Belarus

Visited: July 2024

Duration of visit: 8 days

Capital city: Minsk

Population: 9.2 million (2024)

• Crossing the border in anticipation of how long the inspection process will take.
• First touch with Belarus in the city of Brest: friendly people only speaking Russian, Soviet memories, lack of foreign visitors.
• Riding a simple bike around Belovezhskaya Pushcha (Bialowieza Forest) and enjoying pure nature.
• Couchsurfing in Grodno enabled me to get a better understanding of local lifestyle, oppression and possibilities.
• Cosmopolitan Minsk with a mix of Soviet architecture, extended parks and gardens, cultural events and vivid nightlife.
• Meeting a local friend in Minsk, who showed me the places where locals fill up with energy and relax.

In 2024 Belarus is together with Russia included on a red list of “no travel” countries, due to the ongoing war in Ukraine.

Even though Belarus has not directly attacked the territory of Ukraine and its army has not actively supported the Russian invasion, its president Aleksandr Lukashenko has openly offered Belarus territory at disposal to Russian army. This is just the top of the iceberg that has isolated Belarus from the Western World and pushed it towards Asian region to find alternatives in building international relationship.

Despite the negative precedent, travel restrictions and difficulties in obtaining a visa, I decided to visit Belarus in the summer of 2024, as the last European country. The first step was to obtain a visa at the Belarusian consulate in Vienna.

“Why do you want to travel to Belarus?“, was the official’s unfriendly response to my call and expression of desire to obtain a tourist visa. “It is the last country, that I hadn’t visited in Europe and I believe there are many historical landmarks, interesting cities, cultural heritage and welcoming people that I would like to explore.”, was my humble answer, which apparently convinced the consulate employee, to provide me instructions about the application procedure and scheduled an interview in Vienna. “Fill up all the forms, pay online for visa fees and purchase health insurance, before coming to Vienna for a personal interview!”, were the instructions.

I was scared when travelling to Vienna in expectation of profound interrogation about my family, work, previous trips and possible reasons to visit Belarus. I arrived to the Consulate with 5 minutes delay, walked through the main door and walked to a small building, where I was asked for all the documents, before being seated in the waiting room. 15 minutes later I was called to the official counter and the employee handed back my passport. “Your visa is ready. You can go. Have a safe trip.” No questions or interrogation. Just like that, easy and straightforward.

A queue of passenger vehicles parked on the right lane began already three kilometers before the border between Poland and Ukraine. Our bus continued driving all the way to the Polish emigration station and lined up behind two buses, which were waiting in front of us. It is our lucky day! It shouldn’t take much time to pass the custom and immigration formalities. If exiting Schengen zone at Polish side was rather straightforward, the security check on the Belarus side was much more thorough.

After receiving a stamp in my passport, I was detained by a senior officer for interrogation. During 15 minutes I was asked all kind of questions about my family, work, purpose of travelling, military activities, destinations in Belarus, accommodation reservations and a return ticket. The conversation was in Russian only and I was happy to improve the level to an extend that I could easily answer all the questions.

The interrogation concluded with simple order by the officer: “Give me your cell phone!”. For the first time in my backpacking career I was required to pass and unlock my cell phone to a government employee for further inspection.

Since I had been informed about this procedure in advance, I was not surprised, but simply followed the rules. A few minutes later my phone was returned and I was free to enter Belarus.

Located only a few kilometers from the Polish border, Brest is one of the oldest cities in Belarus. We arrived at the central bus station, which forms a real transport hub together with the central train station. I walked to a guesthouse on the other side of the railways, where I spent my first two nights in the country.

The city of Brest often alternated between Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania until it was incorporated into the Russian Empire in 1795. During the invasion of Poland in the World War II, it was captured by Nazi Germany and then finally transferred back to the Soviet Union during the Lublin-Brest offensive in 1944.

The Brest Fortress is one of the most important memorial complexes, commemorating the symbol of Soviet resistance in the World War II and bears the proud title of Hero Fortress. It dates back to the 19^th century and became a key symbol of Soviet resistance in World War II. I walked around the area in the early afternoon. It was still hot, but people started to stroll around. If usually fortresses are located on the top of a hill, in Brest the entrance at the same level as the city itself is marked by a huge star, cut into a concrete block.

The fortress was not rebuilt at the end of the war, but instead became a shrine to the terrible and heroic events that took place there. The Bayonet Obelisk, which is rising 100 meters high, can be seen from any part of the fortress. It is linked to The Courage monument by 3 rows of tombstones, dedicated to 216 known defenders out of the 850 who died defending the fortress.

The Courage Monument is the largest memorial in the central courtyard of the Brest Fortress. The monolithic stone statue shows a Red Army’s soldier’s head that projects from the massive rock, while on the back side there are several compositions which are depicting the strong defense that protected the fortress and the city of Brest from German Nazis.

At night I wandered around the central Brest area, especially popular pedestrian street - Sovetskaya Street, where bars, restaurants, stores and banks are located. People with children walk around late at night, enjoy cooling down of the atmosphere after afternoon heat, which is practically unbearable during the day. It wasn’t easy to find a free chair in a bar to watch the final game of Euro 2024. Belarus is not a sport power, but young generations enjoy watching football on big screens, while drinking beer from beer tower dispensers, confirms the popularity of local beer among young population. Prices are ridiculously low for Western standards, especially considering good quality of local drinks.

There are some other monuments and landmarks in Brest that are worth visiting, such as central market or Svjato-Nikolaevskaja orthodox church. Nostalgia for the USSR and memories of a past era are reflected in numerous statues and memorials dedicated to the former Soviet Union leaders or historical events. They can be found throughout the country and Brest is not an exception. Lenin statue looms over the Lenin’s square, looking powerfully into the distance. When walking by, it seemed that I was the only one interested in photographing the controversial monument erected in 1958.

My next stop was Belovezhskaya Pushcha, officially one of the largest forests of Europe plains, a day trip from Brest. Following a week of extreme heat in Eastern Europe, the morning thunderstorm chilled out the air and got my socks wet. It was not very promising to leave for the national park, but I didn’t have much choice, since my time in Belarus was limited only to eight days.

After about an hour of driving by bus, I arrived at the entrance to the park. I was in doubt, whether I should continue with the original plan, rent a bike and ride the 27-kilometer Big Journey loop around the park, or rather move around by park’s bus.

I put on a windbreaker, rented a bike and rode along the network of impeccably maintained asphalt roads all over this unique natural area, considered one of the oldest nature reserves in the world uniting Belarus and Poland. Belovezhskaya Pushcha is also included in the UNESCO World Heritage List.

Driving through lush forests, which change their structure from coniferous to deciduous trees, led me past lakes, country houses, swamps and artificially constructed infrastructure in the form of restaurants, lodgings and viewpoints. Soon, I was caught in a heat storm, but I just on time took refuge in a traditional restaurant in the area that was mostly dedicated to kids’ activities. Traditional pancakes with homemade jam and compote filled me with energy.

When the storm calmed down, I continued towards the fenced area, a kind of open-air zoo, where the animals that used to live in the park, are located. In the natural environment, I have not spotted any animals that used to inhabit this region:  bison, roe deer or wolves can only be observed, roaming freely in this protected area.

The animal world of Belovezhskaya Pushcha is rich and diverse, even though it could be more substantial, if some species were not exterminated by man in the recent history. The greatest number of bisons was recorded in 1857 (almost 2,000 animals). However, the unreasonable breeding of other ungulates, grazing of a large number of cattle, which is a food rival of the bison, as well as poaching during the First World War, led to a catastrophic decline. In 1919, the last female bison living in the nature was killed. Only 52 bisons have survived in zoos and zoological gardens in Western Europe, most of which were once taken from Belovezhskaya Pushcha.

The city of Grodno (also called Hrodna) is located only 15 kilometers from Polish border. Originated as a small fortress and trading outpost in 1127, the old town possess the country’s largest ensemble of historical buildings, including two medieval castles. There are two castles (The Old Castle and The New Castle) in the city of princes and kings. Even though in the course of time both buildings lost their original looks as they have been repeatedly destroyed and rebuilt, today they are still impressive, especially when observed from the left bank of Nemunas river with a magic background of old town and the river flowing bellow. The castles are part of museum complex, which narrates rich history of the city. I couldn’t enter the castles themselves, since it was Monday, when all the historical buildings in the city are closed.

Sovetskaya Street is the main pedestrian street in the city, similar to other important cities in the country. Stores, restaurants, bars and small businesses attract pedestrians throughout the day, but the main traffic occurs in the evening. Throughout the year the street hosts concerts, fairs and street performances. I found Sovetskaya Street in Brest much more attractive and energetic than in Grodno.

St. Francis Xavier Cathedral is one of the three minor basilicas in Belarus. The interior features a 21-meter-high carved altar decorated with figures and one of the oldest working tower clocks in Europe. The cathedral survived the World War II without serious damage. During the Soviet times it was closed for 27 years, with the plan to convert the building into a museum or a concert hall. The imposing church rises in front of Savieckaja Square. It filled me with peace and provided a pleasant shelter due to the unbearable heat outside.

Even though taxi service with Yandex app is inexpensive, I preferred using public transport to move around the city. A combination of buses, trolleybuses and minibuses (called marshrutka) is efficient and costs only a few cents. Despite the timetables not being easy to understand and destinations written in Cyrillic, it is convenient to find the right one with numeration system. Locals were always willing to help me sitting on the right vehicle.

I found my accommodation in Grodno through Couchsurfing. Victoria, my host, resides in one of typical apartment buildings, located just outside of the ring road. She lives alone in a two-bedroom apartment, which was also my home for three days. In numerous conversations with her (mostly in Russian) I started to get a closer look to life of Belarus today.

There are two groups of people in Belarus: those who support the Europe’s most authoritarian ruler Alexander Lukashenko and the opposition, who in more or less open posture disagree with the country’s political system.

Since Victoria had been openly expressing sympathy with opposition leaders, she was added to the black list of residents who can no longer provide their services to the public administration and government institutions.  Since all schools in the country are public, it means, that she can no longer practice her profession as a teacher in her own country.

She invited me to a walk in the nearby park, prepared some local dishes and supported me with a bunch of information about activities in Grodno. Since the majority of reservation platforms for accommodation, such as Airbnb.com or Booking.com, don’t offer their services in Belarus, I had difficulties to find accommodation for my next stop, Minsk. Victoria was helping me to find an alternative through local platforms, but somehow, I was not able to encounter the right accommodation. Finally, in the last minute, when I was already on the train to Minsk, I received an invitation by Igor, who was willing to host me in his apartment for the following 4 days.

The President of the ordinary people, as he wants to be called, is the first President of Republic of Belarus, elected for the first time on 10^th July 1994 with 80.3% of the vote in the second round. As a skilled orator and adept politician, he offered Belarusians a strong leadership to fight corruption and defend their interests, promote economic growth, fight social and political crisis, with high inflation and factory shutdowns.

His policy until 2006 was aiming to strengthen the national statehood relying on the robust social and economic development of the country, which finally brought the country to economic collapse. Later he tried to turn around the trends through large-scale modernization and technical upgrade, which was partially achieved by support from Russia.

The main ideology is the maintenance of socialist economic model with the retaining of Soviet-era symbolism, including the Russian language, coat of arms and national flag.  In a contentious referendum in 1995, Belarusian lost its sole position as the official language of the country. Since then, the government's backing for the Belarusian language and culture at large has decreased, and Russian has become the primary language in daily activities in modern-day Belarus. This is a unique case in history when a nation gives up (loses) mother language and replace it with another.

However, to stay on power for three decades, Lukashenko had to implement repression to his own people. He has thrown more than 1,400 political opponents in jail. He has passed laws that severely punish all opponents of the regime and has closely aligned himself with neighboring Russia, which supports his authoritarian rule. So far, he has resisted opposition pressure, that has increased especially in 2020, when public protests were violently suppressed with the help of the army. Tougher measures, heavy punishments for opposition leaders, disobedient officials and mutinous soldiers have brought peace to the streets, while most people hope that one way or another the totalitarianism will end sooner or later.

The latest, and perhaps most controversial move by Lukashenko in February 2022, was pledging allegiance to Russian President Vladimir Putin by allowing Belarusian territory to serve as a staging ground for Kremlin forces to attack Ukraine.

I took a comfortable, inexpensive train from Minsk to Grodno. I shared a sleeper coupe with three passengers, air condition was cooling the area reasonable, full service of food and drinks was at my disposal. Minsk-Pasažyrski railway station is enormous, well-organized, clean and offers all amenities, which are adequately signalized.

I deposited my small backpack in a cloakroom and walked out through the main entrance to face imposing Vorota Minska towers in front of me.  A long walk along the Babrujskaja street lead me to the some of the main landmarks in downtown: The Independence Square with The National Assembly of Belarus and Minsk City Hall. The square was designed to host the important events, such as parades, political leaders’ speeches’, celebration of national holidays and reception of foreign rulers. During the World War II most buildings around the square were destroyed by the Nazis. Later many pro-Communist rallies as well as anti-Lukashenko rally in 2020 took place here.

Lenin monument stands in front of Supreme Soviet building, where the functioning parliament for Belarus holds its sessions. Church of Saints Simon and Helena, also known as the Red Church, survived all possible purposes and occupiers more or less immaculately. From the attack of the Red Army to Hitler's soldiers’ offensive to the pressure of the existing authorities to pay taxes.

I hadn’t seen any international visitors, beside some Russian couples until I was approached by a Turkish guy Mohamed, when we wanted to take a good photo in front of the fountain at Plošča Niezaliežnasci. He was facing the same problem as me, when searching for the inexpensive accommodation in Minsk, but ended in an upscale, expensive hotel.

Victory Park on the banks of the Komsomolsk lake is the largest park in Minsk. 200 hectares park is a major tourist spot, inviting visitors with footpaths, playgrounds and a site, used for concerts and shows. Especially popular are the man-made beach and the Bird Island, a wildlife reserve that is home to a variety of birds, including some rare species. I really enjoyed walking from Minsk arena along State Flag Square, Independence Palace, observing The Supreme Court of the Republic of Belarus from a distance, and culminating long stroll at Belarusian State Museum of the History of the Great Patriotic War.

The Great Patriotic War Museum was the world’s first museum to tell the story of World War II, and the only one in Belarus created during the years of Nazi occupation. Since 1942, when the museum was opened in Vitebsk, the exhibition moved from place to place until in 2014 the final location in a new building with the total area of 15,600m² was erected in in The Heroes Square. The composition represents four main blocks to match the number of years of the war.

An interesting, detailed exhibition with a combination of original objects, combat weapons, tanks, military vehicles and videos shows the fighting that took place on the territory of Belarus during the Second World War. With the help of the audio guide, I learned more about the main events from that period, which Belarus still considers to be decisive in its history. The front facade looks like a festive salute: 11 sparkling rays made of stainless steel to symbolize the Great Victory and at the same time 1,100 tragic days and nights of Minsk’s occupation.

The Palace of the Republic is a government building used for official state events, including forums, meetings, conventions, multi-genre concerts, symphony orchestras and New Year events. On the other side of Oktyabrskaya Square stands an architectural masterpiece of the Soviet period, the Republican Palace of Trade Union Culture. Built in 1954, the Palace of Trade Unions is monumental, yet elegant and functions as one of the main cultural centers of Minsk.

I was not able to enter any of these buildings apart from The Great Patriotic War Museum, but I appreciated them as perfectly constructed and maintained historical buildings of the Soviet architectural style that make Minsk such a unique place.

Igor was waiting for me in his apartment in Malinauka region of Minsk, approximately 35 minutes by metro and bus from downtown. A similar residential apartment building as in Grodno was my home for the next four days. From a distance all apartment buildings look the same, but in reality, the comfort varies a lot from. The quality of material used for construction and the age of each building can make a big difference.

Igor’s apartment was located on the higher floor of an old building. The heat in the flat was unbearable. Hardly any furniture, with the empty fridge made me worry, what kind of host did I choose. “I had some problems with money, but I am fine now!”, Igor informed me openly. I run to the nearby grocery store immediately and purchased fruits, vegetables, bread, pickled fish dishes, chips and, of course, vodka.

“Buy some vodka with the sign of a big, beautiful bird!”, were the unprecise instructions of Igor, when I asked him, what we needed for dinner. Apparently, an easy task, if there was not a wide selection of vodkas with bird’s motive among dozens of other vodkas, exhibited in fully loaded liqueur section of the local grocery store.

Eating slowly, talking about Belarus, women, Slovenia, travelling and sport, I started to figure out more about my host. If Victoria in Grodno was against the Lukashenko’s politics, Igor hates everything that has to do with the current government. He had been imprisoned due to his protest activities and even his ex-wife and daughters are listed as persona non grata in Belarus. He doesn’t care much, because he works for private sector, where usually knowledge is more appreciated than political persuasion.

“Let’s go out for a walk to get some fresh air!”, was a surprising Igor’s suggestion at 1:00am. We took a bottle of vodka with us and walked around the residential blocks for the next two hours. In Belarus I have not seen anybody ran a red light at a pedestrian crossing. Even in the most remote areas at the time, where no vehicles were around, people would wait patiently for the traffic light to turn green. It is part of education and respect, but more often the fear of penalties for breaking the rules. “Let be rebels tonight and show our disapproval of running a red light.”, was another alternative suggestion by Igor. I was hesitating. It was an odd hour, nobody around, but traffic lights were still working. “Let’s have another shot of vodka and then we will break the rules and show who we are!” And we did it.

On the last day of my stay in Minsk, Igor decided to skip from work and take me around to some less visited areas. We crossed the city to north eastern area of Zialiony Luh. Wide green area with forest and a lake surrounding an island provides a peaceful retreat to walk, run, cycle or swim and sunbath at Cnyanka Beach.

Igor purchased a bottle of so called чернила (ink), semi strong alcoholic drink that is extremely cheap and used mostly by poor alcoholics who cannot afford the cheapest vodka. Approximately 15% of alcohol and sweet taste create a pleasant taste that wasn’t bad at all. When later mentioning my drinking experience to new Belarussian friends, they only laughed and suspiciously shrugged, what was going on with me to drink this bizarre liquor.

We walked around without a plan, visited a beautiful orthodox church and stopped for lunch in a simple canteen, where traditional Belarusian dishes are served in the form of self-service bar. The so-called столовая (canteen) is an inexpensive alternative to restaurants, where people can get a quick and good meal for a few US$ during a midday break from work.

I tasted some traditional Belorussian dishes that are well known internationally: draniki (thick potato pancakes), kletski (dumplings), mushroom soup and borsht. There are many meat-based dishes, stews and sausages, that I haven’t tried, since I don’t eat meat. Additionally, fish is also standardly on the menu, even though I didn’t find it particularly inspiring.

Historically Belarusian cuisine was influenced by active farming and extensive use of local produce, as well as influences from neighboring countries and migrant settlers. Locally grown fruits and vegetables are tasteful, full of flavor and of strong colors. Some imported fruits from neighboring Soviets republics also taste delicious, as if they were organic according to European standards.

We finished our wandering at one of the most beautiful orthodox temples in Minsk – The Church of All Saints. A modern, 74 meters high building, opened in 2008, can host 1,200 worshipers and took 12 years to be built. Officially the Church of All Saints became the main spiritual national monument to the memory of the millions of Belarusians who died or were scattered around the world due to revolutions, wars, forced displacements and repressions.

From my perspective, the most beautiful church in Belarus, is featuring wide marbled verandahs, heavily designed timber and metal doors, a crypt and large fountain of Moses. The five domes commemorate the dead of soldiers, prisoners and children, among others.

Next to it stands also impressive wooden Holy Trinity Church, which was a place of baptism, at the time I visited it.

In the evening, I was meeting some people from Couchsurfing group, who invited me to a concert of rock music in a nicely reverted socialist factory, that serves as a venue for cultural events these days. Good food, inexpensive drinks, live rock music in Russian and growing group of friends created a great atmosphere. We decided to continue our night rally to Zybitskaya Street, famous party area with over 30 bars and night clubs.

Our group of fifteen people was decreasing each time we switched the venue. After a visit to karaoke bar, most of the friends was tired and ready to go home. It was after 2:00am and my three friends wanted to drink the last coffee before going home. My host Igor was still not answering phone calls and since I didn’t have the keys to enter the apartment, I didn’t dare to go home. I explained the situation to the only man in our group. He offered me to spend the night in his apartment, if my host wouldn’t answer the call until we finished the coffee.

I tried to call home for the last time and finally Igor picked up the phone. He was at home, so I would be able to enter the apartment if I hurry up and arrive before he falls asleep again. I took a taxi immediately and when I arrived, Igor explained that he had been so drunk that he lost the keys of the apartment and fell asleep. The fridge was completely empty again. He managed to drink all vodka. I was a little bit worried, but quickly fell asleep.

Usually travelling home is the easiest part of every travel, but not from Belarus. Since flying from Minsk was extremely expensive due to international sanctions, I had previously decided to fly out of Vilnius, the capital of neighboring Lithuania. It was hard to estimate how much time the border crossing procedure would last; therefore, I took a bus at 5:00pm from Minsk. My flight was scheduled from Vilnius at 9:10am on the following day. We arrived at the border after three hours of smooth riding on a perfect road. Several kilometers long lines of trucks, which were queuing for a week to pass rigorous custom control and up to 10 days in the opposite direction.

We were lucky. All 3 buses in front of us advanced within the next two hours. Apparently, when it was our turn, the driver was informed that we would need to wait until next morning to be inspected. Terrified looks of the passengers and many pleas pushed the driver into a situation where he used all his negotiating skills to convince the officials to let us through to the other side. We eventually finished with border formalities at midnight. A mix of waiting, duty free shopping, inspection of our luggage and questioning was done in a polite, but very slow way.

When we reached Vilnius airport at 1:00am, I decided to sleep on comfortable benches until my morning flight would be ready for departure. Unfortunately, when I woke up, I was informed that my flight was delayed. Consequently, I lost the connection in Riga, being redirected to Frankfurt, where I was obliged to spent the night in a hotel on airBaltic account. I finally landed at Ljubljana airport in Slovenia with 23 hours delay, exclusively due to the airline bad managements of flight connections. At least I received a substantial compensation that covered a considerable part of my trip expenses to Belarus.

I was afraid of visiting Belarus in 2024. It all started with an unpleasant communication at the Belarus consulate in Vienne and continued by border interrogation in Brest, which was spiced up with personal check of my cell phone content. Nevertheless, after this methodic check-up I felt as free as in any other Western country during the rest of the trip.

Practically without foreign Western visitors, Belarus can be challenging to travel around without knowledge of Russian. The infrastructure is great, public transport efficient, food delicious and varied, people friendly and hospitable. Cost of travelling is low, sighting is attractive. People are very educated and particularly IT experts are some of the best in Europe.

Through Couchsurfing I had a chance to meet a lot of people, especially young population They like to mingle, talk and party. Belarusians are very knowledgeable about what is going on in the world and worried about the future of their country, since the international sanctions started to impact their lives and local oppression is stricter every day.

The country has excellent education system and founded alternative routes to import products that are not produced locally, but the biggest limitation is international travel to Europe. The access to Schengen visa and travelling to neighboring countries that are just a short distance away and historically strongly connect (Poland, Lithuania) has become extremely complicated.

Belarus offers a lot of rewarding opportunities to travel around, but the time will show, if the country opens to foreign visitors again, or it will continue off the limits for majority.