian Federation. The Moscow Kremlin is included in UNESCO’s World Heritage List.

The heart of Moscow is Red Square, one of the most beautiful squares in the world. In the centre of Red square is the Lenin´s Mausoleum. On the southern side of Red Square is St. Basil´s Cathedral (Vasily Blazheny) built during the reign of Ivan the Terrible to commemorate Russia´s conquest of the Kazan Kingdom in 1552. The monument to Minin and Pozharsky is in front of it. It was erected in memory of the Russian victory over Polish invaders in 1612. For many centuries Red Square served as the place for important historical events. Military parades and demonstrations take place on Red Square.

But historical places are not the only attraction for tourists. They enjoy visiting new districts as well.

More than 4million tourists visited Moscow every year, with most of the visitors arriving from Germany, the United States, and China, as well as Great Britain, France, Turkey, Italy, Israel, Japan, and Spain.

Moscow is a business centre of Russia and the home of leading economic and financial institutions, over half of the country’s commercial and specialized banks, representative offices of major Russian companies, and leading world corporations.

Moscow is an industrial centre too. A lot of manufacturing plants and factories produce different goods for the population and various machines for all branches of national economy. There are also special economic zones and technology parks actively being created on the city’s territory. Mechanical engineering (production of automobiles and trucks, ball bearings, machine tools, and precision instruments) and metalworking are the most important industries. Other important activities include the manufacture of textiles, chemicals and derivative products, and consumer goods (foodstuffs, footwear, etc); timber processing; construction; and printing and publishing.