Six Routes and New Puzzles about Moscow

The history of Moscow can be explored not only in museums: on September 27, 2026, participants of the ‘Station Kultura’ quest will walk along the city streets solving puzzles. The programme includes routes focused on ancient times, monument restoration, war literature, urban legends, ancient educational institutions, and the ‘World of Art’ association. The quest is available in Russian and English.

The quest was developed by the Ingroup STS team, HSE’s oldest student organisation. The 32^nd ‘Station Kultura,’ a cultural and historical quest through places within the Garden Ring, will be held in Moscow. The quest starts at 21/4 Staraya Basmannaya Street. Participants can choose one of three formats—a Russian quest, a Russian cycling quest, or an English quest.

To participate, you need to gather a team of two to six people and register on the project’s website.

Points are awarded for correctly solved puzzles and for reaching the insider at the location of the solved puzzle. Additional points can be earned for visiting the programme’s starting and finishing locations. If you haven’t found a team, you can look for like-minded people in the project group on VKontakte after registering.

Six routes in Moscow

The first route is ‘Moscow. Return to Ithaca’. It is dedicated to ancient times in Moscow: participants will search for traces of bygone eras on city streets and facades.

The ‘Moscow under Restoration’ route will explore architectural monuments that have gained a second life over the past five years, as well as the people who helped preserve the city’s cultural heritage.

The route ‘Wait for me, Moscow’ will focus on literature in history and history in literature in the works of poets and writers. Participants will be invited to follow the theme of war, which continues to live in literature, urban memory, prose, and poetry.

The ‘Moscow Upside Down’ route is dedicated to the mystical history of the big city—Moscow legends, stories, rumours, and mysterious coincidences.

The ‘Moscow School of Witchcraft and Wizardry’ route invites participants to explore Moscow’s educational institutions through the familiar image of Hogwarts. According to the organisers, Moscow has preserved a whole collection of ancient educational institutions that could well compete with the famous school of witchcraft and wizardry.

Finally, the ‘World-of-art Moscow’ route is dedicated to places associated with the ‘World of Art’ and artists from the turn of the 20^th century. Participants will walk through the places where images of an entire era were created, and see a familiar city from the viewpoint of the association’s artists.

Metro as Part of a Cultural Route

The opportunity to see familiar urban infrastructure as part of Moscow’s cultural history is one of the features of the quest. In particular, participants are invited to pay close attention to metro stations.

‘Mayakovskaya,’ named after the Russian poet Vladimir Mayakovsky, was opened in 1938. The ceiling domes of the station are decorated with mosaics by Alexander Deineka. During the Great Patriotic War, the Moscow metro served as a shelter for the city’s residents, and on November 6, 1941, a solemn meeting dedicated to the anniversary of the October Revolution was held at Mayakovskaya station.

The Novoslobodskaya station is decorated with magnificent stained glass and a mosaic panel ‘World Peace’ at the end of the platform.

The name ‘Elektrozavodskaya’ is associated with the history of the area and the nearby Electrical Plant. The station’s design recalls Moscow’s industrial past: the reliefs are dedicated to the workers in various industries. The station opened in May 1944, before the end of the Great Patriotic War.

‘Ploshchad Revolyutsii’ is famous for its bronze sculptures and the traditions associated with them. In total, 76 bronze figures depicting people of different professions and eras stand throughout the station. Following old superstitions, passengers may rub the nose of a border guard’s dog before an exam or touch a student’s shoe.

According to the organisers, the project offers a new view of the city: leave your usual route, take a closer look at an old building, examine the façade, or learn the history of a place you may have passed by before.

Alexander Klimov

‘The most vivid memory for me is the moment when I go on stage, see the eyes of the guests, see them smiling, and realise that all the preparation was worth it. In these few minutes, you are reliving the whole journey—from team gathering and the first written puzzles to the countdown and the final cry of “The quest is over!”’ said Alexander Klimov, coordinator of ‘Station Kultura.’

He adds that each new ‘Station Kultura’ gives the organisers an opportunity to set new goals, change something that seemed unchangeable, revisit the rules, and come up with something better. ‘This is what motivates us to continue the project. After all, Moscow is too big to show all your love for it in one “Station Kultura”,’ said Alexander Klimov.

September 10