The vast area of the [M 038 /Commonwealth of Independent States] (CIS) spans all climate zones. However, the landmass has a typical continental climate with cold winters and hot summers. It also covers arctic and subarctic regions, desert, maritime European, [P 009 / steppe], alpine and temperate rainforest.
The tundra and the [G 20 / taiga] are the two principal climatic zones of Siberia. The frozen wastelands of [G 15 / permafrost] and tundra above the Arctic Circle is treeless with short grass, lichen and mosses. This is the stereotype of the region with howling winds, blinding snow and little else. Nearly 40 percent of Siberia has permafrost. South of the tundra is the taiga, a wide band of forests rich in flora and fauna - larch, willow, conifers, [P 025 / birches] and maples provide a home for bears, foxes, badgers, hedgehogs, elk, reindeer, ermines and beavers. Most of the Trans-Siberian journey is through the latter region.
HEALTH:
No vaccinations are required to enter the CIS unless you are coming from an infected area. Tap water is not safe to drink and only bottled or boiled water should be consumed. A word of caution - the bottled water has a very high salt content and is usually carbonated. Visitors from certain AIDS-infected regions who are going to stay in the CIS for a longer period may be subjected to an AIDS test.
CURRENCY:
The currency of the CIS is the rouble. The rouble is divided into 100 kopeks. The coins come in denominations of 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 10, 15, 20, 50 kopeks, and 1 rouble. Notes come in denominations of 1, 3, 5, 10, 25 roubles. Remember that 50 and 100 rouble notes were withdrawn from circulation in early 1991 and are now worthless. Also, it is illegal to import or export currency or change money on the black market.
VISAS:
Every visitor to the CIS must have a visa. There are four types of visas: tourist, business, transit and visitor. A visitor visa is issued only if you are invited by a citizen of the CIS. To obtain a transit visa you require either a return ticket or one showing onward travel, and you need a passport that is valid for at least three months after your return. It is more convenient to travel to the CIS on a package tour than independently, as obtaining visas can be a difficult and lengthy process. Visas are only issued after hotel reservations have been confirmed (all accommodation must be paid for in advance). So if you plan to go it alone it will be necessary to give the CIS embassy in your country of residence a letter from a travel agency confirming your itinerary and Intourist (the state-controlled tourist agency) reservations.
There are some travel restrictions, for example, cities specified on your visas are the only ones you may visit. A word of warning: do not outstay your visa. Although it is possible to arrange an extension, you will need an extremely good reason. If, however, you wish to apply for an extension, or have other cities added to your current visa, you can do this at the police station for foreigners' registration.
Apart from a visa, on arrival you will have to complete a customs document. This form requires you to list the number of pieces of luggage, all foreign money and travelers' cheques, and any valuables such as cameras and jewelry in your possession. You must keep this form with you until you leave. Be sure to get it stamped each time you change money and do not sell anything you have declared on the form.
WEIGHTS & MEASURES:
The CIS follows the metric system.
ELECTRICITY:
The electrical current in the CIS is usually 220 volts, 50 cycles, but in some remote places the current may be 127 volts. Therefore, it is best to have a set of adaptors. It is advisable to bring adaptors and batteries with you - if you should be fortunate enough to find these items on sale in the CIS, they will be extremely expensive.
COMMUNICATIONS:
There are plenty of public phones on the street and a local call costs two kopeks. Local calls from your hotel room are usually free of charge. Long distance calls can be made from special long distance phones that have the prefix 230. They are located on the street, in your hotel, or in the Central Telegraph Office. Otherwise it is necessary to go through the international switchboard. This may require patience as it has been known to take 14 hours for a call to go through. If possible, book your call one day in advance through your hotel service desk. Note: it is not possible to call collect from the CIS.
Major hotels have their own post office branches or kiosks selling stamps. Also check the local Central Telegraph Office.
It is possible to receive both the BBC World Service and the Voice of America on shortwave (although reception is bad for the latter). Radio sets in CIS hotels have infamously bad reception if they work at all.
Any newspapers and newsmagazines can now be brought into the CIS. Most of the Intourist hotels catering to Westerners will also have a range of foreign newspapers and magazines. The `International Herald Tribune' is also distributed in the Commonwealth. The former state organ `Pravda' is still published, but it is in difficult financial trouble and could fold anytime.
ETIQUETTE:
Russians are very warm and friendly. Many speak a little English, French or German and most will be very helpful if you should find yourself in difficulty or need directions.
Beware of restrictions on photography. Since the advent of glasnost, these have been somewhat relaxed, but photography of bridges and military installations is still prohibited.
TRANSPORT:
SHIPS:
There are several ports of entry for international passenger liners. Tallinn and St Petersburg are connected with London, Helsinki, Goteborg, Stockholm and Oslo. Odessa on the Black Sea is port of call to liners from Marseilles, Istanbul, Naples, Barcelona, Malta, Piraeus, Varna, Dubrovnik, Alexandria and Constanca. Passau, Vienna and Budapest have access to the CIS through Ismail, a Dunai River port. Nakhodka is the eastern starting point for the Trans-Siberian and is reached by ship from Yokohama, Hong Kong, Singapore and Sydney.
Between spring and autumn, it is possible to travel along many rivers in the CIS. Cities on the banks of the Dnieper, Volga, Oka, Moskva, Don, Dniester and Neva are connected by passenger ships and hydrofoils. Organized river cruises are also available on comfortable river liners, but are quite expensive.
AIRLINES:
Airline travel within the CIS can be frustrating, crowded and seemingly disorganized. Flights are often delayed, overbooked or cancelled. If you are with a tour group you will usually be given preferential treatment which includes a separate waiting area. If all goes to plan, flying is the quickest way to get from A to B.
Entering the CIS for travel on the Trans-Siberian from North America is ordinarily through Moscow or St Petersburg. Forty percent of all foreign tourists who travel to the CIS arrive by Aeroflot, the largest airline in the world. It flies to 97 countries worldwide and 3,600 cities and towns in the CIS. Other international airlines that serve either Moscow or St Petersburg are:
AIR CHINA
AIR FRANCE
AIR INDIA
ALITALIA
ALL NIPPON AIRWAYS
AUSTRIAN AIRLINES
BRITISH AIRWAYS
FINNAIR
JAPAN AIRLINES
KLM
KOREAN AIR
LUFTHANSA
SAS
SWISSAIR
RAILWAYS:
The Trans-Siberian is widely accessible from the capitals of Western Europe. The two best places to purchase tickets to Moscow are London and [M 002 / Berlin]. The most popular rail routes between the west and the CIS is Helsinki-St Petersburg and Helsinki-Moscow. In Asia it is possible to connect with the Trans-Siberian from Hong Kong via [M 001 / Beijing]. When in Beijing, you can choose between the Trans-Manchurian or the [M 035 / Trans-Mongolian] routes.
With 90,050 miles to travel on, [P 007 / rail] is the [P 024 / most important means of passenger transportation] within the CIS. Four billion passenger movements are recorded per year. It is also responsible for 80-85 percent of all freight movement.
ROAD:
There are no international bus lines to the CIS. However, special bus tours can be taken from Britain, Finland and Germany.
It is also possible to bring your own car into the country, but you must have an officially approved itinerary and not deviate from it. Entry points are Brusnichnoe and Torfyanovka on the Finnish border; Brest and Shegini in Poland; Chop for Czechoslovakia and Hungary; and Porubnoe and Leusheny for the Rumanian border. It is also possible to bring your car by sea through St Petersburg, Tallinn, Odessa and Nakhodka.
DESTINATIONS:
Traveling along the Trans-Siberian is not a romantic or luxurious journey the likes of the Orient Express.The age of steam has passed and the few remaining [I 002 / locomotives] from that era are only used for [P 038&P039 / shunting duties]. Today, most engines on the Trans-Siberian are diesel or electric. However, being the longest rail line in the world and running through a land that never seems to end, it is a journey well worth the experience. With the collapse of the Soviet Union and gradual liberalization of travel in Russia, the Trans-Siberian may offer one of the best opportunities to reach areas hitherto untouched by western tourism.
Foreigners normally share [I 009 / cabins] with other western travelers. They are assigned to a soft-class berth and a carriage attendant (provodnik / [P 035 / provodnitsa]) provides basic services in addition to hot tea or coffee served from a samovar continuously bubbling with hot water. If your journey begins in China, you will also be assigned a [P 037 / personal escort] to accompany you throughout the People's Republic.
There are many stops throughout the seven days it takes to travel from Moscow to Vladivostok. The length of each stop is determined by the reason for stopping and the size of the town. Often there is only a short delay to let commuters disembark and others to board. Other times, the train will remain longer at the station to sell goods to the townsfolk, [P 036 / take on more coal] for the samovars, or for mechanical repairs. These longer breaks are a good opportunity to get some fresh air and stretch your legs. But keep an ear out for the whistle, or the train may leave without you.
[M 016 / ST PETERSBURG] / LENINGRAD (Venice of the North):
Although St Petersburg is not actually located on the Trans-Siberian, it is connected to the line. A visit to this magnificent city - the rival of Moscow - is an experience that should not be missed. This is the capital Peter the Great built in 1712 on the estuary of the River Neva. He wanted to give Russia a window on Europe and a European port. The city was built in 18th-century classical style, employing Italian architects and using Swedish prisoners of war for much of the labor.
St Petersburg was a cultural and revolutionary center. The composers Tschaikovsky, Glinka, Mussorgsky, Rimsky- Korsakov and Shostakovich made their home here as did the writers Gorky, Pushkin, Turgenev and Dostoyevsky. The haunt of intellectuals, it is no surprise that St Petersburg was also a center of political dissent. On December 14, 1825, revolutionaries from the nobility led their troops into Senate Square, refusing to swear allegiance to Nicholas I on his accession. They were brutally put down and the survivors were exiled to Siberia. The second uprising was instigated by the tsar's troops on January 22, 1905 when they fired on a crowd marching to the Winter Palace (Bloody Sunday). Led by an Orthodox priest, the people attempted to petition Nicholas II for his help in resolving the country's difficulties. However, he absented himself from the palace and left orders to deal with the malcontents. The ensuing massacre precipitated the unsuccessful attempt to overthrow the tsarist system. However, this proved to be a dress rehearsal for the October 1917 Revolution which began in the city with a shot from the cruiser `Aurora.'
In 1914 Tsar Nicholas II changed the name of the city to the more Russian-sounding Petrograd after criticisms of his German wife. Only 10 years later it was changed to Leningrad in tribute to the central figure of the revolution. In 1945 Leningrad earned the title `Hero City' from its earlier gallant stand against a German siege. For 900 days - from September 1941 to January 1943 - its people stood firm as more than 650,000 died, mostly from starvation.
Today five million people live in St Petersburg (Leningrad). The city has largely been restored to its previous glory and an ambitious 30-year plan aims to enhance its monuments, embankments and more than 125 miles of streets. The city center is to become a protected area with growth restricted to the outer districts and industry will be dispersed to reduce pollution.
HOTELS:
Expensive:
THE ASTORIA HOTEL: 39 Ulitsa Gertsena (Herzen Street), St Petersburg.
GRAND HOTEL EUROPE/YEVROPEISKAYA: 1/7 Ulitsa Brodskogo, St Petersburg.
OLYMPIA: Ploschad Morskoy Slavy, St Petersburg (217-80-51).
Moderate:
THE LENINGRAD HOTEL: 5/2 Pirogovskaya Nabezhnaya, St Petersburg.
THE MOSKVA: 2 Ploschad Aleksandra Nevskogo, St Petersburg.
Inexpesive:
THE OKTYABRSKAYA HOTEL: 10 Ligovsky Prospekt, St Petersburg (277 63 30).
RESTAURANTS:
KARELIA: 27/2 Ulitsa Tukhachevskovo, St Petersburg (266-5701).
KAVKAZSKY: 25 Nevsky Prospekt, St Petersburg (146-656).
LITERATURNOYE KAFE: 18 Nevsky Prospekt, St Petersburg (312-8536).
Pushkin had his last meal here before his fatal duel.
PLACES OF INTEREST:
The Hermitage, Kirov Theater, the Summer Palace, the Winter Palace, Nevsky Prospekt, Peter-Paul Fortress, Petrodvorets (Peter the Great's Versailles by the sea), and the Metro stations Kievskaya, Komsomolskaya and Mayakovskaya.
MUSEUMS AND ART GALLERIES:
ANTHROPOLOGICAL AND ETHNOGRAPHICAL MUSEUM OF THE USSR ACADEMY OF SCIENCES: 3 Universitetskaya Naberezhnaya (218-1211). Open Sunday - Thursday 11am - 6pm, last entry 5pm.
Depicts the life of more than 100 of the Soviet Union's ethnic groups.
THE STATE HERMITAGE MUSEUM: Winter Palace, 34 Dvortsovaya Naberezhnaya (212-9525). Open Tuesday - Sunday 10:30am - 6pm, last entry at 5pm.
One of the largest museums in the world with more than 2,700,000 exhibits. It is too large to see in one visit.
MONASTERY OF THE HOLY TRINITY AND ALEXANDER NEVSKY: 1 Ploschad Alexandra Nevskovo. Grounds are always open.
A place for religious study and worship, and a museum. Has two cemeteries where the likes of Tschaikovsky, Rimsky-Korsakov, Mussorgsky and Dostoyevsky are buried.
STATE MUSEUM OF RUSSIAN ART: 4/2 Ulitsa Inzhenernaya (314-4153). Open Wednesday - Monday 10am - 6:15pm, last entry at 5pm.
Houses Russian art from the 12th-20th century.
[M 015 / P 014&P027&P026&P028 / MOSCOW]:
*Mile 0
Moscow was founded in 1147 by Prince Yuri Dolgoruky when he built the first Kremlin, a wooden stockade on the Moscow River. A settlement grew around the wooden fort and prospered as a trading center until it was invaded by the Mongols and razed to the ground in 1238. It was not until Moscow became the seat of the Russian Orthodox Church in 1326 and Ivan I moved his ruling seat here from Vladimir in 1328 that the city emerged as the capital of the most important state in Russia (Muscovy). When Constantinople (Istanbul) fell to the Turks in 1453, Moscow became the center of the Byzantine Church in Europe.
The reign of Ivan the Great saw intensive construction in Moscow. European architects were commissioned to build the city of his dreams and it radiated progressively further out from the Kremlin. Prosperity continued under Ivan the Terrible, but after he murdered his son, no suitable heir was forthcoming. After, the empire degenerated into the `Time of Troubles.' Widespread famine and social unrest provided an opportunity for the Poles and Lithuanians to invade and Moscow was sacked again in 1612. With the expulsion of the invaders and the accession of the Romanov Dynasty, Moscow was rebuilt in stone. Under Peter the Great, Moscow became the leading industrial city in Russia, and remained an important cultural and commercial center even after he transferred the capital to St Petersburg in 1712.
The third and final devastation of Moscow occurred in 1812 with Napoleon's invasion of Russia. Both the French and retreating Muscovites contributed to the destruction of three quarters of the city. However, recovery after Napoleon's defeat was swift and with the abolition of [G 17 / serfdom] in 1861, the population of Moscow increased substantially. Migrating peasants filled the need for labor in the new industrial concerns and the proletariat was born.
Lenin returned the capital to Moscow in 1918 and began an ambitious project of industrial development. By 1939 the city's population had reached four million. During World War II many people were evacuated, but the Germans never succeeded in entering Moscow. Since then the capital has continued to grow and is now the industrial, scientific and cultural center of the country. Today it is understandably at the epicenter of political changes that have swept the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics into the past.
HOTELS:
Expensive:
HOTEL METROPOL: 1 Marxa Prospekt, Moscow (927-6096).
THE SAVOY: 3 Rozhdestvenks, Moscow.
Moderate:
KOSMOS: 150 Mira Prospekt, Moscow (217-0785).
INTOURIST: 3-5 Ulitsa Gorkovo, Moscow (203-4008).
ROSSIYA: 6 Ulitsa Razina, Moscow (298-5409).
Inexpensive:
DRUZHBA: 53 Prospekt Verdanskogo, Moscow.
*Budget:
For budget travelers who are without hotel bookings or cannot afford one, there are two alternatives. At Belorusskaya station a 'hotel' train is brought into the station each evening and a berth can be had for two roubles through wicket No 4 in the booking office. Since they are not too keen on selling these to foreigners you may need to ask a Russian to pay for you. The other alternative is to look out for students in the train stations who may be willing to put up a foreigner in their apartment for the night for a small gift of western origin.
It is better to eat at buffets, stolovaya, cafes, and kebab and hamburger stands. Railway stations are also good places for cheap snacks.
PLACES OF INTEREST:
The Kremlin, Red Square, Exhibition of Economic Achievements, Novodevichy Convent, Lenin's Tomb, St Basil's Cathedral, Botanical Garden of the Academy of Sciences, Gorky Park, Lenin's Mausoleum, GUM Department Store.
MUSEUMS AND ART GALLERIES:
ARMORY PALACE: The Kremlin. Only group tours are permitted.
This is the oldest museum in the country - essentially a treasure store house of the Royal family turned into a museum by Peter the Great. There are nine exhibition halls containing one of the most stunning collections of Faberge eggs and the world's largest collection of carriages.
CENTRAL LENIN MUSEUM: 2 Revolyutsii Ploschad. Open Tuesday - Thursday 11am - 7:30pm; Friday - Sunday 9am - 6:30pm.
A monument to the revolutionary leader which includes his Rolls Royce Silver Ghost.
KOLOMENSKOYE ESTATE MUSEUM: 31 Proletarsky Prospekt. Open Wednesday - Monday 11am - 5pm, also closed last Monday of the month.
An open-air museum that was once the summer retreat of the tsars.
Contains the first editions, paintings and many letters pertaining to the life and works of Russia's most famous poet.
PUSHKIN MUSEUM OF FINE ARTS: 12 Ulitsa Volkhonka. Open Tuesday - Sunday 9am - 7pm, also closed last Tuesday of the month.
Contains a fine collection of French Impressionists and Egyptian antiquities.
TRETIAKOV GALLERY OF ART: 10 Lavrushinskiy Pereulok. Open Tuesday - Sunday 10am - 7pm. Holds the finest collection of Russian art from the 19th and 20th centuries.
VASETSNOV HOUSE MUSEUM: 13 Vasetsnova Pereulok. Open Tuesday 11am - 5pm, Thursday and Saturday 1pm - 9pm, Sunday 11am - 7pm.
Home of the famous Russian painter who revived Russian folk tales in the 19th century. Not only are his works displayed, but he also designed and painted the house and furniture.
*Mile 1,002.
There is a white obelisk at Perevalsk marking the boundary between Europe and Asia. On the west side it says `Europe,' on the east `Asia,' and facing the train it reads `Europe-Asia.' There is no stop here.
EKATERINBURG / SVERDLOVSK (Pittsburgh of the Urals):
*Mile 1124. This is the actual beginning of the Trans-Siberian proper.
Built on the eastern slope of the Ural Mountains, Ekaterinburg (Sverdlovsk)'s 154 square miles sprawl across the Iset River. It was founded in 1672 by Old Believers who emigrated from settled districts, refusing to accept certain reforms in the Russian Orthodox Church. Peter the Great wanted the town as the nation's window on Asia and to help build Russia's first navy and merchant fleet. An ironworks was established in 1721 and a fortress in 1722. The following year it was named Ekaterinburg in honor of Empress Catherine II (Catherine the Great).
Since the 1780s, the city grew as the center of the Urals mining region and was an important stop on the Great Siberian Post Road established in 1783 (the Trans-Siberian in 1878). It expanded rapidly with Stalin's first [G 08 / Five Year Plan] in the 1930s and again during World War II when industries were moved beyond the Urals out of German bombing range. Today it is home to the largest engineering combine in the country (URALMASH) and has more than 200 factories. Industries include heavy engineering (aircraft, rail and ball bearings), chemicals, rubber tires and gemstones.
The city gained notoriety when on July 16, 1918, Tsar Nicholas II and his family were murdered here. Their bodies were dismembered, burned and disposed of in a mineshaft at the outskirts of the city. The city was renamed Sverdlovsk in 1924 after the Bolshevik leader, Yacob Sverdlov, who did much of his early work here for the Communist Party and who apparently ordered the murders of the tsar and his family. Ekaterinburg is also known as the place where Gary Powers parachuted into captivity in May 1960 when the U-2 spy plane he piloted was shot down near the city.
With a population of 1,400,000, Ekaterinburg is today one of the largest cities in the Urals. It has only been open to tourists since late 1990 (previously closed because of the armaments factories there). However, with the city's most famous son, Boris Yeltsin, as president of the Russian Federation, swift changes are possible.
NOVOSIBIRSK / NOVONIKOLAYEVSK (The Chicago of Siberia):
*Mile 2068.
[M 011 / Novosibirsk] grew from a small village chosen in 1893 as the site for a Trans-Siberian railway bridge over the Ob River. As work progressed a new settlement grew nearby that became known as Gusekva or Alexandrovsky. In 1895 it was renamed Novonikolayevsk in honor of Tsar Nicholas II and in 1925 the Soviets renamed it Novosibirsk.
Transshipment and river trade developed quickly with the city's new link to the rail infrastructure. Exploitation of Siberia's mineral and timber wealth brought further rapid development. Its central location on the Trans- Siberian Railway has been instrumental in turning the city into one of the country's major manufacturing centers (the city alone produces more machinery than all of pre-revolutionary Russia). The completion of the Turkestan-Siberian Railway in the 1930s connected Tashkent and Central Asia with the main lines of communication. The new factories built as a result of this connection were a major factor in its rank as the ninth largest city in the former Soviet Union. The '60s and '70s saw a rapid development of the city's chemical industry in addition to its metallurgy and engineering concerns. Other industries are primarily concerned with consumer goods (furniture, pianos, shoes, textiles, knitwear and foodstuffs).
Despite the extreme continental temperatures that have been known to drop to -58 degrees Fahrenheit and reach summer highs of 99 degrees Fahrenheit, today Novosibirsk is home to 1,500,000 people. It is the only city in the world to have reached the one million mark in no less than 70 years and its population is still increasing by 15-20,000 annually. Novosibirsk is also the only Siberian city to have a subway.
The city is the principal cultural and educational center of Siberia: it has six theaters, the Red Torch Drama Theater, a children's theater and a circus. There are botanical gardens, an art gallery, four museums and a symphony. One of the most interesting developments is the satellite town of [V 009 / Akademgorodok] (Academic Town) 15 miles from Novosibirsk on the shore of the Ob Sea. It was founded in 1956 after a decision of the 20th Congress of the Communist Party to develop the scientific and technical expertise necessary for the intensive exploitation of Siberia. Akademgorodok is the site for Novosibirsk State University, most of the 22 specialist research institutes maintained by the Academy of Sciences, the Academy of Medical Sciences, and the Siberian branches of the All-Union Agricultural Academy - more than 40,000 people in total.
The opera house and ballet at 38 Krasny Prospekt is the largest in the country (the Bolshoi of Siberia) and was constructed by the women and children of Novosibirsk when their men went off to fight in World War II.
Akademgorodok can be reached by bus, taxi or train as a good day trip into the countryside.
MUSEUMS:
THE DOM MUSEUM KIROV: Ulitsa Lenina near the Sibir Hotel.
This museum relates the story of the Communist Party leader Kirov who it was thought would succeed Stalin. However, he was assassinated in 1934. The museum is housed in one of the few remaining log cabins in the city.
FOLKLORE MUSEUM: Dimitrova Prospekt behind the TSUM department store. Open daily 10am - 6pm.
There are historical displays, a Lenin corner and exhibits of Siberian flora and fauna.
MUSEUM OF GEOLOGY: Akademgorodok. Guided tours are available from Novosibirsk.
THE NOVOSIBIRSK REGIONAL MUSEUM: 7 Krasny Prospekt. Open Wednesday - Monday 12 noon - 6pm.
The museum holds the skeleton of a woolly mammoth.
IRKUTSK (The Paris of Siberia):
*Mile 3223
[M 006 / Irkutsk] was founded as a wintering camp in 1652 by Ivan Pakhobov, a tax collector who came to collect the local Buryat fur tribute. By 1686 a church and a small town had been built on the banks of the Angara River at its confluence with the Irkut. The town developed into a center for Siberian trade with tea caravans passing through the city from China and fur-traders selling their pelts here. By the 19th century it was the recognized administrative capital of Siberia.
By 1862 Irkutsk had 16 schools, both Catholic and Protestant; 26 Orthodox churches; six hospitals; and a population of 25,000. Although the Great Fire of 1879 destroyed 75 percent of the houses, it still remained the financial and cultural center of Siberia because of its trading function and the bright minds of political exiles who often chose to live here -the most famous being the Decembrists of the 1825 St Petersburg coup attempt and the Polish nationalists of 1830.
On August 16, 1898, Irkutsk was linked to Europe by rail with the first Trans-Siberian express and it grew in importance as an industrial center. Today, engineering is the main industry with aircraft, railway, ship and vehicle repair yards; mica processing; and consumer goods manufacture. To supply power for these large industrial undertakings, the Irkutsk hydroelectric station is within the city and its reservoir extends along the Angara to include [V 008 / Lake Baikal]. Irkutsk is still one of the largest suppliers of furs to the world market with all the country's furs collected here before auction in St Petersburg (Leningrad), Leipzig and London. With a population of 600,000, Irkutsk is the biggest city in Eastern Siberia and serves as the administrative and cultural center for the region. Among its 26 teaching and research institutes is the A A Zhdanov University (est 1918) and the Siberian branch of the Academy of Sciences.
The ARKTIKA and the ALMAZ: Ulitsa Lenina, Irkutsk.
CHINESE RESTAURANT: 67 Fifth Army Street, Irkutsk.
Self-service cafes on Karl Marx Street are inexpensive places to eat.
PLACES OF INTEREST:
Cathedral of the Epiphany, the Church of Our Saviour, the Catholic church, Znamensky Monastery, the Opera House, the White House, and the Fur Distribution Center.
MUSEUMS AND ART GALLERIES:
ART GALLERY: Ulitsa Lenina. Open Wednesday - Monday 11am - 7pm.
Works displayed are by 18th and 19th century English, Flemish, French, German, Italian and Russian painters.
DECEMBRISTS DOM MUSEUM (TRUBETSKOI HOUSE): Open Wednesday - Monday 10am - 6pm.
The house was occupied by the nobles of the Decembrists unsuccessful coup in 1825 and is kept as it was when the exiles lived here.
MARIA VOLKONSKY'S HOUSE: Open Tuesday - Sunday 10am - 6pm.
This is the house of the famous Decembrist who followed her husband into exile.
MUSEUM OF REGIONAL HISTORY: Karl Marx Street and Gagarina Boulevard.
This museum has a model of the BAM, an exhibit of the Great Fire of 1879, archaeological displays from local sites showing human habitation dating back 24,000 years, and a suit made completely from fish skins.
KHABAROVSK:
*Mile 5289
Count Muravyev-Amurski, governor-general of East Siberia, founded [M 007 / Khabarovsk] as a military settlement in 1858. It is situated on three hills overlooking the confluence of the Amur and Ussuri rivers. Named after the merchant-adventurer, Yerofei Khabarov, the city became capital of the Far Eastern Territories and home of the governor-general when it was separated from East Siberia in 1884.
Until the railway arrived, the city was a trading and military post. It was also a transit point for passengers arriving by steamer from East Siberia. Another ship would then take them down the Amur and Ussuri to Vladivostok. Several plans were submitted for the building of the Ussuri Railway since 1875, but it was not until 1893 when construction began. Finally on September 3, 1897, the first train traveled from Khabarovsk to Vladivostok.
Today Khabarovsk is the main industrial center of the Far Eastern Territories with engineering, petroleum refining and forest products concerns. Having a population of 550,000, the city's lack of amenities and housing caused a steady decline in population over the past decade, despite the population of the Far East increasing as a whole.
HOTELS:
AMUR: 49 Ulitsa Lenina, Khabarovsk (33-5043).
DALNY VOSTOK: 18 Karl Marx Street, Khabarovsk (33-1434).
NB: There is a growing number of new and excellent joint-venture restaurants, for both hard currency and for roubles. At the time of publication the best were the SAPPORO and the NIIGATA, with excellent sushi and sashimi, and the restaurant KOREANA, serving traditional Seoul cuisine.
PLACES OF INTEREST:
The beach on the Amur, the Geological Museum and the arboretum.
MUSEUMS AND ART GALLERIES:
FAR EASTERN ART MUSEUM: 45 Frunze Ulitsa.
There are displays of Russian icons and canvases by Dutch, Flemish and Italian masters. There is also a collection of Chinese and Japanese arts and crafts.
MUSEUM OF REGIONAL HISTORY: 21 Shevchenko Ulitsa.
The museum exhibits the flora and fauna of the Far East and the [G 20 / taiga] with collections from famous explorers.
[V 011 / VLADIVOSTOK] (Ruler of the East):
*Mile 5,853
Vladivostok was founded in 1860 as a military outpost on the Muravyev-Amurski Peninsula by soldiers brought to the spot on the schooner `Manchzhur.' It became the main Russian naval base on the Pacific in 1872, and thereafter began to grow.
The foundation stone for the Trans-Siberian was laid here in 1891 by Tsarevich Nicholas. After construction of the East Chinese Railway and subsequent completion of the Amur Line, Vladivostok became a vital port and outpost on the Pacific. It was the chief entry port for American military supplies and railway equipment during World War I where huge stockpiles were maintained.
Today, Vladivostok is a key port and distribution center for CIS foreign trade. Home to 800,000 people, it is also an air, submarine and surface fleet base for the Pacific Ocean area - sailors and fisherman comprise one third of the population. Passenger and merchant shipping are leading income earners with petroleum, coal and grain being leading exports, and petroleum products and fish the principal imports. There are also ship-repair yards, railway workshops, mining equipment plants, light industry and food processing. Vladivostok is a receiving point for processed fish from other Far Eastern ports for inland distribution, and a home port for one of the country's two Antarctic whaling fleets.
The city is the chief educational and cultural center of the Soviet Far East. The Far Eastern Scientific Center, Far Eastern State University, and several other foundations of higher education - including medical, art-education, polytechnic, trade and marine-engineering institutions - are located here.
***NOTE: The Far East has only recently been opened to tourists. Check with Intourist for travel details.
