December, 15, the commander of legendary mine-thrower detail WWII veteran Alexander Terentievich Shumov celebrates his 99^th birthday. Six brothers Shumov, Tuvan strong men, have entered all artillery encyclopedias of the world for their feats, fearlessness, accuracy and speed of shooting.

Alexander Prokofiev wrote the poem "Rossiya" about them - this work was awarded Stalin's Prize. The heroes spoke in their own "Tannu-Tuva" language, as the military journalist Pavel Luknitskiy, who spent time at the Leningrad front where the Shumovs fought, noted in his reportage. We present some fragments from it to the attention of our readers.

Results of complex expedition research of therapeutic and touristic-recreational use of natural arzhaan complex "Choigan mineral waters" will be presented today at a scientific seminar at the National Museum of Tuva.

On 20 May 2012, the famous Russian sailing ship "Sedov" departed form Sankt-Peterburg and started on a 14-month circumnavigation of the world..

The journey of "Sedov" - the largest training sailing ship of the world - is dedicated to the 1150^th anniversary of the birth of Russian statehood and the 200^th anniversary of the first Russian circumnavigation of I.F. Kruzenstern and Yu.F. Lisianskiy.

On December 6, 2012, at the Museum Hall of the headquarters of Russian Geographic Society in Sankt-Peterburg, there was a ceremonial opening of exhibition "Treasures of Tuva".

Republic Tuva is well known to archeologists and historians of the whole world as a treasury full of remnants of the most ancient civilizations and cultures. Scientists and curious adventure seekers have been striving to learn about them for more than 100 years, during which archeological excavations have been taking place there.

Nature park "Ergaki" is becoming more and more popular every year as a place for active recreation, gradually turning into the next "Mecca" of Russia.  According to various sources, about 2 to 3 thousand "guests" visit the "Sleeping Sayan Mountains".

But there is a problem: the majority of the people going to the mountains has not had even minimal preparation for it. Most of them not just can't tie a "sea knot", but can't even start a simple campfire. And, as is well known, the mountains do not forgive mistakes.

A journey

In southwest Siberia in Tuva, between Mongolia and Altai, the mountain massif Mongun-Taiga spread its shoulders - the mountain ridges, glittering with glaciers of the Silver Mountain. It is a harsh land of wind-blown high-altitude meadows, stony slopes and icy rivers. Only strong and tough people survive here, Tuvans of Turkic roots, living a nomadic life with their herds of sheep and yaks. They are kind to their guests, but guests are rare - it is not an easy road to the remote mountain pastures. But those who had made the trip fell in love with the simple beauty of its wild nature and the people living in harmony with it.

Ethnocultural center "Ustuu-Khuree", which will be located on the territory of Dzun-Khemchik district of the republic, will become one of the trademarks of the republic. This was announced today at a government conference, during which the project plans were evaluated. It is anticipated that the Center will include the territory of the Ustuu-Khuree temple, destroyed in 1937, in the vicinity of Chadan.

Currently, the ruins of earth walls of the old temple, which are sacred to many people of the republic, attract multitudes of pilgrims and tourists. Next to the ruins is the new Buddhist temple, opened on 23 July of this year, which is a contemporary replica of the old temple.