Sadly it is true. Russia is an awesome location for non-urban tourism with a wild variety of climate - from hellish desert to a cold-hellish snow one, from high-rise mountains to vast expanses of swamps. Totally worth a visit.

Not for us Thais. We are visa free. I think they do it the way your country imposed them first. EU imposed the visa, they do the same back etc.

That's what I believe at least. :)

Not sure this is true.

For example, from what I have seen for British citizen, the process is exactly mirrored: Russians have to go through the same process to go to UK as Brits have to do to go to Russia.

Still a shame though. I must have gone through the process the author of the post mentioned at least 10 times in my life, it's not fun.