Blogs from Karelia , Northwest, Russia, Europe

Kizhi is an island near the geometrical center of the Lake Onega in the Republic of Karelia, Russia. Lake Onega is between 31 - 127 metres deep with 1650 islands (mostly rocky outcrops). The best known island is Kizhi. The island was very prosperous from the middle ages because of the trade with timber, furs and fish. It was frequently targeted in raids but when Peter the Great established Russia's soverignity in the Finnish borderlands that the region witnessed a construction boom using the local timber. They have a very traditional method of cutting wood by cutting with axes rather than sawing believing that it closed the grain of the wood against moisture while wooden pegs and joints were used rather than nails as they were expensive. As we set off for our tour of the ... read more

As I arrived in Pyalma the sun, though it would never entirely disappear at this latitude at this time of year, was drifting slowly downwards in the vague direction of the horizon, illuminating the world with a magical light that I could only recall having seen twice previously on equally clear days during summer in the Far North and Mongolia. This light, which quite possibly occurs far more frequently than I realise but only sticks in my memory during moments on the road when it throws itself on places of exceptional beauty, flooded the world with the sort of glow that film directors give certain scenes to make them seem more alive, vibrant, peaceful or memorable, enhancing the colours to an intensity and warmth that is almost unnatural. As to the viewer of that sort of ... read more