Moscow was built on the Moskva River in the twelfth century. Today it is the world's sixth largest city with a population of almost
10 million.St Petersburg is the most northerly place of world's biggest cities and has five million inhabitants. The city is
situated on forty-four islands in delta of the Neva.As both Hitler and Napoleon discovered, winter can be extremely cold with the temperature dropping as low as a record -42 °C in Moscow.
There can be nothing more Russian than the
crisp frosr of winter, ice on the Neva and snow falling upon the golden cupolas ['kju:p3laz| of the Moscow's churches.
Probably the best
time for a winter trip to Russia is from late November to early
January before the strong winds of February and the slush of March.
In the warmer season, August and July can be very
hot in both Moscow and St Petersburg. The air is
fresher around May and September and if the weather
holds, these are perhaps the most attractive
times in the year. To catch the legendary
St Petersburg White Nights, when the sun never sets and the whole city celebrates plan your trip for the end of June or the beginning of July.