Kazan is a city where East meets West, Orthodoxy and Islam, Russian and Tatar cultures. Nowhere is this synthesis felt as keenly as in the Old Tatar Settlement—a historic district on Lake Kaban's shore where Tatar families have lived for over 450 years. When I first walked these streets, I was struck: just steps from the Kremlin—a completely different world, with wooden mosques, painted window frames, and the aroma of chak-chak from every courtyard.

Settlement History: From Exile to Prosperity

The Old Tatar Settlement's history begins with tragedy. In 1552, Ivan the Terrible captured Kazan, a...