Kazan's very own leaning tower. The striking 55 metre high tower with a slight lean is heavily associated with a legend surrounding Princess Soyembika, one of the last great rulers of Kazan. According to the legend Ivan the Terrible proposed marriage to the beautiful leader, but she refused him and so Ivan instead decided to lay siege to her city. After much destruction she finally relented and agreed to marry the Tsar - but only if he proved his worthiness by building her a seven storey tower within a week. After seven days the Tsar’s workers had completed the task and so Soyembika reluctantly climbed to the top of the tower, took one last look over her city and leapt to her death. Of course the dramatic tale is purely legend. Soyembika was in fact taken by the Tsars guards during the siege and forced into exile where she eventually died alone. The true origins of the tower are still shrouded in mystery however and some scholars claim that the tower may date back to before Ivan the Terrible’s invasion of Kazan, while others claim it was built following the Tsar’s conquering of the city. If the tower looks familiar then you are probably being reminded of Moscow’s Kazan station, whose design was inspired by it. Unfortunately the tower can only be admired from the outside.