Metro systems

Besides being (maybe) the most heavily used subway system in the world (competing with Tokyo's), the metro of Moscow is also home to extravagant decorated stations, built more like palaces than transport hubs. Some of the most elaborated stations boast marble columns, bronze statues, mosaics or stained-glass pieces while ceilings can be ornamented or even lit up by large chandeliers. The end walls are usually fine examples of Socialist art that celebrate the Communist past. Enjoy these masterpieces while getting around in Moscow, or make them a destination in themselves.

The metro system in Kiev was the third built in the USSR (after Moscow and St. Petersburg metros) and opened in 1960 with 5 stations. Today, there are 49 stations and the system moves about 1.4 million people daily. As with its bigger brother in Moscow, some metro stations are elaborately decorated in Stalinist style with lavish marble, giant chandeliers, and huge pieces of mosaic. The Arsenalna station, which was one of the original stations, is apparently the deepest metro station in the world, a frightening 105 metres under ground which takes about 5 minutes to travel on the escalator - which must also be one of the longest in the world.