@bowlofchalk: In the 17th century, Vauxhall in Lambeth was a vast 'pleasure garden' where Londoners would come to hear concerts, watch acrobats, ride in hot air balloons, get drunk and partake in more dubious forms of entertainment. A guy called Michael Maddox took the concept to Russia in the late 18th century and set up something similar outside St Petersburg, which he also called Vauxhall, but got Russianised to 'Vokzal'. The first railway in Russia ran from the capital to the Vokzal pleasure garden and so they called the station Vokzal and it's been the name for a railway station in Russian ever since. #londonwalkingtours #londontours #londonguide #walkingtour #funfact #funfacts #trivia #london #history #londonhistory #vauxhall #vokzal #railway #station #pleasuregarden #stpetersburg #russia #russian #language #russianlanguage #englishtorussian #theatre #hotairballoon #entertainment #pleasure #lambeth