When the temperature dips to minus 30C in Tobolsk, kids are allowed a day off school.

Japanese companies consider investment in railway extension via islands of Sakhalin and Hokkaido.

This exceptional collection of brightly coloured historic engines and carriages, dating from pre-revolutionary times, is fascinating as much for the casual visitor as the railway fanatic. 

You can climb into many of the old exhibits, and get a sense of the extraordinary Soviet locomotives that opened up Siberia in the age of steam.

From the city, you can get here by local train, perhaps combining a visit with sightseeing in Akademgorodok and at the Ob Sea.

Pictures show 1,835 men, women and children 'smash record' in the Siberian sun.

Construction has begun on a Park Inn by Radisson hotel in Novosibirsk with its opening planned for 2014.

A theme of modernisation was behind the prime minister's swing through Siberia this week.

The Russian government is to give priority to Siberia and the Far East as it puts modernisation on fast-forward, insists Dmitry Medvedev.

With a larger arch span than any in Europe, it is the new signature of Siberia's largest city.