"A city so irregular, so uncommon, so extraordinary, and so contrasted, had never before claimed my astonishment. In a word, some parts of this vast city have the appearance of a sequestered desert, others the quarters of a populous town; some of a contemptible village, others of a great capital."
 
-- William Coxe "Travels" 1792
 

Moscow Metro
 
The Moscow metro is more than just a means of transportation.  Under Stalin's direction its stations were designed to symbolize the power and glory of the USSR. As a result, many of the older, central stations look more like marble palaces than train platforms. At the same time, the great depth of many of the stations gives them the added function of bomb shelters.  The Moscow metro system consists of 153 stations and is used more than nine million times a day, making it the world's busiest.
 

The Kremlin
 
The Moscow Kremlin is both the center of the city and the heart of Russian political power. Its history goes back to approximately the year 1050, when the first wooden wall was built around the village on a hill which was to become Moscow.