Russian or the Russian Federation is the largest country in the world by area. Its territory is about 17,125,200 square kilometres which is equivalent of one-eighth of the Earth’s inhabited land. This country is so big that it spans nine time zones. Russia neighbours a number of countries including China, Ukraine, North Korea and Norway. About 144.5 million people excluding Crimea are living in Russia. This makes the Russian Federation the ninth most populous country in the world. The population is multinational. The main religion is Russian Christian Orthodox Church.
Russian capital is Moscow, one of the largest cities in the world. Other major cities include Novosibirsk, Saint Petersburg and Nizhny Novgorod.
The weather varies a lot. This is understandable given the size of the Russian territory. The coldest temperature is recorded in Siberia. In Yakutia (part of Siberia) the average winter temperature is about -50°C (-58°F).
The famous Trans-Siberian Train crosses eight time zones while passing 9,289 kilometres (5,772 miles) from Moscow to Vladivostok and makes about 120 stops on the way. This journey takes a week in a train.
Russia is one of the top producers of natural gas and oil in the world. Russia uses ‘ruble’ is their currency.
The largest bell in the world is located in Kremlin, Moscow. Its name is ‘Tsar Kolokol’. It is 6.14 m high and weighs 223 tons.
Kremlin is a residence of Russian presidents and the biggest medieval fortress in the world.
The first edition of Tetris was invented by Russian scientist and programmer Alexey Pazhitnov in 1984.
The following is an example of modern Russian music: