Referred to as “miraculous and mysterious” by its own tourism department Russia is a country full of cultural and historical discoveries just waiting to be found. Visit the modern cities of Moscow and St. Petersburg, or the ancient cities around the Golden Ring; hop aboard the famous Trans-Siberian Railway, cruise one of the big rivers or wrap yourself in the warmth of a Russian holiday celebration.
Bordering Russia is Europe’s largest country, Ukraine. With a sophisticated culture, love for culinary excellence and a variety of attractions and sightseeing destinations, Ukraine has much to offer visitors.
Russia
- Well known to most, Moscow's central Red Square separates the Kremlin from the historic merchant quarter of Kitai-gorod, and its history is vividly on display through paintings and other works of art.
- Founded in 1764 by Catherine the Great, the Hermitage Museum features collections of nearly three million items which reside across six historic buildings including the Winter Palace, a former residence of Russian emperors.
- A team has been assembled with the sole purpose of keeping Vladimir Lenin's body in good condition since 1924 when it was placed in Lenin's Mausoleum, right in the center of the Red Square.
- Dominating the St. Petersburg skyline since the early 1800s, St. Isaac's Cathedral, is now open as a museum with church services held only on major ecclesiastical occasions.
- With an enormous wooden house, a lake to put on staged sea battles, an open-air theatre, a greenhouse, a French park and a forest, the Kuskovo Estate gives visitors a first-hand idea of what it was like to live amongst the Russian aristocracy of the 18th Century.
Ukraine
- Mysterious in looks, location and history, Balaklava Bay is an underground submarine base that served as a top secret military facility during the Cold War.
- Step into a fairytale-like world at Sofiyivka - the National dendrological park of Ukraine, which was established in 1796 by Count Stanisław Szczęsny Potocki, a Polish noble, for his beloved Greek wife Sofia.
- A summer retreat of the last Russian czar and his family, Livadia Palace has since been used as apartment housing for members of the American delegation, a mental institution and now a museum.
- From hunting grounds to one of the most modern areas in Ukraine, Kreschatik Street includes attractions such as the National Philharmonic, the Stolipin Monument, the Alexander the Liberator Monument, Nezavisimosti Square, European Square, Franko Theatre and the Verkhovna Rada.
- One of Kiev's most well-known landmarks that once served as the burial ground for Kiev princes, the Saint Sophia Cathedral is famous for its mosaics and frescos by Byzantine masters that date back to the 11th century.