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Background: Founded in the 12th century, the Principality of Muscovy, was able to emerge from over 200 years of Mongol domination (13th-15th centuries) and to gradually conquer and absorb surrounding principalities. In the early 17th century, a new Romanov Dynasty continued this policy of expansion across Siberia to the Pacific. Under PETER I (ruled 1682-1725), hegemony was extended to the Baltic Sea and the country was renamed the Russian Empire. During the 19th century, more territorial acquisitions were made in Europe and Asia. Repeated devastating defeats of the Russian army in World War I led to widespread rioting in the major cities of the Russian Empire and to the overthrow in 1917 of the imperial household. The Communists under Vladimir LENIN seized power soon after and formed the USSR. The brutal rule of Josef STALIN (1928-53) strengthened Russian dominance of the Soviet Union at a cost of tens of millions of lives. The Soviet economy and society stagnated in the following decades until General Secretary Mikhail GORBACHEV (1985-91) introduced glasnost (openness) and perestroika (restructuring) in an attempt to modernize Communism, but his initiatives inadvertently released forces that by December 1991 splintered the USSR into 15 independent republics. Since then, Russia has struggled in its efforts to build a democratic political system and market economy to replace the strict social, political, and economic controls of the Communist period. While some progress has been made on the economic front, recent years have seen a recentralization of power under Vladimir PUTIN and an erosion in nascent democratic institutions. A determined guerrilla conflict still plagues Russia in Chechnya.




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By SamandLaura
September 6th 2009
We're in Asia! Europe » Russia » Urals » Yekaterinburg
(written by Sam whilst Laura snoozes after spending all night being disturbed by some Slovakians) Good morning everybody Today we awoke in Asia, in a very small hostel that doesn't look as if it has changed at all in the past 40 years. The bathroom is a bit of a horror story, but the owner is lovely and speaks some English which is a bonus. Moscow was fantastic. A city of three colliding eras: '50s, early '90s, and iphones. Mulletted iphone users were a real highlight in fact. Stalin's Seven Sisters are fearsome gothic behemoths that dominate the skyline, and the [View Full Entry]

SamandLaura - Sam and Laura | Read The Full Entry | Subscribe
1435 Words | 6 Comment(s) | 12 Photo(s) | 0 Video(s)
Published: September 6th 2009 | 131 Views | [diary=434194]

Moscow Skyline
At the Kremlin
The Metro

We awake to the usual low dim of traffic and on T's persistance we get up early for breakfast - with the slight optimism that a full english with proper coffee was waiting for him downstairs, we venture down. Yet again we are disapointed breakfast at the Yekaterinburg train station hotel - who's proper name i have forgotten, consisted of a square lump of unscrambled egg, cold sausage, potatoes and weird red additive/radioactive enhance'fruit ' juice. We check out and advance down to our pre-booked hostel Hostel Yekaterinburg (this is the correct name) 30 mins later and still yomping and we [View Full Entry]

Tony and George - G & T's Travels | Read The Full Entry | Subscribe
763 Words | 0 Comment(s) | 18 Photo(s) | 0 Video(s)
Published: July 23rd 2009 | 115 Views | [diary=421385]

Afgan War Memorial
Afgan War Memorial
Afgan War Memorial

We wake to find our cabin buddies gone and a new team member in their place, well we use the term arrive very vaguely as she was there in body but spent the next 15 hours asleep, she had an arse like a member of thr Klumps and she was sporting a leopard skin pair of PJ's that made me think of that scene in road trip ' what are those - did you skin a cheetah'. Fed up with the site we move towards the restaurant car in search of cold beer and company! Success we found cold beer and [View Full Entry]

Tony and George - G & T's Travels | Read The Full Entry | Subscribe
284 Words | 0 Comment(s) | 8 Photo(s) | 0 Video(s)
Published: July 23rd 2009 | 76 Views | [diary=421373]

Beer in the Bar
View from the train
Dinner - instant noodles!

Part 1: The train This was our first taste of overnight Russian train travel. We travelled "Kupe" i.e. 2nd class and again were pleasantly surprised to have services included, despite having a bag full of instant noodles, bread & tea at hand to see us through! This time for "services" we were called into the restaurant car and asked what we'd like to eat. This greatly confused us but the patient lady waitress knew a couple of words of English and so we ordered "pork". It actually turned out to be a 2 course fayre of salad followed by pork stew [View Full Entry]

KerryAndGraham - Kerry and Graham Levere | Read The Full Entry | Subscribe
772 Words | 1 Comment(s) | 8 Photo(s) | 0 Video(s)
Published: June 15th 2009 | 156 Views | [diary=408696]

View from train window (with window included)
Kerry's face (and our 2nd class carriage)
Church of the Blood

It was with both excitement and trepidation that I left my hostel in Moscow to board my first Trans Siberian train. 29hours travelling pleskart (3rd class like a big dorm) to my first town of Yekaterinburg! I managed to get the metro ok but got a bit confused finding 4 train stations all in the same area. Luckily my Cyrillic has improved enough for me to know the second station was right (knowing my appalling time keeping record I had allowed lots of time!) On the train I quickly settled into my bunk rapidly learning train etiquette of removing shoes and [View Full Entry]

charmedgirl - Sarah Roberts | Read The Full Entry | Subscribe
962 Words | 1 Comment(s) | 23 Photo(s) | 0 Video(s)
Published: June 13th 2009 | 215 Views | [diary=408092]

City Hall, Yekaterinburg
Damn in Yekaterinburg
Pretty Building, Yekaterinburg

Ekaterinburg - Capital Of The Urals …And doesn’t the name say it all. In fact, how the hell do you say the name!!! This city surprised me because it’s foundation is in industry such as forestry and mining, and militia, so to see a city (that is basically famous for the assassination of the last Tsar) have fantastic theatres and cathedrals was fantastic. The first morning spent in Ekaterinburg was spent in a walking tour of the city, seeing the main sights and filling us with information such as it being the city with the shortest subway route in Russ [View Full Entry]

RTW adventure 09 to 13 - Mark Smith | Read The Full Entry | Subscribe
476 Words | 1 Comment(s) | 61 Photo(s) | 0 Video(s)
Published: June 14th 2009 | 59 Views | [diary=408452]

Monument Of WW2 Hero
Statue Of Lenin
Train Station

In retrospect, I kinda forget what attracted me to Ekat, A city famous for the brutal murder of the Romanov family, the last Tsar and co, and a gang war in the early 1990's. And rocks if you're into that sort of thing. On arrival at the Meeting Point (or place, I forget) Hostel, an excellent little place run my Katya, possible the nicest and most helpful hostel owner of all time I was amazed to find real Tea - none of this Russian Churney Chai much, proper British tasting tea, with Milk and everything! Milk tasted a little funky, but [View Full Entry]

Luke or Stan - Luke Sandford | Read The Full Entry | Subscribe
798 Words | 2 Comment(s) | 0 Photo(s) | 0 Video(s)
Published: May 24th 2009 | 123 Views | [diary=401665]


We arrived around 8 PM in this city of 1.5 million inhabitants and considered the third capital of Russia. Ural mountains are rich in minerals, no wonder that Yekaterinburg is an industrial city with steel, machinery and in Soviet times weapon industries. There is nothing touristic here and this is precisely what is nice, at least we can see and to some extend experience the life of a 'real' Russian city. This city is however known for some important historical events. It is here that in 1918, the last Tsar Nicolas II and his family spent their last days and where [View Full Entry]

Ben and Robson - Benoit and Robson | Read The Full Entry | Subscribe
639 Words | 1 Comment(s) | 33 Photo(s) | 0 Video(s)
Published: May 29th 2009 | 136 Views | [diary=403238]

Agriculture
Silver birtch trees
Extracting juice

Waiting at Yaroslavski station I inadvertently discovered the best tactic for avoiding hawkers and beggars all after your cash - Be French. Someone came up to me trying to sell me some tat, and when I didn’t respond asked me “speak English” “No. err…Little.” “What Language?” Didn’t really think this one through did I… for want of anything better to say, “ Je parle Francais” “Oh! Francsikiii!? Ah…” And promptly walked off leaving me in peace. Jackpot! Confusingly Ekaterinbur [View Full Entry]

Luke or Stan - Luke Sandford | Read The Full Entry | Subscribe
524 Words | 0 Comment(s) | 0 Photo(s) | 0 Video(s)
Published: May 11th 2009 | 56 Views | [diary=398028]


So......I left Moscow on March 30th headed for Yeketerinburg. Back on the trans-siberian train, this one number 26. Wasn't going to be as plush as the last (number 1)....they get worse the higher the number. Another overnighter, got on at 16:20 and arrived next day 18:58 Moscow time (20:58 local). The roomies this time weren't as cheery as the drunken army fellas from the last train. They were a 70 year old couple with 3 and a half tonne of luggage. Sweet couple, I only had to scream "SHUT THE FCUP I'M TRYING TO SLEEP" once.......what is it with oldies and [View Full Entry]

Shane is offski - London to Adelaide Without Flying | Read The Full Entry | Subscribe
537 Words | 1 Comment(s) | 29 Photo(s) | 0 Video(s)
Published: April 2nd 2009 | 178 Views | [diary=386972]

The Big Man
Vey Small Cathedral
Ekaterina


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