Interesting facts

1. Moscow is the largest city situated entirely within the European continent. 2. The Moscow Metro is famous for its architecture; many stations look like subterranean palaces featuring marble, chandeliers, and mosaics. 3. The name "Red Square" (Krasnaya Ploshchad) originally meant "Beautiful Square," as the Russian word "krasnaya" historically meant both "red" and "beautiful." 4. Moscow has the highest concentration of billionaires of any city in Europe. 5. The Kremlin is the largest active fortress in Europe, enclosed by 2.2 kilometers of red brick walls. 6. Moscow claims to be a "Port of Five Seas," connected via a network of canals and rivers to the Baltic, White, Caspian, Azov, and Black Seas. 7. The city is home to the Ostankino Tower, which was the tallest free-standing structure in the world when built in 1967 and remains the tallest in Europe. 8. The Russian State Library in Moscow is one of the largest libraries in the world, holding over 47 million items. 9. Moscow's Cathedral of Christ the Saviour is the tallest Orthodox Christian church in the world. 10. The city's skyline is punctuated by the "Seven Sisters," a group of seven massive Stalinist-era skyscrapers. 11. Moscow-City (the Moscow International Business Center) features some of the tallest contemporary skyscrapers in Europe, including the Federation Tower. 12. Gorky Park, opened in 1928, revolutionized the concept of an urban amusement and recreation park and spans over 300 acres along the Moscow River. 13. Moscow has a specialized stray dog population, some of which historically learned to navigate the Metro system. 14. The Bolshoi Theater in Moscow is one of the oldest and most renowned ballet and opera companies in the world. 15. Moscow has a ring-based road system, with the Boulevard Ring, Garden Ring, Third Transport Ring, and the MKAD forming concentric circles around the Kremlin. 16. Winters in Moscow are famously snowy, with the city deploying a massive fleet of thousands of snowplows to keep the streets clear. 17. Izmailovsky Park is one of the largest urban parks in the world, significantly larger than New York's Central Park. 18. The Moscow Metro's trains run incredibly frequently—during rush hour, the wait between trains is often less than 90 seconds. 19. The Tretyakov Gallery houses the greatest collection of Russian fine art in the world. 20. Moscow was not always the capital; Peter the Great moved the capital to St. Petersburg in 1712, and it did not return to Moscow until 1918.