Belarus - Forgotten Europe

Notes

Essentials

Visas
Most nationals, including EU, UK and US citizens require a visa to visit Belarus. You will need an invitation letter together with a tourist voucher in order to obtain your visa. We will provide both of these, but will need you to provide full passport details to us at least one month before departure.

Please note that it is also compulsory to have travel insurance including medical cover when entering Belarus – this will be checked at immigration.

Regulations do frequently change though, so we advise that you check the current requirements with your nearest embassy.

Airport Tax
There is no departure tax payable when leaving Belarus by air.

Health and Immunisations
We strongly recommend that you contact your doctor’s surgery or a specialist travel clinic for up-to-date information, advice and the necessary vaccinations. For a visit of less than one month, almost certainly you will be advised to have immunisations against the following: Diphtheria and Tetanus, Hepatitis A and B, Polio and Typhoid.

Insurance

• What should my travel insurance policy cover?
• medical and health cover for an injury or sudden illness abroad
• 24 hour emergency service and assistance
• personal liability cover in case you’re sued for causing injury or damaging property
• lost and stolen possessions cover
• cancellation and curtailment (cutting short your trip) cover
• Extra cover for activities that are commonly excluded from standard policies, such as certain sports

The policy should cover the whole time that you are away.

Your policy may also have:

• personal accident cover
• legal expenses cover

Common travel insurance policy exclusions
Always check the conditions and exclusions of your policy:

• most policies will not cover drink or drug-related incidents

You must take reasonable care of your possessions or your policy will not cover you.

Practical information

Local Currency
The local currency is the Belarusian rouble (BYR). For current exchange rates visit www.xe.com. Our advice is to travel with US dollars or Euros cash. Notes should be new or in a good condition.

Where currency can be exchanged
It’s relatively easy, although often time consuming, to change money in banks and exchange booths. You’ll find these in larger towns and cities. ATM machines are also available – again, in larger towns and cities – and many will also dispense US dollars as well as rubles.

Credit cards and travellers cheques
As a general rule we advise against taking travellers’ cheques as these will be difficult to change. If you do take travellers’ cheques these should be in US dollars or Euros only. Credit cards are accepted in most hotels and better restaurants.

Best time to go
It’s possible to visit Belarus at any time of year, but it’s significantly warmer from May / June to September. The winter months can experience significant snowfall and bitterly cold weather, while spring and autumn can be rather unpredictable.

Main Language
The official languages of Belarus are Belarusian and Russian, which are closely related to each other and quite similar. Although English is now widely taught in schools and most younger people will be able to speak some English, this will not always be the case for older Belarusians. A few words of either Belarusian or Russian will help to break the ice and will generally be greeted by smiles, no matter how bad your pronunciation.

Main Religion
Belarus is split between the Orthodox Church and Catholicism. Belarus is also home to a significant population of ‘Old Believers’ – Orthodox Christians who adhere to the form of the faith that was prevalent before it was reformed in the 17th century. There was once a large Jewish population in Belarus, and they were so prevalent that in some towns they were the majority of inhabitants. However, the horrors of the Second World War meant that almost none now remain. Religion is important in Belarus and you will find a large number of churches and cathedrals throughout the country, still enjoying good attendances.

Food and drink
Belarusian food is simple and hearty. The potato features fairly heavily within traditional cuisine, with a wide variety of dishes made from it including pancakes and dumplings. Meat is not eaten that much, but when it is, it tends to be pork. Belarusians are keen enthusiasts of nature’s bounty and food collected from the wild such as mushrooms and berries are also very popular. Restaurants are however increasingly catering to international tastes and in major cities you can find many types of cuisine. Vodka is fairly ubiquitous in Belarus.

If you have any special dietary requirements you must notify us at the time of booking. While we will make every effort to cater for you, we cannot guarantee that this will be possible.

Many meals are included on our tours to Belarus, but lunches are not. You should budget for around €10-15 for a lunch. A bottle of beer costs from €2-6, depending on the variety and where you are.

Transport
Our tours in Belarus use private vehicles – usually minibuses or Mercedes Sprinters. For small groups private cars may be used.

Local conditions
Travelling in the destinations that we visit requires a good deal of understanding that often standards simply won’t be as they are at home. While we aim to make your trip as comfortable as possible, please be aware that many of the countries that we visit, Belarus included, may have little or less developed infrastructure. While we aim to make your trip run as smoothly as possible there may be times when we need to ask for your patience while we rectify any problems.

What to take with you

First Aid Kit
The first thing on your list should be a first aid kit. Whilst there is no undue cause for alarm, travellers are best advised to travel well-prepared: adequately immunized, with sufficient supplies of prescription drugs, along with a medical kit.

Clothing
Our general recommendation is to bring light clothing with a couple of fleeces or jumpers for cooler evenings. You should also bring a waterproof jacket for any days that it may rain. You should bring at least one long sleeved top for any churches that you will visit.

Footwear
Footwear is a main priority on this tour. Comfortable walking shoes/boots are recommended.

Luggage
Your luggage should not exceed 20kgs (44lbs). One large rucksack, and one small hand luggage rucksack is acceptable. We advise you to travel with a rucksack or soft bag rather than a suitcase.

Other
Suncream/sunblock is a must – you should not rely on being able to find it in Belarus.

Insect repellent, including a bite spray will be useful to have.

If you will be using a camera which needs film, it is recommended that a supply is taken with you, as it may be difficult to obtain in smaller towns.

Fitness
This tour does not require any special degree of fitness but you will find it more enjoyable if you are reasonably fit.

Cultural and environmental guidelines
You may come across beggars while on tour. Every traveller has different perspectives on this and ultimately the choice is up to you. Many sources recommend that you watch to see if local people give, and then follow their lead with genuine beggars. We do not recommend giving money, sweets, pens etc to children as this can encourage a begging mentality and can lead to children choosing to beg rather than go to school.

Please make sure that you take any rubbish back to the hotel with you where they can be properly disposed of – this includes cigarette butts as well.

Please do not buy any products made from endangered species – this is not sustainable and hastens the species’ decline.

Photography
You should always ask permission before taking anyone's photograph and respect their decision if they say no. In more remote areas women and older people often do not want to be photographed. Some people may also ask for some money – sometimes a little, sometimes a lot - in return for a photo. Taking photos of military installations, state buildings, and airports can lead to problems with local authorities. If you are unsure about whether it is acceptable to take a photo, please ask your tour leader or guide.

Tipping
If your local guide has been helpful then you could think about tipping, although it is not as common in Belarus as it is elsewhere. This amount can obviously be left to you. When tipping a driver, a guide or hotel staff a few dollars will always be gratefully received.

Foreign Office Advice
We constantly monitor the advice posted by the British Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO). In particular we will always advise clients of any travel warnings. At present there are no warnings against travel to Belarus. Please feel free to contact us should you have any specific concerns or would like to know in detail what measures are being taken to ensure visits remain trouble free and without incident.

It should be noted that this information applies to British citizens. Other nationals are asked to check the current position of their respective government.

Further Information

Public Holidays in Belarus:

1 Jan New Year's Day
7 Jan Orthodox Christmas
8 Mar Women’s Day
1 May International Worker’s Day
9 May Victory Day
3 Jul Independence Day
7 Nov Anniversary of the October Revolution
25 Dec Catholic Christmas

Belarus also celebrates Easter holidays, which vary annually.

Dates are for guidance only and may vary year to year

Electrical Supply
Generally electrical supply is 200V AC (50 Hz) and uses European two circular pin style plugs.

Recommended Reading

Belarus – The Bradt Guide
Nigel Roberts

Among the Russians
Colin Thubron

IMPORTANT NOTES – PLEASE READ

Please note that the information provided is correct at the time of writing but may change. It is intended as a guide only. Further information regarding vaccinations and travel health visit www.fitfortravel.scot.nhs.uk or contact your local healthcare provider.

In addition we strongly advise you to check the information and any travel advice provided by your government. For British citizens you should visit the Foreign Office website www.fco.gov.uk.

Furthermore, you should be aware that any travel warnings or advisories may affect the validity of your travel insurance. Therefore, at the time of booking your tour it is essential you check any restrictions on cover with your insurance provider.

Issue Date – 07/10/09
For possible changes to this dossier please visit www.undiscovered-destinations.com or call +44 (0)191 296 2674

Historical background

Belarus is the forgotten nation of Europe, tucked away in a corner that few have heard of and even fewer visit. Part of Russia, then the Soviet Union, for so long, many people aren’t even aware of its existence as a separate, sovereign nation. Released from the Soviet yoke in 1991 it languishes in a neglected part of the continent, and has become unfairly associated with the worst monotonies of life behind the Iron Curtain. History has been ferociously unkind to this landlocked country, with its position between Moscow and the Nazis in World War Two wreaking untold chaos upon the land and its population. For many of those who have actually heard of it, Belarus is known for all the wrong reasons. But as with most clichés and stereotypes there is far more to this country than most know. Belarus is home to some astonishingly beautiful countryside, its villagers living hand in hand with a nature that most of us no longer know. Its cultural heritage is enchanting, and travelling through this country you gain a real sense of a link with the past, with all its troubles and glories. Belarus may have been through a rough time but its people are a living example of the resilience of the human spirit, incredibly welcoming and pleased that you have taken the time to visit their country. Belarus is one of – perhaps the last - the truly undiscovered corner of Europe, and that’s all the more reason to visit.

The first we really know about Belarus dates back to around the 7th century, when it came to be settled by a number of Slavic tribes – the Kryvians, Drehovians and the Radzimians. As alliances were formed, the first Belarusian states emerged, among them Polotsk and Smolensk. Polotsk came to be the most powerful of the early principalities with a wide sphere of influence stretching to the Baltic Sea. However the early states were to fall prey to Vikings further to the north, who were part of a culture extending from Scandinavia to present day Russia and down to the Black Sea – the state of Rus, ruled from Novgorod. Arriving from the north and keen to secure control of trade routes with Byzantium, the Vikings seized control of trading posts and fortresses forcing local inhabitants to pay tribute to them. Belarus’s position between the Byzantine Empire and the Scandinavian lands to the north ensured that it prospered from trade between the regions. Trade meant traders, and Belarus benefitted not only economically but culturally from its location, with influences from far afield beginning to seep into the region including the introduction of Orthodox Christianity from Byzantium. During the 10th and 11th centuries Belarusian culture began to flourish, with architecture, literature and the arts entering a period of real creativity. Cathedrals were built, books were written and sculptures produced as Belarus began to assert itself on the regional stage. By this point the principality of Polotsk had become powerful enough with the state of Rus – now ruled from Kiev to the south – to periodically flex its muscles and demand greater rights of sovereignty. It became a political capital of the region, exacting tribute from vassal peoples such as the Balts to the west.

Sometime in the 13th century, Rus began to disintegrate, the victim of increasingly frequent raids into its territory from the nomadic tribes of Central Asia. This came just at the time when Lithuania was beginning to emerge as a major regional power. The Grand Duchy of Lithuania, as it came to be known, took advantage of this sudden power vacuum by establishing control over much of the Belarusian lands and incorporating them into its new state. Lithuania was particularly good at expansion and within a relatively short period of time its boundaries were pushing up against that of another regional power, Poland. In the 14th century the two kingdoms entered into an alliance, forming a union that Poland was to dominate shortly afterwards. This developed into the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, ruled mostly by Polish landowners. A powerful state, it was to control all of the land between the Baltic and Black Seas and went on in 1558 to confront Muscovy in the 25 year Livonian War.

With Orthodox Belarus effectively ruled over by a Catholic Poland, conflicts began to emerge. Initially the faith was repressed, with the building of Orthodox churches prohibited and the official encouragement of Catholicism. Belarusians (known as Ruthenians, together with Ukrainians) formed mostly a peasant class, dominated and subjected to harsh taxation by Polish gentry. What local nobility did exist was largely assimilated into the Polish ruling class. Discontent with the lot of the ordinary man caused friction which erupted into conflicts and rebellions against the local authorities, notably in Mogilev, Vitebsk and Polotsk. The 16th century also saw the establishment to the south of the Crimean khanate, a Tatar state made up of the descendants of Genghis Khan’s hordes which raided the territory of the Commonwealth and enslaved many of its citizens. Despite all of its problems – invaded by pillaging armies, subjugated under a feudal system – Belarusian culture continued to grow, with works of literature being produced and trading towns prospering.

Waiting in the wings however was Russia, eyeing lands of the Commonwealth jealously and still smarting from its defeat in the Livonian War. Taking advantage of increasing social unrest it declared war in 1654, occupying a large part of Belarus and wreaking economic havoc upon its towns. The situations was only worsened when Sweden launched a war against both Russia and the Commonwealth. In some parts of Belarus it is estimated that 50% of the population was lost during this time. Internal divisions within the Commonwealth itself further weakened its position, and in 1777 Russia was able to annex eastern Belarus, with other regions following the same fate within twenty years. The country had passed from the hands of one overlord to another.

Russian rule was uncompromising and the Tsar had unlimited powers over his subjects, with serfs the virtual property of landowners. This was a miserable time for ordinary Belarusian peasants, deprived of basic freedoms and marginalized by an ever increasing Russian speaking elite. Their lot was not improved when the land saw the invasion of Napoleon’s forces – Belarus bore the brunt of the war with the loss of large numbers of its citizens. Under Russia, the Belarusian language was prohibited and even the name Belarusia was expunged from the records, being replaced by the vaguer ‘North Western Territory’. Notions of national identity, fuelled by the increasingly liberal and democratic ideas of the educated elite, began to emerge. These were inevitably met with brutality as the Tsar, his agents and the landowning Russian settlers sought to eradicate any attempts at gaining nationhood. Nevertheless, Belarusian culture continued to develop, accompanied by a gradual financial improvement. Time was ticking for the Tsar though – the tide of political change was sweeping the region with more and more ‘ordinary men’ demanding an end to autocracy. Russia finally succumbed to revolution in 1917, with the overthrow of the monarchy and the establishment of a provisional government, but not before Belarus had been occupied by German forces and used as a battleground in the First World War.

The dying days of the First World War together with the overthrow of the monarchy heralded in a brief period of independence for the country, and an independent Belarusian republic was declared in March 1918. It was not however strong enough to resist Soviet power. On 1 January 19191 it was declared the Belarusian Soviet Socialist Republic, then a month later the Lithuanian-Belarusian Soviet Socialist Republic as the Soviet Union occupied Lithuania. By 1922 Belarus was formally incorporated into the USSR.

In 1941, Belarus underwent perhaps its worst period in history as Hitler broke treaties with Stalin and invaded Russia. As ever, Belarus was caught in the middle. Soon overrun and occupied by Nazi forces it fell victim to some of the worst atrocities of the Second World War. Villages were razed, their inhabitants herded into barns and burnt alive. Whole cities were effectively destroyed as German forces dropped thousands of tons of bombs onto this ‘border zone’ occupying the land before Russia. Belarusian partisan groups played an important part in fighting the Nazis - hiding in the woods and swamps, they inflicted heavy damage to German supply lines and communications, disrupting railway tracks, bridges, telegraph wires, attacking supply depots, fuel dumps and transports and ambushing German soldiers, but their actions more often than not led to brutal retaliation in the form of mass executions of innocent civilians suspected of sympathizing with the resistance. By the end of the war, Minsk had been almost entirely destroyed, along with many other towns and cities. Approximately two million Belarusians had died during the conflict, and it had effectively spelled the end of the country’s long history of Jewish communities. The Belarusian economy was completely devastated by the war – the country had to be almost entirely rebuilt afterwards.

Belarus is a nation that has suffered more than most, under foreign domination for almost its entire existence. In some ways it seems a miracle that a national identity and culture has persisted. But it has, and in 1991 Belarus declared its independence as the Soviet Union ceased to exist, taking its place among the nations of Europe but still largely marginalized and ignored. To pass this wonderful country over is to do it a grave injustice – its history is fascinating, if often tragic, its monuments inspiring and its customs enchanting. In Belarus you can still feel as if you’re breaking new ground, going where few western travellers have been before and exploring a culture that has been largely obscured from the rest of the world. And that, surely, is one of the finest things about travel itself.