Belarus Travel Guide

Byelorussians are highly critical of the Library, they call it ‘Shurik’s Sharik’ – ‘Alexander’s (Lukashenko, the president) hexagon’. Indeed, it is a hexagon, and loyalists will present is rather as the ‘Byelorussian Diamond’! For my part I see nothing wrong in the architecture. Moreover, at night it does look like a fairytale project with all...

This was even better than I thought!Their most famed baritone happened to celebrate his 30 years on this stage, and the theatre did their best to stand up to the mark, providing their best cast. There was even a cameraman recording the performance, hopefully they will have it on their YouTube channel if they ever get one.Gilda was a young and...

Skidelsky Market or "Bazaar" is an indoor and outdoor market which sells food, drinks, clothes, well, actually everything. In the indoor market hall you can find stalls with quality fresh meats, poultry and fish. If you are going to cook a nice roast dinner I would recommend you this place- the choice is great, you will also find home grown veg...

It is not a restaurant tip exactly. I just wanted to let you know that: first, you were used to be allowed to drink beer on the streets, but that changed over the recent year or two (see my pic #2), and second, it is very cheap and tastes pretty good (always make sure you buy Belarussian beer made in Lida, not Hrodno!).

You can take a bus from Hrodna to: Byalostock (Poland); Warsaw (Poland); Lodz (Poland); Druskeniki (Lithuania); Ivanovo (Russia, via Moscow); Kaliningrad (Russia); Vilnus (Lithuania); Kaunas (Lithuania); Prague (Czech Republic).

On our last day in Brest we had again dinner in one of the many cafes in the street ul. Sovyetskaya. We realised that most of the restaurants and cafes in other streets were often empty. This time we decided for the Cafe Talisman, which like most of the other places, has a small outdoor terrace facing the pedestrianised street, from where we could...

A receptionist of the hotel where we were staying recommended this sushi place to us. The selection of food was excellent: plenty of oprions for sushi and sashimi, as well as food from other cuisenes, too... not only Asian as the people next to us were having pizza.Staff are extremely nice and English menus are available - but no one speaks it so...

The country is not such a mess as it is presented, and the cost of amenities is quite low. However, be ready for a disappointment right as you arrive. The airport of Prishtina recently taken over by Limak will await you with bad services, rude staff and security and stale food at the restaurant. So be careful and move out of thee place as fast as...

A tourist trap is an establishment, or group of establishments, that has been organized with the aim of attracting people and their money Tourist Trap is a way to travel to many country without spending much money good things

The monastery isn't exactly undiscovered (it's a UNESCO World Heritage site), but not many people go there - or at least there weren't many visitors there at the time I was. Apart from myself, most of the people who weren't monks were UN (or possibly KFOR ?) Italian soldiers coming to pray. I got there by taxi from Gjakove/Dakovica. (Not far, and...

I really liked the wooden houses in Zaslavl. There are some impressive ones on the corner of Sovetskaya and ul. Pochtovaya and elsewhere along Sovetskaya. Goats also seem quite popular in Zaslavl. I saw a woman walking one across the railway tracks.The town was very laid back on a Saturday and pleasantly quiet, a typical country town. Zaslavl has...

This monument is not very old but it is historically important. Due to the legend there was a settlement and a small castle which was built by Vladimir, the Novgorod duke, for his wife Rodneda who was the daughter of the Polotsk duke Rogvolod. The story goes that Vladimir fell madly in love with Rodnega and wanted to marry her but she refused. So...

There is a brand new comfortable Swiss train running from Minsk to Zaslavl. Please note that the railway station of Zaslavl is called "Belarus".For our journey to Zaslavl which took about half an hour by the modern train we bought the ticket the previous day which is not really necessary though. It cost in August 2011 exactly 2000 BYR. Please note...

If, like us, you take your car to Orsha you will probably need somewhere to park it at night. There is not much parking space near accomodations and for security it is best to use a secure car park.Along the road that runs past the railway station, just behind the small market is a car park. For 2000 BYR a night, you can leave your car here. The...

Orsha and Belarus in general is a very safe place to visit and the people are very friendly. The dangers here are no different from anywhere else in the world.When visiting the large market, be very careful of your money as this is a popular place for pickpockets to operate.At night, some of the local drunks can get a bit rowdy. Be careful going...

The Railway Station is the Jewell in the Crown of Orsha's establishments. It is very clean and modern, air conditioned and has an international feel to it. Amongst the shops, bars and banks inside, is a first floor restaurant. Follow the signs to it from the entrance.Once upstairs, you will enter a spacious lounge. The restaurant is very clean with...

Like in almost all Belarusian towns also Kamyanyets has a Lenin Monument. It was erected during the Soviet era, but unlike in most other former USSR countries, the Belarusian government hasn't torn the Lenin monuments down.Lenin, who was born Vladimir Ilyich Ulyanov, led the October Revolution in 1917 and is seen as the founder of the Soviet Union....

The Tower of Kamyanyets (Kamyanyetskaya Vyezha) is the main landmark of Kamyanyets and also a national historic site of Belarus. It is also often referred to by the misnomer White Tower. The 30 metres high tower was errected as a castle keep between 1271 and 1288 by Oleksa, who was a prominent architect of the region. Nowadays the well preserved...

The Russian Orthodox Church of St. Simon (Svyata Simonovskaya Cerkov) was finished in 1914. It was several times rebuilt after fires.The church consists of an apsis, a refectory and an entrance hall. Inside a beautiful wooden three storey iconostasis can be seen. When we visited the church it was closed, but an old lady opened the church for us and...

Dionysus Restaurant – Greek God of wine & food. It has a real nice setup, clean, good prices. Even though it is a ‘Greek’ theme restaurant, the menu is definitely Russian. Menu – Typical Russian single spaced menu with No photos, but very extensive. Had the solianka soup, a chicken dish with fries and a tall glass of special Belarusian beer. Serve...

Parmesan Pizza (located in city center) - this is my favorite, it has a very well rounded menu (English subtitles!) and the interior has a contemporary style. Nice selection of food and drink on the menu, plus some have photos to assist you with a decision (have not seen too many resturants that do this). Pizzas are very tasty! Get a table by the...

Modern Restaurant –Wide range of items on the menu (English subtitles!) and a really classy décor. I will go back again next time I am in town and I would recommend this to a friend. More of a dinner place than for lunch. Tucked away from the main street and the parking is not too good, but that is not a problem in Mogilev.

This castle (actually, only ruins now) was built at the beginning of 14th century, at the time, when Grand Duchy of Lithuania was still separate country from Kingdom of Poland. It was a residence of Lithuanian Dukes. Dukes Kestutis and Vytautas were kept here as prisoners due to the struggle of state rule. As history tells, Duke Vytautas run away...

The Catholic church is located on a hill. The first version of church was built in 1930, but later it was destroyed after Second World War. The new church appeared only in 1995. The church could be seen from the place, where Krevo castle is. It is interesting to me, that in Belarus even at modern times they build churches, based on old styles of...

Krevo is only village now, but in medieval times it was one of residences of Dukes of Lithuania. This city and cities around (in Lithuania and Belarus now), like Lida, Novogrudok, Vilnius, Trakai, Medininkai were the strongest points in medieval Lithuania, the structure of castles, leading to capital Vilnius.

Piva bes pereriva means Beer without interruption. It also means that the shop is open 24 hours a day. Beer!

While walking around the centralpark I found this statue. I asked to the people about this personage. At the beginning I thought he was a greek, but no, he was Cyril of Turaw, a bishop and a saint of the XII century. He also was a prolific writer. He was a great man, indeed.

A lot of radioactive fallout from the 1986 Chernobyl accident fell around Gomel (See this MAP). Many areas remain in the countryside which may still carry radioactive particles. Food, particularly short stalked vegetables like mushrooms, and fresh-water fish may carry radioactive particles and pose a danger to life.Most cultivated food is grown in...

If you dont possess visas, and have a wait on your hands, armed guards kindly offer (or perhaps they insist upon) an escort to the local grocery store (which was just a little shack a few hundred metres away... but it has everything you need for a short stay).All in all we took 3 trips to the store for further "liquid" provisions, having discovered...

If they like you the kindly Guards may put on a "disco laser light show" especially for their special guests!All in jest! In January - many layers!

there is a little souvenier at the train station where you can buy cigarets, babushkas and belarus bra's before you board the train back to vilnius.very interesting little shop. babushkas and booze are probaply the best choices.