The Cosmos Hotel is located opposite the All-Russian Exhibition Centre, known in Russian as "VVTs" or equally commonly by its Soviet acronym, "VDNKh". Much more interesting than its name might suggest, VDNKh was founded in the 1930s to display the fruits of Soviet industry and agriculture to Moscow residents and foreign visitors. In the grandiose style typical of the Stalinist era, the exhibition centre was conceived as a park with scores of pavilions, each with its own architectural and decorative style, surrounded by green alleys, fountains and monuments.
Two of the most impressive monuments in the park are the "Worker and Collective Farm Girl" by the sculptor Vera Mukhina, originally exhibited at the Paris Expo of 1937 and one of the most famous examples of Socialist Realism, and the soaring, titanium "Monument to the Conquerors of Space", also known as the Space Obelisk, which was erected in 1964.
Nearly twenty years later, the Memorial Museum of Cosmonautics was opened in premises underneath the base of the monument, and there is also a series of busts of cosmonauts, scientists and engineers along a memorial alley running south from the monument. Also located within walking distance of the Cosmos are the Moscow Botanical Gardens, covering 860 acres of parkland. Founded in 1945, the Gardens now house the largest collection of exotic plants and trees in the country.
Two of the most impressive monuments in the park are the "Worker and Collective Farm Girl" by the sculptor Vera Mukhina, originally exhibited at the Paris Expo of 1937 and one of the most famous examples of Socialist Realism, and the soaring, titanium "Monument to the Conquerors of Space", also known as the Space Obelisk, which was erected in 1964.
Nearly twenty years later, the Memorial Museum of Cosmonautics was opened in premises underneath the base of the monument, and there is also a series of busts of cosmonauts, scientists and engineers along a memorial alley running south from the monument. Also located within walking distance of the Cosmos are the Moscow Botanical Gardens, covering 860 acres of parkland. Founded in 1945, the Gardens now house the largest collection of exotic plants and trees in the country.
