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There are several islands in the world that serve or have served as prisons or places of confinement. The advantage of prison islands is their almost complete isolation from the outside world. So where are these "Château d'Ifs" located, and who are their inmates? Below is a selection of the most famous prison islands in the world.

Almost the entire territory of modern Karelia was once inhabited by the tribe "Lop" (self-designation – “Saami”), between Lake Ladoga and Lake Onega lived the tribe "Ves" (Vepsians), and to the west and north of Lake Ladoga lived the "Korela" (modern name – “Karelians”). In the 10th-11th centuries, the southern part of Karelia came under the influence of the ancient Russian state, Slavic settlements began to appear, and Christianity was adopted. In the 17th century, Korela passed to Sweden and was returned to Russia only in 1721, after the defeat of the Swedes in the Great Northern War. The number of monasteries grew rapidly at that time, with the Solovetsky Monastery becoming particularly powerful. The Great Northern War (1700-1721) gave a strong impetus to the industrial development of Karelia. During this period, metallurgy actively developed, and several new factories were built. The largest of these gave rise to Petrovskaya Sloboda. By decree of Empress Catherine II, Petrovskaya Sloboda was renamed the city of Petrozavodsk, and from 1784 it became the center of the Olonets Governorate, whose first governor was the poet G. R. Derzhavin. In 1917-18, Soviet power was established in Karelia. In 1940, Karelia acquired a new status — the Karelo-Finnish SSR — and became the sixteenth union republic. Its territory expanded due to new districts that were annexed to the USSR after the war with Finland.

Peterhof, translated from German, means "Peter's Court." Having reclaimed these lands from the Swedes, Peter I ordered the founding of a city here. It began in the western part of modern Peterhof, where the "merchant" pier now stands. It was here that two chambers were built, where Peter stayed when he traveled by shore to Oranienbaum and further to Kotlin. Peter I greatly desired that his city and suburbs would differ little from the luxurious European capitals of that time.

Date of formation: 1826 - 1832, Architects: A.A. Menelas, A.I. Shtakenshneider Garden master: P.I. Erler, Park area - 115 hectares The Alexandria Park is named after its first owner – Empress Alexandra Feodorovna, wife of Nicholas I. Sun, flowers, shady groves of old oaks, the "music of the water" of the stream, the expanses of meadows merging with the bay under the bottomless sky – all this is Alexandria, the family nest of four generations of the Romanov dynasty. Znamenka (formerly also known as the Znamenka Manor, Znamenka Dacha) — a former estate on the Peterhof Road, a grand ducal residence. To the west lies the "Alexandria" park, to the east — the "Mikhailovka" estate. Bounded by the Gulf of Finland to the north, and by the Peterhof Road to the south. It occupies an area of 74 hectares. Mikhailovka (also "Mikhailovskaya Dacha" and "Mikhailovskoye Estate") — a 19th-century palace and park ensemble on the Peterhof Road, which before the revolution belonged to the descendants of Grand Duke Mikhail Nikolaevich Romanov, son of Emperor Nicholas I.

Colonists' Park is a 29-hectare landscape park in Peterhof. Colonists' Park was created based on a design by architect A. I. Stackenschneider during the reign of Nicholas I. A special role in the creation of the park was played by the chief gardener of the Peterhof Palace Administration, P. I. Erler. The boundaries of Colonists' Park are: to the south — Erler Boulevard, to the east — Borodacheva Street, to the north — the embankment of Olgin Pond, and to the west — the Samsonievsky Pond Canal.

The city of Bolgar in Tatarstan, located on the banks of the Volga River, is a historic settlement of the Volga Tatars, the "Northern Mecca" of the Muslim world. Once, there was an ancient Bulgar fortress here, which in the 13th century transformed into a popular craft and trade hub connecting Rus with the East, and later became the capital of the medieval Golden Horde — Volga Bulgaria.

Under Vasili III, in 1510, the Pskov Republic was abolished, and its territory was annexed to the Grand Duchy of Moscow (the Russian state). The symbol of Pskov’s independence — the veche bell — was taken down and transported to Moscow. Pskov became a western outpost on the way to Moscow, and its suburbs Voronich, Ostrov, Opochka, Vrev, Vybor, Velie, and others became lines of defense meant to protect the borders of Russian lands. These were fortresses that bore the first blows of the enemy.

Vladimir Nabokov was born in St. Petersburg on April 22 (April 10 old style), but he celebrated his birthday on the 23rd. This confusion arose due to the discrepancy between the old and new style dates — at the beginning of the 20th century, the difference was not 12 but 13 days. Vladimir Nabokov liked to emphasize: “In the very last of my passports, the ‘date of birth’ is indicated as ‘April 23,’ which is also Shakespeare’s birthday.” About himself, Vladimir Nabokov said: “I am an American writer born in Russia, educated in England, where I studied French literature before moving to Germany for 15 years.” Throughout his life, he shocked and amazed those around him with his contradictory character, scandalous works, and unusual hobbies. He collected butterflies and was passionate about football, composed chess problems, and gave provocative lectures on world literature. Nabokov became famous worldwide for his book about nympholepsy, *Lolita*; it also brought him financial independence and cost him the Nobel Prize.

One of the main attractions of the city of Gatchina is the landscape park ensemble, the Palace Park, created at the end of the 18th century. It is the oldest of the Gatchina park complex, covering an area of 143 hectares. It is located in the central part of the city. It borders closely on urban developments to the west and east. To the south, the boundary separates the Palace Park from the Priory Park; to the north, it borders the Menagerie; to the northwest lies the regular Sylvia Park, whose territory used to be part of the Palace Park. The main structure of the park ensemble is the Grand Gatchina Palace, located in its southwestern part.

Yekaterininsky Park is a park that is part of the State Museum-Reserve "Tsarskoye Selo." It is located in the town of Pushkin near Saint Petersburg and is an architectural monument of the 18th–19th centuries. Together with Alexander Park, it forms an integral part of the Tsarskoye Selo Imperial Residence and is named after the Catherine Palace located within it. Yekaterininsky Park consists of two parts: the formal Old Garden and the landscape-style English Park. Sources: https://www.tzar.ru/objects/ekaterininskypark https://pushkin.spb.ru/encycl/parks/ekaterinenskii-park.html

At the very beginning of the 18th century, on the site of Alexander Park, there was a square plot of forest enclosed by a stone wall, intended for imperial hunting. It was called the Menagerie, and Catherine I also enjoyed hunting here. Wild animals lived here – foxes, hares, wild boars. Later, during the reign of Elizabeth Petrovna, the park was landscaped and divided into four equal square sections, similar to formal French gardens. During the reign of Catherine the Great, new territories were added to the park. In 1792, architect Giuseppe Quarenghi began construction of a large palace in Tsarskoye Selo, later named the Alexander Palace. In the 1810s–1820s, the Menagerie, having lost its hunting purpose by that time, was transformed into an extensive landscape park. Here were located a small royal farm, pavilions for llamas and elephants, the building of the Retired Stables for horses that once served the royal family. Three large structures were also built in the landscape part of the park: Montbijou, intended to house a collection of weapons and military armor and called the Arsenal; an artificial Gothic-style ruin – the Chapel; and the White Tower. The greenhouses of the "Upper Garden" in the landscape part of Alexander Park are the only park greenhouses still existing on the site they occupied at the beginning of the 18th century, though they changed their appearance as a result of reconstructions in the early 19th century. The layout of the complex resembles the French fruit gardens of the Louis XIV era. At the beginning of the 20th century, the northeastern territory of Alexander Park, stretching from the Alexander Palace to the Egyptian Gates, was built up. Here the Fedorovsky Town emerged. Sources: https://www.tzar.ru/objects/alexandrovskypark https://pushkin.spb.ru/encycl/parks/aleksandrovskiy-park.html

The main center of Russian emigration in Southern Europe became the capital of the young Kingdom of Yugoslavia – Belgrade. Here, during the period between the two world wars, the cultural life of Russian refugees was concentrated. In the early 1920s, a stream of Russian exiles flowed to the Balkans from southern Russia through Constantinople, with between 40,000 and 70,000 people arriving in Yugoslavia. There were several reasons for this mass phenomenon. Russians traditionally enjoyed the love of the people, whom they supported in the struggle for national liberation from centuries-old Turkish rule during the 19th century and later during the First World War – against new conquerors. At the head of the multinational Slavic state formed in 1918 stood the Serbian ruling dynasty of Karađorđević, related by kinship ties to the Romanov house. Assistance to Russian emigrants became an integral part of Yugoslavia’s domestic and foreign policy and was carried out under the slogan of repaying Russia’s historical debt. Yugoslavia, more than half of whose population was of the Orthodox faith (Serbs, Montenegrins, Macedonians), became the most important spiritual center of the Russian diaspora. In 1921, near Belgrade, in Sremski Karlovci, the Russian Orthodox Church Abroad was founded, headed by Metropolitan Anthony (Khrapovitsky) of Kiev and Galicia. Yugoslavia was also the only country that agreed to accept and accommodate parts of the White Army on its territory. The headquarters of the Tsarist army under General Wrangel was located in Belgrade. Besides the military, a modest part of the intelligentsia arrived in the country, as Russian educational documents were recognized here. There was an objective reason for this. Losses in the two Balkan Wars (1912 and 1913) and the First World War were so great that there was a severe shortage of specialists. The opportunity to find work and provide education for children made this country attractive for residence. According to statistics, 75% of Russians living in Yugoslavia in the 1920s–1930s had secondary and higher education. Moreover, the government allocated scholarships for Russian youth. In Serbia, Russians made up 10% of the creative intelligentsia. Russian emigrants taught in schools, gymnasiums, and universities, worked as doctors and engineers, and were involved in road construction. Belgrade became a major Russian publishing center, whose significance grew in the 1930s as Berlin and Prague curtailed their activities under the threat of fascism. The Russian emigration, as the bearer and guardian of a rich cultural tradition, possessed considerable creative potential, one manifestation of which was literary creativity. During the interwar twenty years, many famous Russian writers visited Belgrade, but none settled there for long. The literature of "Russian Belgrade" is notable for being created by youth who matured outside Russia, whose creative individuality awakened and developed far from their homeland, outside the sphere of their native language. Another feature of this literature is that the creative youth of Belgrade mainly expressed themselves in poetry and short genres. It was difficult for them to make their way, as reputable publications, concerned with commercial success, were reluctant to give unknown authors their pages. "Russian Belgrade" as a historical and cultural phenomenon lasted two decades. It possessed significant creative and cultural potential, which was not fully realized due to the historically short period of time. During and after the Second World War, some Russians moved further to Europe and America, while others assimilated. However, during these years, Russians made a substantial contribution to the culture of Yugoslavia.

Chichen Itza, a ruined ancient Maya city covering an area of 4 square miles (10 square kilometers) in the south-central state of Yucatan, Mexico. It is believed to have been a religious, military, political, and commercial center, with a population of 35,000 at its peak. Settlers first appeared at this site in 550 AD, likely attracted by easy access to water through caves and sinkholes in the limestone formations known as cenotes. Most of the city's structures were completed in the early Postclassic period (around 900-1200 AD). In the late Postclassic period (around 1200-1540 AD), Chichen Itza was apparently defeated by the forces of the city of Mayapan and for a time united with Uxmal and Mayapan in a political confederation known as the League of Mayapan. Around 1450, the League and Mayapan’s political dominance collapsed. When the Spanish invaded the region in the 16th century, the Maya lived in many small towns, but large cities, including Chichen Itza, were largely abandoned. Long covered by jungle, Chichen Itza remained sacred to the Maya. Excavations began in the 19th century, and the site became one of Mexico’s major archaeological zones. A legendary tradition at Chichen Itza was the cult of the cenote, involving human sacrifices to the rain god Chaac, during which victims were thrown into the main city cenote (at the northernmost part of the ruins) along with gold and jade ornaments and other valuables. In 1904, Edward Herbert Thompson, an American who purchased the entire site, began dredging the cenote; his discovery of skeletons and sacrificial items confirmed the legend.

The city was founded on January 6, 1542, on the ruins of the ancient Maya city of T'ho. The stones from the ruins served as building material for the Spanish colonizers led by Francisco de Montejo and León. The ruins reminded the colonizers of the preserved Roman fortresses in the Spanish city of Mérida, and the new settlement was named in its honor. Mérida became the very first city in Yucatán built by Spanish colonizers, and the other cities were established following its example. It is an old city with its own traditions, featuring the architecture of Spanish colonists and Europeans, with narrow streets and shady parks.

San Miguel de Allende is a colonial city in the state of Guanajuato in the Bajío mountains of central Mexico, approximately 270 km northwest of Mexico City. It is a Spanish colonial city with a population of 72,000 people (2020). It is a cultural heritage site protected by the Mexican government. In 2008, it was listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Founded as "San Miguel el Grande" in 1542 by the Franciscan monk Juan de San Miguel, it became a center of the war for Mexico's independence from Spain. After the war, in 1826, San Miguel was granted city status and renamed San Miguel de Allende in honor of Ignacio Allende, a hero of the independence movement, the "first Mexican soldier," and a native of the city. Threatened with becoming a ghost town in the early 20th century, the city was declared a national monument in 1926. Construction in the historic city center was strictly limited, allowing the city to preserve its colorful local facades, which have served as the backdrop for many famous works of art and even modern films. In the 1950s, a number of artist colonies were established in San Miguel, including the famous Allende Institute, and many American former soldiers moved their families here after World War II, either as members of one of the colonies or to escape polio, which was rampant in many U.S. cities. This population, combined with wealthy Mexicans (especially actors and politicians) who rediscovered San Miguel as a retreat reminiscent of Malibu, away from Mexico City, created an eclectic mix of Mexican Old World charm, American hospitality, and a party atmosphere, making San Miguel a world-class place to live and vacation.

The city was named after the Spanish city of Valladolid, which was the capital at the time. It was founded on May 28, 1543, by Francisco de Montejo, nephew and namesake of the famous Spanish conquistador Francisco de Montejo, with the purpose of establishing Spanish settlers in an area controlled by one of the Maya tribes — the Cupul. The original location of the city was on the site of the settlement Chauac Há, belonging to the Maya Chikinchel tribe, near the coast. Early Spanish settlers complained about an excess of mosquitoes spreading yellow fever and petitioned to move the settlement further inland on the peninsula. On March 24, 1545, Valladolid was relocated to its current location and built on the site of the capital of the Maya Cupul tribe, called Zací, which in the Maya language means "white hawk." The ancient stone structures of the city were dismantled to build houses for the settlers in the Spanish colonial style. The following year, the Maya revolted, but their uprising was suppressed with the help of Spanish troops arriving from Mérida. Subsequently, Valladolid continued to be a center for the development of Spanish colonialism in the eastern part of the Yucatán Peninsula. Now, Valladolid, one of the oldest cities on the peninsula and currently one of the two Magical Towns of Yucatán, enchants in every sense of the word. Its paradoxically quiet yet lively streets are home to historic neighborhoods, houses, museums, cozy small hotels, markets, fountains, shops, ice cream and snack kiosks, parks, and many corners worth visiting. As if that were not enough, the privileged location of this charming town earned it the title "capital of the eastern Maya." Valladolid is situated right in the center, equidistant from the two largest cities on the Yucatán Peninsula, Mérida and Cancún, which are about 160 kilometers apart. Additionally, nearby are the main archaeological wonders of the region: Chichén Itzá, just 45 kilometers away; Tulum, 100 kilometers; Ek’ Balam, 30 kilometers; and Cobá, 35 kilometers.

Ivan VI (Ioann Antonovich) (12 (23) August 1740 – 5 (16) July 1764) was a Russian emperor from the House of Welf who reigned from October 1740 to November 1741, and was the great-grandson of Ivan V. Formally, he ruled during the first year of his life under the regency first of Biron, and then of his own mother Anna Leopoldovna. The infant emperor was overthrown by Elizabeth Petrovna, spent his entire life imprisoned in jails and solitary cells, and was killed at the age of 24 during an attempted escape. In official contemporary sources, he is referred to as Ioann III, counting from the first Russian tsar Ivan the Terrible; in later historiography, the tradition was established to call him Ivan (Ioann) VI, counting from Ivan I Kalita.

For Dostoevsky, Petersburg is "the most deliberate and abstract city in the world." Through the voices of his characters, Dostoevsky conveys his own attitude toward it: "...the extreme misfortune of living in Petersburg," "...this is a city of half-madmen... Rarely anywhere else can one find so many gloomy, harsh, and strange influences on the human soul as in Petersburg..." And yet Dostoevsky loved Petersburg very much. It is the city of his youth, his birth as a writer, his dizzying successes, tragic experiences, and losses. He needs it for his creativity: often Petersburg becomes the source of his inspiration. When leaving it, Dostoevsky always strives to return; upon returning, he feels burdened by it.

ABBA was - and still is - a truly unique phenomenon in music history. Their success has crossed all borders, while the band itself remained surprisingly local. Their lives and work have been inseparable from Sweden and its capital. Stockholm was constantly used as a backdrop for ABBA’s record covers, music videos and photo-shoots. This collection reveals some of the many places in the city that are connected to the stories of Agnetha, Björn, Benny and Anni-Frid (Frida). Must see for ABBA fans! Sources: https://www.cntraveller.com/gallery/abba-guide-to-sweden https://www.orbzii.com/guides-tips/ABBA-guide-to-Stockholm/ http://www.raffem.com/ABBARelatedPrivatandPlaces.htm https://www.soundonsound.com/music-business/atlantis-studios-stockholm Wikipedia Picture: Free to use under the Pixabay license

Koba is the oldest center of the Maya civilization, full of its secrets and mysteries, conveniently located 44 kilometers northwest of the coastal Maya city of Tulum. The Maya city of Koba is primarily famous for being situated at the intersection of the "sacbe" road network, which connected Maya kingdoms in the region. Among the city’s ruins, most of which are still hidden beneath the dense jungle canopy, many carved stelae have been discovered, narrating the history of the city and its rulers. The most famous monumental structure in Koba is the Nohoch Mul pyramid, standing 42 meters tall. Koba was founded between 50 BCE and 100 CE. All constructions from this period were made of wood, so archaeological finds include only remnants of clay pottery. After 100 CE, the city experienced rapid development, eventually becoming one of the most important political and religious centers of the Maya civilization in the northern Yucatán Peninsula. Between 200 and 600 CE, much of the Yucatán Peninsula was under Koba’s influence. The ruling dynasty controlled vast areas of cultivated land, managed the road network on the peninsula, and—most importantly for Maya cities—maintained control over freshwater supplies. Koba maintained close contacts with other major Maya cities such as Tikal in Guatemala and Calakmul in Mexico. The powerful Teotihuacan culture had a significant influence on Koba’s civilization. Koba was a major cultural and religious center of antiquity, holding enormous social and political significance. At its peak, the city covered an area of 50 square kilometers. The extensive network of ancient Maya roads, called sacbe, in Koba remains a mystery to this day. There are more than forty such roads, some stretching over a hundred kilometers. The rise of the Puuc culture cities and the founding of Chichen Itza weakened Koba’s influence in the region. For a century—from 900 to 1000 CE—Koba and Chichen Itza competed for hegemonic status in the area. After 1000 CE, Koba lost its political influence but retained its position as an important Maya religious center. Monumental construction continued until 1500. After that, nothing is known about the city’s history. Spanish conquerors who arrived in Koba in 1550 found the city abandoned. The rest remains buried under the lush jungle growth. The great city was abandoned, but its vast road network, tall structures, and large area show that it was one of the most important centers of the Maya civilization. At its height, it may have been home to around 50,000 people. Today, exploring its ruins and climbing one of the tallest pyramids in Yucatán leaves a vivid impression of touching antiquity.

The Maya founded a settlement in this place as early as the 3rd century BCE. Its area was 12 square kilometers. Later it became known as "Ek Balam," which translates to "Black Jaguar." The city was a well-fortified defensive center, as evidenced by the walls built in several rows. Today, more than 45 preserved architectural structures can be seen scattered throughout the ancient city's territory. It is believed that the name Ek Balam was given to the city in honor of one of its great kings named Ek Balam or Kok K'el Balam. According to the Maya creation legend, the Black Jaguar was the Ruler of the Underworld, a symbol of the night sun and darkness. The most noble Maya kings were considered his descendants. Overall, information about the civilization that once existed in Ek Balam is quite scarce. There are later texts suggesting that it was once part of a kingdom called Talol, founded by a man named Koch Kal Balam from the east, and later controlled by the aristocratic Kupul family. However, this is the only text in which Ek Balam is mentioned at all.

The greatest attraction of Tulum is the combination of majestic ruins with the stunning shades of the Caribbean Sea. This incredible Maya port city is small but impressive, located on a small cliff 15 meters above sea level, bordered by the turquoise-blue waters of the Caribbean Sea. Among the ruins of Tulum is one of the most beautiful beaches of the Riviera Maya. Originally called Zama, meaning dawn or sunrise in the Maya language, it was an important crossroads for trade by land and sea. The buildings currently visible in Tulum almost entirely belong to the last pre-Spanish period of Maya occupation of the peninsula: the Late Postclassic period from 1200 to 1550 AD. However, the presence and analysis of some structures using carbon-14 clearly date to earlier periods, such as Stela 1 and Structure 59, which contain some stylistic elements of the Classic period, indicating that the settlement may have originated in the Early Classic period, between 400 and 600 AD. Little is known about the first settlers in this area; however, based on archaeological evidence from ceramics, the first settlement can be dated to around 300 AD.

Mayapán is an ancient Maya city in the Mexican state of Yucatán in Central America, located 40 km southeast of Mérida. The full ancient names of the city, Ichpaa Mayapan and Tankah Mayapan, are bilingual Maya-Nahuatl constructions (literally "Inside the fortress of Mayapán" and "In the center of the city of Mayapán"). The etymology "Maya banner," found in Diego de Landa, is incorrect; in reality, Mayapan (literally "In the [place] of the Maya") is a common Nahuatl toponym ending in -pan.

Malaga is the city where Pablo Picasso was born and spent his early childhood. The atmosphere and daily life of those years inspired some of the recurring themes in his paintings, such as flamenco, pigeons and bulls. Take this walk along the streets of Malaga to see the places connected to the life and work of the great Spanish artist! Sources: https://www.spain.info/es/, https://visita.malaga.eu, https://www.visitcostadelsol.com/, Wikipedia, https://www.museopicassomalaga.org/ Photo: Pablo Picasso 1962, Public Domain, http://www.magicasruinas.com.ar/revistero/internacional/pintura-pablo-picasso.htm

Kabah is an archaeological site of the Maya civilization located in the southeastern part of the Mexican state of Yucatán. It lies south of Uxmal and is connected to this city by a huge 18-kilometer paved pedestrian road, 5 meters wide, with monumental arches at each end. Kabah is the second largest ruins in the Puuc region after Uxmal. The name "Kabah" or "Kabaah" is believed to mean "strong hand" in the archaic Maya language. This is a pre-Columbian name of the area, mentioned in Maya chronicles. Another name is Kabahaucan, or "royal snake in the hand."

Izamal – a city included in the list of magical cities of Mexico (Pueblo Magico), located in the very heart of the state of Yucatán. Izamal is filled with legends and tales; they pass like shadows and whispers through all the streets of this unusual place. A huge monastery rises right in the center, its walls built from the stones of the Pyramid of the Sun. To this day, the local residents worship the sun, which is why all the houses in the city are painted bright yellow. Izamal is also known as the City of Three Cultures due to the fusion of Maya, Spanish, and modern influences. This small town with its exquisite architecture and cobblestone streets. Its name comes from the name of the Maya priest Itzamna or Zamna, which means “splashes falling from the sky,” one of the names of the Maya god of wisdom, who was considered the teacher and mentor of the ancient inhabitants of this land. Wandering among the mysterious structures, it feels like being on the set of a historical film, before you an impossible combination for the Catholic world – cathedrals and pagan pyramids. This is the city of Bishop Diego de Landa, who did everything to destroy the Maya culture and everything to preserve it. This city is unique not only because five real Maya pyramids proudly stand on its streets. It is extraordinary because it is one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in America. It was founded by the first Maya at the dawn of their civilization, and people have lived here continuously since those ancient times. Almost all other cities on the continent were abandoned long before the arrival of the Spanish conquerors, but not Izamal. The city was founded between 750–200 BCE, meaning it is about 2,500 years old. It is roughly the same age as Rome.

When the sun sets over the jungles of the Yucatán, its fading light falls on the western staircase of the Pyramid of the Magician, just as it has for over a millennium. In pre-Hispanic times, during Maya religious festivals, a priest or ruler could ascend this staircase to pass through the gates into the sacred temple. Watching from the plaza below, commoners saw the leader emerging from this richly decorated doorway as a manifestation of the sun itself. Imagine you were born in the Classic Maya period around the year 900 on the Mexican Yucatán Peninsula. If you were lucky, you might have had the chance to travel to Uxmal. As you entered the city, you would be greeted by a lively, bustling city with a population of about twenty-five thousand people and many more thousands in the surrounding areas. Approaching the city center, giant stone structures would block out the sun as you drew near, towering even above the tallest trees, shattering the limits of what you thought possible. Intricately decorated buildings would convince you that the rulers and priests were truly anointed by the gods.

The Most Interesting and Unusual Monuments, Beautiful Statues, Famous Monuments, and Memorials of Mexico

Although Russia and the USSR cannot be called the originators and founders of architectural movements, there is one distinctly pronounced style that manifested most widely during the Soviet era. Of course, this is Constructivism. Constructivism is a new direction in visual arts, architecture, photography, and decorative-applied arts that emerged in the early 1920s in the USSR. This movement is one of the branches of the new avant-garde proletarian art. Quoting Mayakovsky: “For the first time, not from France, but from Russia came the new word in art – Constructivism.” The atmosphere of the 1920s created fertile ground for bold experimentation. The average age of Soviet architects was about 30 years. Constructivism was also developing in Europe, but the Soviet version of the style is interesting because it was ideological, meant to symbolize the new life of the proletariat. Freed from the shackles of the bourgeoisie, the working class now lives in bright apartments, bathes in spacious public baths, spends evenings engaged in amateur activities, or at worst, watches a film in a huge cinema. Although buildings in this style were actively constructed in other working-class outskirts of Petersburg – Nevskaya Zastava, Vyborg Side, on Vasilievsky Island – Narvskaya Zastava nevertheless became the showcase of Leningrad Constructivism.

A movement to preserve the traces of the departing industrial era is developing worldwide. Production, alongside religion, philosophy, trade, and social history, is one of the foundations of life. The study and preservation of evidence from the industrial era is a new field within the protection of historical and cultural heritage. There are plenty of reasons to address issues related to the study and preservation of industrial architectural monuments. A vast number of unique technological sites and industrial enterprises, factories are shutting down and being repurposed—how to preserve this heritage?

Andalusia has a lot to offer to the curious. Granada’s Alhambra and Mezquita de Cordoba are on top of most travellers’ lists. Look deeper and find some less known places and curious stories behind them!

On October 4, 1724, on the way to Kotlin Island, Peter I "made a drawing of the Kotlin fortress," and after lunch on the island, he "outlined the site of the fortress with small trenches." On October 6, a strong wind blew, and the tide flooded the site of the new fortress's foundation. On October 7, despite the rain, the laying ceremony took place: first, there was a prayer service with the blessing of water, during which the fortress was named Kronstadt. After the prayer service, His Excellency himself laid three sods, then Her Majesty the Empress laid three sods. After that, everyone else laid one sod each, and when all were laid, His Excellency cut a corner off, as if to make a bulwark, and cannon fire was fired from Kronshlot; then soldiers and sailors began carrying and laying sod. When they laid it lengthwise to the designated place and eight sods wide, a cellar was laid there by the soldiers and sailors, and the distinguished gentlemen were offered a glass of good Burgundy. On November 3, 1724, Vice Admiral P. I. Sivers was appointed the chief commander of Kronstadt. Under his command, construction of the new fortress began. The fortress plan envisaged the creation of bastions connected by curtains. On the south side of the island, the fortress walls closed onto the walls of the harbors under construction. The western front of the fortress consisted of six bastions named after the regiments that built them: Preobrazhensky, Semyonovsky, Ingermanland, Lefortovsky, Butyrsky, Morskoy, and a moat crossing the entire island and separated from the bay by dams.

Accidents and hazardous natural phenomena, disasters, natural or other calamities that have resulted in human casualties, harm to health or the environment, significant material losses, and disruption of living conditions. These are emergency events of a technological nature, caused by structural, production, technological, or operational reasons, or due to accidental external impacts, involving damage, malfunction, or destruction of technical devices or structures, as well as major industrial or transportation accidents.

Memorable places associated with the prototypes of literary characters and the literary characters themselves from works of Russian literature.

In place of many architectural monuments, only fragments remain that will never regain their former appearance. Which historical buildings will we never be able to see as they once were, and what stands in their place now?

Alexandra Blok was called a genius of Silver Age poetry and a guiding star for aspiring writers. The poet was a favorite among women: gray-eyed, with beautifully curved lips, thick hair, and an expression frozen in thoughtfulness, he could captivate anyone if he wished. However, his calling lay elsewhere. We remember what Alexander Blok was like and take a walk through his addresses in Petersburg.

Some gloomy stories hidden beside shiny facade

The name, Cyprus, derives from the ancient Greek word for the precious copper deposits that were already being mined and traded as early as 3000 BC.The ancient Cypriots were not only experienced miners but also skillful metallurgists. Since then the mining industry of Cyprus was active in the production of minerals of copper, iron pyrite, gold, chromites as well as asbestos fibers. Since 1979 the mining industry of Cyprus is in recession because of the exhaustion of the known large and rich copper and iron pyrite ore bodies and the increase of the production cost without proportional increase in the international sale prices of metals. Today there are about 25 abandoned sulphite mines around the Troodos Mountain. Some of the mines are partly restored for purposes of access, prevention of the acidic drainages and reduction of the visual disturbance.

Take a walk back in time along the strongest, most extensive, and best preserved medieval city wall in Scandinavia - Visby City Defense Wall. Approximately 3.44 km of its original 3.6 km still stands. Of the 29 large and 22 smaller towers, 27 large and 9 small remain. This is the most complete guide with 40 stops which will tell you much more than the guidebooks and information boards. The best way is to follow the wall from the outside. We suggest starting from the medieval harbor area and the Sea Wall and walking clockwise. But you can start at any other point. Just bear in mind that there is no wall between the Sail Tower and the Large Beach Gate and you will need to find your way between these two points through the town streets. But do not worry, this can be a pleasant adventure on its own. Sources: Wikipedia, Region Gotland information boards, Riksantikvarieämbetet och kampanjen Rädda Visby Ringmur, https://www.mittvisby.se/

Find out some places on the island which are keeping memories of famous people. Not every celebrity would remember these episodes but you could try to get connected to their lives through this collection.

Saint Petersburg is not called the Northern Venice for nothing. Peter I dreamed of turning it into a Russian Venice or Amsterdam, believing that citizens would travel along the waterways by ferries, boats, and floating crossings—and not without reason, as the total length of rivers and canals in Saint Petersburg is about 300 km. However, Peter’s city became a city of bridges, and it is the drawbridge that has become one of the symbols of Saint Petersburg; bridges have become an integral part of the city. There are 342 of them in the city. These are the world-famous drawbridges over the Neva, pedestrian and automobile bridges over rivers and canals, as well as small bridges in the suburbs and parks. Each bridge has its own unique architectural appearance, its own history, and its own structural features.

Saint Petersburg and its suburbs did not arise out of nowhere. At least since the mid-15th century and for centuries, there were about 1,000 settlements constantly located on the territory corresponding to modern St. Petersburg. The layout of modern Saint Petersburg and its suburban area is largely based on a stable system of settlements and roads that existed for centuries. Many pre-Petersburg roads became city streets, and ancient settlements were the original foundation for the creation of urban suburbs, quarters, and estates. Saint Petersburg was created based on the preceding system of settlement, which existed steadily during Swedish and even pre-Swedish times. In the immediate vicinity of Nien (Nyen) at the end of the 17th century, hundreds of settlements were located. For example, in the delta of the Neva alone, there were more than 120 settlements of various sizes. Swedish cartographic materials allow us to reconstruct a branched network of roads, a dense system of settlements, and even the exact outlines of developed lands. The majority of settlements were located along the banks of the Neva, its channels and tributaries, along state highways and local roads, as well as in groups (or "nests") on elevated places, creating a branched network. From Noteborg to Nien, settlements formed a continuous chain along both banks of the Neva, especially frequently located from the mouth of the Izhora River to the alignment of the spit of Vasilyevsky Island. The settlement and land development zones marked on Swedish maps correspond well with the mosaic and local nature of the placement of "islands" of fertile land among swamps and taiga. Saint Petersburg, one of the few largest cities in the world, has an exact founding date. Yet at the same time, Saint Petersburg absorbed the historical genetic memory of more than a millennium of continuous development of the Prinevye territories. Careful study of archival materials made it clear that Saint Petersburg was not a city created on an uninhabited, deserted place. And Sweden played a very significant role both in the prehistory and directly in the history of Saint Petersburg, both as a direct competitor for the right to own these territories and as a people. According to the 2010 census, only 50 Swedes were registered in Petersburg. It is hard to call them a diaspora, and even harder to find them in a city of five million. However, it is necessary to tell about the Petersburg Swedes, since they are the indigenous inhabitants of the Northern capital, and their talented representatives made a considerable contribution to Petersburg culture. In the 17th century, Swedes in Russia were called Svea Germans, or Sveas. But gradually the Russians adopted the German variant of the name of the people — Swedes. In the mid-19th century, almost 5% of the foreigners living in our city were Swedes (5.3 thousand out of 117 thousand). History has preserved the names of Swedish prisoners of war who performed important and complex work during the initial period of Saint Petersburg’s construction. Yagan Starkin treated the craftsmen of the Construction Office. Lars Lin, with 13 compatriots and 10 Russian carpenters, built the spire of the Peter and Paul Cathedral in 1717 (the construction supervisors noted the skill and courage of the Swedes when lifting large beams onto the dome and the spire of the bell tower of the Church of Peter and Paul). "Password" Karl Vridrik in 1716 worked "with letters and drawings." Chamber Junker Bergholtz, who lived in the city from 1721 to 1725, wrote in his diary: “We entered a long and wide alley paved with stone and justly called a prospect (Nevsky Prospect – editor’s note), because its end is almost not visible. It was laid out only a few years ago and exclusively by the hands of Swedish prisoners... It is extraordinarily beautiful in its enormous length and the cleanliness in which the Swedish prisoners keep it.” Since then, Swedes have built houses, churches, and made a significant contribution to the culture and science of our city. They were members of the Academy of Sciences of the Russian Empire. Thanks to the Swedish-Petersburg astronomer Lexell, for example, the planet Uranus was discovered (he mathematically proved that it was not a comet but a planet). Another of his compatriots, Oskar Backlund, for a long time headed the imperial observatory in Pulkovo and observed Encke’s comet — for his discoveries in astronomy, this comet was named Encke-Backlund. A large part of the life of the famous Swedish inventor, manufacturer, and creator of dynamite Albert Nobel also passed in our city. In 1991, an unusual monument to Nobel was opened on the Petrograd Embankment — in the form of a fantastic iron tree, whose twisted branches symbolize a peaceful explosion (after all, the invention of dynamite was originally intended for peaceful purposes — for mining, blasting, and earthworks). The son of a fashionable Swedish tailor, Fyodor Lidval, became a famous Russian architect. He built about thirty houses in Petersburg in the style of Northern Modernism (the Astoria Hotel, the Tolstoy House on the Fontanka, the Azov-Don Bank building on Bolshaya Morskaya Street, and others). And much more inseparably connects Saint Petersburg, Ingria, and Sweden.

For the first time, Peterhof is mentioned in Peter I's "Campaign Journal" as early as September 1705. According to legend, its origin is owed to Peter’s wife, Catherine Alekseevna. Peter, concerned with the construction of the Kronstadt fortress, which was meant to protect the newly built Saint Petersburg from enemy invasion by sea, often visited Kotlin Island. Since these trips were made by sea, which posed a constant danger—especially during stormy autumn weather—Catherine supposedly persuaded Peter to build a roadside house, a travel palace, or, as they called it at the time, "travel chambers" on the shore of the Gulf of Finland opposite the island, where one could wait out bad weather. These chambers were allegedly built on the edge of the Factory Canal, opposite the original Znamenskaya Church of the future Peterhof. According to legend, the great Peter, visiting Peterhof later, attended this church and even sang in the choir loft. Peterhof comprises several palace and park ensembles that developed over two centuries. The "Lower Park," "Upper Garden," and "English Park" are ensembles that evolved in the 18th century. "Alexandria," "Colonist Park," "Meadow Park," "Alexandrine Park," "Sergievka," and "Own Dacha" are ensembles from the 19th century. Sources: https://peterhofmuseum.ru/

Pointed arches, tall slender turrets, wrought iron spires, tall windows, stained glass – all of this is the mysterious and majestic Gothic style. In the mid-18th century, after a prolonged period dominated by Classicism, Europe suddenly made a sharp turn toward Romanticism. Gothic castles and cathedrals of the 12th-13th centuries abruptly became models to emulate in construction, although not long before they had been considered old-fashioned and tasteless. At the end of the 19th century, during the Art Nouveau era in Russia, pseudo-Gothic buildings experienced a revival. Architects and patrons of the Russian Empire noticed new trends, but the country had no native historical Gothic architecture. Therefore, Russian and foreign architects working in St. Petersburg began borrowing features of medieval European Gothic architecture. Initially, individual elements were used, and then entire majestic carved facades were created. It was during these years that the buildings of the famous architect Yuri Felten, a student of the great Rastrelli, appeared. He was able to combine Gothic features of European architecture with traditional Russian elements in construction. This is how Russian Gothic, or pseudo-Gothic, came into being.

Saint Petersburg is famous worldwide for its exquisite historical and classical architecture, magnificent palaces, mansions, and churches. But literally nearby, there can be buildings that seem to break away from the overall concept of the street with their very unusual shapes or unconventional facade designs.

Vasilyevsky Island is one of the most amazing places in Saint Petersburg — both geographically and historically-cultural. On this seemingly small piece of land, in all its diversity, with all its ups and downs, the history of the Russian state is reflected, starting from the Petrine era. Every corner of Vasilyevsky Island is literally imbued with the spirit of those glorious years. Peter the Great, enchanted by the beauty of these places, even wanted to create something like Venice here, but the emperor’s plan, due to a number of objective circumstances, was never destined to come true. Even if you step onto its soil for the first time, you will never get lost: the linear layout is impeccable, and this brilliant simplicity cannot but inspire admiration. It is, more than any other district of the Northern capital, full of myths and mysteries. It is often called the “island of unsolved secrets,” behind the veil of which tourists, coming here in large numbers from all over Russia and other countries of the world, try to peek. The beauty, uniqueness, and magnetic charm of Vasilyevsky Island have been reflected in many works. It is enough to recall the immortal lines of Joseph Brodsky: “I do not want to choose a country or a parish. I will come to Vasilyevsky Island to die. I will not find your dark blue facade in the dark, Between the faded lines, I will fall onto the asphalt.”

On August 15, 1990, Viktor Tsoi passed away — an important figure in Russian rock, the leader of the band "Kino," and a key figure for many generations. Perhaps none of our stars had or have as many fans and imitators.

The Most Unusual and Interesting Schools in the History of Russia