Vologda, one of the largest cities of the Russian North and the capital of the Vologda region, is located 474 km north of Moscow and 663 km east of St. Petersburg.

First mentioned in 1147, it is included in the list of Russian cities with a particularly valuable historical heritage. On the territory of Vologda there are more than 200 monuments of history, architecture and culture. Let’s take a look at some of them. Photos by: Andrei Kireev.

The Vologda River and the Vologda Kremlin.

beautiful old city

Tags: Vologda city

Kostroma, founded in 1152, is the administrative center of the Kostroma region located about 346 km north-east of Moscow on the Volga River.

The historical center of the city is known for its mostly preserved architectural ensemble of the era of classicism of the late 18th-19th centuries. This city is included in the list of settlements that have the official status of “historical”, and is traditionally included in the “Golden Ring of Russia”. Photos by: Eduard Skvortsov.

Ivan Susanin Square – the central square of Kostroma and one of the most picturesque places in the city. The main architectural dominant of the square is the fire tower of the 19th century.

walk around Kostroma

Tags: Kostroma city

Berezniki is the second largest city in the Perm region with a population of about 145,000 people, a large industrial center located 191 km north of Perm.

The city stands on a large deposit of potassium and magnesium salts that have been mine-produced for decades. Berezniki on Google Maps. Photos by: Lana Sator.

Administrative and household building in the zone of one of the sinkholes.

sinkholes of Berezniki from above

Tags: Abandoned · Perm krai

The Lakhta Center, being built in the historical part of the Primorsky district of St. Petersburg, is a public and business complex that will house the headquarters of Gazprom, one of the world’s largest energy companies.

It is planned to finish the construction in Q3 2018. This skyscraper has already become the most northern in the world, the highest in Russia and Europe (462 meters). The Lakhta Center on Google Maps. Photos by: Valery Gikavy.

Saint Petersburg from above

Tags: Saint Petersburg city

Torzhok, founded at the turn of the 10th-11th centuries, is a town with a population of about 46 thousand people located in the Tver region, 65 km north-west of Tver.

In the past, it was an important center of trade on the way to Novgorod and St. Petersburg from the southern regions of Russia. The very name of the town means “trading place”. Torzhok on Google Maps. Photos by: Alexander Lipilin.

winter in Torzhok

Tags: Torzhok city · Tver oblast

Tobolsk is a city with a population of about 100 thousand people located in the north of the Tyumen region. It was founded as a center for the development of Siberia in 1587.

Since 1708, Tobolsk was the center of the Siberian province stretching from the Urals to the Pacific Ocean. In the 19th century, Tobolsk lost its economic importance. Today, it is one of the most important center of cognitive tourism in Siberia.

Tobolsk – past and present

Tags: Tobolsk city · Tyumen oblast

Karabash is a small town with a population of about 11,000 people located in the Chelyabinsk region, 112 km north-west of Chelyabinsk.

Today, it is one of the most polluted places in the world due to the fact that copper has been continuously produced here for more than 100 years, and the toxic chemicals resulting from it have often been discharged into the environment. Karabash on Google Maps. Photos by: Andrey Grachev.

multicolored Karabash

Tags: Chelyabinsk oblast

Uglich is a town with a population of about 32,000 people located in the Yaroslavl region, 109 km west of Yaroslavl and 250 km north of Moscow. This town, located on the Volga River (Uglich reservoir), was the center of the Uglich Principality in the 13th-16th centuries.

Today, this picturesque town is one of the stops on the popular tourist route “The Golden Ring”. Here you can find a lot of monuments of traditional Russian architecture. Uglich on Google Maps. Photos by: Mikhail Aritkin.

picturesque old town

Tags: Yaroslavl oblast

Veliky Ustyug is a town with a population of about 30,000 people located in the northeast of the Vologda region, 446 km from Vologda. In 1999, it was declared the birthplace of the All-Russian Father Frost.

Founded in 1147, Veliky Ustyug is one of the oldest towns in the Russian North that has preserved a rich cultural heritage, a popular tourist center. Covered with snow, the town looks especially picturesque on a clear sunny day. Veliky Ustyug on Google Maps. Photos by: Marina Lystseva.

walk around Veliky Ustyug

Tags: Veliky Ustyug city · Vologda oblast

Gorno-Altaysk is a city with a population of about 62,000 people located in the south of Western Siberia of Russia, the capital and the only city of the Altai Republic.

The city is located in the northwestern part of the Altai Mountains, in the intermontane basin, surrounded by low hills, at an altitude of 270-305 meters above sea level. Let’s look at Gorno-Altaysk from Mount Tugai (641 meters) located on the territory of the city. Photos by: Andrei Kireev.

one autumn afternoon in Gorno-Altaysk

Tags: Altay Republic · Gorno-Altaisk city