Novosibirsk

Novosibirsk is the third largest city of Russia after Moscow and Saint Petersburg with population of 139100 peoples (2007). It is the administrative center of Novisibirsk oblast, situated 3303 km from Moscow. It is also the largest city and administrative center of Siberian Federal District.

 

The city was founded in 1893 as the future site of the Trans-Siberian Railway bridge crossing the great Siberian river Ob, and was known as Novonikolayevsk after Saint Nicholas. Also, it was the name of the Tsar ruling at that time Tsar Nikolay II. The bridge opened for traffic in the spring of 1897. Its importance further increased early in the 20th century with the completion of the Turkestan-Siberia Railway, connecting Novosibirsk to Central Asia and the Caspian Sea.

 

In the period of November Revolution (1918) Novosibirsk was the largest commercial and industrial center having an agricultural processing industry, power station, iron foundry, commodity market, banks, commercial and shipping companies, 7 Orthodox churches, one Roman-Catholic church, several cinemas, 40 primary schools, a high school, teachers' seminary and the Romanov House' non-classical secondary school.

 

Novosibirsk was a very quickly developing city. In 1957 the city of scientific research Akademgorodok was built about 30 km south of Novosibirsk. Akademgorodok became the Sberian Branch of the Academy of Sciences. There arose within a very short time 14 research institutions and universities, virtually making it a new city. As any city Akademgorodok has a variety of stores, hotels, hospitals, restaurants and cafes, cinemas, clubs and libraries. At September 2nd, 1962, Novosibirsk reached a population of one million. At that time it was the youngest city in the world with over a million people. It took Novosibirsk less than 70 years to achieve that milestone. In 1979 construction of the Novosibirsk Metro began, culminating in the opening of the first line in 1985.

 

Novosibirsk is also a culture center of Siberia, it has more then six theaters, a philharmonic orchestra and a musical conservatory.

 

Novosibirsk was on the center path of the Solar eclipse of August 1, 2008 with a duration of 2 minutes and 20 seconds

 

We invite you to arrive in Novosibirsk, young and beautiful cities, to walk at the main street Krasny Prospect where all administrative and entertaining buildings are located, to visit Academgorodok – the town of scientific, a unique museum of old train in the open air, one of the biggest Zoo in Russia, with its 4000 species of animals and see main sights of Novosibirsk: its churches, museums, theaters.