Yekaterinburg

 Yekaterinburg (or Ekaterinburg), located at the crossroads of two continents - Europe and Asia, is the capital of the Sverdlovsk region and the administrative center of the Ural district. It was founded under Peter the Great as the largest metallurgical plant in Russia of those times and named after Empress Yekaterina I, the wife of Peter the Great, and Great Martyr Saint Catherine, the patroness of mining. For three centuries the city-plant has been steadily developing as a center of mining industry of the Urals and Siberia. Nowadays Yekaterinburg is not only one of the biggest industrial centers in Russia but a very beautiful city with a lot of monuments of great historical and cultural value. Dozen of museums, several theaters, numerous movie houses, 14 high school institutions as well as developed infrastructure make Yekaterinburg the unique city where the past and the present mix together.

	Area:		more than 400,00 sq km
	Location:		The capital of Sverdlovskaya oblast, middle Urals, Russian Federation, Yekaterinburg is situated right on the border between Europe and Asia.
	Geographic coordinates:		56 49 N, 60 35 E
	Population:		approx 1,304,000 (2005 est.)
	Foundation:		1723
	Climate:		Yekaterinburg is far away from Atlantics and close to Siberia, so the climate here is continental. In Yekaterinburg winters are cold and long, and summers are quite warm. The coldest month is January, when average temperature reaches -16 -17 C. The warmest month is July with the average temperature of 18 C.
	UTC/GMT Offset:		UTC/GMT + 5 hours
	Area code:		3432
	Major attractions:		Ipatiev House, Cathedral on the Blood, Opera House, Europe-Asia border obelisk.