Russia

Russia
Russia

Russia is the largest country in the world. Russia can offer almost everything to a traveler: from the frenzied rhythm of modern megacities to a quiet, cozy hinterland, from the richest cultural values to picturesque nature, from luxurious resort holidays to extreme tourism.

Russia on map

History

Kizhi, Karelia, Russia

The ancestors of the tribes inhabiting the territories of modern Central and Eastern Europe were called differently: Veneds, Ants, Sklavins. The first pages of the history of Russia originate from the Eastern Slavs, who inhabited the Eastern European plain in the VI-VII centuries. In the "Tale of Bygone Years", the oldest Russian chronicle, tribes are described, called: Polyans, Drevlyans, Krivichi, Vyatichi, Ilmen Slavs.

Historians' disputes about the moment of the emergence of Russia as a state lead to the origins of 862, when the Ilmen Slavs called Varangian Prince Rurik and his brothers to rule Novgorod.

Brief historical milestones of the formation of the Russian state are as follows:

Russia in the IX — early X century

Kievan Rus during the reign of the Rurikovich

The Mongol-Tatar yoke

Alexander Nevsky and the Livonian Order

The Moscow Principality

Ivan the Terrible, the power of the Romanov dynasty

The Russian Empire

The War with Napoleon

The Decembrists and the struggle against autocracy

The First World War

The Great Patriotic War and the Soviet-Japanese War

The era of stagnation after the victory over fascism

The collapse of the Soviet Union

The Commonwealth of Independent States

Modern Russia

National symbols

Flag

Russian Tricolor

The Day of the National Flag of the Russian Federation is celebrated annually on August 22. In the modern interpretation, the meaning of the colors of the flag of Russia: white color – nobility and frankness, blue color — loyalty, honesty, integrity and chastity; red color — courage, courage, generosity and love.

Emblem

The coat of arms of Russia is a golden double–headed eagle

The State Emblem of the Russian Federation depicts a golden double-headed eagle with outstretched wings raised up. The eagle is crowned with three crowns connected by a ribbon. In the eagle's right paw is a scepter, in the left is a power. On the eagle's chest is a horseman on a horse striking a dragon overturned and trampled by a horse with a spear.

Government structure

Russia is a democratic federal state governed by the rule of law with a republican form of government. State power in the Russian Federation is exercised by the President of the Russian Federation, the Federal Assembly (the Federation Council and the State Duma), the Government of the Russian Federation, and the courts of the Russian Federation.

National currency

Russian rubles – two thousandth bill

The ruble is the monetary unit of the Russian Federation, equal to 100 kopecks. The current two—letter code of Russia in ISO 3166-1 — RU; three-digit numeric - 643; the current letter code of the Russian ruble in ISO 4217 — RUB; digital — 643. The official symbol of the ruble is ₽ (RUB)

Language

The official language in Russia is Russian. Interestingly, the modern Russian alphabet is only 100 years old. The writing is based on the Old Slavic Cyrillic alphabet.

Geography

The spill of the Kucherla River, Altai Territory, Russia

Russia is a transcontinental country located in Eastern Europe and North Asia. Occupying about 1/3 of the territory of Eurasia and 1/8 of the entire terrestrial landmass, it is the world's largest state by area. Russia borders with eighteen countries. By land, the border runs between the following States: Norway, Finland, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Belarus, Ukraine, Abkhazia, Georgia, South Ossetia, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, China, Mongolia, North Korea.

Relief

The territory of Russia can be conditionally divided into two main parts, the eastern and western, the border between which runs along the Yenisei. The western part is mostly flat, while the eastern part is dominated by mountains.

Rivers

The country has one of the largest freshwater reserves in the world. Lake Baikal alone contains about 20% of the world's freshwater lake reserves and more than 80% of Russia's reserves. The largest and longest waterways in Russia are the Lena, Irtysh, Ob, Volga, Yenisei, Nizhnyaya Tunguska, Amur, and Don rivers.

Climate

Birch trees are the business card of Russia

The country's territory is divided into 4 climatic zones: Arctic — the coast and islands of the Arctic Ocean; subarctic — the Arctic Circle; temperate — Central Russia, Western Siberia, the Far East; subtropical — the Black Sea coast, the Caucasus Mountains and 11 natural zones. Most of Russia's territory is located in the continental and Arctic climate zones.

The climate of central Russia is moderately continental, with snowy, moderately frosty winters and warm, rather humid summers.

Time zones

The Northern Lights can be seen in the northern latitudes on the territory of Russia

Due to the large extent from West to East, there are 11 time zones in the country. Each subject of the Russian Federation is included in one time zone, excluding Yakutia, whose territory is located in three time zones at once.

Moscow time (UTC +3) is considered the main time. Daylight saving time is not available.

Religion

Cathedral of Christ the Savior, Moscow

The Russian Federation is a secular state and a multi—confessional country with freedom of religion, in which about 160 nationalities and ethnic groups peacefully coexist. At the legislative level, there is a ban on insulting the feelings of believers and committing actions that are regarded as disrespectful to them.

The main confessional composition is represented in Russia by Orthodox Christians, Muslims, Protestants, Buddhists, Catholics, Judaists, believers who do not belong to any denomination and atheists.

Orthodoxy in Russia is represented by the Russian Orthodox Church, the largest Christian religious association.

Capital

Alexey Larionov / Unsplash

The capital of Russia is Moscow, one of the largest megacities in Europe, which is currently home to about 13 million people.

Moscow has been the capital of the Russian state since 1547, when Ivan IV the Terrible ascended the throne. On the instructions of Peter I, in 1712, the Russian capital was moved from Moscow to St. Petersburg. After numerous ordeals with the transfer of the "mother see" in 1918, the capital of Russia was finally moved from St. Petersburg back to Moscow.

Interesting facts about Moscow:

Moscow is consistently ranked among the top most expensive cities in the world.

The capital is home to the world's largest bell, the Tsar Bell, weighing more than 200 tons. In its entire history, the bell has never rung. This landmark is located on the territory of the Moscow Kremlin.

The capital almost completely burned down in 1812 during the Patriotic War with Napoleon. Then the fire destroyed 80% of Moscow buildings. The city has been restored for almost 30 years.

The main attraction of the capital is the Moscow Kremlin, the largest active fortress in Europe and the largest museum in the world, covering an area of 27 hectares.

Cities of Russia

Kazan Cathedral, St. Petersburg, Russia

The largest cities in Russia by population are Moscow, St. Petersburg, Novosibirsk, Yekaterinburg, Kazan, Nizhny Novgorod, Chelyabinsk, Samara, Omsk, Rostov–on-Don, Ufa, Krasnoyarsk, Voronezh, Perm, Volgograd. The population of these cities has crossed the threshold of 1 million people.

The list of the most popular tourist destinations includes Moscow, St. Petersburg and Sochi. And the tourists themselves consider Arkhangelsk, Pskov, Veliky Novgorod, Suzdal, Vladimir, Volgograd, Yekaterinburg, Yoshkar–Ola, Kazan and Kaliningrad to be the most beautiful and obligatory to visit.

Tourism

Krasnodar Territory, Russia

Types of tourism in Russia are diverse: geographical, geological, botanical, industrial, recreational, therapeutic, sports, ecotourism, agrotourism, ethnocultural, gastronomic, automobile, cruise, pilgrimage.

The Golden Ring of Russia

The Golden Ring of Russia is the most popular tourist route in the country, passing through the ancient cities of Northeastern Russia, which have preserved unique monuments of Russian history and culture. The "Golden Ring of Russia" traditionally includes eight main cities — Sergiev Posad, Pereslavl-Zalessky, Rostov, Yaroslavl, Kostroma, Ivanovo, Suzdal, Vladimir.

Attractions

Petrodvorets, St. Petersburg, Russia

Among the architectural and historical monuments: the Moscow Kremlin and Red Square, the historical center of St. Petersburg and the palace and park complexes of its surroundings, Kizhi churchyard, historical monuments of Novgorod, the historical and cultural complex of the Solovetsky Islands, monuments of Vladimir and Suzdal, the church of Boris and Gleb in Kideksha, the Trinity-Sergius Lavra in Sergiev Posad, The Church of the Ascension in Kolomenskoye.

When visiting Moscow, it is worth paying attention to St. Basil's Cathedral, the Tretyakov Gallery, the Bolshoi Theater, the Kuskovo Estate.

There are no less amazing sights in St. Petersburg: the Hermitage, Peterhof, St. Isaac's Cathedral, Alexander Nevsky Lavra, Tsarskoye Selo, Kronstadt.

The Olympic Park in Sochi is a heritage of modernity.

Of the historical, architectural and natural attractions of Russia, the most recommended:

Solovetsky Islands (Arkhangelsk)

Boris and Gleb Church (Kideksha)

Trinity-Sergiev Lavra (Sergiev Posad)

The architectural ensemble of Kizhi churchyard (Kizhi Island)

Kazan Kremlin (Kazan)

Ruins of Chersonesos (Sevastopol)

Lake Baikal (Eastern Siberia)

Valley of Geysers (Kamchatka)

Sikhote-Alinsky Natural Biosphere Reserve (Primorsky Krai)

Ubsunur basin (Republic of Tyva)

Teletskoye Lake (Altai)

On the territory of Russia, a special status has been allocated to some natural territories that are under special state control. Among them are parks and reserves: Sochi, Losiny Ostrov, Curonian Spit, Baikal Nature Reserve, Russian Arctic, as well as the Caucasian and Baikal-Lena Nature Reserves.

Interesting facts about Russia

Lake Ladoga, Russia

Russia is the only country in the world washed by twelve seas

Lake Baikal in Siberia is the deepest lake on Earth

Lake Ladoga is the largest lake in Europe

The Ural Mountains are the most ancient mountains in the world

The deepest metro in the world is located in St. Petersburg, its depth is more than a hundred meters

Klyuchevskaya Sopka is the highest active volcano in Eurasia, located in Kamchatka

The Siberian taiga is the largest forest in the world

The oldest city in Russia, Derbent, located in Dagestan, is also one of the oldest cities in the world

The West Siberian Plain is one of the largest and flatter plains of the globe.

Transport system

The transport system of Russia is represented by a developed transport network, including railways, highways, air lines, river and sea shipping routes.

Buses and minibuses are the most popular public transport in cities and suburbs. They are found in most even the most remote settlements. Tram, trolleybus and bus services are available in major cities. And in Moscow, the most modern electric buses in the world run — "Electric Buses".

Tickets for public transport can always be purchased at boarding from the driver or conductor. In some cities there are special ticket offices for the sale of travel tickets and season tickets.

Capital airports

There are four civilian airports in Moscow in total, all of them are located in the suburbs in the immediate vicinity of the city:

Sheremetyevo Airport (SVO)

Domodedovo Airport (DME)

Vnukovo Airport (VKO)

Zhukovsky Airport (ZIA)

Holidays

New Year, Moscow, GUM

January 1st - 5th — New Year

January 7 — Christmas

February 23 — Defender of the Fatherland Day

March 8 — International Women's Day

May 1 — Spring and Labor Day

May 9 is Victory Day

June 12 — Russia Day

November 4 — National Unity Day

National cuisine

Bread and salt

Traditional Russian cuisine is rich in elements of ancient Slavic cuisine, with taste accents of various peoples inhabiting the vast territory of Russia.

The main products of Russians have always been vegetables: turnips, cabbage, potatoes, radishes and cucumbers, fruits and berries, fish, mushrooms and meat. Bread is the basis of the national cuisine.

Russian Russian cuisine can be summed up by tasting traditional dishes, including: all kinds of soups, cabbage soup, soup, dumplings, all kinds of porridges, okroshka and beetroot, pancakes, Russian pies, salads, vinaigrette, olivier. The main meat dishes are Beef Stroganoff, stew, jelly. From drinks: jelly, kvass, sbiten, mead. Sweets such as jams and honey are also popular among Russians.

Traditional souvenirs

Traditional Russian matryoshka dolls

Russian souvenirs are a business card of Russia. I will keep great memories of such souvenirs from Russia as:

Samovar

Balalaika

Bast shoes, felt boots, earflaps, kokoshnik

Matryoshka dolls

Khokhloma, Zhostovskaya, Dymkovskaya, Palekh painting

Birch bark products

Gzhel, Russian porcelain, crystal

Kaslin casting

Down and painted shawls: Orenburg, Pavlovoposadsky

Lace – Vologda, Yelets, Vyatka

Bashkir honey, Belevskaya pastille and Tula gingerbread

Help us make your travels better
Share your experiences, photos, videos and useful tips