Belarus, the gate of Russia

Wonders of the world are indeed unimaginable.

There are so many of them, they continue to amaze you with lots of unique things you haven't seen or experienced.

I saw a backpack travel program on TV recently and spotted a country located at the central of Europe called Belarus, An unknown country to most travelers, but one with its own fascinating must-see landmarks. 940 years old city.

Minsk is the capital city, 180 km away from Vilnius, the largest and capital of Lithuania. 700 km apart from Moscow. Its territory is in direct border with Poland, Russia, Lithuania and Ukraine.

17th-18th centuries Jesuitical Catholic Church

Getting there

The National Airport Minsk is the major international airport in Belarus. There are flights to other airports in other towns, though they are not that large-scale. The Minsk airport is located some 50 km from Minsk.

The national airline of Belarus is Belavia. Belavia has direct flights to major cities in Europe (Frankfurt, Vienna, Kiev, London, Moscow, Paris, Riga, Rome, Warsaw, etc.). There are also daily flights of Lufthansa to Frankfurt and Austrian Airlines to Vienna. Other airlines flying to Belarus include LOT (Polish Airlines), EL AL (Israeli Airlines), Lithuanian Airlines, Estonian Airlines and others.

Rail
There are regular trains between Minsk and practically every major capital in Europe. Most Belarusian towns can be reached by railway.

The new Central Rail Terminal in Minsk offers all the services a traveler needs, most of them are available 24/7. Restaurants, bars, a game zone, a waiting room, a locker room, shops, a pharmacy are to name a few. Everything is signposted with easily recognizable pictograms.

Public transport network connects Central Terminal to all the parts of the city.

Bus
There are several bus stations in Minsk, though most of international arrivals come to the Central Bus Terminal. This terminal offers few facilities of its own, maybe because it is next to the Central Rail Terminal, which has all of those.

By car
A payment for entering Belarus and for transit through its territory is required for all vehicles. The fee ranges from US$ 20 to $155. Besides you will be required to fill-in the details of your vehicle into the customs declaration and purchase a motor-car insurance (that's apart from a personal insurance).

There is one toll highway (M-1 / E-30) in Belarus from Brest to Moscow, the fee ranges from US$ 1 for passenger cars to $15 for large truck.

Places worth visits:

The ruins of the palace of the magnate Sapega in Ruzhany. The architect Jan Samuel Bekker designed a palace ensemble composed of two buildings. The buildings were decorated by stucco moldings and fumed oak. The impressive main entrance gate in the form of triumphal arch remained intact till today.

An Old Palace near the village Kossovo, with a touch of Neo-Gothic design architecture that was once popular in the early 19th century.

The Mir castle, known to every Belarusian. The castle was encircled with earthworks and bastions. The castle is included into the list of the UNESCO monuments.

The Brest Fortress. Major tourist sight today. The design of the fortress was approved by the Emperor Nicholas I in 1830. It occupied the territory of the Old Town. The fortress appeared to be a masterpiece of military engineering as well as an outstanding work of art. By the beginning of the 20th century the fortress was the main Russian outpost on the western border. However the present fame was gained by the Brest Fortress during the years of the Great Patriotic war. Its garrison resisted heroically for one month.

road view during winter

loving the vast grassland

Personally, i think the place looks simple, it gives people the impression of tranquility with humble people around, i think i need this sort of place right now.
I spent kinda long time on this. man, i fall in love with the scenery!

That's the end for the traveling journal~

and now for the more private life..

i am currently lying beside a girl who has been busy sms-ing the whole night with ever changing emotions thanks to whoever messaging her!

life's been ups and downs recently, and lots of face-to-face with dilemmas, coming out from one and going into another. gawd, im forever stuck in between choices. is it true that those ruled by Libra is having a hard time to make decisions?

it's what they call dividing your hearts out~
(owkay, i've been giving lots of hearts to most of my friends in the contact list i think)

ok, no more. this post is waaay too long. i know i haven't been updating the other things yet. im doing it soon okay. i mean, REALLY really soon. jaa!