Friday, September 25, 2009

Where in the World is Tomsk?

Most people have heard of Moscow and St. Petersburg in Russia, but where in the world is the city of Tomsk?  Well, if you look at a map of Asia, find the western edge of Mongolia and go north; that's where I'll be!  (Someone asked me if I were going to "Outer Mongolia" - not quite, but close!)

Wikipedia has a good general article about Tomsk, including history, climate, politics, industry and education.  Tomsk is a city of about 500,000 people and is known as the "Athens of Siberia" because of the number of colleges and universities found there.  It is also an industrial center; many factories were moved there during WWII to avoid capture by the Germans.  It has been described as "quaint" because of the many old wooden buildings with decorative carvings.  I'm really looking forward to visiting the city and learning more about how Russians live outside of the big cities.

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