St. Basil’s Cathedral in Moscow, Russia was built by Ivan the Terrible between 1555 and 1561. According to legends, the builder of this Cathedral was blinded so that such a beautiful structure could never be built again. The Cathedral is vividly colorful and contains redbrick towers that add to its beauty. The church’s design consists of nine chapels, each mounted with its individual dome that marks the assault on the city of Kazan.

The Cathedral provides a strong religious symbolism and is based on architectural designs found in Jerusalem. Eight of the domes make a circular form around the ninth dome, forming a star (if viewed from the top). The number eight is considered an auspicious number according to Jewish calendar. There is a deep contrast between the interior and the exterior of the Cathedral. The interior contains modest decorations and is not that spectacular. The corridors inside are narrow and don’t have adequate space for worshippers seating.

Many times in history, the Cathedral has suffered damage due to violent communal incidents. If stories are to be true, the French ruler Napoleon wanted to take St. Basil back to France with him, but due to the lack of such technology, he ordered his army to destroy it so that no one else could occupy the church. His army had prepared to attack the church and had also lit up the gunpowder, but a mysterious rain shower prevented the explosions. These are legends, but people really believe in St. Basil’s mysterious powers and there are a lot of committed worshipers.

Catherine Palace is in the city of Tsarskoye Selo which is about 25 km from St. Petersburg, Russia. The palace was built in the 17th century by the Empress Catherine I and later on the palace served as the official residence for the Tsars of Russia.

Catherine’s Place was built in 1773 as a summer residence for the empress. It was designed by Johann-Friedrich Braunstein and the palace was expanded by Andrei Kvasov and Mikhail Zemtsov. The exterior of the palace contains over 100 kilograms of gold according to the dying wishes of Empress Elizabeth.

The interior of the palace was built in Neo-Classical style and the wing was built in Neo-Palladian style. The palace also featured a number of personal residences for the empress. The rooms are linked with Cold Baths, Hanging Gardens and Cameron Gallery that houses the collection of bronze statues.

The entry into the palace is through the Hall of Lights that features a number of ornamented rooms and painted ceiling. This hall was designed by Bartolomeo Rastrelli and it was built in a Russian baroque style. The hall measures about 1000 square meters and it features 15 chandeliers and 696 lamps that are being lit in the evening which is one of the major attractions here.

The dining room in the palace was designed by Rastrelli and it was built in a baroque style. The hall is ornamented with stylized flowers and the hall features a number of windows with mirrors that provides brightness to the hall. The dining hall was used for the evening meals and formal meals by the emperors and the entry into the dining room is through the main staircase.

The Portrait Hall in the palace is another major attraction that measures about 100 meters. This hall features a number of paintings of the Empress Catherine I, Empress Elizabeth and Natalya Alexeyevna.

The Drawing Room in the palace was one of the formal rooms of the Emperor Alexander I and the walls here are wrapped with Chinese silk. The other interiors in the palace include the waiter’s room, Chippendale card-tables, Carrara marble chimneys and silk wallpapers.

The palace is one of the major tourist spots; it is also visited by Bill Clinton, Sting, Naomi Campbell and Tina Turner. In addition Elton John’s concert was also held here in the year 2001.

The Church of the Savior on Blood is in St. Petersburg, Russia. The church was previously known as “Cathedral of the Resurrection of Christ” and “Church on Split Blood”. The “blood” in the name of the church refers to the Emperor Alexander II of Russia who was assassinated on this site.

The construction of the church began in the year 1883 during the reign of Emperor Alexander III as an honor for his father Emperor Alexander II. There were delays in building the church, but in the year 1907 construction was completed. The church is very close to the Griboedov Canal, with a history beyond the construction:

Emperor Alexander II was passing through this area and a conspirator threw a grenade at the emperor but missed. Within in a few minutes he threw another bomb at the emperor where the conspirator has been killed along with the emperor during the explosion. Later the church was built on the same site where the emperor died.

The church is a unique construction among the other cathedrals in St. Petersburg and it is a combination of Neoclassical and Baroque styles. The church has over 7500 sqm of mosaics and the interiors of the church has been designed by Alfred Alexandrovich Parland, Mikhail Vrubel, Mikhail Nesterov and Viktor Vasnetsov. The ceilings and walls feature a number of mosaics displaying the Biblical scenes.

Nowadays the church is recognized as the Museum of Mosaics and is a major tourist attraction in St. Petersburg.

Golden Ring is a circle of cities located to the northeast of Moscow. Previously, the region was known as Zalesye. These cities have played a key role in development of the Russian Orthodox Church and these cities chronicle the historical events of Russia.

These circles of cities are known as “open air museums” with its fine example of Russian architecture. It features churches, cathedrals, and monasteries belonging to the period of 12th-18th century. The cities in the Golden Ring are Sergiyev Posad, Pereslavl-Zalesskiy, Vladimir, Rostov Velikiy, Uglich, Alexandrov, Gus-Khrustalny, Ivanovo, Yaroslavl, Kostroma, Rybinsk and Suzdal.

Seriyev Poasad
This city was established in the 15th century and it features one of Russia’s greatest monasteries. The city has a population of about 231,158 and tourism is the main source of income for this city.

Pereslavl-Zalessky
Pereslavl-Zalessky town is situated in Yaroslavl Oblast, Russia. This town is located close to the Lake Pleshcheyevo and has a population of about 72,321. The town was discovered around 1152 and it features a number of historical constructions among them the notable constructions are “The Pereslavl Arboretum”, “The Museum of Steam Engines”, “Museum of Flat Irons”, “Museum–Estate” and “The Museum of Kettles”.

Rostov
It is one of Russia’s oldest towns and a major tourist place. The city is famous for a number of churches, monasteries, bell-towers and towered walls.

Yaroslavl
Yaroslavl is a historical city and UNESCO’s World Heritage Site. The major constructions here are Russian Orthodox churches, Baptist churches, Lutheran Churches and Mosques belonging to the period of 12th-18th centuries.

Kostroma
Kostroma is a historical city with a population of about 436,502. The major landmarks here are built in between 10th century to 17th century and the major constructions here include the cathedrals, towers and walls.

Vladimir
Vladimir is one of Russia’s major cities with a population of about 405,392. It is a historical city and two of the cities cathedrals are listed in the UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Lake Baikal is located in Southern Siberia between Buryat Republic and Irkutsk Oblast, Russia. The Lake Baikal is known as “Blue Eye of Siberia” containing more water than the Great lakes in North America.

Lake Baikal measures 1642 meters deep, it is the world’s deepest freshwater lake. The lake was first formed as a rift valley and covers an area of 31,722 square kilometers, in addition, the lake is home to over 1700 species of plants and animals. It is world’s oldest lake and in the year 1996 it was included in the UNESCO World Heritage Site.

The Lake Baikal is referred in some Chinese records as the “North Sea”. The lake is entirely encompassed by mountains containing 27 islands and a national park; in addition, the lake is fed by 300 small rivers.

Lake Baikal is rich in biodiversity and home to 1550 animal species and 1085 plant species. The famous fish here is the Omul fish, which is widely sold in the local markets here. Other denizens of Lake Baikal include fresh water seals and golomyankas fish, that, when exposed to sunlight breaks down into oil and bones.

Lake Baikal is a major holiday spot. It features a number of resorts and a seven story hotel. Delicacies here are the fish dishes.

Karelia Lake Country is located close to the border of Finland. Karelia Lake Country contains hundreds of rivers, thousands of scenic lakes, and virgin woods. It features an extraordinary nature with massive hills that links with the open tundra and taiga woods.

The Karelia Lake Country measures about 600 kilometers long and it also sometimes considered as “Country of the Lakes”. It features a total of 60,000 lakes and also Europe’s largest lakes Onega and Ladoga. In addition these two lakes are connected by hundreds of small rivers.

The Karelia Lake Country is the home to virgin woods, also brown bear, blackcocks, elks and wood-grouses are seen in plenty here. It is also located close to Kivatch Waterfall, also the second largest waterfall in Europe.

Valaam, an orthodox cathedral is one of the major attractions and a famous tourist spot here. It was built in the 14th century and it is one of the largest cathedrals. It is also one of the major landmarks with a number of ancient buildings and massive gardens.

The Karelia Lake Country is also the home for boating. It also features a number of outdoor activities such as snowboarding, skiing and boating along the Lake Pielinen. In addition it is one of the best places for fishing and swimming.

Kizhi is one of the major islands located in Republic of Karelia. The island is famous for its wooden churches, houses and chapels. It is a major tourist spot in Russia and a part of UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Kizhi Island measures about 7 km and it is bounded by 5000 small islands where most of them are rock outcroppings that measures about 35 km. The island features a bell-tower, 2 massive wooden churches and a museum that houses the collection of wooden structures belonging to the historical times.

The island features a number of wooden structures such as boats, fish-houses, graneries, homes, saunas, windmills, barns and chapels. In addition there are two villages within the island with wooden homes where the majority of people here are farmers.

The major attraction in the island is the transfiguration Church that was built in the year 1714. It is a wooden church with 22 domes and it is covered with golden leaves and religious portraits. The church measures 37 meters tall and it is one of the world’s tallest log.

The bell-tower in the church was added in the year 1874 and the walls feature horizontally fitted logs being covered with wooden planks. Later these wooden planks were removed in the 1950s and new horizontally fitted logs have been added. In the present days the church is being modified as a part of its 300th anniversary that is to be held in the year 2014.

Kronotsky Nature Reserve is a natural area located on the coast of the Kamchatka Peninsula. Founded in 1934, the site is used for the research in natural sciences. It covers an area of about 4243 square kilometers houses the only geyser basin with a number of mountain ranges, extinct and active volcanoes in Russia. In addition the Kronotsky Nature Reserve is included in the UNESCO World Heritage Site.

The peak here reaches 15,584 feet. The climate ranges in the extremes it gets too hot or too cold earning it the label “Land of Fire and Ice”. It is a major tourist spot and it is being visited by 3000 tourists annually. Some have paid upward of $700.00 for a helicopter ride, round trip, to and from the reserve.

The Kronotsky Nature Reserve features about 750 plant species. In addition, 700 bears are seen here, some of them weigh about 1200 pounds and these are considered as the largest in the world.

The Kronotsky Nature Reserve features Valley of Geysers which is the world’s second largest geyser. It measures about 6 km long with a number of hot springs and geysers. The Velikan Geyser is the largest of all and it shoots water to a height of 25 meters for about 6 hours. The largest geyser erupts about 60 tons of water and this happens twice in a year.

Mayakovskaya Metro Station is one of the famous stations along the Zamoskvoretskaya Line of Moscow Metro. It is one of the most beautiful stations in the world and a fine example of Stalinist Architecture.

The Metro Station was built as a part of the Metro’s expansion and finally opened in the year 1938, September 11th. The first phase involved construction of the station building, the second phase the metro system itself was constructed. The Metro Station is also the first in the world to feature colonnades on both sides.

The station was designed by Alexey Dushkin, a famous architect from Moscow. It was named after the famous Russian poet Vladimir Mayakovsky. The station also features a number of stunning columns made of pink rhodonite, stainless steel, marble and white Ufaley.

The station is 33 meters below the surface and fortified by ceiling mosaics and filament lights. These mosaics are known as “24-Hour Soviet Sky” and one has to look up to see the bright heaven here.

In the year 2005 a new exit gate, an unusual addition, where those leaving the station have to descend through escalators before they can ascend to leave the station.

There are 200 steps leading to the statue to commemorate the battle of Stalingrad. 7,900 tons of concrete was used to complete this colossal monument. The statue’s design is based on the statue of “The Winged Victory of Samothrace” found at the Louvre. Valentina Izotova, a local girl posed for the statue. The statue was built in the place where 300 German soldiers had been killed in the battle.

The Motherland Statue can also be seen in the Volgograd Oblast coat of arms. The statue is leaning down as the underground water levels are causing a severe damage to its foundations.