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Shangri-la (1988) 

1970s Lounges Frozen in Time - Experience Soviet Interior Decor Fantasies  

KYIV DESTINATION: Pirogovo Open Air National Museum of Architecture 

Many people go to the Pirogovo historical open air museum in Kyiv http://www.pyrogiv.kiev.ua to experience 17th century rural life. But you can also don your illegal Western jeans and re-visit the 1970s.
When you enter the park at the main gate turn immediately right down a tarmac road. To your right you will soon see a series of cottages. This is in fact a Soviet model village that idealises architectural styles and interiors for collective farm workers from the 1970s.




The houses are frozen in time. It feels as though your nan could pop out and put the kettle on for a brew. These houses are less visited, so you can lose yourself in a retro world of orange and laminated wood.
 While many locals will be reminiscing on how things used to be - do remember, what you see was about as within the reach of the average person as the model houses at the Ideal Homes exhibition. This is a fantasy. The reality was much harsher.


To get to Pirogovo either take a taxi or go on the metro to Vystavochniy Tsentr, and then get the No.11 trolley bus to the end of the line. Alight, go down the underpass and cross the road. A rural lane runs for about a kilometre through a field. At the end is the main entrance. Sometimes you will find a taxi to drive you from the underpass to the entrance.

What's your favourite retro location in Kyiv?
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