Nizhny Novgorod is the capital of the Volga region and the fifth largest city in Russia, with a history dating back to the 13th century. The magnificent old Russian city lies at the confluence of the Oka and Volga rivers in the central part of the East European Plain, 400 kilometres east of Moscow. Nizhny, as the locals call it, has preserved the spirit of the past to this day. The Volga pearl impresses with a wealth of historical, cultural, and architectural monuments and rightly belongs to the hundred cities included in the UNESCO World Heritage list.

The city is famous for its Kremlin, the people's militia that freed the country from the Poles, the writers Maxim Gorky and Andrej Petscherski, the literary critic Dobroljubow, the self-taught inventor Kulibin, and the mathematician Lobachevsky.

At the beginning of the 17th century, when the state faced the loss of its independence, the city militia, led by the merchant Kuzma Minin and Dmitri Pozharsky, managed to defeat the Polish interventionists and drive them out of Moscow.

Thanks to its favourable geographical location, Nizhny Novgorod has always been an attractive trading place. Since ancient times, caravans of merchant ships sailed on the Volga and Oka. In 1817, the famous fair began in the city, which set the prices for bread and other staple foods throughout Russia. Trade also shaped the cityscape – many merchant houses as well as churches and temples built with funds from businessmen have been preserved. Meanwhile, one of the unofficial names for Nizhny Novgorod is "the pocket of Russia," highlighting the city's important role in the country's trade.