Majestic Kazan in Two Nights / Three days
Index ---
1. Introduction
2. Reaching There
3. Accommodation
3. Accommodation
4. Places to Visit
Temple of All Religions
Kaban Lake
Bauman Street
Kazan Kremlin
Old Tatar Quarters
Embankment of Kazanka
River
5. Conclusion
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Introduction
Kazan is the capital of Tatarstan state of
Russia. It is an ancient city founded about a thousand years ago. It has a varied
past with Kazan Khans ruling it in the initial days and Russia ruling it from
around 1500 AD. Today, with over ten lakh population, Kazan is 6th
most populous city in Russia. It is the biggest city in Tatarstan.
Situated on
the confluence of Volga and Kazanka Rivers, it is an incredibly beautiful city
where the ancient meets the modern. It is an important centre of Tatar culture.
It has been designated “Sports Capital
of Russia” because of its excellent
sporting facilities. It is also an important educational centre in Russia. Readers
maybe surprised to know that the local university teaches the Hindi Language
also.
Reaching There
Railway system connects Kazan to other cities
of Russia. Kazan International Airport connects it to Russia and the rest of
the world. Kazan can be reached from Moscow by Rail, Air and Road. Rail and
Road travel takes over 11 hours while flight takes about one and half hour. Flying
is the fastest way to move between
Moscow and Kazan.
Accommodation
Kazan has a range of accommodation available,
that includes various stared hotels. Boutique hotels, budget hotels, b & b
and hostels which can suit all budgets. Kazan is a well laid out city with a
good city bus system and a single line metro. The bus system is efficient,
However, most of the attractions like Kazan Kremlin, Bauman street, etc are
walkable from most of the accommodation. The Temple of all faiths can be
reached by city bus. Kazan has a single Metro Line of Eleven Stations generally
running through the main city.
Places to Visit
Coming to the main question, Which are the
places worth a visit in Kazan?
Kazan has enough to see. Minimum of two nights is
needed to see Kazan in a glance. Let us concentrate on what can be seen in two
Night programme. This programme is with a presumption that the travellers have
arrived at Kazan latest by lunchtime of day one.
Day One
Temple of All Religions
After settling down in the accommodation and
some quick rest and lunch, one can set out for this unique place called “Temple
of All Religions”. If you are from India, you would realise that Hinduism is
not represented in this temple. That is attributed to Hinduism not being
present in Tararstana and it is not a cause of worry because it is not an
active Temple of any kind. Its creator calls it a "temple of culture and truth". This “Temple”,
so to say, is still a work in progress since 1992.
It has architectural styles of an orthodox
church, a mosque, a synagogue and many more. It is a very colourful building of
many towers. It is possible to visit this temple from inside at some cost
(around 100 Rubles) and also to have a conducted tour (so says the internet). We
did not go inside because the external façade itself was so eye-catching that
we found no time or need to go inside. It can be reached by bus (only) from
Chernyshevskogo street by bus number 2 in about 30 minutes. This temple is not
to be missed. Do you want to know why? Look at the photographs of this place
(my copyright).
All photos are of Temple of All Religions
Kaban Lake
By the time one visits the Temple in the
afternoon and returns to Kazan city, it is around evening. This is the time to
get down from the bus at Kaban Lakes, yes, lakes, because of it a system of
lakes connected to Kazanka River by a channel and a subterranean channel.
Kaban lakefront where one gets down from the
bus has two beautiful gardens. These gardens are very vibrant in the evening with people,
children and young alike, spending their time in this garden and the embankment
of the lake one level below.
Cool breeze, attractive fountains, boating and
observing life around will keep the visitors busy. Enjoy the vibrancy of this
place and absorb the energies before walking up to Bauman Street. The "old Tatar
Quarters" is on the bank of this lake and one can see old-style wooded houses at
a distance but that is for later. Interestingly, there is a Russian movie named
“Treasures of Lake Kaban” based on a legend that Tatar Riches were buried into
lake Kaban to protect them from The Tsar, Ivan the Terrible.
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| Lake Kaban |
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| Gardens on the lakeshore |
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| Beautiful Fountains |
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| Evening Skyline of Lake Kaban |
Bauman Street
This street is the heart of life in Kazan and is
the most happening place. It has a long history and it has been there even
before Kazan was captured by Ivan the Terrible. In fact, after the win of
Kazan, this street was called big breakthrough (hole in the Kremlin wall) street.
Thereafter it took many names and finally. it was named Bauman street in 1930
to honour a famous Kazan based revolutionary.
It is an interesting street with paved
colourful thoroughfare, a variety of
cafes, eateries, a famous church called Epiphany Church and its bell tower,
replica of Catherine the great’s Carriage, etc. The evening is when it is full
of life with some street performances happening there once in a while.
One can enjoy the vibrancy of this street in the evening. One can sample the food of all types including Tatar food. Chak Chak is a famous sweet of Tatarstan and there is a speciality Chak Chak store on this street.
Dom Chaya (Tea house) and
Dom Tatarskoy Culinary (House of Tatar Cuisine), which happen to opposite each
other, are two famous eating places on this street but they are not the only ones.
You can choose what you like.
One can enjoy the vibrancy of this street in the evening. One can sample the food of all types including Tatar food. Chak Chak is a famous sweet of Tatarstan and there is a speciality Chak Chak store on this street.
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| Chak Chak (written in Russian) |
One can end the day with dinner at one of the
many restaurants on this “Pedestrian Only” Bauman Street.
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| Epiphany Church Bell Tower |
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| Epiphany Church Bell Tower in the Night |
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| Dom Tatarskoy Culinary (House of Tatar Cuisine) |
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| Dom Tatarskoy Culinary (House of Tatar Cuisine) |
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| Another Cafe selling Tatar Food |
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| Bauman Street, Evening Mood |
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| Another View |
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| Night Beauty of Bauman Street |
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| Nightlife on Bauman Street |
Day 2
Kazan Kremlin.
Kremlin means a Fort cum administrative
complex. This Fortress is believed to have been built on the location of Kazan
Khan’s castle. It remains the only surviving fortress of Tatar era. One needs
half a day to completely see the Kazan Kremlin. It’s a confluence of two
important religions that exist in Tatarstan, Christianity and Islam. Oldest
buildings in this Kremlin are the Annunciation Cathedral, Soyembica (leaning)
Tower and the walls of Kremlin made with White sandstone.
A very young building, which is stunning and
grand, is Kul Sharif Mosque. This was inaugurated in the year 2005. This mosque
has been built on the site of the original mosque burnt down in 1552 by Russian
forces. There is also the Presidential Palace here in the Kremlin. This palace
is next to Soyembica Tower. This is where the President of Tatarstan
Republic lives. This palace is also been built on a site where Kazan Khan’s
place once stood. Very close to Soyembica tower, few Kazan Khan Tombs can be
seen in a vestibule.
Kazan
Kremlin has two entries through Spasskaya Tower (open 24x7)
and Taynitskaya Tower which is open roughly in the day time. It is also worth visiting the Kremlin in the
Night if one has time to do so. Incidentally, the Bauman street starts from
Kremlin and goes up to Tukay Square in the city centre.
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| Zilant, THe Winged Snake, Symbol of Tatarstan since 1730 AD |
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| Musa Dzhalil Statue and Spasskaya Tower in the Backdrop |
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| Rampart and Watch Tower |
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| Beautiful Kul Sharif Mosque |
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| A Model of Kul Sharif Mosque inside |
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| Ornamental Ceiling |
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| Decorated walls inside the Mosque |
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| Annunciation Church |
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| Church Tower |
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| Inside the Church |
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| Soyembika Tower, Presidential Palace on the right of it |
It would be time for Lunch by the time one is done with the visit to
the Kazan Kremlin and where else to go for it but for Bauman Street.
Old
Tatar Quarter
Post lunch, taking a little rest would be in order. Post rest, set out for Old Tatar Quarter on the right shore of Kaban Lake (as seen from Lake Kaban Gardens).
This is where the Tatars got pushed from erstwhile Kazan Khan citadel (where Kremlin now stands) after the loss of it to Tsar. This area is full of old Tatar style houses made of wood. Some of these houses are associated with famous Tatar personalities like nobles, poets, etc.
There are also many mosques (none
of them is very old as Islam was banned under Tsars until Catherin the Great removed
the ban.) that are co-located in this
quarter, some of which are famous. There are eateries in the area that serve
Tatar, Chechen and far eastern cuisine.
Many tourists may think that this is a place worth skipping but on the
contrary, this place must be visited to know more about Tatar life and culture.
There is no better place to see and experience more about Tatar culture but
this over five hundred years old Tatar settlement.
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| Soviet Style Building, albeit not very tall |
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| Statue of Bulgarian Poet Kul Gali |
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| Children's Play Station |
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| Tatar House |
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| Mardzhani Mosque |
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| Beautiful House |
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| Up CLose |
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| Another One |
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| Looking Through |
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| Street View |
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| In a Tatar Restaurant _ Shamsi |
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| Wall Painting in the Restaurant |
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| SImple and Eligent |
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| Coffee Time |
When you return from the Old Kazan Quarter,
Look for interesting things on your return route, may it be a garden or a stylish building, etc.
Embankment of Kazanka River
The evening is the time to be at the Embankment
of Kazanka River. This place is on one side of the Kazan Kremlin and it is the
best place to see the life flow by. People cycling, walking, spending time
together is fun to watch. It is also a place to see gleaming Kazan city after
sunset. The evening breeze, the liveliness and fun of Kazanka embankment is
worth enjoying.
After this visit, one can enjoy yet another
visit to Bauman Street, have Chak Chak and enjoy the food of their choice. However,
there are many other places in the town to eat the cuisine of your choice in the
town also, just in case one is fed up of Bauman Street.
With this fun-filled evening, our Kazan tour
comes to an end. Its time for you to sleep well and proceed to Airport tomorrow
early morning to fly down to the charm of Europe, Saint Petersburg, a city
where every street looks like a museum.
Conclusion
Kazan is a jewel and still not a destination which is visited by many tourists in general and Indians in particular. Kazan has so much to offer and it should go on to itinerary of Indians when they visit Russia, not just Moscow and Saint Petersburg. Just go for it.
Conclusion
Kazan is a jewel and still not a destination which is visited by many tourists in general and Indians in particular. Kazan has so much to offer and it should go on to itinerary of Indians when they visit Russia, not just Moscow and Saint Petersburg. Just go for it.
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