{"id":450,"date":"2020-08-18T19:33:53","date_gmt":"2020-08-18T18:33:53","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/curiositycat.co.uk\/?p=450"},"modified":"2020-09-03T20:15:56","modified_gmt":"2020-09-03T19:15:56","slug":"russia-land-of-the-tsars-part-1","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/curiositycat.co.uk\/index.php\/2020\/08\/18\/russia-land-of-the-tsars-part-1\/","title":{"rendered":"Russia – Land of the Tsars – Part 1"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

\u041f\u0440\u0438\u0432\u0435\u0442 (privyet<\/em>) This week\u2019s virtual travels take us to the largest country in the world – Russia! Many things spring to mind when I think of Russia: Putin, Chess Grandmasters, Pushkin, Dostoyevsky, Tchaikovsky, Anastasia, Catherine the Great, Rasputin, Matryoshka dolls, vodka\u2026 but did you know that Russia is also home to one of the coldest places on earth (Siberia), the world’s largest freshwater lake (Lake Baikal), the world\u2019s largest bore hole (at Murmansk), the world’s only circus for cats and the world’s weirdest swimming contest (on the Vuoski River)? These and other surprises await us on our journey, so strum your balalaika, put on your ushanka hat and let’s get started. To follow in my virtual footsteps, just click on the links in the text.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Getting there<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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We catch a flight with Aeroflot direct from Heathrow to the country’s capital, Moscow, and get to see spectacular views<\/a> of the city before landing at Sheremetyevo airport. On the way, we pick up a few useful phrases –<\/p>\n\n\n\n