M O N A S T E RY O F T H E C AV ES , K I E V, U K R A I N E
The soul of the samovar is singing
a tune of warm-hearted hospitality.
From historic Moscow to canal-
laced St. Petersburg, Russia is full
of riddles and surprises to Western
thinking, according to novelist and
historian Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn.
The people of the largest country
in the world are passionate,
creating swirly-spired onion domes
of gold and striking colours, and
making lithe, white swans dance
across a Tchaikovsky-infused lake.
Visits to the Hermitage Museum,
St. Basil's Cathedral and the
Kremlin will give you a taste.
Ukraine's ancient and splendid
trade route, the Dnieper River, is
lined with rich cultural treasures,
spectacular churches and rural
folkways that recall the days of
the Vikings, Tsars and Cossacks.
See Kiev's Cave Monasteries,
marvel at the riding skills of
Cossack horsemen, and trace
the footsteps of history at
Odessa's Potemkin Steps.
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