Museums

Minsk not being much of an international tourist trap, you’ll find that exhibits in museums are labelled in Russian or Belarusian only. Don’t be put off though because there are some splendid things to see in the museums listed below. Admission prices are based on your nationality, meaning that unless you speak flawless Russian you’re going to have to pay the highest tariff. However this still cheap and is currently only 7,000br at most places.

Museum of the Great Patriotic War
Prospekt Nezavisimosti 25a, (пр. Независимости, 25а)
10:00-17:00, closed Mondays
Admission: 7,000 for foreigners
www.warmuseum.by
If you only go to one museum then come here. If you don’t then you will never truly understand this country and its people. Few countries were as devastated as Belarus was during World War II and the full horror is depicted here over three floors. Although the exhibits aren’t labelled in English a lot of what you see will be fairly self-explanatory from the first floor depicting the invasion, the concentration camps and the public executions, through to the second, which demonstrates the actions of the partisans. Towards the end of the tour you reach an exhibition showing photos of all the hero cities of the Soviet Union, places like Minsk that were honoured for the actions of their citizens during the war. Don’t forget to pop round the back of the museum afterwards where you’ll find all sorts of military vehicles on display.

National Musem of History and Culture
Karla Marksa 12 (Карла Маркса 12)
11:00-19:00, closed Wednesdays
Admission: 7,000 for foreigners
There is a plan of the museum in English in the entrance hall. Sadly the translations end there. Everything you’d expect for a national museum, plus a few things you wouldn’t, like a tractor. Particularly interesting, if you’re not one for fossils and flints, are exhibits from the country’s 20th century history as part of the USSR.

Museum of Olympic Glory
Ploshad Yakuba Kolasa 2 (Площадь Яакуба Коласа 2)
09:00-18:00 Mon-Fri, Sat-Sun closed
Admission: 7,000br for foreigners
It’s Olympic year and the Belarusian team came home from Beijing with more medals than you’d expect from a country of only 10 million people. This small exhibition is on the fifth floor and the main entrance overlooks Ploshad Yakub Kolas (If you’re still not sure where it is then the same building houses the Lido café). Here you will find photos, sports equipment and mementos from every summer and winter Olympics that Belarus has completed in, as an independent nation and as part of the USSR. In addition there is an exhibition of photographs and souvenirs from Beijing organised by Chinese Embassy in Minsk.
The names that really stand out as you walk around are Alexander Medved and Vitaly Scherbo. Medved is considered one of the greatest ever wrestlers and was three times Olympic champion and seven times world champion. His achievements are all the more remarkable when you consider that he wasn’t actually very big for a wrestler and often fought opponents up to 60kg heavier than himself. Scherbo won a record six gymnastic gold medals at the 1992 Olympics in Barcelona, a feat that many feel will never be repeated.

First Congress of the Russian Social-Democratic Workers Party Museum
Prospekt Nezavisimosti 31a, (пр. Независимости 31а)
11:00-19:00 Tues-Sun. Closed Monday
Admission: 7,000 for foreigners
As the snappy name suggests the first meeting of the above party took place here in 1898, when it was the house of a railway worker, and the museum opened in 1923. The building was destroyed during the war but was rebuilt in 1948. It’s interesting if only to see how a traditional Belarusian house would have looked at the turn of the 20th century. British visitors can award themselves a prize if they spot the picture of Neil Kinnock.

Belarusian National Arts Museum
Lenina 20 (Ленина 20)
11:00-19:00 Wed-Mon. Closed Tues.
Admission: 15,840 for foreigners. Free entry on the last Wednesday of the month.
Mainly Belarusian and Russian works, which is refreshing because it means you’ll encounter artists that you’ve not come across before. Of course the main reason for the selection is that the museum has no money and anything of value was stolen by the Nazis, but that’s another story.

National Museum of Architecture & Life
Ozersto (Озерцо), which is a village near Minsk
May-October 10:00-17:30 Closed Mon, Tue.
November- April 10:00-15:00. Closed Mon, Tue
This splendid ethnic museum is located over a vast area on the banks of the river Ptich some 15km from the centre of Minsk and is a perfect place to spend an afternoon. It is divided into three areas (Central Belarus, Dnepr area and Lakeside) and in each one you will find small wooden peasant cottages lovingly decorated in the style of age that they represent.
Getting here can be a little problematic. Buses depart from the Yugo-Zapad (Юго-Запад) bus station on Zheleznodorozhnaya street (Железнодорожная). Your best bet would be to send me an e-mail with the date that you plan to go and I will confirm the exact times for you. A taxi would be more expensive but if there's a few of you to split the fare it's not exactly going to break the bank.

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