HCCM - Samara

Samara was officially founded in 1586 when on the bank of the Volga River the construction of the fortress that was to protect the Russian State from the incursion of martial nomadic tribes was started. But in fact, the settlement on the bent of the Volga River had been mentioned in the ancient chronicles since 14th century. During World War II Samara (the city situated not far from Moscow ), then named Kuibyshev, was the second capital of USSR. The city's growth was stimulated during World War II by its distance from the war zone and the evacuation there of numerous government functions when Moscow was threatened by German attack; also helped the postwar development of the Volga-Urals oilfield. The city reverted to its old name in 1991.

Many famous people worked and lived in Samara. Outstanding Russian writers Lev Tolstoy and Maxim Gorky, painters Ilya Repin, Vasily Surikov and Ivan Aivazovsky, revolutionists Michael Frunze and Vladimir Lenin are among them. Even a French writer Alexander Duma had paid a visit to Samara in 1858. Impressed by the travel he wrote the book "From Paris to Astrakhan " where he gave his description of Samara.

Climate

Samara area has sharply continental climate, average temperature of January -13,9°C, average temperature of July +20,1°C. Waterless Asian semi deserts affects the climate of the southern regions of Samara area and cause periodic droughts.

Samara nowadays

… Years passed and Samara grew into a large industrial and cultural center. The main branches of industry here are mechanical engineering, oil production, power engineering and chemical. Local plants design and assemble modern aircrafts and space-cistern equipment. The city look has changed lately. Today Samara citizens enjoy many parks. The embankment on the Volga-river is a favorite strolling area. Inimitable in their beauty are city streets due to the architectural variety of styles. One can see Empire, modernist, Old-Russian, constructivist-style house buildings, a great number of eclectic buildings-examples of the so-called merchant architecture. Whole districts of old houses with corner turrets and steeples, decorates with wooden fretwork, are preserved in this city. One must admire the German church and the Gothic arches of the only Polish Roman Catholic church in the Volga area. The Orthodox church and cathedral domes sparkle in the blue sky. The cultural assets of the city include Philharmonic Society, opera and ballet, drama and children's theatres and many libraries, institutes and universities. Samara museums possess rich collections of unique art works. Picturesque Samara with its clear Volga water and sandy beaches attract people from different parts of the area. Many river-boats form three and four-decker cruise ships to hydrofoils ply the water ways. Many tourists came daily to the city by river boats. Samara is a transportation hub with a large railway junction and international airport.

… by air
The Samara regional airport is located halfway between the city of Samara and Togliatti. It is approximately a one-hour drive from the airport to the center of either city. The passenger terminal building has the capacity for 400 passengers per hour and 120 flights per day. The airport also incorporates a cargo shed and an aircraft maintenance hangar. The airport has an international customs department, which expeditiously handles incoming international flights.