Understand
Samara region is located in the southeastern part of the European territory of Russia in the basin of the Volga, the largest river in Europe. The region has the area of 53,6 thousand sq.km (0,31 % of the total territory of Russia ). In the north it borders on the Republic of Tatarstan, in the south - on Saratov area, in the east - on Orenburg area, in northwest - on Ulyanovsk area. The area stretches from north to south for 335 km and from west to east for 315 km. Samara region is forest-steppe region. In the north it is covered with coniferous and broadleaved woods, and its south and east are mainly steppe areas. The largest mountain range of the area and one of the most beautiful places in Russia are Mountains Zhigulevskie. The main river of the region except Volga, the most significant rivers are Samara, Sok, Kinel', Big Irgiz, Kondurcha.
Samara was officially founded in 1586 when on the bank of the Volga River the construction of the fortress that was to protect the Russian State from the incursion of martial nomadic tribes was started. But in fact, the settlement on the bent of the Volga River had been mentioned in the ancient chronicles since 14th century. During World War II Samara (the city situated not far from Moscow ), then named Kuibyshev, was the second capital of USSR. The city's growth was stimulated during World War II by its distance from the war zone and the evacuation there of numerous government functions when Moscow was threatened by German attack; also helped the postwar development of the Volga-Urals oilfield. The city reverted to its old name in 1991.
Many famous people worked and lived in Samara. Outstanding Russian writers Lev Tolstoy and Maxim Gorky, painters Ilya Repin, Vasily Surikov and Ivan Aivazovsky, revolutionists Michael Frunze and Vladimir Lenin are among them. Even a French writer Alexander Duma had paid a visit to Samara in 1858. Impressed by the travel he wrote the book "From Paris to Astrakhan " where he gave his description of Samara.
Get in
The city is served by highways and railways, as well as international airlines, among them Lufthansa flying to and from Frankfurt, or CSA Czech Airlines flying to and from Prague with convenient connections worldwide, which makes it an attractive tourist destination as well. Kurumoch airport code is KUF. There are more than 10 daily flights to Samara from Moscow, the Russian capital, served by Aeroflot Russian Airlines, Samara Airlines, S7 Airlines and UTair Aviation , as well as many direct flights from Samara to other Russian cities, including Saint Petersburg, Krasnoyarsk, Perm, Rostov, Vladivostok and others.
By car you can reach Samara following by route M5 (Moscow - Ryazan - Penza - Togliatti).
By train. Samara is a big railway junction. A lot of train passed here from Moscow to East and back.
Do
Night life in Samara is quite joyful. The main dance clubs are: Beerja, KINUP (Stock Exchange), Zvezda (Star), Aura (The Aura), Postel (The Bed), Long Bar. There are many restaurants and bars in Samara. The pricing for clubbing are the same or even higher than in Europe and Americas, though not so high as in Moscow.
Samara (Сама́ра) (from 1935 to 1991—Kuybyshev (Ку́йбышев)) is the sixth-largest city in Russia. It is situated in the southeastern part of European Russia, the Volga Federal District, the administrative center of Samara Oblast. Its geographical location is . Population: 1,157,880 (2002 Census); 1,254,460 (1989 Census).
It was founded in 1586 as a defense outpost, a fortress, and later grew into a major grain-trading center for the Volga region. It was renamed after the Soviet politician Valerian Kuybyshev under Soviet rule, but returned to its historical name after the fall of Communism.
Now it is a large social, economic, industrial and cultural center of European Russia. The metropolitan area of Samara-Togliatti-Syzran within Samara Region with a population of more than 3.0 million people is known for its automobile (AvtoVAZ), aluminium (Alcoa), railroad equipment, chemicals, oil and gas, machinery, and confectionery (Nestlé) industries. The city also has an aerospace industry, namely TsSKB-Progress, producing the Soyuz and Molniya launch vehicles. Due to this industry the city was a closed city during the Cold War.
History
The city was the secondary capital of the Soviet Union from 1941 to 1943 when German troops threatened Moscow.
During this period the city was nicknamed The Second Baku because of the crisis, in which the Soviet State Defense Committee decided to transfer the main forces of oil-workers and oil enterprises of Baku to the regions of Volga, Ural Mountains, Kazakhstan and Central Asia for the enforcement of the oil extraction there. Meanwhile all the nine drilling offices, oil-expedition and oil-construction trusts and various other enterprises with their staffs were transferred to the Samara area. Highly qualified specialists and masters in oil industry were sent there along with more than 5,000 workers with half of their equipment.
The Kuybyshev Square is the largest city square in Europe and the third largest in the world, largely for the accommodation of Soviet-era military parades. An enormous opera house is located on the square.
Education, culture and transport
Along with its many universities (including Samara State University and Samara State Aerospace University), theaters, and museums, the city is also a major intellectual and academic center in Russia. The city is served by highways and railways. Its airport is Samara Kurumoch Airport, with a number of international airlines, among them Lufthansa flying to and from Frankfurt, or Czech Airlines flying to and from Prague with convenient connections worldwide, which makes it an attractive tourist destination. Samara is served by Aeroflot Russian Airlines, Samara Airlines, and a number of regional carriers. The "Kurumoch" code for Samara International Airport is KUF. It also has a rapid transit system, the Samara Metro. However, this system has only 8 stations at present.
One popular tourist location in Samara is Stalin's bunker, a World War II bunker built to house military operations in the event of Moscow falling to the invading German forces. This monument is located south west of Kuybyshev Square, behind a series of apartment complexes. Vladimir Lenin's body was also evacuated to Samara when the Soviet Union was invaded by Germany, and Moscow seemed to be on the verge of falling into German hands.
Samara boasts of a vibrant nightlife. There are several clubs that play house music, including Zvezda, Birzha, Aura, Postel, and MTL. However, due to the federal anti-drug agency's ("Gosnarkokontrol") increased activities in the city, there appears to have been a decline in the quality and vibrancy of the nightlife (citation required here).
Samara is also the name of a model of a Lada car made by the VAZ auto company in Togliatti, in Samara Oblast.
Sport
Samara is the home to the FC Krylya Sovetov Samara, a football club in the Russian Premier League. Samara is also the home to the best world women basketball club VBM-SGAU with many famous international players.
Honours
The asteroid 26922 Samara was named in honour of the city and river on 1 June 2007.
See also
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