The Sophia Cathedral

The first place you should visit – The Sophia Cathedral. Its constructed by Vseslav the Wizard in the middle of 11 century. The cathedral was religious, political, economic and cultural center of all Polotsk land.
Nowadays there is a museum of a history of architecture of the cathedral ( since 1987)

Lets start!!!

Someone ask me: « Is Belarus interesting for traveler?»
Of course !!!!!!!
Belarus today — is the country of century-old culture having hundreds of architectural monuments dating back to the 12th century; National parks and reserves, splendid places for recreation and leisure, areas covered with legends. This is the land, which gave birth to the thousands of celebrities in all aspects of human activity and this is the land of very hospitable people…
So, I try to tell you about what you should see in Belarus.
And I start from … Polotsk. Why? So, it’s the most ancient town in Belarus. And its my place of birth!!!

So, Polotsk is the most ancient city of Belarus and of all Eastern Slavs. It was mentioned for the first time by the ancient Slavonic Chronical « Story of Bygone Years » in 862.
Due to its very convenient geographical position( on « the road from Varangians to the Greeks») it carried out trade with many European cities and states. So its culture and economy grew rather rapidly. And very soon Polotsk was a center of a powerful Polotsk Principality which was competing in unifying Eastern Slavs with Russian Novgorod and Ukrainian Kiev.

At the photo - hotel "Dvina"

HAPPY NEW YEAR !!!!

Hi everyone, from all my heart I wish you a Happy New Year 2009. I wish that the New Year will bring hapiness in your family and that all your dreams come true.

H ours of happy times with friends and family
A bundant time for relaxation
P rosperity
P lenty of love when you need it the most
Y outhful excitement at lifes simple pleasures


N ights of restful slumber (you know - dont' worry be happy)
E verything you need
W ishing you love and light

Y ears and years of good health
E njoyment and mirth
A angels to watch over you
R embrances of a happy years!

Where did the Name "Belarus" Come From?

       Belarus (Belaya Rus) means "White Russia”. It is a very old term, and there's still no exact version of its origin.
      Historians say that:
1. "White" in old Slavic languages meant "free," pointing to the fact that Belarus was never invaded by the Tatars or under their control, unlike the other principalities later i Rus n the 13th - 15th centuries.
2. "White " that this name is older and served as a difference between Kievan Rus, "Black Rus" - a small territory in the western part of modern Belarus, and the territory known as "White Rus".
      What opinion more correct?
      They dont no. But it is clear that it is very old and originally corresponded to the territory where the ancestors of the Belarusians lived and where our republic located.
       By the way, some people say that Belarus is "white Rus because:
-there are a lot of birch trees in Belarus
- there are a lot storks
- belorusian are fair-haired, light-eyed and they carried white linen clothes
but these opinions are not supported by serious historians.

The shirt story: Byelorussian Soviet Socialist Republic

1919-1921: The Rassian-Polish War results in the partitioning of Belarus between the Byelorussian Soviet Socialist Republic and Poland
1921-1939 - Byelorussian Soviet Socialist Republic (BSSR) is established with its capital in Minsk. The short renaissance of Belarusian culture in 1920-1928 is choked by Stalin's executions and mass deportations to Siberia of 1930-ies.
1939. Re-Union of Western and Eastern Belarus
1941-1945. World War II. During the 2nd World War Belarus suffered greatly. It lost every 4th person living there. But despite all this, Belarus has restored its cities, rebuilt its economy.
1945-1990- Post WWII Byelorussian Soviet Socialist Republic
1945: On April 25, delegates from Belarus and Ukraine are invited to the San Francisco Conference. Recognized for their role in the war effort, both countries become members of the United Nations.
And nowadays the Republic of Belarus has become a sovereign independent state on the 27th of July, 1990. But about modern Belarus the story will be ahead.

The shirt story: Rzhecz Pospilita Polsko-Litewska and Russian Empire.

1569 - 1772. Rzhecz Pospilita Polsko-Litewska.
In the 16th century in the result of numerous wars modern Belarus became a part of Rečpaspalitaya. Cultural decline set in, the Belarusian language was greatly influenced by Polish.
1772 - 1917. Part of Russian Empire.
o 1772, 1793, 1795: Three partitions of the Polish Commonwealth among Russia, Prussia, and Austria. All of Belarus is incorporated into the Russian Empire, with the exception of a small northwestern corner, taken by Prussia.
So in the 18th century the territory of the republic appeared under Russian rule followed by russification, at the beginning of the 20th century Belarus was a backward province of the Russian Empire.

The shirt story: Grand Duchy of Lithuania

XIII-XVI cc. Grand Duchy of Lithuania, Samojitia and and Rus' - Belarusian Renaissance. The territory of modern Belarus was the centre of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. It was one of the largest, most powerful and flourishing states ill medieval Eastern Europe. It is when Belarusian language and nation began to take shape and soon flourished.
1240-1263: Rule of Mindouh (Mindaugas), who consolidates east Lithuanian and west Belarusian territories into the Grand Duchy of Lithuania with a capital in Navahradak 13th-16th centuries. Belarusian lands flourish in the heart of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, Samojitia and and Rus'.
o 1529, 1566,1588 - Three editions of Statute - the Belarusian State Law Code - were published among first European constitutions and Law Codes.
o 1581: Establishment of the Tribunal of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, Samojitia and and Rus' - the Supreme State Court.