There aren't so many places in Russia where the magnificence of landscapes along the Volga river and rich historical development are combined with the original skill of masters, embodied in the unique monuments of art. This is the Yaroslavl land. Visiting Yaroslavl you'll be able to see the real traditional Russia surviving and existing in the province.

The town was firstly mentioned in Russian chronicles in the beginning of the 11th century. According to the ancient legend in 1010 on this very place Great Kiev Prince Yaroslavl the Wise killed a bear and ordered to found a fortress there. This legend has given the emblem to the town - a bear with a pole-axe represented on a silver shield. The fortress featuring favorable location at the crossroads of the important commercial ways soon turned into a large center of commerce, handicrafts as well as religious centre of Russia. There is a lot of old churches, museums with unique collections in the city.

Brief Date
The year of foundation 1010
Territory 20.1 sq. km
Population (as of 2002) 613 thousand
Major Victor Vladimirovich Volonchunas
Number of districts 6
Number of higher establishments (with branches) 11

Geographical Position. Transportation and Communication
The city of Yaroslavl occupies an advantageous position at the intersection of the most important transport main lines. Yaroslavl is the junction where the Transsiberian Railway crosses with the Moscow-Archangelsk motorcar and railway lines. The city is connected with Moscow (270 km) through railway, coach and river transportation. There is also the railway and coach communication with St. Petersburg (790 km). The railway main lines pass through the city to the North-East of the country. From Yaroslavl, along the Volga river one can get to the southern and northern seas. The navigation duration in the region is 200 - 220 days.

Except the international telephone communication there are intensively developing new types of it: satellite, mobile and paging communication, computer network transmission of data on the base of the Internet technology. All the cities and higher education institutions of the region have the access to the Internet. The administration of the region has the Web-server of its own

Cultural and Natural Heritage
214 of the settlements of the region are referred to as historically valuable, i.e. they have accumulated the most precious historical and cultural heritage. Except Yaroslavl itself, where the Volga and history are everywhere, these are the following cities: Rostov - the cradle of the Christianity and the oldest city in the centre of Russia, it is over 1100 years old, Pereslavl Zalessky where Peter the Great started the construction of Russian fleet, Uglich where the mysterious and dramatic events of the 16th century caused the change of the Ruricovich dynasty into the Romanov dynasty. Myshkin - a small merchant museum - town of the 19th century and a lot of others.

There are over 5000 monuments of history and culture, including those three recommended by UNESCO for tourists: the Rostov Kremlin, the cathedrals of John the Baptist and Elijah the Prophet. Most of the monuments are the masterpieces of the golden age of Yaroslavl architecture of the 12th - 17th centuries. The oldest of the architectural monuments is the Transfiguration Cathedral, that dates back to the year of 1152 in Pereslavl Zalessky.

Yaroslavl can deservedly be considered the cultural capital of the Golden Ring of Russia. There are 4 theatres in the city and the Governor's Symphony Orchestra. There are also arranged the international festivals and various exhibitions: "The Jazz Over the Volga" festival, the Sobinov Festival of Opera Music, the All-Russian Nekrasov Poetry Holiday of chorus and bell music called "Transfiguration", various international exhibitions.

The art of different folk and ethnographic groups attracts a lot of tourists and is popular not only in Russia, but all over the world. The Rostov enamel is a real pearl of Yaroslavl traditional handicraft art, though the region is famous for the production of linen, exported to Europe years ago, for embroidery and icon painting, for issue of jewelry, wooden and clay articles.

One gets brilliant opportunity to enjoy beautiful scenery of the Volga river and the Rybinsk Lake and to get rest in Pereslavl National Park, which is the first one in Russia where natural and cultural heritage is being protected.

The purity of the waters allows one to enjoy swimming and that of the forests to go mushroom and berry picking.