Moscow, population: 8 376000.

Moscow's famous Red Square earned its name not from the red walls of the Kremlin, nor from the traditional symbol of Communism, but from the Russian word for "red", which many centuries ago also meant "beautiful". The square's vast cobbled expanse is flanked by some of Moscow's most famous tourist attractions.
Located on the site of the city's old market place, Red Square served as Moscow's equivalent of ancient Rome's Forum - a meeting place for the people. It served as a place for celebrating church festivals, for public gatherings, hearing Government announcements and watching executions, the later becoming particularly commonplace during the reigns of Ivan the Terrible and Peter the Great and during the anarchic Time of Troubles in the early 17th century. Occasionally the Tsar himself would address the people from a platform on the square, named Lobnoye Mesto.

Sankt Peterburg, population: 4 619800.

St. Petersburg is a city of haunting magnificence, an imperial capital that seems to have been built as a monument to its own passing. Less than three centuries have passed since Peter the Great began building his grand city on the Gulf of Finland, but it is difficult to visit its vast, crystalline squares and palaces without feeling the enormity of the gulf that separates that time from our own. All of which, of course, makes St. Petersburg more evocative of Russia's past than any place except perhaps the Moscow Kremlin. This impression is only deepened by a more familiar acquaintance. The enigmatic homeliness of Peter's cottage and the city's placid canals may contrast with the brooding grandeur of the Winter Palace, but they share with it a graceful stillness that is difficult to forget.

Novosibirsk, population: 1 396800.

Novosibirsk, formerly Novonikolayevsk, city, capital of Novosibirsk Oblast, in southern Siberia Russia, located on the Ob' River. Novosibirsk is the largest city and one of the chief industrial centers of Siberia. Manufactures include mining equipment, turbines, textiles, chemicals, and heavy machine tools. It is the seat of a university and a scientific research center and has opera and ballet companies. The city, founded in 1893 as a stop on the Trans-Siberian Railroad, received its current name in 1925. During World War II (1939-45) many industries were moved to Novosibirsk from the combat areas of European USSR.

Nizhniy Novgorod, population: 1 346400.

Novgorod is an old Russian city, history of which goes back to almost 1000 years. Once it competed with Moscow for domination of Old Russia and emerged as a political center of Slavic and Fino-Ugric tribes in the mid-9th century, while as a town it was formed in the middle of the 10th century. Just outside of Novgorod is the Vitoslavlitsy Museum of Wooden Architecture which has a collection of 22 wooden structures all built without nails. 240 000 inhabitants populate now this nothern city. Modern Novgorod is a stunning combination of old and new. After the Second World War the historical part of the city was built up in such a way as to avoid confining ancient temples within the narrow well-like yards of high-rise apartment buildings. Nowadays Novgorod, lying on the highway connecting Moscow and St Petersburg, enjoys stable economic and cultural links with both capitals, the Karelia region and the Baltic states, and also attracts foreign investors. Novgorod is also on the list of those Russian cities that have joined the New Hanseatic League. The city uses modern communication facilities, has art galleries, art school, two theaters, a philharmonic society, a ballet troupe, music and dance ensembles, casinos and discotheques. Several newspapers function in the city which also has its own television and radio stations.

Yekaterinburg, population: 1 260000.

Ekaterinburg is a major city in central Russia, (alternative spellings Yekaterinburg or Jekaterinburg ), the administrative center of Sverdlovskaya Oblast. Ekaterinburg is situated on the Asian side of the Ural mountain range, at 56°51' N 60°36' E It is the main industrial and cultural center of the Ural region. Ekaterinburg's population of 1,300,000 (2002) makes it Russia's fifth largest city. City is growing fast and it is expected to become the third largest in Russia. Between 1924 and 1991, Ekaterinburg was known as Sverdlovsk, After the Russian revolution of 1917 there were new heros and Sverdlov, one of communist leaders was one of them. So, the old city of Ekaterinburg was re-named after him. Ekaterinburg hosts lots of industry and there are vast business opportunities as a result. More and more overseas visitors come to visit Ekaterinburg every year for business and pleasure. The purpose of this website is to give traveller enough information on the city of Ekaterinburg and to promote travel to the Urals region of Russia. Ekaterinburg is the leading cultural center of the Urals and has numerous institutions of higher education, including the Urals A.M. Gorky State University (founded 1920), a conservatory, and polytechnic, mining, forestry, agriculture, law, medicine, and teacher-training institutes. The Urals branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences and many scientific-research establishments are also located in Ekaterinburg.