Information about Karelia and Petrozavodsk
The Republic of Karelia is situated on the North-west of the Russian Federation. Its territory is about 180 500 km2 49 % of which is covered with forests. The population of the republic amounts to 716 000 people.
A large part of Karelia is a hilly plain that was carved out by a glacier thousands of years ago. As a result, the ground has a somewhat wavy appearance. Karelia thus has a fascinating and beautiful back drop created by hills, lakes, rivers, forest and steppes.
This rich and healthy landscape is a good source of raw materials and minerals which has led to a booming industry. Some of the mineral resources found in the region are iron ore, vanadium, molibden, rare metals, diamonds, mica granite, marble, clay and asbest.
The natural beauty of Karelia has contributed to the country in another way. It has attracted tourists from all over the world. Thousands of visitors come to Karelia annually to see the virgin woods, superbly clean lakes and rivers and the many cultural monuments. The most frequented places are the Island Kizhi, the first Russian resort "Marcial Waters", waterfall Kivach.
Karelia also has a rather good transport system. It is connected to the Barents, Baltic, Black and Caspian Seas through the various rivers, lakes and canals. It also has a federal railway system and car highways which serve to connect Murmansk with St. Petersburg, Moscow, Central Russia and Finland.
The Republic of Karelia is situated on the Russian border and this has resulted in a number of Russian-Finnish cooperative projects which serves social, educational and economic development of the region.
More information about Karelia
Petrozavodsk is the capital of the Republic of Karelia which was founded in 1703 by Russian tsar Peter the Great. Now it is one of the main industrial, tourist, scientific and cultural centres on the North-west of Russia. Political and geographical location of Petrozavodsk is very advantageous; it lies on the shore of the Lake Onego which through the net of channels has connection with five seas: Baltic, White, Barents, Caspian and Black.