About "парадное" and "подъезд".
I think the term "парадное" comes from "парадное крыльцо", "парадный подъезд" (remember Nekrasov's "Размышления у парадного подъезда"?) which in XVIII—XIX centuries meant the "FRONT or OFFICIAL doors", the "doors used for ceremonies". They had back entrances too, you know, for servants and kitchen maids. To my mind, to call the single entrance of a modern house "парадное" is illogical, because very often there is only one entrance, and besides, very often it looks so that you cannot call it "ceremonial" however hard you tried. That's why everywhere it is called "подъезд". I agree that in St. Petersbourg as well in Moscow and some other cities there are old houses left with "main" and "black" entrances and this term has its right to be used there, but it is noncence to use this word generally.