2 July 2019 889 0
Vitebsk for Belarusians can be compared with St. Petersburg for Russians – culture capital, city of artists and musicians. Today Vitebsk boasts of USSR heritage, religious temples and modern buildings. It is also an extremely green and spacious city, that have been given inspiration for local artists for years! The pleasant fact is that your own city tour can be done on foot – the city center is small yet Vitebsk possess the largest square in Belarus – Victory square that is a constant place for city celebrations and events. In summer, you can enjoy fountains touching the sky and during winter the square turns into a real skating rink with entertainments both for kids and adults. Another great square in Vitebsk is called Millennium Square and it is a usual meeting point and start of city tours. It is also a place of Annunciation Church – the first stone building in Vitebsk, a piece of the XII century Polotsk ancient architecture.
Walking along the square you will see a hill with the most noticeable and the biggest church of the city – Holy Assumption Church. Right near the church go for a stroll along two walking streets Tolstoy and Suvorov catch a glimpse of building of XIX – ХХ centuries.
Now you are coming closer to the heart of the city – Town Hall, which is the calling card of Vitebsk, an architectural piece of the 18th century. Here you can visit the local lore museum, one of the oldest and richest museums in Belarus with more than 200 000 items! The greatest attraction here is to go upstairs to the observation deck to see the city from a bird’s view. As we have mentioned, Vitebsk is the art center of Belarus and the number of galleries are a confirmation for this. Art center of Marc Chagall and his House-museum are must-visit places, which are included to all itineraries around Vitebsk. Besides, you are welcomed to visit The History Museum of Vitebsk Folk Art School which is a new gallery dedicated to avant-garde art. Each room concisely, but very accurately reveals its own theme or story of one artist. It is not a trite place yet and has a wonderful souvenir shop with things from local masters. Three Art Museums are certainly not enough for immersion in the history of Vitebsk art, so in this case you can enjoy amazing Contemporary Art Center which is located in a preserved building in which Marc Chagall, Kazimir Malevich, Yudel Peng and other famous personalities associated with the Vitebsk Renaissance (1918–1923) worked and lived.
If you are looking for some unusual experience, take a tour to Tram Museum (opened in 1966), as Vitebsk became the first Belarusian city where this kind of transportation appeared.
Interesting facts
– Vitebsk was the first town where plaster cast, osteoplasty and new methods to combat the epidemic were used.
– The oldest cinema in Belarus is located in Vitebsk on Lenin Street in the building, which is considered to be an architectural monument of the late 19th century.
– Vitebsk hosts the unique festival “Slavic Bazaar” that is one of the most popular music festivals in Belarus.
– This city is a place of the first art school of Belarus, founded in the late 19th century.