I. Metshin: "Happy Childhood Museum is Kazan's new tourist attraction"

(Kazan, KZN.RU, June 1, by Zilya Gayfi) The Museum of Happy Childhood is a new tourist attraction of Kazan, said Mayor of Kazan Ilsur Metshin during today's visit to the exposition dedicated to childhood in the Soviet Union on the occasion of the International Children's Day.

The Museum of Happy Childhood, located in a nineteenth century mansion near pedestrian Bauman street, opened this spring. Like the Museum of Soviet Lifestyle, it is one of its kind in Russia and was opened to commemorate the Soviet era. "The brand was born in Kazan. When similar museums appear in other cities, we will help them," said the museum director Rustem Valiakhmetov.

The museum first floor is almost entirely filled with exhibits related to Soviet childhood. Desks with peeling paint, yellowed wall newspapers and primers, rigid backpacks with heavy metal buckles – all immerse visitors in the atmosphere of the Soviet model school. The common thread of the exhibition is the theme of Young Pioneers and proletarian slogans, inextricably linked with the personality of Lenin. A special feature of the museum is that it is completely interactive: visitors can try on red scarves and knitted hats, flip through books, sit on bikes and rattle toys.

During the tour, the museum director said that the Museum of Happy Childhood is gradually gaining international recognition. The museum will soon open its branch in Paris. A French artist of Tatar origin, Rinat Animaev, who is among the top 10 realist artists of France, is closely following the progress of the museum in Kazan. On the eve of May 9, the artist gave Ilsur Metshin a book of his works through the auspices of Rustem Valiakhmetov. Rinat Animaev presented the museum itself with a lifetime portrait of Rudolf Nureyev, preserved in perfect condition. According to Rustem Valiakhmetov, who expressed his readiness to arrange the artist's visit to Kazan, the museum could be given a portrait of Vladimir Vysotsky.

The second floor of the museum holds slot machines and a "Labyrinth of Life" – a number of small rooms filled with 1970s – 80s objects arranged chronologically. There are also numerous gifts from famous people – Alexey Kortnev, Diana Arbenina, Guus Hiddink, Sergei Shnurov, Iosif Kobzon, Sergey Lazarev, Daniel Kramer, Sergei Kogogina and others. They had given toys, children's musical instruments and autographed school items. Ilsur Metshin also left his autograph on a hockey helmet and stick.

The head of the city administration, impressed by the tour, said that the Museum of Happy Childhood is a new tourist highlight of Kazan. "Everybody’s childhood was happy. A trip into history through exhibits gives an opportunity to immerse oneself into the world of Soviet childhood. We should bring our children here and show them what kind of toys their parents played with. The Soviet Union was large, but the toys were the same. I'm sure there will be a lot of visitors to the museum,” said Ilsur Metshin. The museum director, in turn, thanked the mayor for his support for the museum.