Brest (Belarus)

A complex of massive fortification built in mid-19th century by the Russian Empire. In November 1918 the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk was signed here. In June 1941 there were some days of heavy fighting between the German Wehrmacht and the Red Army with thousands of Soviet soldiers ending up as prisoners of war (POWs) and some 2,000 more killed. After the war the incident was made up as the "heroic defence of the Brest fortress" that lasted for more than one month with everybody fighting to their death. In 1965 the fortress was awarded with the title "Hero Fortress" and a huge propaganda complex was erected. Worth seeing! The fee for the core of the complex, the Museum of the Heroic Defense of the Brest Fortress (where you will see and hear only the official story, no POWs, no Holocaust; just armed heroes) is about US$1. Walking the grounds of this great fortification is a moving experience that gives a good sense of the privations faced by the forces that were besieged there. The territory of the fortress is where the ancient city of Brest was born, in the archaeological museum Berestye one can see results of research on the spot. The old town was destroyed when the fortress was built. The history of Brest Fortress is complicated, as you can see, and worth learning.

The former main synagogue of Brest on ul. Sovetskaya, now the cinema "Belarus'". From the outside one still can see the octagon of the original lay out of the building. An attentive visitor will notice several features of the old sacral building in the inside. In the cellar (toilets), the old thick foundation walls are visible. In 2018 a commemorative plaque was put up left of the main entrance.

This is a beautiful place, especially late summer - autumn. The riverfront has a lot of willow trees and there are a lot of ducks swimming in the river. There are some chairs under the willow trees sitting on which is very relaxing.

This is nice alley with two lines of old chestnut trees on both sides. Gives you nice quiet walk in summer and fall. Some restaurants are located on this street.

A very beautiful train station, both from outside and from inside.

An incredible collection of impressive locomotives from the Soviet era. While there is not much effort in the presentation (they are all displayed one after the other), the variety of the locomotives and carriages is impressive. Some can even be visited. The museum is located between fortress and town.

It has a permanent exhibition worth seeing. It covers the period from ancient times to mid-20th century and a charming exhibition on nature with some amazing exhibits.

An archaeological site displaying an authentic East Slavic wooden town dating back to the 13th century. The museum was built over the excavation site of ancient Berestye in the early 1980s and modernized in 2019.