6/4/10
On
deck, the sun is shining, the boat is churning smoothly across Lake Onega, the
wind is a little brisk, the cirrus clouds divide the sky into deep blue above
and a beautiful turquoise nearer the horizon. This cruse part of the trip has
been utterly delightful.
The
first place we stopped along the river system was Uglich, a small town with a
couple of ancient churches (and a nunnery?) dating back to the time of Ivan IV,
otherwise known as “The Terrible” (grozni, in Russian). Apparently the young
son of Ivan, Dmitri, was murdered in Uglich by emissaries of Boris Godonov.
Dmitri and his mother had been sent to a convent there. This left the Rurich
dynasty without an heir; Ivan IV had already murdered his elder son in a fit of
rage. A church (“St. Dmitri on the Blood”) was built on the site of Dmitri's murder,
and we were allowed to go in and take photos—with payment of a fee.
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| Church of St. Dmitri on the Blood |
I also went into a second church, the Cathedral of the Transfiguration, paid the fee, and took photos of the frescoes and of the iconostasis. The iconostasis in this church was particularly impressive.
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| Iconostasis in the Cathedral of the Transfiguration |
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| Cathedral of the Transfiguration |
On the way back from the church, in the old fortress area (Kremlin), I stopped in a shop and bought two watches: one (less expensive) with lapis lazuli stones, the other decorated with malachite. I also bought an unusual amber necklace and a scarf, so I went on a bit of a spending spree in that town.
This
town was definitely a tourist trap; the entire walkway from the dock to the
fortress is lined by little tent shops of the sort one might have seen in
medieval European towns when the traveling merchants came to sell their wares. In
European towns and villages, there was usually a market day on the square once
a week or once a month, and merchants brought their wares into town on carts,
plying the circuit as was convenient. Obviously, most of the river tour boats
stop at Uglich, famous for its watches and cheeses, and also for good prices on
other types of Russian souvenirs.
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| Palace of Prince Dmitri. Note the elaborate woodwork, still intact from the sixteenth century |
The
same was not true at Goritsy, our stop on the following day (yesterday). They are
apparently best known for their furs, but it was a warm day, and not many of our
group were buying. Also, a great many of the group are from California and
Texas and other states in the southwest, so the furs weren’t tempting to them
either.
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| Kirillo-Belozersky Monastery, mostly abandoned |
I
had signed up for a side trip to the Kirillo-Bellozersk Monastery. It was an old, dilapidated fortress-monastery, but apparently some nine
or ten monks are now living in buildings near the church. Other areas are occupied by local
villagers who were allowed to move in during the Communist era, and they’re
still there by squatters’ rights. They have kitchen gardens on the monastery
grounds and apparently live there rent-free.
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| Two elderly ladies (babushkas), monastery squatters |
This
has been an absolutely wonderful trip so far, and it is only half over. This
afternoon we will stop at Kishi Island.
