The 'Russia' international exhibition-forum occupies a large area at the VDNKh exhibition park in Moscow. Some of the pavilions were built specially for it from scratch: They are simple in design, with glass or light-colored walls, and have laconic, snappy names.
The exhibition is open every day, except Mondays, from 10 am to 9 pm (on weekends until 10 pm). Entry is free for everyone.
Even before you reach the main entrance – the famous VDNKh arch – you will pass two new pavilions. The ‘Visitor Center’ will tell you everything about the exhibition of achievements and direct you to any of the sightseeing tours that take your fancy. In the 'Map of Russia' pavilion, an embroidered map of Russia from the Chuvash National Museum in Cheboksary is presented in all its interactive glory.
Immediately after the main entrance, you will find yourself in a tunnel-shaped gallery, where you can see all of Russia's achievements of recent years. Rare animal species saved from extinction, successes in industry – a digital show with sound on the tunnel's wall screens will quickly give you an idea of how much the country has managed to achieve during this period.
The enormous Pavilion No. 75 probably offers the most interesting display of the whole exhibition, both for children and adults. In it, every region of the country, including the new ones, has its own stand.
If you want to buy a regional souvenir, head to the 'Department Store' in Pavilion No. 75. It has classic ‘Dymkovo’ toys, Tula ‘pryaniks’ (gingerbread) and Vologda lace shawls, as well as contemporary clothing brands from Russia's new regions – it looks like an exhibition, except you can buy most of it!
In the ‘Russian Railways’ pavilion, you can see the inside of a new double-decker rail car. You can also compare how the legendary BAM and Transsib railways were built in the past and how construction is carried out today.
In the 'Made by Us' pavilion of the Ministry of Industry and Trade, meanwhile, it is worth checking out the cinema: You stand in the center and around you are the sides of a ship or a submarine. And, with the help of modern technology, architect Alexey Shchusev, the developers of the first Soviet antibiotic and other heroes of the country will come to life and talk about their projects in the first person.
The 'Replica Model of Moscow' pavilion recently reopened at VDNKh following renovations. In it, you can see 20,000 of the capital's buildings in the minutest detail. There are palaces, monasteries, railway terminals, bridges and Stalin-era skyscrapers – and all illuminated, mimicking the movement of the sun and clouds and accompanied by atmospheric sound effects.
This is the expo’s largest exhibit, dedicated to the history of the nuclear age. In the seven-story pavilion, you will be told how the energy of the atom is utilized, what state the atomic industry is in today and what awaits it in the future.
In this exhibit, you can expect to bump into a full-size ‘Matroskin the Cat’ next to a tractor, ‘pirozhki’ for 15 rubles (approx. $0.20) and free adventure games. The 'Gorodskaya [City] Farm' at VDNKh is always interesting, but now, a full-fledged village of Novo-Prostokvashino from everyone's favorite Soviet cartoon has opened there for the duration of the 'Russia' expo.
In Pavilion No. 71, the Central Bank of Russia presents the history of the country's finances and gives a detailed account of the latest technologies, services and products. In a room labeled 'The Past', you will be reminded of how, a couple of decades ago, all payments were made in cash and smartphones were unknown. And, in a room called 'The Future', you will see what your life will be like in 10 years' time.
The history of banking in Russia is also retold in the Sberbank pavilion. In it, you will find a 1954-vintage Savings Bank branch with antiquated technology and documents, a monument to the first depositor brought over from St. Petersburg, coins made of precious metals… While the power of modern technology will be demonstrated with the help of an interactive pool, a giant blinking ‘Cheburashka’ character and even a cable car in Altai.
Some of the Soviet pavilions have been restored specially for the 'Russia' expo. For instance, the 'Grain' and 'Meat Industry' pavilions have had their 1954 look reinstated. In the former, you will be shown the journey the grain travels from the tilling of the soil to the finished produce. You pass through a corridor lined with wheat and the exhibition additionally has wall screens showing atmospheric videos.
You can learn what it is like to be a gas worker, how to work a stint in the Far North and how gas arrives in homes after being extracted from deep underground. You can also see the extensive scale of the Russian gas industry – all in Pavilion F.
You can get a snack in all of the exhibition areas, but it is more interesting, of course, to eat in the pavilion wholly dedicated to food – the 'House of Russian Cuisine'. There are 15 stands ranging from 'Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky' to 'Kaliningrad', master classes and regional dish tastings.
Don't feel like leaving VDNKh quite yet? There are still a multitude of pavilions to visit hosted by leading Russian companies: ‘Yandex’ will demonstrate how neural networks work, ‘VK’ (the VKontakte social network company) will give you your own personal NFT image, while, in the Rosneft pavilion, you can learn about oil extraction and the development of oil fields.
Find more info about the 'Russia' expo here.
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