Riding the Moscow Metro

Posted by Amanda Kendle Dec 21, 2006

I'm told that St Petersburg has the deeper metro stations - all that swampy reclaimed land on top, I guess. But when my mother and I homestayed near Park Pobedy in Moscow, we timed one escalator ride from top to bottom and it came out at three minutes and twenty-five seconds. That's a long time to be standing on one escalator, and we saw plenty of locals using this time well for reading or even a kiss and a cuddle!

But for me the real fascination with Moscow's metros is not the depth but the effort the Soviets went to decorate them. With the aim of proving to the people that socialism was a worthwhile philosophy, many Moscow metro stations (particularly near the city center) were decked out to look more like museums or art galleries than a simple place to catch an underground train. You can find out where the most interesting metro stations are in this week's article, The Art of Moscow's Metros. Ever seen fancily decorated stations in other cities? - if so, start a discussion and let us know.