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

On the night of June 23-24, the annual show “Scarlet Sails” was held in St. Petersburg – the main graduation ceremony of Russia, a holiday dedicated to all school graduates.

For the first time “Scarlet Sails” was held in Leningrad in 1968. In that year, 25 thousand graduates of Soviet schools and technical schools gathered for the holiday. In 2018, this celebration turned 50, there were about 80 thousand graduates on the streets and embankments of the city. Photos by: Petr Ushanov.

very colorful show

Tags: Saint Petersburg city

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

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

The second set of photos of common people taken by William Carrick (1827-1878), a Scottish-Russian artist and photographer, in the Russian Empire. The first part. Source: humus.

1. Orthodox priest.

Russians of the past

Tags: Russian Empire

William Carrick (1827-1878) was a Scottish-Russian artist and photographer. In 1859, in St. Petersburg, he opened the first photo studio in the Russian Empire.

Carrick quickly gained fame, capturing the daily life of the country and became the first Russian ethnographer-photographer. Let’s look at some of his works. The second part. Source: humus.

Musician playing a balalaika.

faces of the Russian Empire

Tags: Russian Empire