Western Siberia
The massive Assumption Cathedral was rebuilt after the collapse of the USSR. The Lenin statue that stood nearby was removed in the 2000s – rumour has it a…
Must-see attractions in Western Siberia
Tomsk
A Tomsk landmark, this moving mother-and-son monument is at the very southern end of pr Lenina. The beautiful birch-tree park (Лагерный сад) here is a…
Western Siberia
The attractive Archangel Mikhail Church has a colourfully restored interior. The character of Tatiana Larina in Pushkin’s epic Eugene Onegin is said to…
Monument to First Traffic Light
Novosibirsk
This humorous monument portraying a stumpy little man staring up at a bendy traffic light is based at the rumoured site of the city’s first ever traffic…
Tomsk
Well worth popping into for its wide range of permanent and temporary exhibits. The highlight is the collection of 19th- and early 20th-century Russian…
Western Siberia
To the right of Selskhoz Academy (Сельсхоз Академия), this monument is dedicated to locals who died during battles against the Western-backed White Army…
Tomsk
This Gothic edifice with five gold-tipped black spires has great potential as a Dracula movie set. A truly massive bell hangs in its lurid-pink belfry. In…
Western Siberia
Wooden stairs lead beneath the kremlin’s Pryamskoy Vzvoz (gatehouse) to the wonderfully dilapidated old town full of weather-beaten churches and angled…
Altai
Near the train station in pl Pobedy, the War Memorial consists of a statue of a grieving mother with her lost son, an eternal flame and a very long list…
Western Siberia
With its voluptuously curved baroque towers, the 1786 Znamensky Cathedral is the most memorable of a dozen ‘old’ churches that have recently come back to…
Altai
Founded in 1823, the reasonably interesting Regional Museum is Siberia’s oldest. Top exhibits include intriguing models of various 18th-century industrial…
Western Siberia
Guarded by two statues of Soviet workers, wielding a hammer and a plasterer’s board, the one-time cement workers’ club is now used as a cultural centre.
Tomsk
Topped with a golden angel and right beside a Lenin statue, is the Iverskaya Chapel whose celebrated icon is dubbed ‘Tomsk’s Spiritual Gateway’.
Novosibirsk
This is a particularly dashing statue of Lenin wearing a flapping coat. He's flanked by waving partisans vainly trying to direct the chaotic traffic.
Tomsk
Grand wooden mansions stand along ul Krasnoarmeyskaya including the late-19th-cenury Dragon House which is home to a clinic and a couple of dragons.
Tomsk
The spired, bright-turquoise Russian-German House (1904) is among several grand wooden mansions along ul Krasnoarmeyskaya.
Western Siberia
This unusual WWII monument features a Soviet woman piercing the heart of a winged reptilian creature. The embodiment of evil, we assume.
Western Siberia
Less eye-catching from the outside than neighbouring St Sofia's Cathedral, but with splendid arched ceiling murals, is this 1746 church.
Western Siberia
Dating from 1792, this large and elegant cathedral sits below the fortress and is worth a peak for its impressive icons and frescos.
Tomsk
Up on Resurrection Hill, this pretty Catholic church dates to 1883. There are often a couple of nuns around the compound.
Altai
This bulbous-domed brick building is the most appealing of the city’s many churches and has a fine, gilded interior.
Altai
Completed in 2006, this attractive wooden church boasts a wonderfully photographic backdrop of rolling lush hills.
Western Siberia
The ornate Drama Theatre was built in the early 20th century and is one of Omsk's most attractive buildings.
Tomsk
This lovely old house marks the start of a street that's home to a number of attractive wooden buildings.
Western Siberia
The 1759 Zachary & Elisabeth Church, with its soaring black-tipped spires, is extremely photogenic.
Western Siberia
This pleasant garden is guarded by two splendidly reverential statues of Soviet-era metalworkers.
Western Siberia
An offshoot of the Fine Arts Museum, this building is home to changing temporary exhibitions.
Altai
This unique Lenin monument sees the revolutionary apparently dressed up as a bullfighter.
Altai
This blue-domed church frequently bustles with activity and is well-worth checking out.
Tomsk
The former trading arches sit just west of the Soviet-built Tomsk Drama Theatre.
