English Russia » Places

Nuclear Bunker in Yugoslavia

spanic — Fri, 16 Jul 2010 21:26:25 +0000

This nuclear bunker was named after Marshall Tito and was built in the mid 70’s in Yugoslavia. For many years this bunker was classified but eventually, in year 1992, it was revealed to the public. The total area of the bunker is about 70,000 square feet. There are more than 100 bedrooms as well as offices and conference rooms.

Yandex StreetView for Moscow

Russian Ghost Town

spanic — Sat, 12 Dec 2009 01:26:05 +0000

This small town was abandoned in 1992 and was pretty well preserved considering its location which is very close to the Russian capital, Moscow. There is an electric station, two 5 floor buildings, many small administrative buildings and warehouses in the town. It was built for the workers and families of the C-25 military complex and for that reason is nowhere to be seen on the maps.

Inside Moscow’s Subway System

spanic — Fri, 11 Dec 2009 07:30:39 +0000

Moscow’s metro system opened in 1935 and is the second most heavily used metro system in the world. It covers almost the entire area of Moscow with 292.2 kilometers of tunnels. It has 12 lines, 177 stations and carries about 7 million passengers a day.

A quick glance on Moscow’s underground life…

Inside a Russian Coal Mine

spanic — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 01:20:23 +0000

Today we’ll go down to a depth of 70 meters below the surface, into one of Russia’s many coal mines and see how it all works. Plus, you’ll find out where the 120 meter semi-abandoned mast is located.

Coal mine “Moscow” located in the Tula region (9 km from the village Gritsovsky) is currently the only coal mine in the whole central region of Russia. This mine used to be very productive in the early 80’s but today, since people refuse to use coal as energy, the mine barely produces any coal at all. The decline began in the 90’s and at that time the Tula region alone employed more than 30 coal mines. There were also mines in Ryazan, Tver and Smolensk regions.

Construction of the mine began in 1967. It was assumed that this will be one of the largest mines of the Moscow coalfield. The mine was completed in 1974.

At the moment, the mine employs 80 people who are working in 4 shifts. Coal is produced in very low volumes and at the current price, it’s not very profitable for the mine.

The main mode of transportation in the mine is a narrow-gauge railroad with a track of 900 mm. There are 3 electric coal carriers working on the surface of the mine and 7 below.

The pile of slagheap (tailings) is located not far away from the mine and is accumulated in a very interesting manner. The container carrying the slagheap is rope fastened to the mast. It carries the material all the way to the top of the tower and then dumps it into the large pile of tailings. The height of the pile is about 50 meters and the height of the tower is 120.

General view of the mine.

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There are ongoing projects to continue the development of this industry, but so far no real action is taken. Before the decline of the coal industry this mine employed over 1800 people.

Here’s the plan of the mine. There are two shafts going into the surface. The main shaft is used to carry out coal and to pump oxygen. The auxiliary shaft is used to carry workers and equipment. This mine has three wings – the north wing, the south wing and the east wing. They can be easily identified on the map. The southern wing is partially flooded and the southeastern is filled with gases. The total length of the underground tunnels is about 26 kilometers.

The administrative building of the mine also has classrooms. Previously, students who wanted to become workers in this facility were trained in this building.

Scheme of the conveyor line.

A model of the 4PP-2 miner. It is only here that you can see the whole machine since it is assembled underground, in the tunnels, and is covered with earth from all of it’s sides.

Before descending into the mine, everybody has to get acquainted with the safety rules, change into working cloths, get a helmet, flashlight and a self-rescuer (a device for respiratory protection)

The main clock. Previously, the building was equipped with a special computer and each miner had a personal token which had to be stamped on these devices every time they started work. Today everything is turned off.

After this, everyone must go through an isolated chamber where the air pressure is equalized.

Elevator boarding point. The rails are for carrying equipment into the elevator on small wagons.

On top of the elevator we can see warning signs which are lit one after another.

The descent is quite fast.

After the descent everybody must pass the “acclimatization” tests in a special room.

Before going further into the tunnels, everybody must tell the supervisors their destination and the route that they will be taking. Also, while going through the tunnels, everybody must stop at checkpoints and report their position.

Everything used to be illuminated. The effect is demonstrated here with the use of exposure photography.

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Some levels of the mine are flooded.

The tunnel of the left is closed due to the large amount of gases that is contained in that area. There is a high pressure water pipe leading into that tunnel, just in case something happens.

One of the checkpoints. The head of the group had to report our position by using the phone located on the wall.

In this part of the tunnel there was a lot of substance on the ground due to the previous inflow of ground water. Everything has been repaired and the tunnel was reinforced to prevent this from happening again.

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An electric pump used to pump out water in case of a flood. These are located all over the place and are needed all the time. Without water pumps, the mine will be flooded in about 6 hours.

We are approaching the mining zone. On the picture above we can see what they call an “Electrotrain”. It is used to supply energy to the whole mechanized complex.

The mining zone. On the left we can see the material which will be extracted from the earth, in this case coal, and of the right we can see one side of the mining combiner.

The height of this tunnel is about 1.5 meters.

The cut coal is fed to the conveyor.

Conveyor drive.

Conveyor line on the right.

This is where all the coal is loaded from the conveyor line into the wagons.

In some places, the tunnels are supported by wooden sleepers which are not always in very good condition due to previous floods. This is why throughout the tunnels we can see these metal wires attached to the ceiling. They are under high tension and are used to support the ceiling if it starts to collapse.

One of many air pumps.

Water pipes which are no longer needed.

The electric trains take the coal to the main shaft, where it is unloaded into an elevator and sent to the surface.

The electric train depot. They are serviced and repaired here since they never go to the surface. There used to be 45 of these working at the same time, but today only a few remain functional.

Color Photography from the Early 1900’s

spanic — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 06:20:10 +0000

The photographs of Russian photographer and chemist, Sergei Mikhailovich Prokudin-Gorskii, show Russia just before World War I and the arrival of the revolution. From 1909-1912 and in 1915, Prokudin-Gorskii traveled across the Russian Empire, documenting the life of citizens, landscapes and the work of Russain people. His images were to be a photographic survey at that time. He traveled in a special train-car transformed into a dark room to process his color images, a technology that was just discovered in the early 1900’s. Prokudin-Gorskii left Russia in 1918, after the Russian Revolution had destroyed the Russian Empire he spent years documenting.

Church in the village of Shaidoma.

Peasant children, Russia. The young women offer berries to visitors.

Trans-Siberian Railway metal truss bridge on stone piers, over the Kama River near Perm, Ural Mountains Region.

Cotton textile mill interior with machines producing cotton thread, probably in Tashkent.

Man and camel loaded with packs.

Three yurts, man seated in doorway of yurt in foreground.

Altar side of the Dmitrievskii Cathedral, Vladimir.

Bashkir switchman.

Isfandiyar, Khan of the Russian protectorate of Khorezm (Khiva), full-length portrait, in uniform, seated on chair, outdoors.

Austrian prisoners of war near a barrack, near Kiappeselga.

Photographer posing with two others

Shuia River

In Little Russia (Ukraine)

Alim Khan, Emir of Bukhara, seated holding sword

Log buildings in the Ural Mountain Region

Corner tower of the Trinity Cathedral in the Solovetskii Monastery, Solovetski Islands

Boy standing by wooden gatepost

Work at the Bakalskii mine

Bashkir’s yard, Ekhia

Rafts on the Peter the Great Canal. City of Shlisselburg, Russia.

City of Cherdyn

Old church of Saint Nicholas the Wonder Worker, Nyrob

Church in Vetluga settlement

Andrei Petrov Kalganov. Former master in the plant. Seventy-two years old, has worked at the plant for fifty-five years. He was fortunate to present bread and salt to His Imperial Majesty, the Sovereign Emperor Nicholas II, Zlatoust

Dvinsk, Roman Catholic church

Mills in Ialutorovsk district of Tobolsk Province

Molding shop at the Kasli plant

On the Karolitskhali River, self portrait of photographer Prokudin-Gorskii in suit and hat, seated on rock beside the Karolitskhali River, with mountains in background

Assumption Cathedral in the Goritskii Monastery, near Pereiaslavl-Zalesskii

Chapel on Olga hill, Russia

Garden of the M.P.S. (Ministry of Communication and Transportation) and Saint Paul sluice, Deviatiny, Russia.

Pinkhus Karlinskii, eighty-four years. Sixty-six years of service. Supervisor of Chernigov floodgate, Russia.

Crew of the steamship “Sheksna” of the M.P.S. (Ministry of Communication and Transportation), Russia.

Sawmill, Oka River, Several men standing near a sawmill.

Church of the Resurrection in the Grove (from the other side), Kostroma.

Dagestani types, Group of women posed outdoors.

Gallery in the Church of the Resurrection of Christ, Rostov Velikii.

Construction of iron-concrete frames for the lock’s walls, Beloomut, Uniformed man posed in framework of lock.

Mosque in Vladikavkaz

General view of the Shakh-i Zindeh mosque (evening photo), Samarkand.

Shepherd posed near a hillside, Samarkand.

Georgian woman standing on a carpet, outside, near a tree.

Mugan, Settler’s family, Settlement of Grafovka.

Group of workers harvesting tea. Greek women, Chakva.

Dagestani types, Man and woman posed outdoors.

General view of the Likanskii palace from the Kura River.

Portion of entrance door on right side of Tillia-Kari, Samarkand.

On the Saimaa Lake.

Camel caravan carrying thorns for fodder, Golodnaia Steppe.

Melon vendor, Samarkand.

At work on the upper reaches of the Syr-Darya, Golodnaia Steppe, Four men on a horse-drawn cart, next to a cliff.

Migrant farmstead in the settlement of Nadezhdinsk with a group of peasants, Golodnaia Steppe.

Digging for Salt

spanic — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 04:33:52 +0000

Ukraine is home to natural bodies of both salt water and fresh water. Sasik lake is the biggest salt water lake in Ukraine, it covers a 79 square miles (205 Sq. km) on the Crimean Penunsula. This is one of the salt harvesting stations on that lake. About 20 more pictures after the break.

S.T.A.L.K.E.R – For Real

spanic — Tue, 22 Sep 2009 04:34:55 +0000

Russia’s fascination with cosplaying characters from bleak shooter S.T.A.L.K.E.R. shows no signs of easing up, with a fresh batch showcasing an improvement in photography skills from the plucky fans.

These shots are from a little trip to the wilderness near Vyborg, Russia, which took place last month. You can’t see it, but we’re on our feet applauding the dedication. About 80 pictures after the break.

Around 200 fans showed up. The equipment wasn’t that hard to find since we’re in Russia, just grab your gas mask and anti-rad suit from the closet and you’re ready to go. The players were using air-soft guns in battles. The whole adventure was planned to last 3 days.

Dusk Above Moscow

spanic — Fri, 18 Sep 2009 04:34:51 +0000

Pictures takes from the Moskva (Moscow) tower.

*Click on pictures to enlarge

Yandex StreetView for Moscow

spanic — Sun, 13 Sep 2009 06:13:57 +0000

On the 10th of September Yandex made a move that was quite predictable given the fact that the leading Russian search engine began copying various Google products quite a while ago and has enough power to promote such products in Russia given its leading position in the online market of the country. The latest addition to its range of services is panoramic view of the streets of Moscow – similar to what Google Street View now does for many countries of the world.

Right now on the streets of Moscow you can see real people, their cars and whatever was there when the streets were shot – and chances are this is how it will remain even if some people decide to protest. The reason is that in Russia no permission is needed from people when they are parts of panoramic photos taken in public spaces unless these people are actually the main subject of the shot. This is the policy Yandex is going to follow and the only reason they quote as good enough for blurring something out of the photos is upon request of law enforcement agencies – otherwise people or their property will remain.

Check it out for your self. Just go to http://maps.yandex.ru/, find Moscow, select panoramic view (you may have to zoom in to get this option to appear), and click on any of the blue-coloured streets.

I didn’t find an english version of yandex so here’s a little picture tutorial.

1- Go to http://maps.yandex.ru/, type in moscow and click the search button. [Click on pics to enlarge]

Click the panoramic view button if it’s not already green.

Now simply click on any of the blue highlighted streets inside Moscow. Zoom it, move around, everybody knows how that works right?

Vasilisevo Open Air Museum

spanic — Tue, 08 Sep 2009 00:52:33 +0000

Vasili`s Manor was build in the beginning of the XVIII century. It is located on the shore of the Tvertza river, 3-4 kilometers from Torztsa city. This place was converted into a museum in the year 1976. Some wooden statues and structures were transported here from other places in the Tversky region to make it a more complete exposition.

*Click on the images to enlarge on view through the gallery.

Map of the museum:

Church of the Transfiguration, build around 1732.

A view on the Tvertzi river.

This seems to be a water powered mill.