When it comes to the Kremlin, I think many people’s first reaction is the same as mine, in Moscow, the Russian capital. In fact, “Kremlin” means “inner city” in Russian and “Castle” in Mongolian. Therefore, there is more than one Kremlin in Russia.

My first trip to Russia did not go to the most famous Moscow and St. Petersburg, but came to Kazan, the only three A-level historical and cultural cities in Russia. Kazan is the capital of the Russian Tatarstan Autonomous Republic and the economic, transportation and cultural center of the middle reaches of the Volga River. The buildings of the Kremlin ruins in the city have condensed the architectural essence of several centuries.

Kazan Kremlin was built on an ancient site with a long history. It first appeared in the period of Kazan Khan King tribe. After Ivan Leidi included Kazan in the territory of Russia, he pushed down the wooden wall of Kazan city and built a stone castle - Kazan Kremlin in its original position. It is slightly smaller than the Kremlin in Moscow with the same name and has been listed as a world cultural heritage by UNESCO.

In Tatar, Kazan means “big pot”, which is named because the shape of the castle at that time was like a big pot buckled upside down. In front of us, this new style building like a big pot is the family center of Kazan, which is equivalent to the marriage registration office of our Civil Affairs Bureau. If you want to get married here, you must make an appointment in advance. It’s very hot!

The roof of the “big pot” is the best place to overlook the whole city, because with my Canon telephoto DC sx60, you can clearly photograph the Kazan Kremlin complex on the other side of the river. The ruins are surrounded by tall white stone walls, unique circular caves and 13 castles with sloping ridges.

This is the largest and most classic scenic spot in Kazan, and tickets are not charged. The Kremlin includes the following attractions: Kur. Sharif mosque, spas tower, good news church, may day square, National Museum of the Republic of Tatarstan, presidential residence, secret room tower…… If time permits, visit for at least two hours.

In front of the main entrance of the Kremlin is the May day square, on which there is a bound figure - Musa Jalil sculpture. He was a poet of Tatar nationality and died in Berlin during World War II. The sculpture was built in memory of him. Although the minimum aperture of my telephoto DC sx60 is only 8, it can also shoot the star effect!

There are also many musicians, writers and poets who died with him on the memorial wall.

The brown topped building on the square is the National Museum of the Republic of Tatarstan and a public museum proposed by Kazan University. Kazan university has a wealth of local chronicles and scientific research materials, and hopes to share these resources with the public.

The Sparta tower is located at the main entrance of the Kremlin. During the war, when night fell, the tower would emit a crimson light. The name of the tower comes from the portrait of spas nurukotwal on its door. It is said that in the early years, the tower was two-story, with a statue of a double headed eagle on it. After the revolution, it was replaced with a five pointed star.

Kur. Sharif mosque is called “Kazan crown”. Some people say it is one of the 25 most beautiful mosques and church buildings in the world. In the middle of the 16th century, the Russian army, led by Ivan Reid, raised troops three times to attack the Kazan khanate, which believed in Islam, and successfully occupied the capital Kazan. It is said that Ivan Reid’s troops brought the crown of Kazan Khan back to Moscow. It is the shape of this “Kazan crown” that has brought design inspiration to the main architect of kursherif mosque.

Girls must wear headscarves and take off their shoes when visiting the mosque.

A model of a magnificent mosque.

The Annunciation church was built in the 16th century and was designed and built by Pskov architects Ivan hiliya and bosnik Yakovlev. The existing white stone cross dome church has been rebuilt many times, which is twice as large as the church originally planned. The Annunciation church imitates the Cathedral of the ascension of the Virgin Mary in the Kremlin in Moscow. It is circular and surrounded by 6 arched door openings on each floor.

Take a picture of the top of the church in the distance with the long focal end of SX 60. This “onion” like spire is really likable. Well, it’s also like Hershey Chocolate!

At the first sight, I felt that the tower was crooked. Unexpectedly, it was called “inclined tower”. It is the investigation tower of the Kremlin in Kazan. Like the inclined tower of Pisa, the tower has some obvious inclination to the northeast. Because all the information about the architectural history of the leaning tower was destroyed by the fire in 1701, the construction date of the leaning tower is also controversial. Some people believe that the history of the leaning tower can be traced back to the 17th-18th century, others believe that it was built in the second half of the 16th century, and others believe that it was built in the Kazan Khanate period (before 1552).

This magnificent pseudo Byzantine style building is the presidential palace of the Republic of Tatarstan, formerly known as Kazan governor’s house.

There is a large platform behind the Church of good news. It is excellent to overlook the Volga River.

The magnificent white building on the Volga River was originally the “Ministry of agriculture” building in Kazan, which was jokingly called “the palace of farmers”.

In Kazan, there are both European style churches, Arab style mosques and Asian style Lama temples. Tourists can experience the rare scene of multi religious harmony. Kazan Kremlin site group is also the only surviving Tatar castle in Russia.