About Tomsk

Tomsk is an unforgettable city full of surprises, harmonizing the wisdom of age and the mischief of youth. Tomsk conquers the minds of visitors with her intelligentsia and ability to listen attentively to history. In 2004 Tomsk celebrated her 400th anniversary, yet Tomsk is also a young and modern city. You can see this easily while looking at her vibrant streets, filled with young people, and all thanks to Tomsk’s six nationally-renowned universities.

Tomsk’s culture was created by the best minds of Russia, sent into exile to Siberia or for penal servitude. The city’s architecture, too, plays a considerable role in forming a special atmosphere. There is no ‘typical’ building for Tomsk — she has everything: straight avenues and crooked streets with cobbled roadways, rickety fences and the smart facades of the Governor’s District. During 400 years of existence Tomsk has constantly changed, and is now many-sided. One era replaces another, and on one street 18th century wooden houses and detached houses of millionaire merchants of the gold fever period stand side-by-side with modern buildings.