Good afternoon, Dear guests - participants of Asia-Pacific Economic Forum!

Welcome to the capital of the Far East Federal District of the Russian Federation - Khabarovsk. My name is ________, I'll be your guide. Today, we'll take a bus tour of a historic part of the city during which you’ll be able to learn some interesting facts about its history and development, visit one of the biggest and most beautiful cathedrals in Russia and enjoy the unique collection of exhibits of the largest in the Russian Far East, the Khabarovsk N. I. Grodekov Museum of Regional Studies. While taking a stroll along the embankment of the Amur River we will become the participants of an animated show, and you will also have a chance to make a fascinating boat trip along the Amur River.

This year the city of Khabarovsk celebrated its 154th anniversary. The city was founded May 31, 1858 as a military post Khabarovka.

Khabarovka was set in a very convenient location: at the confluence of two mighty rivers of the Far East – the Amur and the Ussuri. Due to its advantageous geographical location Khabarovka started very rapidly. Indeed, the point of deployment of the military post was chosen expertly as it is convenient for the defense, shipping and even postal service in winter time on the ice of the river. It was soldiers who were responsible for the construction of the city.

Entrepreneurs followed the servicemen. The main occupations of that period were: fur and fisheries and the unequal exchange with the natives. It was a very profitable business, which attracted many people to the area. They were also attracted by a huge amount of fertile land, which was distributed free of charge. Six years later the Khabarovka development plan was designed by military topographer Michael Lubensky. According to his plan, Beregovaya Street had become the first and the main street of the city. It was initially called so because, as you can see, it stretches along the bank of the Amur. In 1873 the street was named Alexejev str. in honor of prince Alexey’s visit to Khabarovsk. Since 1921 this street carries the name of the great Ukranian poet Taras Shevchenko. And this is the street we are now on. As many other streets of the city, it remained unpaved for a long period of time, with thick mud after the rain. Even cabmen couldn’t pass it on their coaches; a horse was reported to get drowned.

In accordance with the plan, the natural landscape was to define the "face" of the future city – a high bank of the Amur river, three long hills with rivers Uri and Buri flowing between them were the key elements in the organization of the urban area. Therefore, the city was often described as "Three humps and 42 portfolios” (you can guess, that people meant streets under portfolios). Contemporary Khabarovsk stretches for 50 km along the right bank of the Amur and occupies more than 400 square kilometers. It’s populated by more than 600,000 people. Its central part is located on three parallel hills, which are now the main streets of the city - Muravyev-Amursky str., Lenin str. and Seryshev str.

In 1880 a military post Khabarovka got the status of a city with the population of about four thousand people, and in 1884 the capital of the newly formed the Amur region general- governorship was moved there from Nikolaevsk-on-Amur.

In 1893, the city was officially renamed and got its present day name - Khabarovsk. The city is named after a famous Russian explorer Yerofey Khabarov, whose statue now stands in the Railway Station Square. Khabarov is one of the most famous figures among the Russian pioneers of the 16^th century. He led two expeditions of the Russian Cossacks to the Amur river in 1646 and in 1649. The exploration of the Amur territories became more intensive only after the expeditions headed by Khabarov. Actually Khabarov was the one who set up the first Russian settlements in the Far East. For local people, the family name of this explorer is of a particular importance, because in the Old Russian the word "khabar" means "lucky and happy."

According to the legend, it was the governor-general who chose the place for Khabarovsk to be founded during one of his trips along the Amur, when his vessel was approaching the cliff he exclaimed: “This is the place where a town will be built”. His name - Nick. Nichol. Muravyev - Amursky is known in Russia's history due to the signing of the Aigun Agreement between Russia and China 16 (28) May, 1858. According to the agreement the left bank of the Amur from the Argun River to the estuary was legally annexed to Russia and the right bank of the Amur up to the Ussuri River was assigned to China. At that time a number of military outposts were built to guard the borders, Khabarovka being one of them. Muravyev – Amursky was a prominent statesman, an experienced navigator, a far-sighted politician, a wise commander and the youngest governor in Russia in the middle of the 19th century. He was among the first who proposed the abolition of serfdom in Russia. (I will give you more information about this outstanding personality a bit later).

In 1861 the serfdom was abolished in tsarist Russia and due to this fact migration of Russian and Ukrainian peasants, the former serfs, to Siberia and the Far East had become more intensive. Peasants were attracted by visions of free land mainly. The construction of the Trans Siberian Rail Road stimulated the development of the productive forces in this areas well. The construction of this road started in 1891 and was finally completed in 1916.

On the right you can see a former building of garrison club. In 1914-1916 it was reconstructed by engineer A. Nikolaev-Trukhanov but he failed to remove superfluous mixed-styled details from its façade. There is still the abundance of stucco molding, columns, etc. In Soviet times a military hospital was housed there. Then later the building was giving to the Trade Unions. And only since the 80s this building hosts the Far Eastern Arts Museum, which was set up in 1931 and at present holds more than 10,000 pieces of Russian and Western Arts, as well as a unique collection of the Far Eastern aboriginal applied arts that includes fish skin outfits, beautiful carpets and bone engraved items. One exhibition hall of the second floor is devoted to the gems of the museum collection – to the Russian Orthodox icons from the medieval times. There is also a big collection of the pictures by famous Russian painters of the 19^th century – Shishkin, Aivazovsky, Repin, Levitan and others. Next to the Hall of the Russian Art there is the Hall of the European Art with a nice collection of Italian, French and Dutch paintings. At the West-European Department exhibits relating to the 7-1 centuries B. C. are represented. Many of the exhibits were sent from the leading museums of Russia - Hermitage, Pushkin’s Museum and Tretjakov Gallery.

Right now we are approaching the main street of the city, which starts from the Amur Embankment and carries the name of governor-general Muravyev-Amursky. This street stretches for two kilometers and leads to Lenin square. The main street looks much more old-fashioned than any other street in Khabarovsk; it is a live chronicle of the city history as the noble deeds and ambitions of our ancestors are illustrated by the stone pages of the city main street. Besides, it is one of the most expressive streets of Khabarovsk regarding architecture. Side by side with constructions in pseudo-Russian and modern style you can see here interesting buildings in constructivist style designed by Moscow architects.

To your left is one of the oldest squares of the city - Komsomolskaya Square or Sobornaya Square. In the past the square was called Sobornaya or Cathedral Square after a beautiful Assumption (Uspensky) Cathedral which stood in the square. The gilded 18 meter dome of the cathedral was somewhat a city’s calling card as it was vividly seen by all ships passing by and it was in fact the center of the city. People used to stroll along the square and Pribrezhniy Boulevard (Central Recreation Park now). Here gala ceremonies, secular and Orthodox celebrations were held and formations of the local garrison units took place. In 1924 the Cathedral was beheaded by the Communists and the square was named Red Square. During the 30ties of the last century the members of the now defunct Communist Youth League – the Komsomol - cleared and arranged the square. Since then the square has been called Komsomolskaya square. The Cathedral you can see now is the Grado-Khabarovsk Dormition Cathedral (or the Grado-Khabarovsk Cathedral of the Assumption of Our Lady) and it is a new reproduction of the old building. Since 2001 the square is called Sobornaya again. In the square you can also see a monument to the fighters for Soviet power and heroes of the Civil war in the Russian Far East. A 22-meter high memorial was erected in October 1956. The monument made of granite is topped with a five-point star framed by a laurel wreath. At its top a bronze sculpture seven meters high consisting of a worker, a partisan with a machine gun and a young soldier with a banner symbolizes the forces of revolution. The monument was designed by sculptor Faidysh-Krandievsky and architect professor Barsh.

Throughout its history Khabarovsk has always been a trading center on the Amur. Many well-known all over Russia merchants: Plyusnin, Bogdanov, Pyankova launched their business here. Khabarovsk is also a live witness of the developing relations with many neighbouring countries, mainly China, Japan and Korea. Since the foundation of Khabarovsk many Chinese, Mancurian, Korean and Japanese used to live and work here. There were also some emigrants from Europe. While we are moving along the main street of the city we can still see the buildings that belonged to the merchants of that time, for example:

- The trading house of the Plyusnins (now the Regional Scientific Library); In the corner of Komsomolskaya square there is an old red brick building, which dates back to 1901. Its facing presents a combination of red and grey brick. You can notice some excesses of taste of the customer, but if taken separately every piece of decoration is surprisingly luxurious. It’s a former trade house of merchant Plusnin, one of the most cultural men in the history of our city. He left fond memories behind, on his donations a church and a primary school were built and one of his houses serves us till now. This building features the architectural style ‘’a la russe” and has been restored to its original splendor. It is occupied by the richest in the Russian Far East universal scientific library, opened in 1894 as the library of the Museum of Regional Studies of the Russian geographical society. There are more than 2 mln. books on all branches of knowledge and culture in the library. There are some rare and particularly valuable editions relating to the 17^th century – memorials of culture and book-printing.

- The trading house of the Pyankovs (next to the restaurant "Sapporo", here is the bank now);

- The house of merchant Khlebnikov (now a pharmacy); opposite the former trade house of the Plusnins;

- The Apartment house of Takeuchi (street Muravyev-Amursky, 5); The history of this 2-storeyed building presents some interest. About 20 years ago after a heavy rain a huge black inscription RUSS appeared on the fronton through the washed out plaster. In the past it was a one-storeyed wooden house, which belonged to the Uspensky Cathedral. Later the façade of the house was faced with brick and plastered and the house was rented by private persons for a jewelry workshop and a hairdressing saloon. In 1906 a Japanese subject Takeuchi opened in a rented building a photography saloon. A few photos with sights of the old Khabarovsk bearing the signature stamp Takeuchi Photography remained at the Regional Scientific Library and at the Museum of Regional Studies. In 1911 Takeuchi built the second floor and a turret. The first floor was still rented for private workshops. The second floor was occupied by the inn RUSS. After the revolution it still served as a hotel, after a reconstruction, a restaurant was opened there. Recently the old name RUSS was given back to the restaurant. So this building is still a decoration of the main street of the city.

- Hotel "Explanad" and the municipal hotel "Far East" (now the business center "Far East");

- The trading house "Kunst and Alberts Co" (Central deli); It is a massive building of old architecture the roof of which is decorated with bronze allegoric figures.

- The Apartment house of Zandau (now the cinema house "Sovkino");

- The former city municipal house; On the left you can see a beautiful building with a rich history. The city municipal house was planned to be built in connection with Khabarovsk getting the status of a city. This idea was first expressed at the sitting of Khabarovsk city municipality – Merchants’ Duma - in 1897. But either there was no money in the city treasury or there were more important things to be done, but they returned to the idea only 10 years later. On the 28^th of November 1906 Khabarovsk Municipality addressed the St-Petersburg society of architects with the announcement of a competition for the best project. The building was to house local municipal administration, city bank, telephone exchange, and shops. The term for presenting projects ceased on the 26^th of March, 1907. One of the conditions was to give preference to the Russian style. Three prizes were instituted for the best projects: 700, 450, and 350 rubles. On June 28, 1907 a few projects were examined at the sitting of the municipal administration and a decision was taken to choose the project with the motto Izhitsa in two circles by engineer P. V. Bartoshevich. At this sitting the municipality was charged with the task to begin the construction. The opening of the municipal house took place on the 26^th of November 1909. It took 12 years to carry out the idea of building this house. After the revolution this building was occupied by various regional and city Soviet organizations, the Khabarovsk city Soviet of Working People’s Deputies included. After the WWII the building was reconstructed to be the Pioneer Palace and it became very popular with children. Now it still hosts some clubs and studious for children as well as shops and a souvenir boutique.

- The Apartment house of Arkhipov (after the reconstruction - the building of the Central Department Store) and many others.

The Plyusnins, the Bogdanovs and the Pyankovs were the best-known merchants. They were monopolists in the wholesale and foreign trade. Fur trade as well as fishery, winery, forestry and unequal trade exchange with the natives were the sources of their income.

They say that when the first Russian settlers came here it was possible to get a sable for a glass bottle or a copper button, and one could catch this animal just around the house. Then the fur was sold 3-6 times as expensive in Irkutsk or Moscow. It was a very profitable business.

Another lucrative enterprise was winery business - the production of wine from wild grapes.

At that time the policy of the tsarist government allowed migrant merchants to trade freely and gave them rights equal to those of Russians. So German merchants, Chinese entrepreneur Tifontai, French photographer Nino, Japanese photographer Takeuchi and many others traded foreign goods here.

We are approaching the central square of ​​the city of Khabarovsk – Lenin square, which covers an area of almost 6 hectares and is one of the biggest squares in the country. It is surrounded by the buildings of Khabarovsk Krai Government, Medical University and Tsentralny Hotel. In any Russian city, no matter whether it is large or small, there is the main square, its center - a kind of a calling card (brand identity) of the city. There is such a square in Khabarovsk. It has its own history and its fate is closely linked with the history of the entire city.

Originally there was a cemetery on the site. But gradually the city grew bigger and bigger and the cemetery surrounded on all sides by houses found itself right in the center of the city, and was to be closed. Until 1925 the square was called Nicholas Square in honor of the Russian Emperor Nicholas II.

This square used to be the place for military exercises, circus shows, market trade (from 1912), and folk festivals, from 1925 it was used as a stadium (in winter there was a skating ring, in summer - a football field). In 1925 a monument to VI Lenin, the founder of the Communist Party and the Soviet State, by prominent Russian sculptor M. G. Manizer was erected here and the square became known as Freedom Square. The first stone of the monument was laid on the first anniversary of Lenin’s death in January 1925. The monument was unveiled on November the 7^th, 1925.The money for the monument was donated by the citizens of Khabarovsk.

A red brick building behind Lenin’s monument is a former vocational school, opened in 1903. For decades it was used as a city hospital and now it is under reconstruction. Next to it there is the Tsentralnaya Hotel, built in 1964. The Medical University which is one of the oldest and the most prestigious universities of the Russian Far East, built in 1930, is on the other side of the square. Opposite the Medical University there is the building faced with marble which houses the Krai Administration. Next to it there is one of the biggest regional banks Dalkombank.

In 1953 the most representative building appeared on the square, with its size and architecture dominating the area and giving it a completely different scale and shape. This is the building of the Higher Party School (now - the Far Eastern Academy of Public Administration).

The fountains began to operate on the square in the year of the 100th anniversary of Khabarovsk. The square got its present name in 1957. Thus, the 100th anniversary of Khabarovsk significantly changed the main square of the city. It became a place of rest of its citizens and the center of events during different celebrations. The square is used for parades and the pedestal of the Lenin monument is used as a tribune by members of the local government and important visitors during festivities.

When New Year comes this square is turned into a winter playground, beautified by a huge and magnificently decorated New Year Tree in the center and numerous ice sculptures.