135 Cool and Unusual Things to Do in Russia - Atlas Obscura

Unusual
Attractions
in Russia

Dargavs, North Ossetia

Dargavs, Russia

Dargavs Village: City of the Dead

This ancient village and its adjoining cemetery have a beautiful history of death and remembrance.

42.8415, 44.4452

Added by ekoptev

Looking down the hall to the bunker

Bunker-42

Dr. Strangelove-esque tours inside a bunker under Moscow's streets once reserved for Stalin himself.

55.7417, 37.6493

Added by aelandry

The pogost.

Medvezhyegorsky District, Russia

Kizhi Island

Stunning examples of Russia's 18th-century wooden architecture.

62.0667, 35.2250

Added by Mephisto Waltz

Museum of Soviet Arcade Games

Immortal combat in a Moscow museum.

55.7618, 37.6211

A view of Lenin.

Lenin's Mausoleum

Embalmed remains of the leader of the Bolshevik Revolution.

55.7532, 37.6215

Added by stanestane

Pushkin, Russia

The Amber Room

An 18th century wonder of the world, lost in WWII, re-created at the Catherine Palace.

59.7173, 30.3942

Children are the Victims of Adult Vices

Children are the Victims of Adult Vices

Thirteen sculptures in central Moscow graphically depicting vices of the modern world.

55.7459, 37.6194

Prince Felix Yusupov and his wife, Irena.

Saint Petersburg, Russia

Rasputin Museum at Yusupov Palace

Palace where the nearly un-killable Rasputin was murdered.

59.9294, 30.2987

Added by Annetta Black

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Unique
Food & Drink
from Russia

Kumis

Gastro Obscura

Kumis

Infants and Genghis Khan enjoyed this fermented mare's milk.

Gastro Obscura

Added by rachelrummel

Zhavoronki

Gastro Obscura

Zhavoronki

These lark-shaped buns herald spring.

Gastro Obscura

Added by rachelrummel

Kissel

Gastro Obscura

Kissel

The dessert that's also a meal.

Gastro Obscura

Added by JamesRUDD

Koliva

Gastro Obscura

Ritual & Medicinal

Koliva

Drooling over this nutty spiced dessert is a heretical move.

Gastro Obscura

Added by Madeleine Kenyon

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Stories
About Russia

In museums such as these, people saw various religious icons, statues, and paintings, alongside images depicting scientists like Copernicus being persecuted by priests.

How the USSR Turned Houses of Worship Into Museums of Atheism

In these Soviet churches, religion was banned.

by Natasha Frost

Kvass is made at home by fermenting black or rye bread in water with a mixture of sugar, yeast, and other household ingredients.

Russia's Patriotic Alternative to Coca-Cola Is Made Out of Bread

For centuries, Russians have celebrated their Slavic roots with kvass.

by Natasha Frost

A popular conspiracy theory links the decline of Russian culture to American intelligence.

Russia's Most Popular Conspiracy Theory Is All But Unknown in the U.S.

It implicates American intelligence in undermining Russian culture.

by Sarah Laskow

February 20, 2018

Uniformly chopped dog bones from Krasnosamarskoe.

Found: Archaeological Evidence of Bronze Age Lupine Initiation Rituals

Dog sacrifice, lawless war-bands, and coming of age on the Russian steppes.

by Vittoria Traverso

November 21, 2017

Steller's sea cow was hunted to extinction fewer than thirty years after being described.

Found: The Massive Skeleton of a Steller's Sea Cow

A 17-foot-long sirenian emerges on a remote Russian island.

by Vittoria Traverso

November 17, 2017

A 1716 portrait of Catherine I by French painter Jean-Marc Nattier.

What Happened to the Severed Head of Peter the Great's Wife's Lover

Don't believe the hype.

by Natasha Frost

October 20, 2017

This Russian Castle Is Actually a Kindergarten

Every enrolled kid can be a petite prince or princess.

by Michael Waters

Go, bear, go!

A Rogue Bear Was Found in a Former Russian Nuclear Submarine Port

by Eric Grundhauser

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