With more than 17 million sq km of land (more than one-eighth of the Earth's inhabited area), Russia is huge and never ceases to amaze. But even then, it is still surprising to learn that the locals require a passport and visa to travel to one of their own cities.
Welcome to Kaliningrad, an exclave that shares no common border with mainland Russia and is sandwiched by Poland, Lithuania and the Baltic Sea. It is 1,000km away from the more well-known St Petersburg and reachable via a 95-minute flight.
Already a subscriber? Log in
Read the full story and more at $9.90/month
Get exclusive reports and insights with more than 500 subscriber-only articles every month
ST One Digital
$9.90/month
No contract
ST app access on 1 mobile device
Unlock these benefits
All subscriber-only content on ST app and straitstimes.com
Easy access any time via ST app on 1 mobile device
E-paper with 2-week archive so you won't miss out on content that matters to you
