Gomel is the capital of Gomel region, SE Belarus, on the Sozh River, a tributary of the Dnieper. Gomel is the second largest city in Belarus. The central streets of Gomel also have several buildings of the XIX-XX centuries, which makes the city scenery originally picturesque.A river port and a large railroad junction in an agricultural area, it is the country's second largest city. The city's industries produce machinery, textiles, building materials, food products, electrical equipment, and fertilizers. The natural advantage of Gomel is, certainly, Polesiea unique land of marshes, peat-bogs and marshy lakes situated in the Polesskaya lowland. In the Soviet period the fragile balance of nature In these lands was disturbed—lots of marshes were dried up with the aim of increasing cultivated areas of the country. Fortunately, much have been preserved and today In the Pripyat National Park people can admire surprising landscape of Polesie, unique for the world, watch rare types of plants and animals.