French | Spanish | German | Japanese | Chinese(Mandarin) | Hindi | Korean | Other 

Russia's political icons and ideologies may have tumbled but Churchill's 'riddle wrapped in a mystery inside an enigma' remains an apt descriptive chestnut. Outsiders still have only a hazy grasp of daily life in Russia, and the unfolding effects of a deregulated market economy are surrounded by rumours of rampant crime and prostitution, relentless drug-trafficking, mile-long queues for nonexistent food and a general end-of-the-world aura. But with countless cultural treasures having withstood the tribulations of history and economics, and an artistic legacy running the gamut from Karenina to Zhivago, Russia remains a must-see destination. So grab your balalaika, turn off the samovar and meet up with Boris and Natasha at Lenin's tomb in Moscow, in the queue outside the Hermitage in St Petersburg, in any one of the Golden Ring's gorgeous historic towns and in the wildflower-filled meadows of the Caucasus.

Regions