fun facts about russia

Now in S.-Petersburg there are 221 museums, 2 000 libraries, more than 80 theaters, 100 concert organizations, 45 galleries, show-rooms, 62 cinemas, 80 club establishments of culture. About 100 festivals and competitions of different trends of culture and art including 50 international ones are held every year.

Ladoga lake is the largest one in Europe. Its area makes 18 400 sq km, average depth is 51 m, the largest one is up to 23 m.

Baikal lake area is 31.5 thousand sq km. The Baikal is the deepest lake in Russia, it is a large reservoir for fresh water (23 thousand km³).
The Ural mountains are ones of the first mountains in the world.

It seems as if Kamchatka volcanoes are turned into ski slopes.

Ski resort Dombai has about 20 km of prepared ski routes

Russian Federation came into being after former Soviet Union disintegrated in 1991, into 15 separate geopolitical entities.

Russian HDI

Cuisine

Russia is mainly a northern country with long-lasting cold winter. The food should give them much energy and warmth to survive during the winter time. So, the essential components of Russian cuisine are the ones, which provide more carbohydrates and fat rather than proteins. Fresh fruits and vegetables are rarely used in food. So, the top five components of a Russian meal are potatoes, bread, eggs, meat (especially beef) and butter. Other popular foods include cabbage, milk, sour cream, curds, mushrooms, lard, cucumbers, tomatoes, apples, berries, honey, sugar, salt, garlic, and onions.

Public Holidays

There are seven public holidays in Russia, except those always celebrated on Sunday. The New Year is the first in calendar and in popularity. Russian New Year traditions resemble those of the Western Christmas, with New Year Trees and gifts, and Ded Moroz (Father Frost) playing the same role as Santa. Orthodox Christmas falls on 7 January, because Russian Orthodox Church still follows the Julian calendar and all Orthodox holidays are 13 days after Catholic ones. Another two major Christian holidays are Easter and Trinity Sunday. Kurban Bayram and Uraza Bayram are celebrated by Russian Muslims.

Physical Features

Russain physical features are divided basically into 3 parts :
European Russia
Western Siberia - Between Ural Mountains and the Yenisei River. It contains both forests and swamps.
Eastern Siberia - Between The Yenisei River and the Pacific Ocean. It contains the Siberian Plateau and other mountain ranges.
The mountain ranges are -
Ural Mountains
Caucasus Mountains
Yablanovy Mountains
Kolyma Mountains
Cherskogo Range

Location

Population

Population:	141,927,297 (1 January 2010)
Growth rate:	0.002% (2009)
Birth rate:	12.4 births/1,000 population (2009)
Death rate:	14.2 deaths/1,000 population (2009)
Life expectancy:	68.67 years (2009)
–male:	62.77 years
–female:	74.67 years
Fertility rate:	1.54 children born/woman (2009)
Infant mortality rate:	8.2 deaths/1,000 live births (2009)
Net migration rate:	1.71 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2008)