Living in Ekaterinburg

Netflix, Die Welt, New York Times, that is a short list of Media that have mentioned Ekaterinburg. Is it worth of visiting?

As locals, we would definitely say “YES!” 

Thought Ekb (how citizens usually call it) is not as big as Moscow or St.Petersburg it has its gems and  reach history. With population of aprx. 1.5 million it is 4-th largest city in Russia, at the same time it is one of the most compact cities. A land of tough people like in Siberia with strong self-identification. 

Among tourists it is mostly known as place where Czar family was killed. But is it the only fact to be associated with Urals? No, there are a lot of local (Russian) patterns for self-identity.

Yekaterinburg's official birthday is 18 November 1723, with its celebration in August. In 2023 city will celebrate its 300th anniversary. Walking across the city you can see beautiful buildings of 19-th century, heritage of constructivism and modern architecture. One of the largest local metallurgical companies' headquarters designed by Norman+Partners, new Philharmonic Hall is designed by Zaha Hadid architects and should be finished by 2023. 

Climate in Yekaterinburg is moderate-continental and weather is very changeable, showing every season of the year in its beauty. In winter, the weather may vary from hard frosts to thaws and rains, in summer – from heat above 35 °C to chills.

Yekaterinburg has become a host for many large-scale international events, such as annual international industrial fair INNOPROM, Ural Ural Industrial Biennial of Contemprorary Art, Vienna Music Film Festival, numerous industrial, business and scientific conferences and forums. In June 2018, the city hosted four group stage games of the 2018 FIFA World Cup.

Transport

Living in a big city is impossible without using local public transport system. Buses (public and private), trams, trolleybuses and subway are covering whole city and represents an affordable way of trasnportation, especially for students. 

  • Price per one trip (no correlation with mileage) - 28 rubles (32 rubles for subway).
  • Payment methods: cash, debit/credit cards (unavailable for private buses), phone (with NFC), trasnportation card (Е-карта).
  • With transportation card cost of one trip is 26 rubles and might be even lower, if you choose different rate plan.
  • Obtaining student transportation card is possible with student ID (Студенческий билет) or Student confirmation letter from your department (Справка) 
  • Where to obtain transportation card: http://ekarta-ek.ru/sale/ 
  • For better orientation and transport use we recomend you download following apps: 1) 2GIS (available both at App Store or Google Play) or Yandex maps (with the latest update it shows public transport location on-line). 2) Hubb - transportation app, which helps to track public transport. 3) Major taxi apps are available as well: Uber, Gett, Yandex taxi, Citymobil etc.   

Mobile networks

At the moment there are six large mobile phone companies operating in Yekaterinburg: MTS, Beeline, Megafon, Motiv, Tele2 and Yota. To buy a SIM card, you should provide passport/ID. SIM cards are available at the companies’ offices and mobile phone retailer shops. Almost every company has plans with affordable 4G mobile internet. 

Shopping centers and malls

Ekaterinburg has plenty of shopping centers and malls where you can buy everything from food to manufactured goods and clothes. 

Shopping malls usually have food courts with various cuisine including international fast food chains such as McDonalds, KFC, Starbucks, etc. In many shopping centers, there are also a lot of entertainment facilities: bowling centers, cinemas, theme parks. 

Here is a list of the most popular shopping malls:

Greenwich (Гринвич) 8 Marta str., 46 (closest to the university) 

Megapolis (Мегаполис) 8 Marta str, 149 (closest to the dormitory) 

Passage (Пассаж) Vaynera str., 9 

Raduga-Park (Радуга-Парк) Repina str, 94 

Uspensky (Успенский) Vainera str., 10 

Park House (Парк Хаус) Sulimova str., 50  

Europe (Европа) Lenina av., 25 

Fun-Fun (Фан-Фан) Yasnaya str., 2 

Hermes-Plaza (Гермес-Плаза) Malysheva str., 16 

IKEA, MegaAuchan (ИКЕА, Мега, Ашан) Metallurgov str., 87 

Carnival (Карнавал) Khalturina str., 55 

Dirigible (Дирижабль) Akademika Shvartsa str., 17 

Botanica Mall (Ботаника МоллAkademika Shvartsa str., 1