Welcome to St. Petersburg, one of the most beautiful cities in the world! Founded by Tsar Peter the Great on May 27, 1703, St. Petersburg was planned and built as the capital of the newly emerged Russian Empire. Today one of the most beautiful cities in Europe and a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

North Palmyra is the cultural capital of Russia. Also, St. Petersburg is often called "the city of the White Nights". However, it is not only a city of museums and architectural ensembles but of holy places and ascetics of God as well. We will walk through the center and visit three main churches: St. Isaac's Cathedral, Kazan Cathedral, and the Church of the Savior on Spilled Blood. On the way of the pilgrim, we will go to the St. John Monastery and the Alexander Nevsky Lavra.

There is a monastery in the Pskov region, which has not been closed for a single day since 1473. This is the Holy Dormition Pskov-Pechersky Monastery, located in the city of Pechora, not far from Pskov. Its famous caves of monks are still considered the most amazing holy place in Russia, to get into which is special mercy for real pilgrims. There is the inscription above the entrance on a red plack "Entrance to the cave God handed." According to legend, this inscription appeared by itself when the entrance to the caves was opened. Moreover, they say that it is impossible to erase. Many Orthodox miracles are associated with the caves, which can be learned only by visiting there.

In the life of every Orthodox person, at least once there is a secret desire to visit holy places. Each pilgrim who comes to the Pskov land acquires a special spiritual mood. The Orthodox history of the Pskov region is associated with the name of the Holy Princess Olga, the first Christian woman in Russia. In Russian chronicles, Pskov was called the House of the Holy Trinity, after the name of its main shrine, the Trinity Cathedral. Today it is the main adornment of the Pskov Kremlin. The emergence of one of the first Orthodox cities in Russia is closely connected with the Holy Trinity Cathedral. It was here, after holy baptism in Constantinople in 957, that Princess Olga saw three light-bearing rays illuminating from the sky an elevation at the confluence of two rivers - Pskova and Velikaya. She prayed for a long time and prophetically said that "in this place the city will be great, glorious and abundant," and ordered to build a church in the name of the Holy Life-Giving Trinity.

Tver is sometimes referred to as a small St. Petersburg. And this is indeed true - though the city has its own unique character, there is a lot of features that are common with the Northern capital and what distinguishes it from many other cities of Central Russia.

How do Orthodox Christians live in the hinterland of Russia? You can feel it in the Nilov Hermitage and in the Bogoroditskiy Zhitenny Convent. In Russia, there are no two identical churches, just as there are no two identical icons, frescoes, or ancient stories about them. Hear stories about the most venerated saints of Tver, of churches and monasteries, which have not survived to the present day! It is priceless!

Moscow is the heart of Russia! The Kremlin, Red Square, and St. Basil's Cathedral are like a magnet. And then the medieval and impregnable walls of the amazingly beautiful architectural ensemble of the Novodevichy Convent await us. And, of course, the main temple of the country, the destroyed and rebuilt Cathedral of Christ the Savior.

The most beautiful cathedrals, the most Russian landscapes, the very essence of Russia is the Golden Ring. Sergiev Posad is the only city in the Moscow region included in the Golden Ring route. Thousands of pilgrims and tourists from all over the world come here every year. The city got its name after St. Sergius of Radonezh, the founder of the biggest Russian monastery - the Trinity-Sergius Lavra. The Trinity Lavra of St. Sergius is a rare collection of manuscripts and early printed books. Since the beginning of the 19th century, the Moscow Theological Academy, one of the largest religious educational institutions in Russia, has been located on the territory of the Lavra, in the former Tsar's palaces. Here, several times a week at noon, the famous archimandrite, whom many call the Elder, performs the rite of "healing those possessed by evil spirits" or conducts an exorcism rite. Rostov and Yaroslavl are the oldest cities in Russia and the treasury of Orthodox culture. Extant magnificent monuments of architecture and monumental painting, famous Rostov chimes are the glory and pride of Russian art.

Standing on the great Volga River and included in the Golden Ring, Yaroslavl is entirely composed of ancient churches and monasteries. Old streets with wooden houses are in harmony with modern business centers and theaters. The center of white-stone Yaroslavl is included in the UNESCO World Heritage Site as "an example of 18th-century town planning."

Vologda is one of the most important centers of Orthodox culture. This city can be called "the capital of the Northern Thebaid". The capital of the unique cultural and spiritual space filled with shrines and impregnated with the traditions of monasticism and asceticism. Ferapontov Monastery is one of the pearls of the Orthodox heritage. Here is the only church in Russia that has preserved the ancient frescoes created by the greatest painters of their time - Dionysius and his sons. The Kirillo-Belozersky Monastery stands majestically and unshakably on the shores of the most beautiful Siversky Lake. its white-stone walls seem to embrace and protect the incredible beauty of the Russian North, and numerous domes of temples and churches literally soar in the piercing blue cold sky.

Walk along the quiet Vologda streets, climb the bell tower of the Vologda Kremlin, go to the Bishop's courtyard. Breathe in the spirit of peace that is still felt in these places. Buy souvenirs as it is here made famous Vologda lace.

Take your time to do three things before you say goodbye to Russia! Nesting dolls and samovar, national hats and scarves, boots and mittens, eggs and honey - be sure to take a slice of Russia himself.

There are many testimonies of Orthodox miracles, and most of us think that a miracle, if it suddenly happens, will be like a flash, thunder in a clear sky, and it will be simply impossible not to notice it. But it turns out that it happens differently. Miracles happen to us every day, and we do not always notice them. Why? Because they are quiet. Try not to lose the feeling of a miracle in everyday hassle. The miracles you have found in quiet abodes filled with spiritual history ...