Belarus is a landlocked nation-state in Eastern Europe, which borders Russia, Ukraine, Poland, Lithuania, and Latvia. Its capital city is Minsk, and other important cities include Brest, Grodno, Gomel, Mogilev and Vitebsk. Belarus is currently in negotiations with neighboring Russia to integrate both of their economies, among other things, in a plan called the Union of Russia and Belarus. Officially, the country is known as the Republic of, short name is Belarus. Some consider the use of "Belorussia," an earlier version of the name, derogatory, with its direct implication of russification. The name has incorrectly been translated as "White Russia", a name that refers to a separate region.
The country’s full name is the Republic of Belarus, an area of 207,600 square kilometres and is filled up with around 10.5 million people. The locals are a mixture of Belarusian, Polish, Ukrainian and Russian whose religions are either Eastern Orthodox Christianity or Roman Catholic. The countries commercial growth has come mainly from food, textiles, timber, chemicals and agricultural machinery, trading mainly with the UK, Russia, Austria and Germany.
When it comes to culture, Belarus traditions have always included music, with many 12th century Orthodox hymns and sermons being first formed in Belarus. The folk music is well known throughout the country and visitors will usually get to listen to some whilst travelling around Belarus. The most modern folk music came from ritual ceremonies and church music, with the Belarusian classical music making its way into the country in the 20th century.
Visitors will find that when it comes to public transport, trains running between the bigger cities are cheap to ride and provide regular trips to popular areas. There are also plenty of local buses in Belarus, but they can sometimes get crowded and sweaty, with the many locals that travel the buses everyday. Hiring a car can seem like the best bet, giving visitors flexibility to go where they want and save money with the cheaply priced fuel, but getting the fuel can be difficult with petrol stations far and few between. Visitors must try to fill up the tank as soon as a petrol station is spotted and once out on the road, drive very carefully, as the roads aren’t as developed as in Europe.
While travelling within the country, visitors will notice some beautiful nature reserves to stop at, especially the Belavezhskaja Pushcha Nature Reserve, which has the largest area of ancient forest in the whole of Europe. Some stunning lakes can be found in the north of Belarus and anyone wanting to do try out some outdoor activities whilst in the country, should go hiking and camping in the Blue Lakes area, renowned for its natural beauty.
Travellers from places including Frankfurt, Moscow, Berlin, Beirut, Munich, Larnaka, St Petersburg, Tel Aviv, Tallinn, Zurich, Vienna and Warsaw will be able to get International flights to Minsk Airport. There is also a smaller Minsk Airport, where people from Moscow, Kiev and St Petersburg can enter the country and another international airport at Brest, allowing travellers from Odessa, Moscow, Warsaw, St Petersburg and Kiev to fly into Belarus. Bus routes and trains are also available, with trains having to cross through ten borders to reach the country! Weather wise, the summers in Belarus are always warm but wet, while the winters are cold, so the best time for visitors to come is usually towards the end of the summer.