On my way east along the Trans-Siberian Railway, after Kazan, my second stop was the city of Yekaterinburg. Yekaterinburg was founded in 1723 and got named after Catherine I, wife of Peter the Great. Due to its strategic position between Europe and Asia and its rich mining resources, it quickly gained prominence and grew to become one of Russia’s principal urban centers. During the Soviet era, the city was renamed Sverdlovsk in honor of (easy to guess) a Bolshevik leader named Yakov Sverdlov. After the fall of Communism and the reinstatement of the reputation of Tsaric history, the city took back its original name. Although the Soviet name is still in use for the Sverdlovsk Oblast: the federated state of which Yekaterinburg is the capital. Today Ekaterinburg, home to about a million and a half people, is the fourth largest city in Russia, its rapid growth trend indicating that it’s soon bound to take over the third place from Novosibirsk.
An entire day passed since I boarded the train early in the morning, and shortly before midnight I was exiting the train station to this new city. I called my friend Tatyana, at whose place I was going to stay, and got to stare at the wide square in front of the station while waiting for her to arrive. The city was very quiet. There were only cops and vagrants occasionally strolling through the square. The advertising illuminated signs around were paid notice by no one. Tatyana eventually showed up. We had to literally run in order to catch the last tube home.
I didn’t spend in this city as much time as I would have liked to – especially after getting this first idea of it which left me with the best of impressions. I spent there three nights altogether: one before I left to, and two after I returned from, a hiking trip to the Ural Mountains. So I didn’t get the chance to explore the city much, but I will anyway write here about the few things I got to see and experience during my sojourn.
2018 FIFA World Cup in Yekaterinburg
Though I do very much enjoy playing football from time to time, when it comes to attending events… I shouldn’t be dubbed such a great football fan. I actually didn’t even have an idea that World Cup matches were to be held in Yekaterinburg until my coinciding there with the event, which I couldn’t but notice. It was omnipresently evident that the city was preparing for a big feast. The last evening of my stay was the eve of the city’s opening match between Egypt and Uruguay. The city streets were flooded with fans of both teams waving their national flags and belting out slogans. The ones of the former were for the most part sober, the ones of the latter for the most part drunk, but both were equally boisterous.
Alexander Nevsky Cathedral of Yekaterinburg
This is one of those typical, fairytale-ish, golden-domed cathedrals one finds in Russia. Just like Saint Petersburg’s most famous street, it is named after the saint-warrior Alexander Nevsky, who, back in the Middle Ages, slaughtered all the enemies of Christianity and established the religion of peace in Russia. The church was built in 1814 to commemorate the slaughter of Napoleon’s soldiers. It is found within a beautiful, green park.
Vaynera Street
This is Yekaterinburg’s most famous pedestrian street. Nice cafes and restaurants, picturesque architecture, and interesting pieces of art may be found here.
Church of All Saints (Church on the Blood)
This church, together with a greater complex, was constructed recently to commemorate the execution of Tsar Nicholas II, Russia’s last emperor, together with his family and their following by the Bolsheviks, which took place on the spot on July 17, 1918, as well as to celebrate their elevation to sainthood by the Russian Orthodox Church.
Plotinka
This is the city’s most popular park, situated on either bank of Iset River. It has taken its name ( meaning ‘dam’ in Russian) from an actual dam located there which used to be powering an iron forge. It is an ideal place to take a pleasant stroll along the riverbanks without leaving the center of the city.
That’s pretty much what I got to see in Yekaterinburg before catching the train to continue my way east to Novosibirsk.
Stays & Activities in Yekaterinburg
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