RUSSIA

European Russia stretches from the borders of Belarus and Ukraine to the Ural mountains, over 1000km east of Moscow; even without the rest of the vast Russian Federation, it constitutes by far the largest country in Europe. Although visas are obligatory and accommodation often has to be booked in advance, independent travel grows hugely every year.

Moscow and St Petersburg are connected to the rest of Europe by fast trains and buses, and remain the easiest places to visit. Moscow, the capital, is chaotic and not a beautiful city by any means. The central core, however, reflects Russia's fascinating history, whether in the relics of the Communist years, the Kremlin with its palaces and churches of the tsars, the wooden buildings still tucked away in back streets, or in the massive building projects which have radically changed the face of the city in recent years.

By contrast, St Petersburg, Russia's second city, is Europe at its most gracious, an attempt by the eighteenth-century tsar Peter the Great to re-create the best of Western European elegance in what was then a far-flung outpost. Its position in the delta of the River Neva is unparalleled, full of watery vistas of huge and faded palaces. The city has not been revamped anywhere near as much as Moscow, and it preserves a unity and stability lacking in the capital.

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