Moscow, I love you!

On 14 February I celebrated 3 years of living in Moscow and, finally, I can make a declaration of love to this wonderful city.

I had lived in other places in Russia and Ukraine before and in 2014 I moved here.

Did I like Moscow when I started to live here? No. With Moscow love at first sight is not likely to happen.

What do people from other Russian cities/towns know about Moscow before coming here? They know that  “Moscow is an evil city”, “Moscow doesn't believe in tears”, “Moscow never sleeps”, etc. This is why I disliked Moscow before even coming here – I knew living here would not be a bed of roses.

Now, after 3 years, I know that Moscow is probably the best place to live, because here you can find anything you want: the choice of jobs, places to go (theatres, museums, art places, bars) is really wide. You can choose any kind of lifestyle here. You can be whatever you want. You can meet lots of very interesting people. You can just walk around in the center and wonder how much history every building has. You can live in the building where Bulgakov met his wife, to whom he dedicated “The Master and Margarita” or you can walk around places where tsars liked to hunt.

Moscow centre 

If you want to fall in love with Moscow, maybe the following advice will help:

•         If you have recently moved to Moscow and do not like living here, maybe you just do not like the neighborhood – try to change it (I changed 5 places in Moscow before I found the one I enjoy. Living in different parts of Moscow is really like living in different cities);
•        Ask your friends who know the city to show you around – after going to good places with friends you enjoy you will find the city quite friendly;
•        Go on a date with the city alone once a week: choose one new place that you’d like to visit (GUM or Partiarch ponds, Gorky park or café Pushkin, the Tretyakov gallery or Izmailovo Kremlin, etc.) It is always fascinating to dive into atmosphere that Moscow places can offer;
•        If you do not like to explore the city alone, join one of the group of excursionists – you can find lots of them on the internet (most of them are at a charge, but there some which are free – for example, ones which are organized by my friend who is interested in Moscow history and enjoys to tell his friends about it. Feel free to join us if you speak Russian).

We can never love someone/something that we do not know. So, learn Moscow – and you’ll love it. 

Photo by Ksenia Zasetskaya