Old Arbat is a pedestrian street in the heart of Moscow, symbol of bohemian life, a place of poets and artists. Pushkin lived here, Okudzhava visited, street musicians still play here today. Touristy, occasionally kitschy—but still charming.

Street History

Arbat has been known since the 15th century. The name probably comes from Arabic "rabad" (suburb)—via Tatar. The street lay on the route from the Kremlin to Smolensk; craftsmen and merchants settled here.

In the 19th century, Arbat became noble and intellectual. Tolstoy, Rachmaninoff, Scriabin lived here. In the 20th—Bulgakov, Rybakov (nov...