Moscow » Moskva | 95 U ovom stanu su živeli Bulgakov i njegova prva supruga tokomprve četiri godine u prestonici It was in this flat that Bulgakov and his first wife lived during their first four years in the capital Don’t talk to strangers and beware of the black cat V I S I T I NG WI T H BU LGAKOV One day, the devil and his cronies arrive in Soviet-era Moscow and chaos ensues. So be careful when touring the places that you’re so familiar with from the novel The Master and Margarita Mikhail Bulgakov, the author of the novel The Master and Margarita, was branded a counter-revolutionary and censored throughout his life. Hismost celebrated novels were published posthumously, earning him a sort of cult following in the late Soviet period. He lived with his wife, Tatiana Lappa, in a Moscow residential building that today houses an arts centre and theatre on the ground floor, and a small museum in their actual flat. Situated on the ground floor of Sadovaya Street, the Bulgakov House Museum houses a quaint collection of newspaper clippings, books and memorabilia about Bulgakov’s life. Whilst perhaps less authentic than number 50 next door, it boasts a plush red carpet, diabolical statues, a tea room from the 1930s and a replica tram to amuse anyone familiar with the novel. The museum organises regular excursions for real literary lovers. You might even encounter characters dressed up as the novel’s key protagonists. There’s even a satirical statue of two of the devilish characters from the novel outside the building, offering the perfect photo opportunity for Bulgakov fanatics. Only later do visitors find the entrance hall they are looking for, with the “sinister apartment” #50. According to the plot of famous novel The Master and Margarita, it was here that Woland and his party decided to stay when they arrived in Moscow. During the 1930s, Bulgakov lived in flat number 50 on the fifth floor of this art deco building in central Moscow. The real crowd-drawer, however, is the stairwell leading up to the flat. Long before the museum’s official inauguration, the building at 10 Bolshaya Sadovaya had evolved into a site of spiritual pilgrimage for the author’s many fans. Travellers and locals alike would enter the building to catch a glimpse of the location that played such a pivotal role in one of Russia’s best-loved novels. It became customary to write graffiti in the stairwell, including quotes from the novel, wishes for the future and declarations of love in honour of the Master and his Margarita. In order to gain entry you should ring the doorbell for number 50, as the building is still a functioning residential block. Follow the winding graffiti up the stairs. The museum’s founders tried to recreate the at-
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