Despite its profound history, Rostov-on-Don resembles a young and fresh city, with many green parks and monumental squares. The streets are romantically named Harmonious, Creative and Lucky streets. Here one can find the most unusual monuments: to a water pipe or to a newspaper reader. River Don provides the city with the serene and picturesque sand beaches and a unique cuisine, featuring fish and crayfish dishes. Rostov-on-Don has a specific unique outlook because of its rich historical and cultural heritage. There are about 1,000 objects of cultural heritage in the city, including 482 architectural monuments (16 monuments of history and culture of federal importance), 70 archaeological monuments, 8 large memorial complexes, 106 monuments, and about 400 memorial plaques. Also, the city is one of the largest jazz centers of the country. It has become a tradition to hold the following art festivals: “Donskaya Vesna” (“Don Spring”), “Mini-fest”, “Russian Comedy” and international jazz festivals.
Rostov-on-Don is situated about 1,000 kilometers southeast of Moscow and is a key transport and cultural hub of southern Russia. It is also informally known as the “Gate to the Caucasus”.