Neil Bowdler is a multimedia editor at RFE/RL.
A famous Soviet-era exhibition venue in Moscow, the Exhibition of Achievements of the National Economy, known by its acronym VDNKH, is marking 80 years since its opening. It covers a space larger than the Principality of Monaco.
Beekeepers in Russia's central Tula region are reporting mass deaths in their bee colonies. They're blaming the overuse of an insecticide no longer used within the European Union. Tula is just one of 30 Russian regions that have seen mass bee deaths this summer.
Moscow's Romen Theater opened in 1931 as a showcase for Romany performers and a symbol of the Soviet Union's "friendship of the peoples." While Russia's 200,000 Roma continue to face poverty and isolation, the emphasis here remains on song and dance.
A remote monastery on a tiny island in the middle of a Russian lake is being rebuilt by volunteers who parachute onto the island each year. One of the oldest churches in northern Russia, the Spaso-Kamenny Monastery was blown up by the Soviets in the 1930s.
This March, 51-year-old Aleksandr Gabyshev left Yakutsk in Russia's Far East to walk 8,000 kilometers to Moscow and rally opposition to President Vladimir Putin, who he calls a demon.
Graffiti artists have descended on the Russian city of Yekaterinburg for an illegal street-art festival. No one knows how many artists took part in the unofficial, guerrilla-style event and many participated anonymously.
A children's hospital in Kabul is reporting a large increase in patients experiencing respiratory problems as smog and pollution continue to blight the Afghan capital. Kabul, which has seen its population rise rapidly in recent years, currently ranks fourth in a global pollution index.
Making oil from sesame seeds is still done by camel power in the last remaining kharasi workshops of the northwestern Afghan city of Herat.
The Sumarokovo Elk Farm is one of the few in Russia that milk Eurasian elk, which are a close relative of the much larger moose. Russian elk are also associated with a tall tale about Josef Stalin wanting to use elk instead of horses for cavalry.
Kyrgyzstan's prosecutor-general's office has approved a move by parliament to strip former President Almazbek Atambaev of his immunity from prosecution as he faces misconduct and abuse of power charges. Atambaev has reportedly barricaded himself at home and surrounded himself with his supporters.
A Ukrainian rock star is moving back into politics. Svyatoslav Vakarchuk, frontman of the band Okean Elzy, has launched a new anti-corruption party called Holos (Voice) ahead of July's parliamentary elections. Vakarchuk was previously elected to parliament in 2007, but resigned after a year.
Aid groups are warning of a humanitarian crisis in Bosnia-Herzegovina as an increasing number of migrants trying to cross into the European Union find themselves stranded as neighboring Croatia, an EU member, tightens border controls and erects new fences.
In remote valleys in northern Pakistan, the Kalash minority celebrates spring's arrival with colorful dance and festivities, but locals say an influx of mostly male, camera-wielding visitors is threatening their unique traditions.
Serbian prisoners and stray dogs have been teamed up in a novel rehabilitation program. The men train the dogs and help prepare them for new homes. Prison staff say working with the animals has helped boost empathy and decrease aggression among the inmates.
Russia's first official tractor race, the Bizon Track Show, in the city of Rostov, north of Moscow, features souped-up vehicles, many of which were working the fields just days beforehand. The tractors race tire-to-tire through mud, over springboard jumps, and around sharp corners.
An exit poll suggests victory in Kazakhstan's presidential vote for Qasym-Zhomart Toqaev, the chosen successor of former President Nursultan Nazarbaev. The poll came after police detained hundreds of protesters amid clashes in the capital, Nur-Sultan, and in the country's largest city of Almaty.
Traditional weddings in the Carpathian Mountains in western Ukraine mean ornate costumes and exhaustive preparations. Organizers of an annual wedding festival that brings together villagers from across the region hope to keep the distinctive traditions alive.
Strange grunts and groans have been heard in a Belarusian forest as contestants from several countries came together for the 21st European Championship of Stag Callers. The calls mimic those made by stags in the wild and are used by hunters to lure deer for the kill.
After being diagnosed with multiple sclerosis, Stas Borodin, 33, lost a good job in Moscow, his wife left him, and he was forced to return to his native Smolensk. He didn't give up, but instead started a new life and became a well-known DJ in the city.
Over 250 owners have shown off their vehicles in a parade of classic Soviet-era cars produced by the GAZ car company in the Russian city of Nizhny Novgorod. The cars were all produced there between 1932 and 1988 and have been painstakingly restored.
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