Greeting of Head of the Tver Parliament Vladimir Babichev

Dear fellow-countrymen and esteemed guests of our city!

On behalf of all residents of the city I welcome you on the land of Tver. The great Russian Volga River starts here. Great Prince Mikhail Tverskoy defeated the Golden Horde for the first time in the history of Rus here. From here merchant Afanasy Nikitin went to India and became the first of the Europeans to describe this amazing country. Very many other sons and daughters of Tver glorified our city in Russia and all over the world. Writer Mikhail Saltykov-Shchedrin, famous tenor Sergei Lemeshev, heroic liberator of Bulgaria General Iosif Gurko, pilot Mikhail Gromov, sister of charity Elena Bakunina, poet Andrei Dementyev, Olympic bicycling champion Victor Kapitonov – these names are the fame of the chronicle of Tver. We keep them in memory cautiously, we tell the guests about the famous fellow-countrymen with pride and show the evidences of history.

Tver is an ancient Russian city where provincial merchant back streets neighbor the majestic architecture of Catherine the Great. Due to the famous three-beam principle on which the city development plan is based Tver is compared now to the most beautiful cities of the world, Rome and St. Petersburg. Tver remains in the hearts of those who have visited it at least once and have touched its history forever. Great Russian poet Alexander Sergeevich Pushkin became one of the persons who have fallen in love with Tver. He was here many times. Galyani hotel famous because of Pushkin's verses is located in the center of the city still. Tver is a part of the "Pushkin Ring" of the Upper Volga region.

Dear guests! We will be glad if you like Tver, the city that is called the soul of Russia where hearty and hospitable people live. I wish that stay in our city leave the most pleasant memories for you and you return to Tver once again!