Mir Castle, Nesviz Castle

BELARUS

The Republic of Belarus is a small, beautiful country with the heroic past and interesting present. It is situated in Eastern Europe. The Republic borders on Russia, the Ukraine, Poland, Lithuania and Latvia. Although a landlocked state, the location has made Belarus an important trade and transport route between Europe and the CIS. It has an area of 207 square kilometers and a population of more than 10 million. Measured by its territory, Belarus ranks 13th among the states of Europe. Two-Thirds of Belarus' population live in cities. There are 97 cities in the Republic. Its capital is Minsk, with the population of about two million people. Minsk today is a modern international city. The first recorded mention of the city goes back to 1067. Over the course of its chequered history, Minsk has been destroyed and rebuilt numerous times, most recently after World War 2, when it was almost completely destroyed. It has excellent transport links including Minsk airport, several major train stations, the Minsk metro underground network, and a well-developed road system. The largest cities in Belarus are Brest, Vitebsk, Gomel, Grodno, and Mogilev, in which the administrative centers of the Republic are located.

Belarus is a very green landscape. Natural vegetation covers 93.1% of the land, and 1/3 of all green landscape is forest. In Belarus forests, 28 types of trees as well as around 70 types of shrubberies can be found. They include:birch (across the country) pine (across the country) conifers (northern areas) oak (southern areas) Belarus is home to a huge array of wild animals and birds, many of them rare species.

Around 76 species of vertebrate animals have been recorded in Belarus, including:elks, deer, wild boar, beavers, wolves.There are also around 300 species of bird in Belarus Several areas of land in Belarus which contain unique landscape, rare plants and animal species have been designated as National Parks and are protected by the State. Belavezhskaya Pushcha Berezinsky Biosphere Reserve Braslavskiye Ozera National Park Narachansky National Park Pripyatsky National Park.The highest place in Belarus is the mount Dzerzhinskaya (345m) in Minsk region. There are nearly 3.000 rivers with the total length of over 51.000 kilometers in Belarus. The chief rivers are the Dnieper, the Nieman, the Zapadnaya Dvina, the Pripyat. In the past they were great trade ways from Europe to Asia and India and many towns appeared on their banks. There are more than 10800 lakes in Belarus. Most of them are situated in the northern part of the republic and the Polesye marshland around the Pripyat River in the south. The largest lake is the Naroch(80 sq km) and the deepest one is the Dolgoye(54 metres). Natural resources of Belarus include peat, small quantities of oil and natural gas, granite, chalk, sand, gravel.

The climate in Belarus is moderately continental. It is mild and one can travel comfortably here at any time of year. The moderately continental climate of Belarus is a gift from the Atlantic ocean, and the winds that blow from the ocean make Belarus a zone of stable harvest. Average temperatures vary across Belarus. In January, temperatures average from -4.5°C to -8°C. In July the average temperature is +17°C to +18.5°C.

Orthodox religion is by no means the only Belarus religion. Many other religions are also well represented in the country, including:Roman Catholics (almost 400 churches) Protestants (over 500 communities including Lutherans, Mormons, Baptists, Calvinists) Jews (more than 40 Hebrew communities) Muslims (27 communities and nine mosques).

The economy of Belarus has seen sustained growth in recent years. Belarus has a well-developed industrial sector, which accounts for around 31,7% of the country’s GDP (2011). Some of its main industries are:

engineering,tractors and machinery including dump trucks and earth movers (Belarus tractors are well regarded throughout the region),chemicals,motorbikes (eg Minsk Moto),textiles,timber,radio electronics.

Belarus is a presidential republic. The Belorussian government consists of three branches: legislative, executive and judiciary.

The highest legislative body of the country is the National Assembly. It includes the House of Representatives and the Council of the Republic. They select government officials, appoint the Prime Minister, make constitutional amendments, accept or reject the bills, set the presidential elections.

The executive branch is composed of the Council of Ministers and the president. The Council of Ministers is headed by the Prime Minister. It controls the activity of the government. The President is the Commander-in-Chief of the country’s armed forces. He is elected for a five year term. The President adopts measures to guard the country’s independence, appoints and dismisses the members of the Council of Ministers and judges.

The judiciary comprises the Supreme Court and the Constitutional Court. They deal with cases related to constitutional and business law.

Belarus offers much more to travellers than you could ever fit into a single visit. The culture, outdoor activities, cuisine and historical sites will keep even the most experienced traveller busy.

Belovezhskaya pushcha- is the largest tourist centre of Belarus, which offers visitors different kinds of services. They can admire the rear animals, the tower of Kamjanetz. The pride of the reservation is the aurochs.

St. Sofia’s Cathedral in Polotsk -regularly hosts camber and organ music festivals.

The Dudutki Museum of age-old Handicrafts, Trades and Technologies in the village Duduchi- tourists visit this place to see the culture and way of life of the Belarusian people, their customs and traditions, such as bread baking in clay stove, park of old cars.

The Museum of the folk architecture and way of life in the village of Strochitsa – the museum comprises 34 monuments: churches, windwill, bathhouse, peasunt’s huts. They all were transferred here from different corners of Belarus.

Village Dostoevo- the family of Dostoevsky was originated from this place.

The Stalin Line- a historic and cultural complex. It contains the military machinery of the time of the second World War. All is original.

Glory Barrow- has been raised in honour of the Soviet Army which defeated Nazi and liberated Belarus.

The Khatyn Memorial Complex is a sign of eternal memory of the Belarusian people died during the Second World War. The village of Khatyn was burnt down together with its inhabitants. At the places of burnt down houses, there are 26 obelisks with the names of the people died in fire.

Mir Castle, Nesviz Castle

Дата добавления: 2015-11-14