Krasnodar
It was early on a Saturday morning when I set off on a tour of Krasnodar. This is the monument to the soldiers who liberated the city from the Nazis on 12th February 1943
Not far away is the stone that commemorates the founding of the city with the building of a fortress with the bend of the Kuban river in 1793. It is a great natural defensive position with the river and swamps on three sides. On the reverse of the stone is a rough map of the fort, the river and some of the early houses that sprang up around the fort.
The bust of Alexander Nevsky, 1221 - 1263, a great leader, general and ruler after whom the cathedral is named.
A view of the cathedral with the bust of Alexander Nevsky in the bottom left hand corner.
A statue of Katherine the Great, who did so much to bring this area into the empire and consolidate Imperial control over large areas. The city was originally called Yekaterinodar, meaning the gift of Katherine who gave the land to the Black Sea Cossacks until 1920 when the Bolsheviks changed the name to Krasnodar, still meaning a gift but it can be either red or beauty. There was a proposal to change the name back again to Yekaterinodar but it was rejected locally as it would be so expensive to undertake in the modern world.
A statue of Pushkin, banished here from St Petersburg. There is an inscription on the plinth commemorating what he said about Krasnodar. In the background is the library that also bears his name.
The art museum, a former Muslim merchants' house which was turned into an art museum. The collection of avant grade art was captured by the Nazis but they didn't appreciate the style and left it untouched so it still survives.
Despite much damage during the war, several buildings survive or have been extensively repaired. such as these...
...originally just two stories but living space was limited in the city after the war and a third storey was added.
Vladimir Mayakovsky's statue of Walking Dogs was created based on an observation on the number of pedigree dogs left by the elite who were fleeing the city.
The next site to visit was the Krasnodar State Historical and Archaeological Museum which is located in a former merchants house which has some spectacular architecture and decorations. The outside of the building.
The ceiling of the original entrance.
Another ceiling at the top of the stairs.
A view of the ceiling and the chandelier of the main reception hall.
A detail of one of the columns and a military uniform.
Yet more ceiling plaster works...
...and a view of the revivalist or arte nouveau style of architecture.
And then for something completely different...the stadium where Krasnodar FC play, owed by
Sergey Galitsky. He made a massive fortune creating the Magnet supermarket chain with branches throughout the country and you can not drive down any major road with out seeing a Magnet lorry rolling by. He sold it and now concentrates on his football team...tKrasnodar. The stadium....
...which is surrounded by a large public park as part of his legacy to the city. It is a vast area with separate areas for relaxation and enjoyment such as these fountains...
...sculptured trees to sit on...
...beautiful gardens...
...skateboard areas...
...areas for sand its and activities for small children...
...water areas...
...and open areas with shade from trees...
...of all sorts...
...and some sculptured areas...
...and a musical area with xylophones for the public to play...
...and cool covered walkways to shelter from the summer heat...
...and then it was back to the city and an arch. The city is known as the city of moving monuments. The cathedral used to be sited further up the street but rebuilt on its current position as were several other monuments including tis arch which is a replica of the arch which was built just a couple of blocks from the rebuilt cathedral.
The Love Bridge, a bridge across the river to an island which is a funfair and has a submarine exhibit which visitors can walk around and feel the claustrophobia of small spaces in a noisy machine under water. It is also where lovers attach padlocks as a sign of love...however the bridge needed repainting and all of the locks had been removed.
And then it was time for lunch at Stan. Stan was a place where soldiers might stay or where wandering peasants might settle.
It is one of the best places to eat in Krasnodar for both good for and atmosphere with the decoration in the main building being both grandiose and impressive.
Another area of the restaurant, and all of the interior areas were authentically reproduced.
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