Monument to Brest's Millennium
Brest
This 15m-high monument was built for Brest's millennial celebrations in 2019. It's a popular meeting place and features an impressive number of sculptures.
Must-see attractions in Eastern Europe
Korčula Island
This tower was built in 1449 to protect the port and the Governor’s Palace, which used to stand next to the town hall. It's not open to the public.
Iaşi
A statue of Romanian writer Mihai Eminescu greets arriving students (and everyone else) from atop a very visible perch at the start of B-dul Carol I.
Black Sea Coast
Overlooking the harbour to the south, this earthquake-battered building is set on a cliff and provides a picturesque setting for summertime concerts.
Memorial to the Victims of the 1989 Revolution
Iaşi
A memorial to the victims of the 1989 anticommunist fight stands near the entrance to the Palace of Culture.
Bulgaria
With its weeping willows, sculptures and pond, this small park just north of the train station is a pleasant place to linger while awaiting a train.
Bulgaria
Kazanlâk’s pazar (open market) is a dusty, all-purpose place selling food, electronics and clothing on most weekdays. Watch your wallet.
Veliko Târnovo
Up in Varosha, the Church of Sveti Nikolai was built in 1879, and time hasn't been kind to the weather-beaten church. Opening times are irregular.
Sofia
A sombre monument, in the middle of a busy road, dates from 1895 and marks the spot where Bulgarian national hero Vasil Levski was hanged in 1873.
Bulgaria
At the northern end of ul Vasil Levski, a small park contains the disused and closed Kursum Mosque, built in 1485 during the Ottoman occupation.
Plovdiv
Just down the steps at the overpass near pl Tsentralen, ruins of the Roman Forum are still being excavated; peer over the fence along the road.
Archangels Michael & Gabriel Church
Black Sea Coast
This 13th-century ruin shows off some beautiful exterior decoration. The arches of the church are underscored by striking green-glazed plates.
Chişinău
Facing Grădina Publică Ştefan cel Mare şi Sfînt is Parliament House, where Parliament convenes.
Western Siberia
The elegant Arkhiereysky Mansion was closed for renovations on our last visit and will eventually be reopened as an Orthodox history museum.
Veliko Târnovo
Across from Forty Martyrs Church is the tiny Church of the Assumption, built in 1923 over a ruined 14th-century church. It's usually closed.
Sibiu
This so-called museum is a veritable graveyard of ancient steam trains. South of the train station; it’s across the tracks, 400m south.
Bulgaria
Passing the square beyond the bridge brings you to the small art gallery, with rotating exhibitions of local and other Bulgarian artists.
Western European Russia
The Korolevsky Bastion overlooks the Spartak Stadium, which is just outside the fortress walls.
Split
The high arches of this large double gate lead from Diocletian's Palace to the main city square.
Zadar
This modest archway is the city's most important gate as it is the main tourist entrance from the handy footbridge across the harbour.
Vaganova School of Choreography
St Petersburg
The Mariinsky Ballet’s training school, where Pavlova, Nijinsky, Nureyev and others learned their art. It's not open to the public.
Black Sea Coast
The central market is a hive of activity, packed with shops, kiosks and produce sellers. It's also the site of Adler's main bus stop.
Pirin Mountains
Survey the ruined walls of this 13th-century fortress, reachable via a short, steep climb from the eastern end of Melnik's main road.
Tomsk
This modest mosque, dating from 1904, was used as a vodka factory by the atheist Soviets, but was reopened to worshippers in 1997.
Astrakhan
The Kryusha Quarter is the location of beautifully restored, red-brick St Hripsime Armenian Church, which opened its doors in 1998.
Transylvania
In 1785, two of Alba Iulia's revolutionaries were executed by Hungarian authorities on this spot, in front of a crowd of locals.
Plovdiv
This small private gallery, attached to Philippopolis restaurant, features exhibitions of 19th- and 20th-century Bulgarian art.
Yekaterinburg
A private collection offering a stunning introduction to the region’s semiprecious stones, located in the Bolshoy Ural Hotel.
Cluj-Napoca
A statue of Serbian revolutionary Baba Novac, who plotted against the Ottomans, stands outside the 15th-century Tailor's Tower.
Korčula Island
Built in 1483, this conical tower protected the harbour and the Governor's Palace, which used to stand next to the town hall.
Plovdiv & Southern Mountains
Farming implements and traditional Bulgarian costumes are exhibited in this small stone-walled museum by the Samokov gate.
Pirin Mountains
There are admirable views of the town from lofty Park Loven Dom, which spreads south from Blagoevgrad's Varosha quarter.
Bulgaria
Facing the History Museum, the pale-pink bell tower of Sveti Nikola Church (1847) is a landmark for Karlovo's old town.
Altai
When the call to prayer sounds from the wooden Khazret Osman Mosque, you'll feel every bit like you're in Central Asia.
Dealul Florilor Municipal Stadium
Maramureş
In the City Park, north across the footbridge over the Săsar River, this stadium is home to Baia Mare's football club.
Moldova
The Stalinist Dom Sovetov with Lenin's angry-looking bust peering out from its prime location, is Tiraspol's City Hall.
Central Ukraine
Behind the Kamyanets-Podilsky Fortress to the west are the remains of the largely earthen, 17th-century New Fortress.
Yakutsk
This rather brash gold-plated pillar in the old town honours Cossack explorer and founder of Yakutsk, Pyotr Beketov.
Pirin Mountains
Admire the exterior of a Turkish bathhouse, built in the 19th century, before the Mehana Mencheva Kâshta tavern.
Kaliningrad
This short footbridge connects Kant Island to the Fish Village. It's said to be the oldest bridge in Kaliningrad.
