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St Petersburg highlights

June 10, 2015

1) Spend a day or more in the Hermitage, one of the world’s unrivalled art collections. I oohed and ahhed as I entered the different state rooms which showcased the luxurious lifestyles of the Russian royalty in the past. 2) Witness the amazing kaleidoscope of colours that is the church of spilled blood. 3) Revel …
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Day trip to Sergiev Posad

June 5, 2015

75km to the northeast of Moscow lies the town of Sergiev Posad (Zagorsk in the Soviet era). Although it is nowadays an industrial centre with a population of over 100,000, its fame rests on the Trinity Lavra of St. Sergii (a Lavra is the highest rank of Orthodox monastery, and there are only four in …
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Massive Moscow

June 2, 2015

This massive metropolis captures Russia at her most extreme: her communist austerity and her capitalist indulgence; her devout orthodoxy and her uninhibited displays of wealth and power; her enigmatic ancient history and her dazzling contemporary culture. Moscow is the seat of political power in Russia, but it is also the country’s cultural and commercial center. …
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Island-town Sviyazhsk

June 1, 2015

bridge over the Volga river on our way to Sviyazhsk the Russian flag fluttering in the wind The place where the Sviyaga River flows into the Volga forms the idea for Pushkin’s lively tale of the Island of Buyan. Sviyazhsk was built by Ivan the Terrible as a fortress for the siege of Kazan, and …
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Uncovering Tatar culture in Kazan

May 30, 2015

Kazan railway station Kazan is not a well-known city outside of Russia, but this special autonomous region is actually the third capital of Russia, after Moscow and St Petersburg. The architecture and culture of Kazan are distinctively different from the rest of Russia, due to the ethnic Tatars. They don’t look very much different from …
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Day trip out of Yekaterinburg

May 29, 2015

For something away from the city and closer to nature, do take the opportunity to visit Ganina Yama when  you are in Yekaterinburg. I don’t know the specifics of taking public transport to this place as I was lucky enough to be driven by my host’s mother to this place for a short sightseeing tour. …
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Yekaterinburg, crossroads of Asia and Europe

May 28, 2015

Yekaterinburg, is the fourth largest city in Russia, with a population of 1.3 Million. Yekaterinburg was founded in 1723, and was named after Peter the Great’s wife Catherine I. From 1924 to 1991, Yekaterinburg was known as Sverdlovsks (Свердло́вск) , which was named after the Bolshevik leader Yakov Sverdlov. Yekaterinburg is situated on the eastern …
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How to apply for a Russian visa in Singapore

April 17, 2015

**Update 26 Sep 2019** Currently, instead of going down to the Russian embassy, there is a dedicated team at the Russian Visa Application Center in Singapore to apply for your tourist visa. Address : Cecil street 135, level 8, Singapore 069536 Website: http://www.vfsglobal.com/russia/singapore Telephone number: +65 6692 9873, Email: info.rusg@vfshelpline.com. The Russian Visa Application Center …
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