Post- Soviet Ulan- Ude: Content and Meaning of a New Urban Idea

This article examines the processes by which contemporary Ulan- Ude’s new urban idea – the idea of a ‘city with an Asian soul’ – has been formed and reinforced, and the geo- cultural imagery which has shaped this idea. The author pays particular attention to images of Ulan- Ude which present the city as ‘the capital of the Buryat world’, ‘the Buddhist capital of Russia’, ‘Russia’s Eastern Gateway’ and finally ‘the capital of the Baikal region of Asia’.