Cruise Day 5 - Goritsy

This morning we docked in the village of Goritsy and were met by our local guide before boarding the buses and driven the short distance to visit Kirillo on the White Lake . Legend has it that if you immerse yourself in the lake water it will make you younger - on our tour there were no takers prepared to test the theory so we'll have to take their word for it.

Our guide gave us a history lesson about the monastery and Nunnery we would be visiting telling us that Kirillo is a tiny settlement with two of its monasteries being especially famous in Russian history - The Kirillo-Belozerskiy monastery and the Goritsy Nunnery. The Kirillo-Belozerskiy monastery dates back to 1397 and played a significant role in the beginning and end of Ivan the Terrible's life.

Apparently before Tsar Ivan the Terrible was born, his parents prayed at the monastery for God to give them an heir and their prays were answered. When Ivan himself was old and sick he begged the monks to pray to God for forgiveness of his bloody deeds. The monks truely believed that the terrible Tsar had reformed and hoped to see him prove his salvation by becoming a monk .   This, of course, never happened.

During its early years the monastery became a fortress which resisted the attacks of the Poles and Lithuanians for many years however could not resist the Bolsheviks. The monks were shot or sent to labor camps. Despite the attacks, the ornate building has managed to preserve much of its historic grandeur and was recently named the winner of a competition to become one of "The New Seven Wonders of Russia."

During our visit we were fortunate to see some of the original doors and artifacts that have been removed and placed in a museum for safe keeping. It was hard to comprehend how these ancient ornate pieces were crafted without the help of modern tools and technology.

We also visited the less grand Goritsy Nunnery founded in 1554 by Princess Efrosiniya, the wife of one of Ivan the Terrible's sons. The Princess became one of Ivan's numerous victims when Ivan began to suspect her and her son of treason he very cruelly had her drowned in the river Shekna . Ivan then turned the monastery into his own personal harem quarters to house his wives and the abducted Russian beauties held there against their will. During the “Time of Troubles” the nunnery fell to Lithuanian attacks and was only saved from complete destruction by rebel fighters.  

Our tour ended with a return bus ride to the port where back on-board we settled in for the day’s cruising along the ever changing waterway. As the cruise has progressed we have gotten to know a little more about the people we are travelling with in our English speaking group. The Australians within the group represent all states with the exception of Western Australia.

The occupations of the individuals within the group are quite diverse – there are two Ministers of religion, a farmer, a journalist, a judge, a lawyer, a clothier, a national guardsman, a teacher and a refugee councillor and the rest of us fall into the "retired" category . It is always surprising how quickly camaraderie develops within such a group resulting in the formation of lasting friendships.
  
Each evening our meal is usually theme based and tonight’s was no exception. We arrived at the Restaurant to find the crew all dressed as pirates and the head tour director tied up and being held to ransom.  In keeping with the theme our table settings were in disarray and we were told we would have to sing for our supper to secure our meal and the release of the Tour Director.

It was all great fun with everyone joining in the spirit of the occasion by singing a rousing rendition of “My Bonnie lies over the Ocean”. We must have passed the test as we secured the release of the Tour Director and our meal was then served.      

Cruise Day 6 - Uglich

This morning we docked in Uglich and were met by our guide for a walking tour of the town with the main focus being the ancient Russian orthodox churches dating back to the 16th century .

Uglich is an historical town situated on the Volga River and was founded in 937 as a border fortress for the Moscovy Principality. Uglich was the town where major events in Russian history took place and it has continued to preserve both the historical and cultural traditions of Russia ever since.

Uglich has numerous ancient buildings of both historical and architectural interest the oldest being The Kremlin where Maria, the seventh wife of Ivan the Terrible lived in honorary exile.  It was in Maria’s garden that the 10 year old Prince Dmitry was murdered. To mark the place of his death stands the “Dmitry on Blood” church built in 1692 under the special order of Peter the Great and it is considered the most prominent and historical building in Uglich. Due to the significant event that occurred the church was painted red to immortalize the place where the “blood was spilled”.

Last on our tour list for the day was The Palace of Tsarevich Dmitry which was founded in 1480 and is one of few preserved Russian palaces remaining . The Palace, which is now a museum partly reflects the life of Dmitri who lived there from 1584 to 1591.

During our visit to Uglich we noted the effect tourism has had on these small Russian villages. Every church you enter has a cost value added for the privilege – for example if you want to take photos within the church you have to part with 50 to 100 Roubles. It would appear that the Russians have learnt very quickly how to maximise the tourist $.

Most days when walking back to the boat you are bombarded by stall holders trying to sell you all manner of trinkets. Some are very hard to resist as they sell irresistible things that are unique to Russia – I don’t have to add that Sal and I on the odd occasion have been persuaded to purchase a souvenir or two!

Following lunch we had a free afternoon on-board before attending the Captains farewell cocktail party and dinner. The meals on-board the Lev Tolstoy have been first class and our final meal was no exception . After the cocktail party we were treated to a seven course dinner served by the wonderfully friendly wait staff who just couldn't do enough for us. We don't usually get to meet the Chef and kitchen staff but tonight they headed the grand parade of the Bombe Alaska before dessert was served so we got to meet and thank them for their great work.

Dinner was followed by a talent quest where each group was expected to perform an item to entertain their fellow cruisers. This did not sound like fun to us!

When it came to deciding what our group would perform it was a no brainer to some as they had been attending Russian lessons all week and decided the Talent quest was the perfect venue to showcase their new talent. I had chosen not to attend the lessons as I was suffering from a head cold so spent the time recouperating.  Sal had wanted to attend them but unfortunately missed the first lesson so was unable to catch up. Trev on the other hand was not at all interested in Russian lessons preferring to spend his free time on deck.  

Our decision not to attend the lessons was about to see the three of us come unstuck. Just before the performance we were issued with the words and told to sing them just as they were written. The only problem for me was I didn’t have my reading glasses therefore couldn’t read the words so I quickly hatched a plan to hide myself in the back row. Unfortunately my plan backfired as I was spotted and quickly escorted to the front row as I was the smallest – Damn.  

To make matters worse the performance was being filmed for our tour DVD. All I can say is the next few minutes were excruciatingly embarrassing for me but highly amusing for Trevor and Sally who later told me she laughed her way through the whole performance as she thought my uncomfortable situation was hilarious! Suffice to say I haven’t seen the DVD and when I do will probably fast forward through this most embarrassing performance.