Visit Russia- that is not an idea. It is a specific country, with a particular place on the globe, a majority language and culture, and a very concrete history.
Yet for most of the twentieth century, outside of its boundaries, it has been an idea, not a place – an idea about socialism.
Tremendous debates have raged over its politics, economics, and culture, most of them conducted by and for people who did not know the language, never went there, and knew very little about the country and its history.
Russia is a land of superlatives. By far the world’s largest country, it covers nearly twice the territory of Canada, the second-largest.
It spans 11 time zones and incorporates a great range of environments and landforms, from deserts to semi-arid steppes, to deep forests and Arctic tundra.
Russia contains Europe’s longest river, the Volga, and largest lake, Ladoga, and it is home to the world’s deepest lake, Baikal; it also registers the world’s lowest recorded temperature outside the North and South poles.
Main
CAPITAL Moscow, POPULATION 142.5 million, AREA 17.1 million sq km, OFFICIAL LANGUAGE Russian
Get to know Russia through great sights
Kamchatka
Kamchatka is famous for the abundance and size of its brown bears. In the Kronotsky Nature Reserve, there are estimated to be three to four bears per 100 square kilometres.
Kamchatsky kray, IPA: [kɐmˈtɕatskʲɪj kraj]) is a federal subject of Russia (a krai), situated in the Russian Far East, and is administratively part of the Far Eastern Federal District.
Its capital and largest city is Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, home to over half of its population.
Black Sea
The Black Sea happens to be the largest water body with a meromictic basin, which means the movement of water between the lower and upper layers of the sea is a rare phenomenon to find anywhere in the world.
The deep waters do not mix with the upper layers of water that receive oxygen from the atmosphere. As a result, over 90% of the deeper Black Sea volume is anoxic water.
Kizhi
Old buildings made from logs may not usually be synonymous with ‘heart-stopping excitement’, but Kizhi’s collection of wooden masterpieces is enough to spike the blood pressure of those weary of even the most glorious architecture.
The first glimpse of the heavenly Transfiguration Church, viewed from the
approaching hydrofoil, causes such a ripple that the boat practically bounces: is it… it is!
Up close, the church is a miracle of design and construct: legend has it that the unnamed builder destroyed his axe upon its completion, correctly assuming that its glory could not be matched.
n the 17th century, the island served as a defense post against Swedish and Polish invasions.
During the reign of Catherine II the Great, several major peasant revolts took place in Kizhi between 1769 and 1771. Preobranzhenskaya (Transfiguration) Church on Kizhi Island, Karelia republic, Russia.
Oldest and Largest squares in Moscow- Red Square
Red Square (Russian: Красная площадь, tr. Krasnaya ploshchad’, IPA: [ˈkrasnəjə ˈploɕːətʲ]) is one of the oldest and largest squares in Moscow, the capital of Russia.
Owing to its historical significance and the adjacent historical buildings, it is regarded as one of the most famous squares in Europe and the world.
Red Square has been the scene of executions, demonstrations, riots, parades, and speeches. Almost 800,000 square feet (73,000 square metres),
it lies directly east of the Kremlin and north of the Moskva River. A moat that separated the square from the Kremlin was paved over in 1812.
The Hermitage
The Hermitage holdings include nearly three million items dating from the Stone Age to the present.
Among them is one of the world’s richest collections of western European painting since the Middle Ages, including many masterpieces by Renaissance Italian and Baroque Dutch, Flemish, and French painters.
Hiking the Great Baikal Trail
Already one of Russia’s most successful environmental projects, the Great Baikal Trail has the ambitious aim of encircling Lake Baikal with marked hiking trails.
That’s still a long way from being
achieved, but where trails have been etched into the landscape, donning boots for a trek along Baikal’s shores is all the rage.
Whichever section you choose, Baikal’s gob-smacking vistas and the tough going will leave you breathless as you pass through virgin taiga, along isolated beaches and through cold, flowing rivers.
HIGH SEASON
(Jun–Sep)
Protect against disease-carrying ticks.
Book all forms of transport in advance.
Prices can rise in St Petersburg, particularly during White Nights in June and July.
LOW SEASON
(Nov–Apr)
Snow falls and temperatures plummet, creating the wintery Russia of the imagination.
Best time for skiing (although resorts charge higher prices) and visiting museums and galleries
Olkhon Island
Olkhon Island is the place to go on Lake Baikal both for Russian and foreign tourists seeking to dig deeper into their own spirituality.
Home to the Buryats of ancient Mongolian origins; it is a spiritual epicenter for Shamanism and Buddhism.
Veliky Novgorod’s Kremlin
Veliky Novgorod one of the oldest cities in Russia, is located in the north-west of the European part of the country.
The main attraction of the city is the preserved complex of its medieval fortifications – the Novgorod Kremlin.
Located on the left bank of the Volkhov River, this architectural monument of federal significance as part of the historic center of Veliky Novgorod is included in the UNESCO World Heritage List.
Exploring the Altai
Misty mountain passes, standing stone idols, tranquil lakes and empty roads that stretch on forever.
Welcome to the Altai Republic, Russia’s supreme natural paradise. You can travel for hours here without seeing another soul – unless you count the wild horses and goats.
From snow-capped peaks to the lunar landscapes of Kosh-Agach, desolation has never been quite so appealing.
But be warned – the Altai and its mysteries possess a magnetic pull, drawing travellers back year after year.
Russian population
Russian population is concentrated in the European portion of the country, especially in the fertile region surrounding Moscow, the capital.
Moscow and St Petersburg (formerly Leningrad) are the two most important cultural and financial centres in Russia and are among the most picturesque cities in the world.
Russia’s climate
Russia’s climate is extreme, with forbidding winters that have several times famously saved the country from foreign invaders.
Although the climate adds a layer of difficulty to daily life, the land offers a generous source of crops and materials, including vast reserves of oil, gas, and precious metals.
Visit Russia- the biggest country in the world, and its mighty scale is reflected in the splendour of its palaces, churches and parks. Everywhere you look, size matters, from the grandeur of the Moscow Metro to the towering Kremlin.
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