It has been a decade and a half since the Main Cathedral of the Russian Orthodox Church reappeared in its rightful place on the banks of the Moskva River. In this regard, the issue of how to get to the Cathedral of Christ the Savior became relevant again. For many decades this building was absent in its usual place. And the path to the temple could be sought only in a symbolic sense.
From the history of the issue
This magnificent cathedral was erected to commemorate the victories of Russian weapons in the Patriotic War of 1812 in the mid-nineteenth century. It was an adornment of Moscow until 1931, when it was blown up according to the Stalinist plan for the general reconstruction of Moscow accepted for execution . At this place it was planned to erect a grandiose Palace of Soviets, the construction of which was prevented by the Great Patriotic War. This was supposed to be the tallest building in the capital.
For a long time, the swimming pool "Moscow" functioned successfully at this place, until at the end of the century a decision was made to recreate the once-destroyed historical monument in its original form. The project was successfully implemented in a fairly short time frame. During its implementation, modern construction technologies were used, but geodetic measurements and architectural fragments of the historical structure that preceded it were used. It is curious to note that this is the highest Orthodox cathedral in the territory of the Russian Federation.
How to get to the Cathedral of Christ the Savior
Back in the Soviet era, many wished for the restoration of historical justice and the revival of the destroyed temple. Donations were collected for this noble cause. This happened even despite reasonable doubts about the feasibility of such a grandiose project. But everything is in the past.
Modern Muscovites are already used to taking it for granted that the Cathedral of Christ the Savior is in its rightful place. How to get to it, they do not need to explain. This question is usually of interest to those who came to Moscow for the first time. And there are several correct answers to it.
What matters is primarily from where in Moscow you want to get to it. And, of course, the time of day - during peak hours, it is best to avoid transfers on the Koltsevaya metro line. This is time-consuming.
Metro "Kropotkinskaya"
The simplest answer to the question of how to get to the Cathedral of Christ the Savior is a proposal to use the services of the subway. Directly opposite the church, on Gogolevsky Boulevard, there is a ground lobby of the metro station in the form of a rotunda with a colonnade. When you exit it offers a magnificent view of the Cathedral of Christ the Savior.
The address of the metro, to which the main cathedral of the Russian Orthodox Church is attached, is known to everyone - this is the Kropotkinskaya station of the Sokolnicheskaya line of the Moscow metro. To get to it is not difficult from anywhere in the city.
The station itself, as well as its ground lobby, is an unconditional architectural landmark of the city of Moscow. She was part of the first metro launch site and received the first passengers back in 1935. And it is through this station on Gogolevsky Boulevard that the road to the temple passes. The first metro passengers in the thirties could observe the wreckage of the blown up Cathedral of Christ the Savior, and later - a grand pit under the foundation of the Palace of Soviets, which was never destined to rise at this place.
Metro "Little Wolf"
In the very near future, the question of how to get to the Cathedral of Christ the Savior by metro will not provide such an unambiguous answer as today. The fact is that the construction of the Kalinin line of the Moscow Metro is currently underway. It will pass through the center of Moscow, and a second metro station will open near the temple.
This event remains to wait for about three years. The opening of the Volkhonka metro station is scheduled for 2018. It will be a transfer, from it the transition to the Sokolniki line will be carried out. It is interesting to note that the final name of the station was not chosen immediately. In the projects of metro builders, it was designated both as Ostozhenka and Gogolevsky Boulevard. But the final version of the toponym was chosen in honor of that old Moscow street on which the Cathedral of Christ the Savior is located. Address - Moscow, Volkhonka-17, is its official postal coordinate. You can write letters, they will reach their destination.
Other options - from the Alexander Garden
But even the presence of as many as two metro stations in the immediate vicinity of the temple does not mean at all that it is this route that should be reached. Especially if your plans are not the only address to visit.
The Cathedral of Christ the Savior is a must for a brief excursion program when visiting the capital. But a visit here is best combined with a walk through the historic center of Moscow. Especially if time allows, but the weather does not interfere.
It is best to start a walk from the Kremlin wall from the Alexander Garden. To do this, it is best to get out of the subway at the Borovitskaya station of the Serpukhov-Timiryazevskaya line. And walk along the streets Mokhovaya and Volkhonka slowly to the Cathedral of Christ the Savior. This path will not take much time, but there will be something to remember.
From Arbat Square
No less exciting can be the route along Gogolevsky Boulevard from Arbat Square. This is one of the most beautiful places in the capital and a favorite place for walks with native Muscovites. On the square there are two whole station of the same name: the "Arbat" line of the Filyovskaya line and the same exactly the Arbat-Pokrovskaya line.
These stations do not communicate with each other, but you can get to the square via either of the two metro lines. And then you will have an unhurried walk along Gogolevsky Boulevard in the direction of the Moscow River to the Cathedral of Christ the Savior. It is impossible to make a mistake in the direction if we take the monument to Gogol at the beginning of the eponymous boulevard as the starting point of the route. And it ends with the already mentioned arch of the lobby of the Kropotkinskaya metro station.