Minsk Local Customs

As Belarus is still widely undiscovered by tourists, it is quite unsual to find anything in English language.

The two official languages of Belarus are Russian and Belarusian, which are both written in Cyrillic letters and share many similarities. So at least a basic knowledge of the letters or even better of the Russian language seems to be absolutely necessary for an individual trip through the country.

All street signs, timetables and other travel related things are in Russian and/or Belarussian only. Also in restaurants we hardly found any English menus. So be pepared for an adventure not to miss.

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Restaurants and pubs in Belarus often offer imported beers from other countries. The Russian beer Baltika seems to be one of the most popular ones.

My first proper local Belarusian beer was an Alivaria Zolotoe. The Alivaria brewery was established in 1864 in Minsk. Nowadays the beer brand belongs to the Carlsberg group.

I also drank a Rechitskoe pivo, which is brewed in Rechitsa in the Gomel region; and a Brestkoe Pivo from the state owned company of the same name.

On our last evening in Belarus I tried a Lidskoe Pivo. It is produced in Lida in the Hrodna region. The brewery has been taken over by the Finnish Olvi drinks company.

All Belarusian beers were quite okay and absolutely drinkable. If I had to chose one as my favourite it would probably be Lidskoe Pivo.

Alivaria - Website: http://www.alivaria.by/

Lidskoe - Website: http://lidskoe.by/

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Belarus is a country of cash, so credit cards are not as widely accepted as in Western Europe. The local currency of Belarus is the Belarusian Ruble, which exists since about 1992. Due to massive inflation the Belarusian Ruble has been redenominated with 3 zeros chopped off in 2000.

The current Belarusian Ruble is abbreviated BYR. The subunits are kopeykas, but actually don't really exist. 11 different Banknotes of amounts between 10 and 100.000 Belarusian Rubles are in circulation.

We got our Belarussian Rubles from cash points (ATM), which are widely available in bigger cities. Exchange Offices can be found at major airports, train stations and hotels.

I found it quite interesting to see that petrol stations display the prices alternating in Belarusian Rubles, Russian Rubles, Euro and US Dollars.

It was interesting to find out the sugar in our paybill in the restaurants in 2012. It is the first time during my travellings around Russia and Europe when the sugar was allocated in the bill by the separated line (actually the sugar was served to the coffee but with added price that wasn't showed in menu :-)). Another interesting thing that sugar was in the bill of the high-price places in the city center that we visited. In several cafes and restaurants outside the city center it was ok.
I decided that the reason is the financial crisis in Belarus' in 2011... But the pay for 5g of sugar with BLR 300 (USD 0,05) wouldn't solve the problem I guess :-))

Not precisely a cultural 'tip' but I would strongly urge you to find a morning or afternoon to visit the National Art Museum. Although it is located on a grubby side street and seems to have been bypassed when money was handed out for landscaping, the museum is nevertheless a small gem. The collection includes wonderful works by some of the best artists Russia (and Belarus) have ever produced, including Repin, Serov, Chagall, and Malevich. You'll find more than paintings here: among the things on display are ancient wooden sculpture, church utensils, graphics, decorative and folk crafts, and even Central Asian bronzes. There is, perhaps understandably, not a lot in the way of 'Western' art, but the Russian collections are well worth the visit.
Location: vulitsa Lenina 20. Open every day except Tuesday from 11 am until 7 pm. I don't recall the entrance fee but it was something truly minimal. They also have a useful and informative English language website (listed below)(from which I 'borrowed' this picture).

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Money in Belarus can be confusing and difficult to deal with. The most striking thing is that they have NO Coins. You need a good-sized wallet if you are travelling here. Credit cards are not widely accepted, so it's loads of paper to deal with. There are 2 other issues to deal with. All currency was revalued in 2000 and the date is on all notes (please see the pictures). Also the currency is not convertible. You can get a small amount of money changed at the airport and then withdrawal money in major cities from ATM's. Outside of large cities, it is cash only! You cannot change the money once you leave, so don't change that much!

Also be careful with the exchange rate. Belarussians, outside of taxi drivers, are honest, but you want to know what you are spending.

1 United States Dollars = 2,145.91 Belarus Rubles (BYR) - SUBJECT TO CHANGE!

One day our president decided to build another national library... He wanted to make it big and pompous, hoping for it to become a symbol of Belarus, a memorial of Belarussian architecture.

The money for the library were taken from all Belarussian citizens in a form of 'subbotnik' (that is how voluntary unpaid work on Saturdays is called). The word 'voluntary' should not be used really - there is nothing voluntary about people being told to go and work on a weekend.

Construction works began in 2002, the library was opened 4 years later, on June, 16.
End result: the library is 74 meters high and its 19 reading rooms can fit up to 2000 people.

To get there: 'Vostok' underground station.

Since Minsk doesn`t have a lot of these places, I figured I better write it down.
How it works: you give a deposit at the counter, then you are given a number of a computer you should go to. After you are done, you go back to the counter, say your computer`s number and the rest of your money will be given back to you.

1) The biggest Internet center when you can check your mail, burn CDs and DVDs, print some stuff, have something to eat (advert says they brew the best coffee in Minsk here) is in the Officers`Central House [Tsentralnij Dom Ofitserov].
Address: Krasnoarmejskaya Str., 3. Next to ''Oktyabr`skaya'' Metro station, on the opposite side from the Palace of Republic.
Phone: +375-17-226 02 79.
Hours: Works every day, day-and-night with 1 break from 7am till 8am.

2) Minsk Postal Office Internet cafe.
This place has something like 20 computers and can be pretty crowded.
Independence Ave., 10. In front of the hotel 'Minsk'.

3) Computer Club 'Level'.
Address: Partizanskij Avenue, 14. Next to the University, in the Ministry of Statisitcs building.
Phone: +375-17-296 26 78.
Hours: Day-and-night.

4) Internet Club 'M@xi' has 45 computers at your disposal.
Address: Gaya, Str., 4/1. 15 minutes walk from 'Yakuba Kolasa' Metro Station.
Phone: +375-17-268 69 65.

5) Oldest in town (opened in 1998) Internet cafe 'NSYS' offers 15 computers.
Address: Pervomajskaya Str., 20., korpus #2.
Phone: +375-17-233-93-23.
Hours: from 10am till 10pm every day.

6) Internet center "Hewlett-Packard".
Address: Nemiga Str., 8.
Phone: +375-17- 226-42-43.
Hours: 9am - 11pm, every day.

There are more of them, of course. I`m too lazy to write them down though. :-)