Primorsky Krai

VLADIVOSTOK - ВЛАДИВОСТОК

Vladivostok was founded in 1860 and soon became a major naval base. It is still is and will continue to be due to availability of numerous harbors suitable for the purpose. The city is also a big commercial port.

The first submarine squadron was set up in Vladivostok in January 1905. The small monument below commemorates the event. The S-56 submarine displayed nearby is now a museum.

Torpedo tubes.

A view over the Golden Horn Bay.

Merchant ships can be seen all over the bay.

It is often foggy in Vladivostok.

The ship carries used cars from Japan to be sold in Vladivostok's second-hand car market.

Thanks to the 2012 Asian Pacific Economic Conference held in Vladivostok, big changes occurred in the city. The most visible are two suspension bridges. The shorter one was built across the Golden Horn Bay, the longer one spans the mainland and Russky Island.

Day view.

Night view.

The bridge across the Golden Horn Bay.

The elegant bridge to Russky Island.

In the late 19th and early 20th century sixteen protective forts and artillery batteries were built around Vladivostok. Nowadays some of them have been turned into museums, some just stay unattended and open to public around the clock.

Modern materiel is also displayed.

Ships approaching the city are within range of deadly fire.

Once you get to Russky Island you can visit the recently built oceanarium.

There is a small Saint Seraphim Monastery on the island.

The best way to travel across Russia is by car but if you choose a train then trans-siberian rail road trips begin or end in Vladivostok. The good old Lenin stands right across the railway station pointing his finger to the passenger terminal.

9,288 kilometers from Moscow.

The interior of the passenger terminal is decorated with murals.

The memorial plate reads that heir to the Russian throne Nikolay (Nicholas) Romanov was here in 1891 to kick off the construction of the Trans-Siberian rail line.

The monument to Fighters for the Soviet Power in the central square.

In the city center (Aleutskaya and Svetlanskaya streets) you will find plenty of 19-20th century houses.

Wedding.

Admiral Nevelskoy contributed a lot to exploration of the Far East in mid-19th century.

To victims of the Russo-Japanese war in 1904-05.

The WWII memorial.

The famous Soviet dissident Alexander Solzhenitsyn was expelled from the Soviet Union in 1974. In May 1994 he returned to Russia. He arrived in Vladivostok by sea and later took a train to Moscow. The monument below depicts the moment he disembarks the ship.

The Hollywood star Yul Brynner was born in Vladivostok July 11, 1920. His statue stands next to the house in Aleutskaya Street, 15.

Yul Brynner Cape can be visited in the vicinity of Dalnegorsk north of Vladivostok.

PRIMORSKY KRAI - ПРИМОРСКИЙ КРАЙ

Khasan - хасан

The true end of the road is not Vladivostok but a small village of Khasan ((Хасан) located 270 km south where border lines of Russia, China and North Korea converge. The rail way station in Khasan is disproportionally huge considering the fact that trains to\from North Korea run seldom only when a big need arises.

Tracks running towards North Korea.

Tracks running towards Vladivostok.

Lonely railway tanks.

A Russian border guards watch tower.

A North Korean border guards watch tower.

A Chinese border guards watch tower.

The bridge across the Tumangan River spans Russia and North Korea. There is no pedestrian or car crossing.

August 2007. Charles Veley managed to approach North Korea as close as fifty meters.

The end of the road Moscow-Khasan.

In July 1938 Japanese troops attempted to occupy a big chunk Soviet land. The consequent war conflict lasted three weeks. Japs were defeated. The conflict went down to Soviet\Russian history as Lake Khasan war. There are a number of monuments in this area commemorating the event.

The scenery is as emerald as that of Ireland.

slavyanka - славянка

The town of Slavyanka is 105 km by road north of Khasan and 200 km south of Vladivostok. If you ever come to this area you can comfortably overnight in Slavyanka. There are at least three hotels. The Pallada Hotel is rather decent.

Slavyanka is a commercial port and a transshipment base for petroleum products.

nakhodka - находка

The town of Nakhodka is located 185 km by road east of Vladivostok. It is a coal transshipment port.

The central square.

The Our Lady of Kazan Cathedral.

Perhaps, the best statue of Lenin in all Russia is in Nakhodka. The statue was designed by a famous Soviet sculptor Anikushin. Unlike thousands of idealistic and pompous Lenins all over the country, Lenin in Nakhodka is depicted as a human being. Unfortunately, light was not good at the time of the research.

A babushka is walking her dog on a beach near Nakhodka.

A babushka is getting ready to swim.

spassk-dalny - спасск-дальний

Spassk-Dalny in Primorsky Krai and Volochaevka in Jewish Autonomy are the two towns where in 1922 the revolutionary Red Army fought decisive battles against the counter revolutionary White Army and Japanese intervention force. The battle of Spassk-Dalny took place October 7-9, 1922. The event is commemorated by two monuments. The bigger one stands in front of the railway station, the smaller one in the centre.