Published on: 2026-08-23
Source: Moscow Government – Правительства Москвы –
An important disclaimer is at the bottom of this article.
It’s already the end of summer, but that’s not a problem — Moscow offers many options for how to spend the remaining part of the holidays interestingly and to welcome the first school days. A rich and diverse program has been prepared at the Kolomenskoye Museum-Reserve, the Moscow Children’s Puppet Theater, the Moscow Zoo, and the Darwin Museum.
Where can you see an antique saddle and horseshoe? What inhabitants can you meet at the Moscow Zoo? Why did the cat put on boots? We tell you where to go with a child in the near future.
A horse is wings to a person
Museum-reserve “Kolomenskoye” — a place where you can take a walk in a large park, have a picnic, or catch the last rays of the summer sun. And also see recently restored white-stone Church of the Ascension of the Lord, the palace of Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich and ancient wooden architectural monuments transported from the Russian North and Siberia: a mead brewery, tower fortifications, and the Church of Saint George the Victorious.
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The exhibition “Horse — Wings to Man” is being held in the Stables Yard of the museum-reserve. Here, children and adults can learn about the attitude towards horses in Russia. The history of the Stables Yard is closely connected with Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich Romanov: in the 17th century, Kolomenskoye was his favorite summer residence. Since the labor of horses at that time was widely used not only in transportation but also in agriculture, it was decided to equip the yard with all conveniences for them. Now it is a modern exhibition space that helps to feel the spirit of that era.
The image of the horse occupied an important place in Russian culture. For example, in epic tales and fairy tales, the horse acts as a close friend of the hero or good fellow. In the epic about Ilya Muromets, the horse predicts danger by warning about the enemy’s tunneling, and in the fairy tale “Sivka-Burka,” it helps Ivanushka the Fool, granting him strength and wisdom. Proverbs and sayings about horses have come down to our days: “An old horse doesn’t spoil the furrow,” “Treat a horse well, like a son, but beware of it like an enemy,” “Beat a good horse with one hand, wipe its tears with the other.” That is, despite the friendship with horses, caution should still be observed.
The image of the horse was also widespread in architecture: images of horse heads decorated homes, and a horseshoe was considered a talisman. Even the site for building a house was chosen with the help of an unbroken stallion: where it stopped, they would build the hut. At the exhibition “Horse — Wings to Man”, named after the saying, one can see rare exhibits: engravings, coins, stove tiles with images of horses, ornaments, horseshoes, bells, saddles, and horse-drawn carriages from different eras. Children will enjoy it!
The exhibition is open until September 30. Tickets can be purchased through the service “Mosbilet”.
How the Cat Helped the Miller’s Son
In Moscow Children’s Puppet Theater they suggest recalling Charles Perrault’s fairy tale “Puss in Boots.” The roles in the play are performed not only by professional actors but also by puppets. It is the story of a clever and cunning cat inherited by the miller’s youngest son. To save his master from poverty, he embarks on an adventure: presenting the young man as the noble Marquis de Carabas to win the favor of the king and princess. The cat’s plan works: the young man acquires the former ogre’s castle and marries the king’s daughter.
Director Sergey Kudryashov notes: “Our play is wonderful. It helps you literally fall in love with the fairy tale characters and think about what love, courage, and honor are. This story also has villains, each of whom is important to reveal so that the child understands the motives behind their actions. Therefore, we rely more on images than on dialogues. For example, we use shadow theater techniques. Additionally, we work a lot with music and lighting to convey the mood.”
The production features five tablet puppets and one large floor puppet. It took professional craftsmen three months of meticulous work to create them: papier-mâché molds were created and hand-painted, and costumes were sewn for the characters.
“In this and other performances, we strive to simply and clearly explain to the child what good and evil are. That friends are recognized in hardship, that evil is always punished, and that for any hopeless situation there is always a solution,” says actress Tatyana Sidorova.
Tickets can be purchased through the service “Mosbilet”.
The theater’s repertoire also includes many other fairy tale performances: “Geese-Swans”, “The Seven Little Goats”, “Little Red Riding Hood” and others.
Made with love: how dolls are created at the Moscow Children’s Puppet Theater
Swallowtail butterflies, hooves, and scales
In State Darwin Museum Children can learn about the properties of keratin — a protein with high strength. The exhibition “From Claws to Hair Tips” will introduce this amazing building material of living nature.
Some keratins are soft and elastic, while others are as hard as metal. Keratin allows fibers to slightly shift under stress and return to their original state, hence the elasticity. Harder keratins predominate in the scales, shells, and claws of reptiles, feathers, beaks and claws of birds, as well as in porcupine quills. In the tactile area, children will be able to compare by touch samples of horsehair, bristles, felt, and various types of wool: sheep’s, camel’s, cashmere, and others.
Visit exhibition can be done until November 15.
Young researchers will be able to see butterflies of the most unusual and even frightening kind at the exhibition “Butterflies. Against Illusions”, which runs until September 6. Children will learn about transparent invisible butterflies, the famous Death’s-head hawkmoth, and species of butterflies with wing patterns in the form of letters and numbers. The experience will be complemented by the works of contemporary artists on the same theme: art objects, stained glass, light installations, jewelry, kinetic mechanisms, and even a signature silkscreen by Andy Warhol from his famous series “Endangered Species.”
In addition, the Darwin Museum offers various workshops for art enthusiasts. For example, you can create a designer brooch in the shape of a bird during the classes “Cute little birds”.
One more activity awaits the most curious: children will observe plant and animal cells under a microscope, learn to distinguish frog and human erythrocytes, and discover the mysterious story of the Paramecium. Sessions with microscopes “Such a diverse microcosm” will be held from August 23 to 30.
Fluffy friends and more
Where can you see a newborn lemur, a predatory reptile, and the beloved pandas? Of course, at the Moscow Zoo. In the past six months alone, more than 300 young animals and birds of various species have been born here: blue sheep, flamingos, cat lemurs, curly pelicans, and many others. Over 1,200 species of animals live on the premises, making it a wonderful opportunity to explore the diversity of global wildlife and study the behavior of furry, finned, and feathered creatures.
You can observe, for example, Dagestan tur in the zoo’s new area. Eight offspring were born in their family at the beginning of summer. The babies are already going on walks with their parents, playing with each other, and they can be seen clearly. There are also blue sheep living there. Despite the name, their coloration is far from blue: they have fluffy gray fur on their bodies and black-and-white hooves. In the wild, these animals live high in the mountains of Nepal, China, Pakistan, and India. Neighboring them are the Tajik markhor goats, listed in the Red Book, which also have a gray color with golden shades. The name of these animals is fully explained by their long twisted horns, which give them a majestic appearance. The young markhor goats can also be seen during the walk.
In the “House of Primates” pavilion, baby lemurs and capuchin monkeys—also known as the weepers—have recently been born. And in the old area of the zoo, you can meet the famous panda Katyusha and her parents — Zhui and Dindin.
The most daring researchers can visit the “Snakecatcher’s Hut.” Here, you can see the longest venomous snake — the South American bushmaster, as well as the king cobra, black mamba, Australian taipan, and Gaboon viper. And while encountering a venomous snake in the wild can be very dangerous, at the zoo you can observe them without any fear. The terrariums are equipped with comfortable living conditions for the reptiles and fitted with strong glass. In addition to snakes, the zoo houses lantano lizards, which live only on the island of Borneo.
You can buy tickets to the zoo through the service “Mosbilet”.
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