Kazan: Short One-Day Visits

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I visited Kazan many times and had many walks there. I usually go to St. Petersburg via Kazan by train. I like this city, because I feel comfortable there. I mean, in the centre, I haven’t been in other areas.


My first visit there was in May 2009, when I was going to Kursk, and on my way I had two stops in Kazan and Moscow.


It was extremely fine to start walking at 6 o’clock in the morning, with almost no people in the streets and lovely atmosphere, the sun was shining and the sky was blue. I did not use any transport for moving in the city, because the train station is in the centre and major attractions are also there. But I did go by metro one time and by bus, only because I was tired.


After a short walk from the train station I got to the Kazanka River, and it was a lovely view. The river is rather wide, and it flows into Volga. Right after that I saw the Kremlin, and it looks just magnificent, though it is not so big as the Moscow Kremlin (four times smaller). It has white walls, a mosque, a church, and a red-brick Suyumbike tower.


I had a walk around the Kremlin on the outside and then came to its entrance. I did not know whether it was free to go inside, so I sat on a bench for some time. Then a woman came to me and said she could be my guide in the Kremlin for 150 roubles. It was cheap and seemed to be interesting, so I agreed. The guide spoke without any pauses, and provided me with so much information on everything about the Kremlin. It was rather interesting. What is most important is that Kazan Kremlin is definitely worth seeing.


After the Kremlin I went to the Baumana Street. It is a fine central street for walking, shopping, and rest. The most amazing place on that street is the Church of Bogoyavleniye (Baptism of Christ) with a bell tower, and I like it very much, because it is tall and dominates the whole street.


I forgot one important thing. After the Kremlin I decided to go to the place on the other bank of the river - I saw a big wheel there. It was rather a stupid act to go there at such an early time, because, first of all, I got lost, and second, it opened only at 10 A.M. I got angry and tired, since it is a long way from the Kremlin to that place, and took a bus to the roundabouts of Kremlin.


Only after that I walked on the Baumana Street. One more important thing is to mention that I was to meet with a girl at 14:00. Before that I managed to see many places: the Square of Liberty with the theater of opera and ballet, then the Sultan-Galiyev Square (there is a view on the river, and one can also see the very peculiar Millenium Bridge, shaped like an M), the Black Lake Park, the Lenin Garden. You can buy a map with several routes on it, as I did.


Then I walked on Pushkin Street to see the Nizhny Kaban Lake, the fountains in front of Kamal Theater, and the Millenium Park. This much walking makes one hungry and tired, so I went to a café and had a nice and tasty meal before meeting the girl. It was not a pleasant meeting (we got acquainted via the world wide web), since the girl did not at all seem communicable and there were uncomfortable moments of silence. I guess man is judged by his appearance, expecially by girls. We had a little talk, and then I went to the Levo- and Pravo-Bulachnaya Street. It looks unusual because there is a water canal between them, which makes this place similar to St. Petersburg’s canals. There were also fountains there.


Finally, there was time left to go back to that big wheel. Oh, I went there by bus again, so I seem to have lied about me taking no transport. The park is called Kyrlay, and the big wheel offers a vast view on the city, though it is quite far, there is the Kazanka River separating the two parts. With a good zoom you can get very fine pictures of the Kremlin and the river.


So, it lasted for whole 12 hours, from 6 o’clock in the morning till 6 o’clock in the evening, when I came to the train station. I had a meal and rest for three hours before the train to Moscow. I know this story might be much longer, but, as in a song, “words don’t come easy”... I will simply advise, if you are near Kazan, do visit it for sightseeing.


But you’ll certainly be grumbling about the following. There are a lot of demolished buildings within the centre, which certainly does not make it look better. I hope they will repair those soon. So, the contrast is quite noticeable.


This moment I remembered some more places which I saw: The Basket-Hall (playing basketball, easy to guess), and the Petersburg Street.


I hope the lack of words will be supplemented by photoes. On some other occasions I had much shorter walks in the centre, trying to something new.


One particular walk in the autumn will be reflected in some photos with grey clouds. What’s more, I visited Kazan this year on the 5th of May, only to see the Zilantov Monastery. This time I was again going to St. Petersburg. I looked for Kazan sights in the internet and found this monastery. It is about a 40 or something minutes walk to the monastery. I had some pictures and also walked in the centre. Got very tired, and slept for the whole day in the train. Another stay in Kazan was in September 2009, two whole days, and this was also participation in a conference. Somehow I had no walks that time, I would not quite remember why. May be I thought I’ve seen enough, may be did not want, or had work to be done. One thing is certain, that I wanted to get home as soon as possible. That autumn I lived in St. Petersburg. Perhaps I will write some impressions about St. Petersburg, especially its suburbs.


I am looking forward to see Kazan again. I guess it will be very soon.


At the end, I will say that I’ve just been to Kiev for one day, at a party again. It happened so that my physical state was completely bad, sleepy and tired. Something to note is: this time people in train bothered me asking to change places. First there were children which did not ask, but said that my place was theirs. Little liars, they’ll have a great future with lying, I suppose. I should advice nobody never to change places with anyone. You see, people are leaving and entering the train at various stations, so one is sure to be asked to leave the place he/she changed for when another passenger comes. That’s unnecessary trouble.


Sleepiness is my greatest enemy during journeys. Especially during the night, when there’s party around.


This time I made a small experiment with my way back home, first there was a flight, then a bus journey, and the last 60 kilometers to my home time could be by foot or by car. No buses in the evening, no train connections. Well, I tried to save money on the flight, because it was really cheap, however, the game was not worth the candle.


I will be editing this piece, adding some new passages after my next visits to the old and attractive city of Kazan.

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Photos

The Kremlin
The most beautiful place in the city

A Kremlin Tower
It looks magnificent in white

A Church
sorry, no full name

Suyumbike Tower
Quite impressive

A Monument to Shalyapin
the famous Russian singer

View on Kremlin and Lenin Dam
the big wheel