Khanty-Mansiysk, the capital of Khanty-Mansi autonomous okrug – Yugra, is located on the territory of the West Siberian Plain, on the right bank of the Irtysh River, 20 kilometers from the confluence with the Ob River; in the natural area of the taiga.

Yugra is the main oil and natural gas region of Russia and one of the largest oil producing regions in the world. Photos by: Slava Stepanov.

fly over Khanty-Mansiysk

Tags: Khanty-Mansi okrug · Khanty-Mansiysk city

Murom is a historical Russian city first mentioned in 862. It is located on the left bank of the Oka River in the Vladimir region, 137 km from Vladimir.

This small city with a population of about 110 thousand people has a surprisingly large number of old places of worship. Photos by: Kirill Moiseev.

Resurrection Monastery founded in the 13th century.

Murom – the city of churches

Tags: churches · Vladimir oblast

Blagoveshchensk is the fifth largest city in the Russian Far East, the capital of the Amur region.

This city, located on the left bank of the Amur River, is the only administrative center in Russia standing on the state border. Chinese city of Heihe is located on the right bank of the Amur, at a distance of half a kilometer. Photos by: Slava Stepanov.

fly over Blagoveshchensk

Tags: Amur oblast · Blagoveschensk city

Smolensk is a city with a population of about 329,000 people located in the west of the European part of Russia, the capital of the Smolensk region. This is one of the oldest cities in the country founded more than 1,150 years ago.

The city is located 378 km south-west of Moscow, in the upper reaches of the Dnieper River, on the way from Moscow to Belarus, Baltic States, the countries of Central and Western Europe. Photos by: Denis Mukimov.

explore the ancient Smolensk

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Murmansk, located in the northwest of Russia, is the largest city in the world in the Arctic Circle. The city stands on the rocky east coast of the Kola Bay of the Barents Sea.

This is one of the largest ice-free ports in Russia and in the world built during the First World War, in 1915, to deliver military supplies from the allies because of the blockade of the Black and Baltic Seas. Photos by: Konstantin Antipin.

snow-covered Murmansk

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This weather happens in Moscow only a few times a year. Warm cyclone comes after heavy frosts gradually displacing icy air from the city.

At ground level, you can see only dull gray clouds, but if you climb higher, for example, at the Ostankino TV tower (340 meters), you will enjoy the following breathtaking views. Photos by: Dmitriy Chistoprudov.

Moscow from above

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Ekaterinburg (in 1924-1991 – Sverdlovsk), the fourth largest city of Russia, is an administrative center of the Sverdlovsk region and the Urals Federal District. It is the biggest administrative, cultural, scientific, and educational center of the Urals.

Over almost three hundred years of its existence, Ekaterinburg was rebuilt several times. The project “Ekaterinburg. Then and Now” shows how much the city has changed over the 100 years. Photos by: Slava Stepanov.

Ekaterinburg – past and present

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Astrakhan is a city in Russia with a population of about 532 thousand people. The oldest economic and cultural center of the Lower Volga and the Caspian region, it is the capital of Astrakhan oblast.

The city is located in the upper part of the delta of the Volga River, on 11 islands of the Caspian depression. Photos by: Slava Stepanov.

fly over Astrakhan

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Kaliningrad oblast is the westernmost region of Russia separated from the main territory of the country and surrounded by Poland and Lithuania.

The history of the city formerly known as Konigsberg has more than 760 years. In 1255, the Teutonic Knights built a castle here. Later, Konigsberg became the fortified capital of East Prussia. It was badly damaged during the Second World War. Photos by: Slava Stepanov.

fly over Kaliningrad

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Rostov, also known as Rostov Veliky (meaning Rostov the Great), is a town with a population of about 30 thousand people located in the Yaroslavl region, 53 km south-west of Yaroslavl, on the shores of Lake Nero.

This is one of the oldest towns in Russia for the first time mentioned in chronicles in 862. In 1207-1474, it was the center of the Rostov principality. Today, Rostov is a tourist center of the route “Golden Ring of Russia”. Photos by: ivanchuk1.

Church of the Resurrection in Rostov Kremlin.

amazing sights of Rostov

Tags: churches · Yaroslavl oblast