# MINSK|明斯克|Мінск - The capital of Belarus



## Pansori (Apr 26, 2006)

Why Minsk? It happens that my home city Vilnius is located just some 30 kilometers from the border with Belarus. Yet I have never even thought of visiting it.

The Map



This year while looking for some interesting European destinations for my annual Euro holiday I had a hard time choosing. And from the back of my head I pulled that somewhat unexpected and not so often heard name - Minsk, the capital of Belarus. It is certainly one of the least mentioned countries and cities in Europe when it comes to tourism destinations and it somewhat added to the curiosity and excitement.

So here we go. I'm going to Minsk. 

First, however, it's worth noting that EU nationals will need a visa to be allowed into Belarus. Embassy websites give somewhat odd and complicated explanation of visa procedure which is confusing and certainly not very inviting. Which is why I decided to try some travel agency specializing in Belarus visas. There are a few agencies in London (where I live) but none of them seemed any good. They charge alot, take too long and their own rules seem no less complicated than those set by the embassy.

My friends suggested that I should sort it in Lithuania where it's supposed to be easier and less hassle. So I decided to give it a go and it worked: my visa was sorted in a day. All you need is to have a hotel (or hostel) booking. The agency will take care of the rest (travel insurance, 'invitation letters' and other stuff). If you fill your application in the morning you'll probably have it done the following day.

The trip starts in Vilnius, the capital of Lithuania which is less than 200km away from Minsk and has direct railway service to Minsk.

Vilnius Railway Station which is our starting point of the journey


The Polish-made PESA diesel train which will take us to Minsk. The journey takes 2 hours and 30 minutes. Currently work is underway to electrify the entire Vilnius-Minsk route which will cut travel time to 2 hours next year. However even at the moment the service is comfortable and smooth. The border check is performed in the railway station on Lithuanian side and en-route between two intermediate stations on Belarusian side so effectively avoiding any delay due to border control and customs. Railway passenger traffic between Lithuania and Belarus has increased significantly over the past few years along with considerable service improvements which included cutting journey times and new rolling stock with further improvements underway


Arriving at Minsk Railway Station


----------



## Pansori (Apr 26, 2006)

*Minsk*

The sights right outside the Central railway station. While railway station areas in many European cities are often a matter of concern it doesn't seem to be the case in Minsk. It seems to be clean and safe with some impressive Stalin era buildings along with newly built developments


Iconic Stalinist buildings facing the Railway Station square


Government House which contrary to what I thought is not a post-WW2 structure. It's built in 1934. Designed by Iosif Langbard


Area around Independence Square. By now you might have noticed that Minsk looks very clean and tidy. It doesn't apply only to main central areas but very much so to the entire city. In fact it must be one of the cleanest and tidiest cities I have ever been to. In this respect I would compare it to places like Singapore or Helsinki


----------



## Pansori (Apr 26, 2006)

*Minsk*

Independence Avenue. This must be the main street of Minsk




KGB Headquarters. Yep, it's still named the KGB in Belarus. Along with statues of Lenin and all the Soviet street names. Most street names in central part of Minsk carry some sort of reference to the Soviet history


Monument to Felix Dzerzhinsky. Best known for being the guy who created the KGB


----------



## Pansori (Apr 26, 2006)

*Minsk*

More snapshots of buildings and surroundings of Independence Avenue





Underground pedestrian crossings are very common in Minsk. Overall the city is very well planned with adequate facilities for both pedestrians and cars. One could instantly tell that Minsk is putting serious amounts of money into infrastructure development


Lenin Street. Note the size of the pedestrian walkway. This seems rather typical for Minsk. Massive avenues lined by no less massive pedestrian spaces. I like that


----------



## Pansori (Apr 26, 2006)

Continued...

Karl Marx Street 






Lenin Street


----------



## Pansori (Apr 26, 2006)

Lenin Street






Karl Marx Street


----------



## Pansori (Apr 26, 2006)

Independence Avenue


Palace of the Republic


Palace of Culture


Tank-liberator Memorial


----------



## Pansori (Apr 26, 2006)

Public bus. Public transport in Minsk is generally very good and adequate. And cheap too. A single bus, trolleybus, tram or metro ride costs under €0.3. Bus in the photo is locally-produced MAZ equipped with a Mercedes-Benz engine 




Inside the inner-yard of some random building in the downtown


Buildings on Internatsyanalnaya Street


----------



## El_Greco (Apr 1, 2005)

I think people will be pleasantly surprised, many would probably expect a tired and decrepit place and yet the city looks clean, orderly, spacious and very liveable. In terms of architecture and planning it resembles Moscow but with a touch of Germany here and there. Impressive stuff. Please continue!


----------



## Pansori (Apr 26, 2006)

El_Greco said:


> I think people will be pleasantly surprised, many would probably expect a tired and decrepit place and yet the city looks clean, orderly, spacious and very liveable. In terms of architecture and planning it resembles Moscow but with a touch of Germany here and there. Impressive stuff. Please continue!


I could imagine some will not appreciate the 'commieblock' architecture which dominates Minsk but you're spot on on the rest: it's a very liveable, spacious and cozy city. To my taste at least.


----------



## Tiaren (Jan 29, 2006)

I am indeed pleasantly surprised! The city looks really nice and grand. In an another photo thread of Minsk in this forum I was commenting, that it was a "butt-ugly" city. I guess, I have to apologize and take my rash and harsh judgement back. 



El_Greco said:


> In terms of architecture and planning it resembles Moscow but with a touch of Germany here and there.


In what regard do you see a touch of Germany?


----------



## Pansori (Apr 26, 2006)

Tiaren said:


> I am indeed pleasantly surprised! The city looks really nice and grand. In an another photo thread of Minsk in this forum I was commenting, that it was a "butt-ugly" city. I guess, I have to apologize and take my rash and harsh judgement back.


Lol, I did see your comment. I would disagree but of course everyone's got a view. Architecture is always a subject to discussions. 

Mind you central areas of Minsk are actually quite beautiful in the traditional European sense: grand avenues lined by some impressive buildings (mostly Stalin era but some others too) which are restored and lit up by night. I mean something like this.

The modern part of Minsk (outside the center) is perhaps more of a subject to discussion but I would invite to follow this thread till the end because I believe I managed to pay visits to a number of different areas which should give a good idea what Minsk looks like overall i.e. not just center or not just one particular area which I liked.


----------



## Pansori (Apr 26, 2006)

Continued

Square next to the Holy Spirit Cathedral with highrise quarter in a not so far distance


Minsk old town is very compact as a result of extensive WW2 destruction which ruined most of the city. At present there is a number of dining and nightlife establishments in the area. A number of construction/renovation sites are busy in the area which seems to be turning into one of the central dining/entertainment areas of the city


----------



## Pansori (Apr 26, 2006)

Harley parked on one of old town streets


The text translates 'Apartments of your dreams'. Perhaps they could have done a better job given the location (city center)




Decorative monuments to the World Ice Hockey Championship which took place in Minsk earlier this year. It seems to have been a big event


----------



## Pansori (Apr 26, 2006)

Volat, the official mascot of the Ice Hockey Championship


A big fountain next to the river


Belarus Hotel. It seems to be one of the few Soviet highrise landmarks in central Minsk. I checked booking.com and it has a very good rating (8.3). I guess it's worth staying in a place like that just for the atmosphere. There is a big public park in the area along the river. Overall Minsk did a good job with parks and open public spaces


Minsk - hero city. A Soviet era slogan which represents a honorary title given by the USSR to 12 cities in the aftermath of WW2 for outstanding heroism during the war


Apartments along Masherava Avenue


----------



## christos-greece (Feb 19, 2008)

Great, very nice photos from Minsk :cheers:


----------



## El_Greco (Apr 1, 2005)

Pansori said:


> I could imagine some will not appreciate the 'commieblock' architecture which dominates Minsk but you're spot on on the rest: it's a very liveable, spacious and cozy city. To my taste at least.


Yeah but commie blocks are everywhere these days...



Tiaren said:


> In what regard do you see a touch of Germany?


Karl Marx street could easily be in Cologne or even Berlin IMO.


----------



## Pansori (Apr 26, 2006)

Just in case someone started to think that this thread is going to get a yet another boring city thread with all those streets, cars and buildings, fear not. 

There is another side to Minsk which is very far from boring.

It has to be said that girls in Minsk are not just pretty but it won't be an exaggeration to say that in this respect it must be one of the most exciting cities on earth. It may be partially due to hot weather but girls in Minsk certainly know how to dress _properly_ (i.e. to my taste) 

(Karl Marx street)


There will be more if you'll be patient enough


----------



## Pansori (Apr 26, 2006)

Continued

Views around Pyeramozhtsav Avenue located in the modern part of Minsk downtown

Cinema Moskva




Royal Plazahttp://www.skyscrapercity.com/showthread.php?t=1151615, a 130m tall highrise which is nearing completion


IMG_3933 by jo.sau, on Flickr


----------



## Pansori (Apr 26, 2006)

Lidskoe is a popular beer brand in Belarus. It's quite good too




Bicycle path along Pyeramozhtsav Avenue. Minsk has perfect landscape and urban layout for cycling however cycling infrastructure seems pretty limited. I saw a few newly built paths but clearly not enough. There were very few cyclists on the streets too compared to neighboring major cities (Vilnius, Warsaw, Wroclaw). Most cycling activity also seemed to do with leisure rather than commute. Overall Minsk has a great potential to become a cycling city (there is lost of space to build bicycle paths or dedicated lanes) but it doesn't seem to be the case at the present


Parushttp://www.skyscrapercity.com/showthread.php?t=1151347, a 133m tall highrise which will be Minsk's tallest for the time being


----------



## Pansori (Apr 26, 2006)

A wider angle view of the nearby development. It reminds me of sights in Shenzhen (even if not as enormous). There are more large construction sites in Minsk. It feels as if the entire city is impatient to get a facelift and expand at the same time


Ground view


----------



## Pansori (Apr 26, 2006)

Full view of the Library




Statue of Francysk Skaryna, a humanist who was an important 16th century Belarusian public figure and contributor to the development of Belarusian language


Helicopter passing by


----------



## Pansori (Apr 26, 2006)

A very brief introduction to Belarusian cuisine. Judging from the menu at Vasilki restaurant (a popular and inexpensive local chain of traditional food) Belarusian cuisine is more or less identical to the Lithuanian cuisine which includes a variety of potato pancakes, potato dumplings (zeppelins), cold soup and other items. It's not always very healthy but it tastes great (at least to those who are used to it ) 

Here is my cold soup with fried potatoes. This is actually a pretty healthy and nutritious food which is based on yoghurt (kefir) and includes various vegetables and eggs with optional fried or cooked potatoes. It's great to have on a warm summer day and is not heavy on the stomach unlike most other foods from the same menu. This is one local food I would recommend to those who are not familiar with traditional Belarusian cuisine and are not in a mood of stuffing themselves with heavy food


I was pleasantly surprised to find out that Lithuanian brand beer Svyturys was available too and in more than one variety


Potato pancakes with sour cream


----------



## Pansori (Apr 26, 2006)

Continued. Some random photos from random places in Minsk

Beer fest in my apartment . Notably the German beer Warsteiner is actually brewed in Belarus under a license. Locally produced beer is considerably cheaper than imports (about 2x)


IL-76 near Minsk National Airport. There is a number of aircraft sitting there for museum purposes IL-76 being biggest and most impressive of all


One of the main entry points to the city via M2 road which eventually becomes Independence Avenue


Independence Avenue


----------



## Pansori (Apr 26, 2006)

Our bill in Coffee Inn restaurant. Quoting Top Gear's Jeremy Clarkson 'I love having inches of money!' (1 EUR translates to around 13800 BYR) . The only currency I have touched which is of lower value was Vietnam Dong (Vietnam was the place where Clarkson's phrase about inches of money comes from)


An impressive artwork on a Soviet era modern building


Old Town


GAZ truck


----------



## Pansori (Apr 26, 2006)

Most traffic lights in Minsk have timers. I saw those widely used in various Asian cities in China, Thailand, Malaysia and elsewhere but not in Europe (with a few exceptions). A very useful feature which helps to reduce stress for both drivers and pedestrians


New building of the Great Patriotic War Museum which provides insight into WW2 from the Belarusian perspective


The exposition of the museum is pretty interesting even if not overwhelmingly imporessive. There are some weapons, tanks, aircraft, various articles, uniforms, maps and photographs


----------



## Pansori (Apr 26, 2006)

A soviet propaganda poster which draws a parallel between military and industry




Museum souvenirs for sale. The shop attendand politely explained that it was not allowed to take photos of the items. However it was already too late 


The museum is to do with WW2 but there is a room with more recent history. President of Belarus A.Lukashenka overlooking the room. He's been in office for 20 years and was able to hold a firm grip on power in the country. He clearly gained a lot of experience ever since he started as a President in 1994. It remains to be seen how he'll be reigning after current shakeups of Russia-EU/US relations due to the Ukrainian crisis. Lukashenka made some very firm statements blasting some of the Russia's actions in Ukraine despite being a firm ally of Russia. There are strong indications that at the same time Belarus is opening up for more foreign investment and trade. It will be a test to his ability to maneuver in multiple fields: political and economic


----------



## Pansori (Apr 26, 2006)

Ice cream 



Masherava Avenue. Banner reads: Day of the fire service of the Republic of Belarus


Stadler FLIRT, one of the new purchases of Belarusian Railways as part of a massive rolling stock overhaul. Other notable recent buys include Polish PESA passenger trains (we rode one back to Vilnius) and the powerful electric freight locomotives BCG-1 (derived from HXD2 which in turn is built on Alstom Prima platform) from China. Belarus is an important freight railway hub in that part of Europe


Metro station


----------



## Pansori (Apr 26, 2006)

Minsk Metro transports around 900 000 passengers a day on two existing lines




Soviet decor


----------



## Pansori (Apr 26, 2006)

Newly developed residential areas in the Northwestern part of Minsk


----------



## Pansori (Apr 26, 2006)

Here we go again. Me and my two comrades were almost constantly arguing throughout our stay in Minsk what king of women are the hottest.This time all of us came to an agreement in an instant. It was certainly a 9 if not 10.


----------



## VECTROTALENZIS (Jul 10, 2010)

I feel that both Belarus and China are similar when it comes to their investment in infrastructure, and cleanliness and tidiness. 

Could be that both countries are dictatorships and have been communist. I've noticed that dictatorships often put importance into having a nice surface and grande visuals.

Seeing the pictures it looks like Europe with "Chinese style government".


----------



## lafreak84 (Oct 26, 2010)

WOW! I am impressed! Minsk looks so clean and modern, I always wanted to visit Belarus but now after seeing this set of pictures I am determined to pay a visit next year. Thanks!


----------



## Wolfowitsch (Mar 26, 2014)

Belarus is a really nice country


----------



## Pansori (Apr 26, 2006)

VECTROTALENZIS said:


> I feel that both Belarus and China are similar when it comes to their investment in infrastructure, and cleanliness and tidiness.


Perhaps not surprisingly I had such a thought while in Minsk. There indeed are quite a few similarities. For instance you can't escape the fact that Minsk is being meticulously planned in accordance with the Le Curbusian style and ideology. Something that instantly comes to mind once you're in Shenzhen (or even other Chinese cities). 

It must be noted, however, that similarities end there. There are some very stark and very fundamental differences between how things are done in China and Belarus. At least this is the impression I got. It might in part to do with the sheer size of Chinese cities (Shenzhen is bigger than all of Belarus) - more of everything, more lively and more 'into it' - but I think government competence plays a role there too. And by this I mean that things in China are getting done on a different level.


----------



## Pansori (Apr 26, 2006)

More photos coming!

So after the first couple of days in Minsk we managed to get a decent impression how the city looks like. We didn't have to rely on any kind of public transport and kept on driving from place to place or even just driving at random from one end of the city to another simply for the sake of it. Things looked nice, tidy, clean and it was beyond any doubt that Minsk overall is, in fact, a very orderly and neat place. The photos that I put here (except the following three photos in this post) are not picked out or selective in any way and show what Minsk actually looks like for most part.

So I decided to call for help and contacted some of my sources who supposedly were more familiar with Minsk. I wanted to get any information on any run down or shabby areas. Consequently I got informed that one such area was located near the old Airport (Minsk-1). Off we drove.

And here is what we found. Something that looks like a former village outside the city which kept its shape and charm (if it can be called this way):







Yep, the curious attempt of finding 'bad' areas in Minsk ended in a complete disappointment. Those last three photos show the worst that we managed to find in Minsk. And it looks like it won't stay there for long.


----------



## Pansori (Apr 26, 2006)

A few random shots from the streets of Minsk


----------



## Pansori (Apr 26, 2006)

One of the centrally located McDonald's is located in this Stalinist building. This particular McD was always very busy and it feels like there is demand for more fast food burger chains in the central part of the city


More burger (not McDonald's)


Old town backyard


----------



## Pansori (Apr 26, 2006)

Independence Square







Stalitsa (Capital) shopping center which is _under_ the Independence Square


----------



## ProdayuSlona (May 16, 2012)

Fantastic photos! Just came back from Minsk myself, stopped by for a day driving back from Vilnius 
If you even come by Belarus again I recommend checking out Vitebsk as well.


----------



## KaRinaKa (Oct 30, 2015)

*Minsk*



Minsk. National Library.


----------



## christos-greece (Feb 19, 2008)

Great, very nice updates from Minsk :cheers:


----------



## Nightsky (Sep 16, 2002)

Nice presentation of Minsk. It is easy to forget how close it is to Vilnius and the rest of Europe. I think more tourists would visit Belarus if visa was not required.


----------



## Pansori (Apr 26, 2006)

Nightsky said:


> Nice presentation of Minsk. It is easy to forget how close it is to Vilnius and the rest of Europe. I think more tourists would visit Belarus if visa was not required.


Visa requirement is the dumbest thing that Belarus government is doing. They basically say 'we don't want tourists and their money'. It's just weird.


----------



## El_Greco (Apr 1, 2005)

Pansori said:


> Visa requirement is the dumbest thing that Belarus government is doing. They basically say 'we don't want tourists and their money'. It's just weird.


A lot of countries do that. Sadly.


----------



## BEE2 (May 7, 2013)

Well done!


----------



## BEE2 (May 7, 2013)

Pansori said:


> Visa requirement is the dumbest thing that Belarus government is doing. They basically say 'we don't want tourists and their money'. It's just weird.



Why Belarus does not want foreign tourists to briny money in? It sounds weird indeed. Maybe they are super rich already?
hno:hno:hno:


----------



## BEE2 (May 7, 2013)

LtBk said:


> Minsk looks nicer than I thought it be. Good job with the pictures.



I cannot say Minsk is as architecturally charming as other European cities but I have to admit Minsk is well organized and very neat !!! :applause:


----------



## BEE2 (May 7, 2013)

Pansori said:


> More photos coming!
> 
> 
> Yep, the curious attempt of finding 'bad' areas in Minsk ended in a complete disappointment. Those last three photos show the worst that we managed to find in Minsk. And it looks like it won't stay there for long.




:nuts::nuts::nuts:Overall, Minsk is super neat for sure!!!


----------



## BEE2 (May 7, 2013)

Pansori said:


> Here we go again. Me and my two comrades were almost constantly arguing throughout our stay in Minsk what king of women are the hottest.This time all of us came to an agreement in an instant. It was certainly a 9 if not 10.



Pansori， Why didn't you take the pictures when the girl turned around?hno:


----------



## BEE2 (May 7, 2013)

Pansori said:


> Perhaps not surprisingly I had such a thought while in Minsk. There indeed are quite a few similarities. For instance you can't escape the fact that Minsk is being meticulously planned in accordance with the Le Curbusian style and ideology. Something that instantly comes to mind once you're in Shenzhen (or even other Chinese cities).
> 
> It must be noted, however, that similarities end there. There are some very stark and very fundamental differences between how things are done in China and Belarus. At least this is the impression I got. It might in part to do with the sheer size of Chinese cities (Shenzhen is bigger than all of Belarus) - more of everything, more lively and more 'into it' - but I think government competence plays a role there too. And by this I mean that things in China are getting done on a different level.


++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Never been to either Minsk or Shenzhen. In my eyes, the difference between Shenzhen and Minsk in terms of urban planning and architectural style, Shenzhen is more westernized and more modern ( many buildings in Shenzhen were designed by western architects) while Minsk is very very 
very NEAT but its architecture remains more 'Soviet' style.

I am not sure whether what I say is right or wrong, just my personal impression.


----------



## Pansori (Apr 26, 2006)

BEE2 said:


> ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
> Never been to either Minsk or Shenzhen. In my eyes, the difference between Shenzhen and Minsk in terms of urban planning and architectural style, Shenzhen is more westernized and more modern ( many buildings in Shenzhen were designed by western architects) while Minsk is very very
> very NEAT but its architecture remains more 'Soviet' style.
> 
> I am not sure whether what I say is right or wrong, just my personal impression.


You are actually spot on. There is no comparison in terms of architectural quality. Shenzhen is one of the leading cities in the world when it comes to contemporary architecture. Minsk on the other hand has hardly any decent contemporary architecture at all.

I was merely referring to the fundamental planning ideology which is rather similar in both cities.


----------

