Novodevichy is without doubt one of the most beautiful places I've visited. From a distance and from close up it offers all sorts of charming discoveries - especially if you like taking photos. I first saw it on a city tour, but a five minute stop was sufficient to make me determined to return to see it properly, which I did two years later - it was worth it.

It's said that when Napoleon tried to blow up the fortified walls on his way into Moscow the nuns ran out and extinguished the fuses with their bare hands.

Tolstoy sets a scene from War and Peace on the lake in front of the convent which freezes in winter and is a popular place to skate. Indeed Tolstoy himself skated there, his Mosocow house still stands nearby and of course is also well worth a visit.