Tiny Kizhi Island is the site of an open air museum of wooden architecture from the Lake Onega area. Continually under restoration, the most imposing structure is the Church of the Transfiguration. It’s the one with 22 domes. It’s neighbor the Church of the Intercession was open, as was a typical house of the region that was transported to the island for the museum. The second floor balconies allowed them to not only close the shutters against the winter weather, but to darken their sleeping rooms when there’s only three hours of almost night time in the summer. It was all quite impressive. It’s the abundance of fish and game that attracted Russians from the 15th century who were creating some distance from the regions whose economies were based in serfdom. The Church of the Transfiguration was built in 1713.
The hooded crows followed us from St. Petersburg. Oh, yes, and thanks to Buchmann for identifying those other birds as white wagtails (not to be confused with pied wagtails), also found only in Europe.
Could Buchmann or someone else identify our new acquaintance?
On our way once again, the Captain welcomed his passengers to the bridge. Our ship was built in East Germany in 1975 and began sailing under the name of Lenin’s wife. Times have changed.
