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Published: September 25th 2007
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So, our second day in Yekaterinburg we had a guide and went out of the city to the site where the bodies of the Csar and his family are believed to have been dumped in a mine shaft in the woods. I say believed as there are a number of different theories about what happened to them after they spent a number of months in a house in Yekaterinburg. The most widely believed is that they were shot without warning when the Bolsheviks felt that they were too dangerous to be kept alive any more. However, they did not want this to get out so the bodies were disposed of where they were unlikely to be found, partly so that this could not become a shrine. However, the remains found have never been finally proved to belong to the family and there are some suggestions that this might be another unfortunate family and that the Romanovs escaped and lived peacefully in the country for many years. There were further remains found earlier this year which are said to be those of Alexei, the young son, but this just adds to the controversy it seems.
Sine the year 2000, a monastery
and 7 churches (one for each member of the family) have been built on the site which is a rather beautiful and tranquil place. It is also very holy - the family have been canonsed as holy martyrs by the Orthodox church and for many it is a place of pilgrimage.
Victoria was very knowledgeable and spoke perfect English so we had a chance to ask questions about many things that we had been struggling to understand. She was also happy to talk about politics and the current situation in Russia which proved interesting if her views as an educated, politically motivated person were not surprising. It seems that Putin's support is largely in the rural areas where they only have access to the state owned television channel and he has much less support in the cities.
Then back on the train heading for Tobolsk. We had a compartment to ourselves this time - in part quite welcome as enforced intimacy with strangers, particularly those whose language you cannot speak, can be awkward sometimes. However, we were sharing the carriage with around 20 teenagers who appeared not to bother going to sleep. Combined with a window which wouldn't
quite shut so freezing temperatures made for a sleepless night.
Tobolsk station is 10km outside the town so we decided to attempt the bus, causing chaos with our large packs! Still, one kind lady pointed out where we needed to get off. The hotel could have been a Thistle or Travel Lodge anywhere but it was warm and comfortable so we were not complaining. They also let us check in rather than enforcing the 12 o'clock check in rule so we revelled in hot showers.
It was only at the point that we attempted to explore 'the sights' of Tobolsk that we realised we were really in small town Russia. The cafe in the hotel was closed so we took a bus to 'the town' to get breakfast. The only cafe mentioned in the book had closed and it seemed that the only other place to eat was the only other hotel in town with no English speakers or English menu. Still we managed to get pancakes and coffee to keep us going.
The main site in Tobolsk is the Kremlin on a ridge above the river. Unfortunately, most of the site is being restored so large
parts are dug up and much of it closed. However, we came across a priest who ushered us up the steep stairs of the otherwise closed bell tower (he raced up them like they were nothing!) and told us something about the Kremlin and the area. He then took us into the two churches, getting the key for one, and explained something about the effect of the revolution (one was used as a dining room, one as a prison) and how they have been restored - all in rather halting English, but he tried very hard.
We then walked down into the 'Old Town' - a sprawling collection of single storey wooden houses sinking into swampy ground. It soon became apparent that we were not going to find food there either and, admitting defeat, headed back to the hotel. The main restaurant in the hotel was closed due to a wedding so we ended up having lunch in the rather grand sixth floor restaurant for which we were a little under dressed!
Determined to find out what we were missing in Tobolsk, and failing to make any headway with the receptionists, we managed to find access to the
internet at the Post Office. However, this was clearly disturbing the girl working there who barked a price at us in Russian and, when we asked about the login details required, she shouted at us until we went away!
(from what I've since been able to find from Google, Tobolsk has gas and petrochemical plants, but the overwhelming impression was of a very run down 60s 'new' town, with the housing already starting to fall apart - clearly our hotel was built for bigger things than have actually materialised. H.)
So, a rather quiet afternoon but luckily the main restaurant reopened in the evening and we shared an enormous room with about 5 other tables of people. This still merited live entertainment which even resulted in some dancing.
We made another attempt at the 'old town' the next morning and it was quite pleasant to just wander around, avoiding the various wildlife, including cows. Then a quick visit to the Fine Art Museum - interesting if fairly limited, followed by a visit to the workshop of the bone carver who made many of the articles in the museum. He is clearly a local character and showed us
around (with his translator) his collection of pictures which he had been sent by friends all over the world. He also demonstrated some of his carving with what appeared to be a dentist's drill. When he offered the opportunity for someone else to try, H jumped in there and is now the proud owner of a carved bone fish - a new talent exposed!
Our train from Tobolsk was leaving at 1.25am local time and we had to leave the hotel around midnight so a long tired wait with the drunks at the station. There were already 2 asleep in our compartment as we tried to quietly make our beds and store our packs. A much better night's sleep as the train seemed much less clattery. Our companions this time were two young men who appeared pathologically shy, not just with us, but with each other too. They could barely look us in the eye never mind speak so it was a quiet journey into Omsk.
And finally Jonathan, we make it to Omsk. The sun was shining and we eventually found the right bus. Our hotel turned out to be rather nice apart from the man drilling immediately outside our window.
And now we're running out of time so the rest of Omsk will have to come another time......you can't wait can you??
S + H xx
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Jonathan
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Breathless With Excitement
I can't believe you've left me hanging on the verge of Omsk. However I was somewhat mollified by the arrival of your I Heart Omsk picture text in the middle of my training sesion on RLLB. Sounds as though everything is going OK which I'm pleased to hear. The trouble is going to come I suspect when you venture to places without internet access (are there such places in the world?). You'll have to text someone the news (surely there will be a mobile phone mast even if there isn't a computer) and they can update the site for you. Not much news on the home front (although Ms Hill has some news on the "home" front but I'll let her tell you all about that). Still not got a date for the apartment refurb (or even a budget). With any luck it will all be sorted by the time you get back. Sent you an e-mail in work last week just to see what your out of office message was like! How sad is that? As f I haven't got enough to do... J x P.S. Keep em peeled for that T shirt.