The Monastery of the Holy Spirit (Sviato-Dukhov Monastery) is a working Eastern Orthodox convent in the centre of Vitebsk, one of the few pre-Soviet religious buildings in the city to survive more or less intact. The white-walled complex with its blue domes sits close to the Dvina riverbank and is visible from the riverside promenades. Visitors are welcome; the usual conventions of Orthodox church visiting apply — cover shoulders and heads.
The monastery was founded in the seventeenth century and has a peaceful, enclosed courtyard that feels remote from the Soviet-era city surrounding it. Services are held throughout the week. Even for non-religious visitors, it offers a rare glimpse of Vitebsk as it might have looked before the war.