Barnaul
Barnaul (Russian Барнау´л, pop. 603,500) is a city in Russia and the administrative center of Altai Krai. Barnaul is in the southwest of Siberian Federal District on the Ob River. Geographical location is 53°21′ N 83°45′ E.
History
Barnaul is one of the older cities in Siberia, founded in 1739 by the Demidov family of silver-founders. By the 1900s, it had grown into a major center for trade and culture of the region, especially after construction of the Turkestan-Siberia Railway. Barnaul's economy also benefitted from evacuation of major factories from the west of Russia and Ukraine in the WWII times.Transportation
The city lies approximately 250km south of Novosibirsk, at a junction of the Novosibirsk-Almaty and -Biysk train lines. Trains to Moscow Kazan station take 60 hours, 32 hours to Almaty, Krasnoyarsk 23 hours, Irkutsk 42 hours, Bishkek 42 hours and Tashkent 53 hours. There are also irregular trains to Abakan and Novokuznetsk, 24 hours. There are also frequent buses to nearby cities Biysk and Gorno-Altaysk. It takes about four hours to reach the Altai Mountains in the south by car.
A small airport also exists about an hour from the center of the city, which offers daily flights to and from Moscow and Saint Petersburg. Barnaul is approximately 4 hours by plane to Moscow, and slightly longer to Saint Petersburg.
Any part of the city can be reached using public transportation, whether one decides to use the city's many buses, trolleys, or taxis. The average bus ride costs about 2 rubles, making transportation not exactly luxurious but quite affordable.
Business
Considering the difficult economic cirumstances in which Siberia finds itself today, business is thriving in remote Barnaul. As a result the city is home to two Rotary clubs, chartered in 1997 and 2005 respectively.
The main business street of the city is Prospekt Lenina which runs between Oktyabrskaya and Sovietov squares. New cafés and clothing stores are opening all the time along Lenina and its surrounding area as Russia's economy continues to develop.
In addition to the smaller shops along Lenina are various sprawling outdoor markets located in other areas off of the main street, where anything from fresh meat to CDs and clothing can be purchased in stalls and from vendors on the streets.