Russia

Russia officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation is a country in northern Eurasia. From northwest to southeast, Russia shares borders with Norway, Finland, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and Poland (both via Kaliningrad Oblast), Belarus, Ukraine, Georgia, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, the People's Republic of China, Mongolia, and North Korea. It also has maritime borders with Japan by the Sea of Okhotsk, and the United States by the Bering Strait. Russia is the largest country in the world, covering more than one eighth of the Earth's inhabited land area and it is also the ninth most populous nation with 143 million people. Capital and the largest city is Moscow with more than 10 million inhabitants. The enormous size of Russia and the remoteness of many areas from the sea result in the dominance of the humid continental climate, which is prevalent in all parts of the country except for the tundra and the extreme southeast. Mountains in the south obstruct the flow of warm air masses from the Indian Ocean, while the plain of the west and north makes the country open to Arctic and Atlantic influences. Orthodox Christianity, Islam, Buddhism and Judaism are Russia’s traditional religions, legally a part of Russia's "historical heritage" but Russian Orthodoxy is the dominant religion in the country. Famous sights and landmarks are Tretyakov Gallery, Hermitage museum, Bolshoi theater, Mariinsky theaters, churches like Saint Basil's Cathedral, Cathedral of Christ the Saviour, Saint Isaac's Cathedral and Church of the Savior on Blood, fortifications like Moscow Kremlin and Peter and Paul Fortress, Red Square, Palace Square, Tverskaya Street, Nevsky Prospect and many more.