RUSSIA

Location - Eastern Europe/North Asia; Capital - Moscow; Population - 143 million; Currency - Russian Rouble MORE RUSSIA

After a two-and-a-half day Trans-Siberian train from Tomsk, it was a relief to arrive in Moscow - September 2009.

50 Russian Roubles

Fellow passenger Anton stands outside the Trans-Siberian from Tomsk to Moscow

Passing the town of Bogolyubovo, just over 200kms from Moscow, is the Church of the Intercession on the Nerl

Stalin and Lenin side-by-side at the Muzeon Park of Arts, Moscow.

Joseph Stalin was the infamous leader of the Sovier Union from the 1920's until his death in 1953.
His BBC entry here and Wikipedia entry here.

Vladimir Lenin was the Bolshevik leader of the 1917 Russian Revolution, in effect overthrowing Tsar Nicholas II and the Romanov dynasty - Muzeon Park of Arts, Moscow

Lenin's BBC entry here and Wikipedia entry here

Cross the river close to St Peter the Great and arrive at Christ the Saviour Cathedral, a 1997 replica of the original - Moscow

Christ the Saviour Cathedral, Moscow

A brilliant view at night is from the bridge to Christ the Saviour Cathedral, looking towards the Kremlin - Moscow

Kutafya Tower houses the main entrance to the Kremlin - Moscow

The Manezh Exhibition Centre sits behind a fountain of sculptured horses - Moscow

Walk beneath a water-arch in Moscow

A pond close to the Manezh Exhibition Centre, Moscow

This water feature looks so much better at night - Moscow

A Kremlin tower juts above the sculptured pond next to Alexandrovsky Gardens in Moscow

GUM, the State Department Store, is a fancy shopping centre on Red Square, Moscow

Inside GUM - Red Square, Moscow

Red Square, or Krasnaya Ploshchad in Russian, with GUM on the left, the Kremlin on the right and St Basil's Cathedral straight ahead - Moscow

The beautiful towers of St Basil's Cathedral, Red Square - Moscow

St Basil's Cathedral was built in the 16th century on the orders of Ivan the Terrible, who wished to commemorate victory over the Tatars at Kazan - Red Square, Moscow

Ivan the Terrible's Wikipedia entry here

The State History Museum lies at the northern end of Red Square, with the Kremlin to the left - Moscow

Just outside the Kremlin walls in Red Square is Lenin's Mausoleum - Moscow

The State History Museum as seen from Manezhnaya Square, Moscow

Alexandrovsky Gardens and the Kutafya Tower, Moscow

Tomb of the Unknown Soldier and eternal flame, in honour of WWII dead, outside the Kremlin in Alexandrovsky Gardens - Moscow

Everyone's heading to St Basil's Cathedral - Moscow

Pokrovsky Cathedral, popularly known as St Basil's Cathedral, is a Russian Orthodox cathedral - Moscow

St Basil is a Russian Orthodox saint who is buried in the cathedral - Moscow

St Basil's Cathedral, Moscow

There are several churches inside St Basil's Cathedral - Moscow

Looking out to Red Square from a St Basil's Cathedral window - Moscow

St Basil's Cathedral, Lenin's Mausoleum and the Kremlin at Red Square, Moscow

The Arbat is a pedestrianised shopping district in central Moscow

Gorky Park (Park Kultury) is an amusement park made famous by a book and film of the same name - Moscow

A test unit from the Buran space shuttle programme at Gorky Park, Moscow

The massive Peter the Great statue on the Moscow River, Moscow

Peter the Great, or Peter I of Russia, was ruler of Russia and the Russian Empire in the late 17th/early 18th century - Moscow

Website and content Copyright © 2008-2012 Mark Wilkinson. All rights reserved.

LINKS

www.visitrussia.org.uk - Russia National Tourist Office

www.realrussia.co.uk - UK/Russia based company - visa support and train tickets

www.baikalinfo.com - info on Lake Baikal

www.seat61.com - Seat 61's page on train travel in Russia, and www.seat61.com it's page on the Trans-Siberian

www.waytorussia.net

www.eng.rzd.ru - Russian Railways website, and more info here www.poezda.net

I am not responsible for the content of external websites.