Institutes

Life in Arkhangelsk

Arkhangelsk Region

Arkhangelsk Region is located in northern European Russia on the shore of the White Sea. The territory of Arkhangelsk region is bigger than France and six times the size of Bulgaria. It includes the Arctic archipelagos of Franz Josef Land and Novaya Zemlya.

The city of Arkhangelsk was founded in 1584. It has a population of about 330 thousand people and is the administrative center of the region. It is a historic seaport city which has interesting activities to offer and places to visit. It lies on both banks of the Northern Dvina River near its exit into the White Sea. The city stretches for about 40 km (25 miles).

There are a number of Russian Orthodox monasteries, including the World Heritage Site of the Solovetsky Islands in the White Sea. Arkhangelsk Region is also the motherland of the great Russian scientist M.V. Lomonosov, who made an invaluable contribution to the world’s science and art. For more information please visit http://www.pomorland.travel/.

Arkhangelsk region is the largest centre of Russia`s pulp and paper industry. Other major industries are ship-building, including atomic submarines, fishery. The mission of Northern (Arctic) Federal University named after M.V.Lomonosov is to become a driving force for the development of the region and the Arctic.

Cultural life

Cultural life in Arkhangelsk is very diverse – everyone can find something to their taste. There is plenty of opportunities for a wide range of sport activities (both winter and summer sport) and entertainments. Arkhangelsk is called the cultural capital of Russian North, so if you have some extra time in Arkhangelsk you can plunge into local culture: pay attention to the natural history museum and the gallery of arts, spend an evening at a classical organ concert in a music hall or enjoy the performance in one of the local theatres.

For further information check out the sites of the most popular museums and theatres (use Google Translator for web in case the site is in Russian).

• The Arkhangelsk Lomonosov Drama Theater http://www.arhdrama.ru/ (in Russian);
• Arkhangelsk Philarmonia http://www.pomorfil.ru/;
• Arkhangelsk Museum of Fine Art, Stepan Pisakhov Museum http://www.russianmuseums.info/M1444; http://www.russianmuseums.info/ (in Russian);
• Wooden Architecture and Folk Art Museum "Malye Korely" (an open-air museum of Russian North's wooden architecture) http://www.korely.ru/ (in Russian);

Besides, in the city centre there are also various activities to do and views to enjoy. Arkhangelsk is spread along the Northern Dvina river, therefore Northern Dvina’s embankment (Naberezhnaya) is a favorite place of walking for locals and guests of the city, especially in the summer. Most of Arkhangelsk's street events are organized at Naberezhnaya, a couple of beautiful churches and interesting buildings are situated along the way and it is a perfect place for sport activities like cycling, rollerskating, jogging and what not.

Events

Annual International Street Theatres Festival takes place every year at the end of the June and finishes on the City Day (the last Sunday of June) with a huge celebration all around the city. Various performance groups and companies all over the world gather in Arkhangel sk to make their performances in the streets of the city. The aim is to get the Region population get acquainted with new trends in contemporary theatre, to educate it through the means of theatre and to strengthen cultural ties of Russia with foreign countries.· 

International Jazz Music Festival «Jazz Days in Arkhangelsk». The Festival attracts musicians from all over Russia, as well as from Norway, Latvia, Estonia, Sweden, USA, Great Britain, Germany and other countries. It is a music laboratory where young jazzmen have a chance of playing together on one stage with prominent Russian and foreign musicians. The unique concert programme is always accompanied by exhibitions, installations, excursions, master-classes, films and video art events, music, lively club events. The Festival usually takes place at the end of September - the beginning of October each year. 

Ice sculpture festival has become a good city tradition. Best sculptors of Arkhangelsk and other regions show their skills in ice sculpturing and this way decorating the city for the New Year celebration. The citizens enjoy this tradition admiring the beauty and sophistication of the sculptures. There’s a popular belief that if you stick a coin to such ice sculpture it will bring happiness to you.

Travelling to Arkhangelsk

The climate in the city is characterized by moderately cold and long winter with much snow, cloudless spring, moderately warm summer, cloudy and rainy autumn

Temperature

• Over the course of a year, the temperature typically varies from -19°C to 23°C and is rarely below -31°C or above 29°C.
• The warm season lasts from June 6 to August 27 with an average daily high temperature above 16°C.

White Nights

The Arkhangelsk Region is called the White Nights Land. From the middle of May and almost to the end of July to the north of Polar Circle the sun never disappears behind the horizon; to the south of Polar Circle days are much longer than nights, the latter resembling dawns. It is regarded as a mysterious phenomenon that attracts visitors and adds to a special atmosphere of the city.

Transport

Arkhangelsk is situated in the North of the country and is served by the Talagi Airport that deals with international and regional flights and a smaller Vaskovo Airport for local flights.

There are daily flights from Moscow and Saint Petersburg that take about 2 hours. There are also direct connections with Murmansk (Russia), Kirkenes (Norway) and Rovaniemi (Finland). It takes about 25 minutes to reach the city centre from the airport Talagi.

The city is located at the northern end of a 1,133-kilometer (704 mi) long railway, connecting it to Moscow via Vologda and Yaroslavl. It takes about 20-21 hours to get to Arkhangelsk from Moscow and 25 hours from Saint Petersburg. At Arkhangelsk railway station buses and taxis are available and will take you to the city centre in a just few minutes.