Author Amor Towles visited Moscow in 1998. At that point, the Metropol Hotel was nearly celebrating its 100th anniversary. Opening in 1905, it joined the ranks of other leading grand hotels of its era like the Waldorf Astoria in New York, Claridge’s in London, and the Ritz in Paris. All of these hotel siblings shared…

Author Amor Towles visited Moscow in 1998. At that point, the Metropol Hotel was nearly celebrating its 100th anniversary. Opening in 1905, it joined the ranks of other leading grand hotels of its era like the Waldorf Astoria in New York, Claridge’s in London, and the Ritz in Paris. All of these hotel siblings shared…