This 15th-century cave complex is one of the very few monasteries to stay open throughout World War II and the Soviet regime.

Siberian whale bones stand as cairns marking location of an ancient butcher yard.

Five mile wide circular ring of rock in the Russian Far East is a curious geological oddity.

This remote lake in Siberia supposedly contains a fearsome sea monster.

The avant-garde design was able to bypass strict Soviet regulations on architecture.

Gigantic natural towers in a Russian plateau.

Monastery, army base, and infamous Soviet Gulag in the far Russian north.

Unusual, mushroom-like rock formations caused by weathering and water erosion, set to disappear, according to geologists.

Former prison camp dedicated to the victims of political repression.

No one knows why ancient labyrinths were built on this tiny northern island.

This frozen-in-time summer home outside Moscow provides a look at Russian life in the 1950s.

The coldest city in the world.

Moscow's most popular cemetery includes the graves of numerous cosmonauts.

Its front wall is striped with a menagerie of fantastic beasts and magnificent monsters.

A remote forest of stone pillars along the Lena river.

The villagers of the coldest inhabited place on Earth adjust to unique challenges presented by day-to-day living.

The world's second-largest excavated hole.

Secret Soviet city once home to Russian cosmonauts and space training facilities.

Museum celebrating the achievements of the Soviet space program.

It's hard to believe the dizzying patterns covering this abandoned mine are completely natural.

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

Dr. Strangelove-esque tours reveal the inside a bunker once reserved for Stalin himself.

A little church on a tiny island looks like something from a fairy tale.