Where is it? The Jewish Autonomous Oblast, or region, is located in the Russian Far East, bordering on Khabarovsk Krai. It is in the same time zone as Vladivostok. You can find the current local time here.

What's the biggest city? Birobidzhan (sometimes written as Birobidjan), population 77,250 as of the 2002 census, out of 190,915 total inhabitants... more

Where is it? Kamchatka Oblast, or region, is a peninsula in the Russian Far East, northeast of Primorye Krai and Khabarovsk Krai and bordered by the Sea of Okhotsk and the Pacific Ocean. It shares a northern border with Magadan Oblast. It is in the same time zone as... more

There's a busy thread on the Russian Adoption forum now started by a member looking for the best region for her adoption plans. She's getting a lot of interesting feedback, and since Russia has 86 governing subdivisions that are potential locations for an adoption, it's an interesting question to ask.

Back in 1999, at the time of my first adoption, I don't recall ever worrying about--or even selecting--a region. I ended up in Vladivostok,... more