MINSK – On July 7, as the sun was setting, a tall and thin young man was waiting for me from Iran and another journalist from Kazakhstan at Minsk airport. He said I welcome you to Belarus on behalf of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

As we moved toward the capital Minsk, I was excited by the beautiful landscape. It was the first time that I was visiting Eastern Europe. The forested lands and wheat farms won my attention more than anything else. The green European continent is loved by many people around the world, especially those living in arid and semi-arid areas of our planet.

In the nearly 40-kilometer distance from the airport to the city I couldn’t withhold my eyes from looking at the picturesque scenery for a moment. It made me feel comfortable after a troubled journey from Tehran to Moscow and then Minsk after strong winds in Moscow had kept flights grounded at the airport and resulting delays.
 
As the car was nearing the city the young man said we are entering Independence Avenue that houses landmark buildings, such as the diamond-shaped National Library, Parliament and Independence Palace, etc.

The avenue was greatly wide open with special places for sidewalk and cycling on both sides of the street. It was the first time that I saw such a wide boulevard in my foreign trips. First I thought it may be the main street that is so wide but later I found out that all streets in the city of the two million people are wide. 
I liked to walk for hours in the streets that look like a park but there was no time. The beauty of the nature is embedded into the city.

Though the capital is not disconnected to the forests, there are many parks in Minsk as well. It is worth noticing that Mink rose from the ashes after almost total destruction in the course of World War Two. 
 

Clean transport system

Overhead electric buses were picking up passengers in the capital that spans 40,800 square kilometers.

For me it was interesting and commendable to notice that such a sparsely populated city with blue sky is using clean public transportation systems like electric buses and underground metro.

I searched and noticed that the construction of metro had started in November 1977 in Minsk and its first line became operational in June 1984. It has been a great step at its time, exactly 40 years ago.

Wide boulevards 

When we as a team of journalists from the countries member to the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) visited Vitebsk in northern Belarus in future days I realized that the streets there are also wide and there is overhead electric buses and underground metro network.
 
Cities in the Republic of Belarus are like garden houses. Multistory housing blocks are widely spread. Forests, ponds and lakes catch the eyes of every visitor even inside cities.

Influenced by these things I wished that one day I could return to the country as a tourist and see different parts of the country. 

Sailing Center 

The Sailing Center in the Minsk district shines like a star. It is the gem of the city. Taking a yacht trip in the lake, also called Sailing Center Minsk, will leave an impressive memory in the minds of visitors.  The lake, surrounded by forest from almost all corners, hosts yacht racing between countries. 

Also, rains, typical of the continental Europe, in the summertime adds to the beauty of the natural landscape and the cities as well.

A country of lakes   

Before visiting the country, I had searched through internet and read that there are more than 10,000 lakes in Belarus, covering a total area of 1600 square kilometers. On the road from Minsk to Vitebsk, the heart of the country’s culture, I clearly noticed that Belarus is truly the land of picturesque lakes. According to FAO, there are also about 1,550 small and shallow natural ponds in the country.  

Some of my friends who had gone to the three Slavic sisters of Belarus, Ukraine and Russia to study engineering and medicine talked to me about the natural beauties of these countries, including Belarus.

 Arrival in the cultural city of Vitebsk one gets a kind of different sense. The city is decorated with Uspensky Cathedral and Holy Resurrection Church among many of other top attractions. The city is highly lively.
 
The visit to the city corresponded with the holding of the 33rd Slavonic Bazaar Festival, which is intended to foster amity between Belarus and other nations and promote peace and understanding through cultural activities. 

Some people, young and old, were doing art activities in Frunze Street, where the international arts festival was to be officially opened at nighttime in the Summer Amphitheater, close to the Holy Resurrection Church. Some were playing music. A very young girl was doing gymnastics to please the visitors, who had poured in the city from different parts of the country to see the festival. The large number of people were frequenting Frunze Avenue and the surrounding streets. 

Some had opened small exhibitions to sell art works and hand-made artifacts. 
 
Here in Vitebsk, art, culture, and God gifted natural beauties are embedded together, creating a feeling of calm and empathy between Belarusians and foreign guests and visitors.

In general, the scenic landscape – forests, farms, lakes, swamps, ponds and marshes - coupled with interval rains and park-like wide streets make trip to Belarus memorable. 

In addition to being unrivalled in producing huge mining vehicles and an industrial country in certain other industries including tractor manufacturing, Belarus is a hidden gem in terms of natural beauty.

The country’s natural beauties and technological achievements made after the Second World War must be cherished and protected with a sincere and deep wish and diligent efforts for an immediate peace in neighboring Ukraine in the south.