Things to Do in Brest, Belarus

Quick facts: This fortress took the main blow in the first minutes of the Great Patriotic War, and its defenders held out for nearly a month without water or food. The walls are still scarred with bullet marks, and one of the entrances, the Kholm Gate, gleams with bricks polished by coal.

Highlights: Beneath the fortress stretches a network of underground tunnels 8 kilometers long, through which defenders secretly moved between bastions. In 1965, the fortress was given the name "Hero Fortress"; only three places in the entire country hold such a title.

Quick facts: This open-air site features over 70 steam, diesel, and electric locomotives, some of which were built as early as the 19th century. The largest exhibit weighs 165 tons, a Soviet-era heavy steam locomotive FD that could pull cargo for an entire kilometer.

Highlights: One of the most surprising exhibits is a German narrow-gauge steam locomotive used by the Wehrmacht on the Eastern Front, and after the war it served for decades in the peat bogs of Belarus.

Quick facts: This monument was opened in 2009 and is one of the tallest memorial columns in Eastern Europe, reaching a height of 19 meters. It symbolizes 1000 years of Brest's history, from ancient times to modern days, and six historical figures are carved on it, including Prince Vladimirovich and Brest's first printer.

Highlights: At night the monument is lit with dramatic light that highlights every relief detail, from soldiers' armor to book pages. Locals say the best time to see the monument's true face is at sunset, when shadows create the illusion that the figures are moving.

Quick facts: This church, built in the 19th century, is an Orthodox shrine renowned for its unique architecture. Every day hundreds of believers and tourists from all over the world visit it.

Highlights: The church walls are decorated with hand-painted fresco cycles depicting scenes from the Old Testament. One of the most impressive elements is the 27-meter-tall iconostasis covered in gold leaf and carved with intricate ornaments.

Quick facts: It is the largest winter garden in Europe, covering an area of 1.1 hectares. The collection contains more than 3,000 plant species from all continents of the world.

Highlights: Inside hides an 8-meter-high waterfall that sounds louder than the street noise outside the walls. Walking among palm trees and tropical trees in winter, you can hear the songs of exotic birds while a blizzard rages outside.

Quick facts: This Orthodox church was the last Eastern Orthodox sanctuary built in the Russian Empire before World War I. Its walls also remember the signing of the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk in 1918.

Highlights: During the Soviet era, an officers' club was established here, and a billiard table stood in the altar. Today, authentic late 19th-century frescoes, which have survived beneath all the layers of history, can still be seen in the sanctuary.

Quick facts: This part of the fortress gate has remained almost untouched since the late 19th century. Every year, more than 300 thousand visitors pass through it.

Highlights: Bullet and shrapnel marks from the defensive battles of 1941 are still visible in the bricks of the gate. At night, you can see spotlights illuminating the original 19th century arches, creating a mystical play of light on the ancient walls.