A Travel & Leisure story this morning caught my eye. “Strange Love? U.S. Tourists Flock to Russia in Record Numbers” is a revelation that’s not surprising to some of us. What the writers at Time Inc. and Affluent Media Group don’t realize is, Americans and Russians don’t despise one another – so boosted tourism is not so “strange” after all. Here’s a photographic look at other reasons for Russia’s touristic value.