BELARUS

Location - Eastern Europe; Capital - Minsk; Population - 9.5 million; Currency - Belarus Ruble

From St Petersburg in Russia it's an overnight train journey to Minsk, the capital of the former Soviet republic of Belarus - February 2011.

1000 Belarusian Rubles

Not much to see here but I wanted to get a picture of the scenery coming in to Minsk - somewhere around Orsha

A Soviet painting on a wall on Independence Boulevard (formerly praspekt Francyska Skaryny), the main street in Minsk

The Belarusian Government Building rises above a statue of Lenin at Independence Square - Minsk

Leader of the 1917 Russian Revolution and founder of the Soviet Union, Vladimir Ilyich Ulyanov aka Lenin - Minsk

Also on Independence Square is the Church of St Simon & Elena, or red church - Minsk

The columned building is the headquarters of the KGB, the feared state security agency (or 'secret police') associated with the former Soviet Union. Under President Alexander Lukashenko the KGB is still alive and well. The US Bush administration described the president as the 'last dictator in Europe' - Minsk

A bust of Felix Dzerzhinsky stands opposite the KGB building - Minsk

Felix Dzerzhinsky was the founder of the Cheka, the predecessor to the KGB - Minsk

Further along Independence Boulevard is Ploshchad Oktyabrskaya, a square that's home to the Palace of the Republic (left) and the Trade Unions' Culture Palace (right) as well as an ice skating rink in the winter - Minsk

This tank - outside the Officer's Building - serves as a memorial to Soviet soldiers who liberated Minsk from the Nazis

Close to the Officer's Building is Central Square.
The square's statue serves as a good excuse to take a sneaky photo of the Presidential Administrative Building behind the trees; this is where Lukashenko goes to work - Minsk

Keep walking north-east along Independence Boulevard and you'll reach Janki Kupaly Park - Minsk

People walk over the frozen Svislach River - Minsk

Posing for photos on the river - Minsk

Quite a few locals do a spot of fishing, carving out holes in the frozen river - Minsk

..though I'm not quite sure what this guy's up to - Minsk

On the banks of the Svislach River is the Museum of the First Congress of the Russian Social Democratic Workers' Party (Russia's original Marxist party). This is where the party was founded in 1898 - Minsk

One of these apartments was home to JFK 'assassin' Lee Harvey Oswald in the early 1960s. He worked in an electronics factory in Minsk and married a local woman - Minsk

Horkaha Central Children's Park - Minsk

The obelisk at Victory Square (Ploshcha Peramohi) - Minsk

The victory obelisk commemorates the WWII fallen - Minsk

If you continue along Independence Boulevard you'll evetually end up at Jakuba Kolasa Square - Minsk

The Minsk Metro

There's some good bars in the capital. This is the tiny Stary Minsk (Old Minsk) on Independence Boulevard - Minsk

The National Library was completed in 2006 and has a viewing area on the 22nd floor - Minsk

A mural opposite the National Library - Minsk

The Holy Spirit Cathedral lies in the Upper Town on Ploshcha Svabody - Minsk

Whitewashed buidlings in the Upper Town - Minsk

Just behind Ploshchad Svarony is the new Town Hall - Minsk

Carved into the wall of a building close to SS Peter & Paul Church - Minsk

The small Old Town is a reconstructed area built in 17th/18th century style.
It's a pretty area with several restaurants - Minsk

A short walk from the Old Town is the Island of Tears in the Svislach River - Minsk

The Island of Tears is a Belarusian war memorial - Minsk

The Island of Tears memorial - Minsk

I had a few hours to kill in Brest before my next train to Warsaw. Lenin welcomed me to the city - Brest

The 19th century St Simon Orthodox Cathedral - Brest

I was hoping to have a wander around Brest Fortress but I didn't get there until about 11pm and - save for a few lights - the complex was pretty much pitch black and quite eery - Brest

The Fortress is marked by a star shape above the main entrance - Brest

..as shown on the 50 Ruble note

The road leading away from Brest Fortress is dotted with various figures, possibly WWII heroes? Brest

A monument in the Park of Culture and Leisure - Brest

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LINKS

www.belarus.by - official website of the Republic of Belarus

www.hotelsbelarus.com - I organised my invitation letter and hotel booking via this company

I am not responsible for the content of external websites.