The Catherine Palace is a former imperial palace located in the town of Pushkin (former Tsarskoye Selo), about 25 km from St. Petersburg. This summer residence of the Russian tsars is one of the largest palaces in the vicinity of St. Petersburg.

Construction of the building was started in 1717 by the order of Russian Empress Catherine I. It is an example of the late Baroque. Photos by deletant

beautiful architecture and interiors

Tags: Saint Petersburg city

Trinity Church, built in 1827-1832, is located near Pyatino village (western edge of Ulyanovsk region). Previously, next to the church, there was a manor of noble family of Annenkov.

The church is rapidly decaying; domes and columns in the interior are crumbling. It looks like nobody cares about preserving it. Pyatino landscape is definitely one of the most fascinating Russian landscapes. Photos by av_otus

abandoned beauty

Tags: Abandoned · churches · Ulyanovsk oblast

This beautiful photo can be a good illustration of classic Russian landscape. It was taken in ancient Suzdal, city-reserve included in the Golden Ring of Russia, by Victor Peryakin.

Tags: landscapes · Suzdal city

Really beautiful and unique photo of one of the main symbols of Russia – St. Basil Cathedral standing on the Red Square in Moscow. Photo by mysea

Tags: Moscow city

Art painting is the art of decorating any surface by paints and brush. It is considered one of the most popular types of arts and crafts.

In Russian folk art, there are many styles of art painting. You can see the most popular styles (Khokhloma, Gzhel, North-Dvina, Zhostovo, Mezen, Gorodets) with the help of these unusual pictures made by Sasha Vinogradova

really unusual but cool pictures

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November 6, manned spacecraft “Soyuz TMA-11M” will be launched to the International Space Station. Liftoff will be broadcast live on screens at the famous Times Square in New York, the US.

The spacecraft will be launched from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan.

Olympic torch in open space

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Lutheran church in Gross Engelau was built in the 14th century during the reign of power and financial prosperity of the Teutonic Order. Lutheran church tower was often used as an observation post during military conflicts.

In 1807, the Russian officers observed the battle of Friedland from it. In August 1914, Gross Engelau was again in the thick of things, the tower was used by the military again.

Photo of the church before 1945

the details of what happened

Tags: churches · Kaliningrad oblast

If you want to understand better the “mysterious Russian soul”, then, you’ll probably be interested in the following article about Russians attitude to adultery, white lie, theft at work, sex without love, evasion of taxes, etc.

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Earlier this year, Russia’s largest airline “Aeroflot” announced a contest “Paint the plane of Aeroflot.” The contest was announced in honor of the 90th anniversary of the company and it was open to everybody.

The winner of the contest was the project of Alexander Sosnovsky, who suggested to paint the plane in the style of Russian folk painting Khokhloma. You can see his design on the picture below.

first photos of repainted aircraft

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Architectural and Ethnographic Museum of the Vologda region “Semyonkovo” invites you into the world of the Russian village of the late 19th – the early 20th centuries. Here you can learn more about the traditions, cultural background, and mentality of the Russian people.

The museum was opened in 1979. It is a monument of national value. The museum covers an area of 12.7 hectares and has a lot of monuments of wooden architecture of the middle 19th – the early 20th centuries. Photos by Denis Spirin

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Tags: museum · Vologda oblast