Things to do in Khabarovsk
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Regional History Museum
The Regional History Museum offers a series of well laid-out halls in an evocative 1894 red-brick building. Highlights are many, particularly a far-better-than-average look into native cultures, a few English captions in the stuffed-animal section, and a full-on panorama of the snowy 1922 civil war battle at Volochaevka. No Gulag coverage, though the nearby prison population was bigger than the city’s in the ’30s. At research time, the museum was busy adding on a second wing as the Amur RiverMuseum, which may require an additional ticket.
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City Park
A pleasant City Park stretches 1.5km downriver (northwards). On the promontory is a cliff-top tower in which a troupe of WWI Austro-Hungarian POW musicians was shot dead for refusing to play the Russian Imperial anthem. It now contains a café, Kafe Utyos. Opposite the tower is a statue of Count Nikolai Muravyov-Amursky.
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Military Museum
The Military Museum is a not uninteresting four-room frenzy of battle-axes, guns, knives, and busts and photos of moustached heroes of past conflicts. Lined up in the back courtyard are army trucks, cannons, tanks and a luxury officers-only rail carriage dating from 1926.
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WWII Memorial
Khabarovsk's bombastic WWII memorial is close to the waterfront and a strip of beach that's very popular with sunbathers on hot days. Nearby there's a string of summertime food stalls, the landing stages for suburban river boats and the new multidomed Church of the Transfiguration.
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Russky Restaurant
Nearly all Russian restaurants get a bit kitschy, but this one goes all out – but in a way that never betrays its authenticity. There are paintings of tsars, side-rooms in dacha style, and traditional music kicking off dinners that frequently require reservations.
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River Trips & Cruises
For a short local ride along the Amur, various hydrofoils and boats set off from May to October on hour-long beer-soaked day trips and 90-minute long evening cruises. There are no set schedules - just watch for one and jump on. Call Amurrechturist for more information.
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Church of Christ's Birth
Church of Christ's Birth Among the few churches that survived the Soviet years is the cute, red, blue, and white Church of Christ's Birth, with a kaleidoscopic interior of coloured glass and icons. Two-hour services are held most days.
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Dinamo Park
Dinamo Park brims with sun and shade seekers in good weather; the ponds on the south side are popular swim-and-splash spots, and there are some small rides and a mechanical bull, of course. Located behind the Theatre of Musical Comedy.
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Komsomolskaya pl
Here you'll find the newly reconstructed Orthodox church Khram Uspenya Bozhey Materi, a replica of one destroyed during communist times, and, on the south side of the square, the headquarters of the Amur Steamship Company.
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Old Parliament Building
The striking Old Parliament Building, became the House of Pioneers (Dom Pionerov) in Soviet times. It now houses a souvenir shop called Tainy Remesla. Stop and admire the graceful architecture that survived the civil war.
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Metro
Below a university building on pl Lenina, the Metro occupies (it's whispered) the spot where medical students once poked at cadavers. Now it's a flashy subterranean drink 'n' eat spot - best for the cheap lunch.
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Tsentralny Gastronom
In a 19th-century building, this cute, modernised-yet-retro self-service café has a good selection of meals – and much more sense of history than the fast-food burger and pizza lounge in the basement.
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Overtime
If you're here in hockey season, Overtime's primary red, white and blue décor overlooks the rink; photos of local hockey greats adorn walls all year. The 'goalkeeper' is a spiced Sicilian fish.
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Knizhny Mir
Knizhny Mir stocks a good range of city and regional maps for the entire Russian Far East (Khabarovsk maps are R120; an OK city guide in English and Russian is R170).
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Archaeology Museum
The highlights of the small Archaeology Museum are the reproductions and diagrams of the wide-eyed figures found at the ancient Sikachi-Alyan petroglyphs.
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Teplan-Yaki
This popular loungey spot on the main strip offers a host of sushi options with a chilled electronica soundtrack in a classy bamboo setting.
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Dalny Vostok Cafe
Plump blue booths overlook the street action at this two-line cheapie fast-food pick-and-point stop (go past the doors in the front bar).
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Kafe Utyos
In the tower in the park overlooking the river, Utyos is one of Khab's swankier restaurants - mostly Russian and Japanese food.
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Unikhab
The best of Hotel Intourist's three restaurants, the top-floor Japanese restaurant offers imported-from-Japan sushi with views.
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Chocolate
Albeit with a slightly snooty air, Chocolate has slick international snacks (fajitas, burgers and brownies) and free wi-fi.
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Far Eastern State Research Library
The Far Eastern State Research Library, with its intricate red-and-black brick façade, was built from 1900 to 1902.
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Theatre of Musical Comedy
Music, jokes and the occasional heavy metal concert (Ronnie James Frickin’ Dio started his 2005 tour here).
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Market
The market covers everything from plug adaptors and fishing gear to underwear and fresh produce.
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Rio
The city's largest club on two levels - photos show what to expect: topless women engaging in mud conflict.
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Citi HK Supermarket
If you just need groceries, one of the best places includes Citi HK Supermarket.
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