Russia - Western European Russia (PDF Chapter)

This is the Western European Russia chapter from Lonely Planet’s Russia guidebook.

This ancient, Arcadian region showcases Mother Russia at her most fertile: Tolstoy, Turge-nev, Dostoevsky’s The Brothers Karamazov and nothing less than the modern country itself were all born here. It’s a lofty legacy and nowhere does Western European Russia let you forget it.

• return to rural 19th-century Russia at Yasnaya Polyana, the leafy estate and final resting place of Leo Tolstoy
• maps
• explore Stary Izborsk, the country’s oldest stone fortress, and get a taste of Russian rural life while staying at a country guesthouse
• transport
• admire Smolensk’s stunning Assumption Cathedral and go on a museum crawl in the hilly Hero City
• restaurants & accommodation

Coverage includes: South of Moscow, Tula, Yelets, Voronezh, Oryol, North & West of Moscow, Smolensk, Tver, Torzhok, Veliky Novgorod, Staraya Russa Pycca, Pskov, Stary Izborsk, Pechory.