Smolensk, the administrative center of Smolensk Oblast, is one of the oldest cities in Russia. First mentioned in 863, it is located in the west of the country. In the history of Russia, it is known as the “shield city”, which for many centuries served as the defense of Moscow.

Let’s see how Smolensk looked in the last decade of the Russian Empire, in 1912. This is possible thanks to unique color photographs taken by Sergey Mikhaylovich Prokudin-Gorsky (1863-1944), a pioneer of color photography in the Russian Empire.

unique views of Smolensk

Tags: Smolensk city

Russia has become one of the top countries for international students to acquire higher education. Some of the reasons why students are now being influenced to study in Russia is the cheaper tuition fees with some as little as $1,000 to $6,000 a year, and best living standards for approximately $430-$580 depending on where you are.

Most international students have different student visa requirements to acquire a Russian embassy visa to study in Russia. If you are wondering how to get a student visa and how much does it cost to get a Russian Visa, this article will guide you with the process.

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The Resurrection Church in Kadashi Sloboda (1687-1695) is a picturesque Orthodox church located in Yakimanka District in Central Administrative Okrug of Moscow (2-Y Kadashevskiy Pereulok, 7).

This church is an outstanding architectural monument built in the style of “Moscow Baroque” characterized by elegance of proportions and delicate silhouette. In 2014-2016, a complete restoration of the facades of the church and the bell tower was carried out. The Resurrection Church in Kadashi Sloboda on Google Maps. Photos by: Vladimir d’Ar.

beautiful Moscow church

Tags: churches · Moscow city

The Polar Urals is the northernmost part of the Ural Mountains. As well as throughout the Ural watershed, it is a geographical border between Asia and Europe, as well as an administrative border between the Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous Okrug and the Komi Republic.

These are harsh and sparsely populated places, but due to the fact that the Vorkuta-Labytnangi Railway crosses the Polar Urals, it is relatively easy to get here. In winter, the Nenets come to the mountains of the Polar Urals with their herds of deer. Photos by: Sergey Karpukhin.

the life of nomadic herders

Tags: Salekhard city · Yamalo-Nenets okrug

“The Kingdom of Permafrost” is a unique complex, which is a huge, always frozen cave near Mount Chochur-Muran on the outskirts of Yakutsk. In Soviet times, this place was used as a huge cellar for storing food.

The tourist complex first opened its doors to all visitors in 2008. Since then, it has become one of the main tourist sites in Yakutsk. Photos by: zavodfoto.

beautiful frozen cave

Tags: Sakha Republic · Yakutsk city

In the early part of the 21st century, there was proliferation of casino gambling all across Russia. It is estimated that as many as 58 casinos may have been in operation by 2002. As a post-communist nation, Russia has always been concerned with the welfare of the nation, preferring to not be subject to weaknesses.

As the gambling industry was perceived to be ravaging the economic state of the nation, the Russian government set forth to legislate changes. At first, they tried to limit the proximity of existing casinos.

Unfortunately, that did little to stop the nation’s youth from missing school in favor of trying to secure a fortune with slots. As a final recourse, the Russian government finally decided in 2009 to shut down all gambling operations with the exception of land-based casinos in four regions: Altai, Krasnodar, Kaliningrad, and Primorsky.

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Yepifan, founded on the left bank of the Don River in 1566, is a village with a population of about 2,200 people located in the east of Tula Oblast, about 94 km southeast of Tula. This village is included in the list of historical settlements of Russia.

The Church of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary, built here from 1680 to 1720, is one of the most picturesque churches in the region. Yepifan on Google Maps. Photos by: Vadim Razumov.

beautiful church on a hill

Tags: churches · Tula oblast

Today, Yekaterinburg, the fourth largest city in Russia (about 1.5 million people), is the largest administrative, cultural, scientific, and educational center of the Urals.

And here is how Yekaterinburg looked a little over a century ago with a population of about 60 thousand people. These unique color photographs were taken by Sergey Mikhaylovich Prokudin-Gorsky (1863-1944), a pioneer of color photography in the Russian Empire, in 1909.

The general views of the southern part of Yekaterinburg.

unique photos of Yekaterinburg

Tags: Ekaterinburg city · Sverdlovsk oblast

Church of St. Sergius of Radonezh on the Kulikovo Field, built in 1913-1917, is a monument-church standing on the alleged site of the Battle of Kulikovo (1380) in the southeast of Tula Oblast, about 122 km from Tula.

The architect of the church was Alexey Viktorovich Shchusev. An interesting feature of this church is that one of its towers is crowned by a dome in the shape of a helmet. The Kulikovo Field on Google Maps. Photos by: Vadim Razumov.

very picturesque church

Tags: churches · Tula oblast

Just like everything else about Russia, its language also seems somewhat intimidating. While many languages of the world share alphabets that are similar to those of English, the Russian language takes an entirely different lead. And since the Russian language has a different alphabet structure, there’s a common misconception that it’s quite challenging to learn.

easy ways to learn Russian

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