For Australia it all starts in Kazan, a city with 1000 years of history, and we start our tips from Kazan as well.
800 km east from Moscow the capital of Tatarstan, city of Kazan sits on the side of the river Volga.
“When we found out that they will play in Kazan, we instantly decided to go"
A few years ago Kazan’ claimed the title of the third capital of Russia – stressing its political and economic significance.
What is Tatarstan?
This part of Russia historically is an Islam-dominated area dating back to 922 when Islam was first introduced here.
The ethnic make-up of the Republic comprises about 115 ethnicities with recent census showing that 53.2% are Tatars.
The majority of Tatars believe in Allah.
Traditional Tatar women dress:
A small community of roughly five hundred Tatars live in Australia mainly settled in Adelaide.
Visiting Kazan
The ethnic diversity is mirrored in the architecture of Kazan too.
It is fascinating to walk past a mosque sitting next to a synagogue and a Christian church.
Many mistakenly think that there is only one Kremlin – in Moscow.
But in fact, every important and considerable state in the Russia’s old days used to have Kremlin and so did Kazan which was preserved until today and is now a UNESCO world heritage site.
What if you don’t speak Russian?
The organisers are expecting large waves of tourists to flood the city of Kazan.
As suggested by the French Ambassador in Russia, about 20 thousand French football fans will come to Kazan to support their team.
While Aussies will likely be outnumbered this seems to be of no concern to Australian-Tatar community who is twice as excited as the rest of us as their home country to host their team in June.
The community representative in Adelaide Alex Valiff says a group of Australian Tatars will travel to Kazan to support Socceroos.
“When we found out that they will play in Kazan, we instantly decided to go.
We are travelling as a group and I look forward to show other Australian fans how amazing the city is.”
Maps with historic sites will be available in English and distributed around.
Since Kazan is on the brink of river Volga, you can enjoy river cruises and, if time allows, travel to your next destination by a boat.
How to order food?
Sometimes, even the Russians are lost in the names of the Tatar dishes for its variety and also foreign sounds.
To help navigate around the gastronomic world of Kazan 200 volunteers dotted around the city will work during the World Cup.
A lot of the Tatar cuisine is based around pastry and meat avoiding pork.
Due to the religion, alcohol is not a big thing here either.
But when it comes to deserts especially honey based, the Tatars stand out.
Leaving Kazan without trying 'Chak-chak', the most iconic delight of the region, will be a regret in future.
The authorities promise to translate restaurant menus into several languages including English, Farsi, French and Spanish.
Another feature introduced in Kazan before the championship, which can see Sydneysiders and Melburnians begrudge, is Pay Pass system in the metro, meaning you can pay with smart Watch, smart phone or a card.
Holders of Opal and Myki are still placed on hold waiting for Pay Pass to kick in.
Kazan metro has only 10 stops but it covers the main landmarks.
