Jax Stumpes: Waterways of the Tsars: Uglich (10/12/2019)

Saturday, October 12, 2019

Herb garden on Viking Truvor

We woke up to fog on the Volga River, which lifted as we sailed northward.

Dachas, maybe, and boat houses

Dachas (dacha sounds like 'cha-cha') began in the time of Peter the Great, who gave plots of land near St Petersburg to subordinates he wished to stay close. Simple wooden houses were erected and aristocrats enjoyed going to dine and entertain on the long summer evenings. After the 1917 Revolution, private ownership was forbidden, and the people went to collective group recreational facilities. Yet Stalin had many dachas, and provided government-owned dachas to "motivate" close associates and VIPs in science and culture. These dachas were often grouped by occupation, so that there were villages of writers, artists, scientists, etc.
After World War II and with the shortage of food, the government gave people allotments to grow vegetables; however, they were not allowed to build houses on these plots. In the 1960s, people were then allowed to build a small one-floor house on this allotment where they could grow food for their own consumption. Thus the dacha was a place of work instead of recreation. In the 1990s, having home grown produce became necessary, but now the allotments became privatized and could be purchased. There were no limits on building, and the wealthy built mansions on their plots. Most people added a second story to their dachas, or turned them into year-round homes. Again the dacha became a fun weekend getaway.

Flooded belfry of Kalyazin (1796-1800 as part of St Nicholas Cathedral)
in the Uglich Reservoir that was created by a dam of the Volga River
and resulted in several towns being submerged

There is a pier to the church spire

In Stalin's quest to industrialize the Soviet Union beginning in 1933, he used prison labor to build the Moscow Canal to link Moscow to the Volga River. Dams (in 1937, 1939, and 1941) were built to power hydroelectric plants along the Volga River, creating vast reservoirs that flooded towns and villages, as well as fertile farmland. The river was tamed to make it the main commercial traffic artery through Russia. After World War II, more dams were built, up to thirteen on the Volga River alone. The benefits were considered to be greater than the effects on the ecosystems.

Kalyazin highrise?

Богоявленская церковь/Epiphany Church (1781) in Kalyazin

Entering the Uglich lock (1940)

Upper gate mechanism

Viking Truvor mascot, Micheal the monkey

The upper gate of the lock lies horizontal as boats enter the lock, then is
moved on a semicircular gear system to a vertical position to block the
waters of the reservoir from entering the lock as the water level is lowered

Allotments

The pair of lower gates pivot on each side of the lock

Approaching the town of Uglich, which had most of its outskirts
submerged after building the dam

After lunch, we disembarked for our included shore excursion, in the rain.

Viking passengers with red Viking umbrellas wait for the guides of the shore excursion

Minibuses took small groups for home visits. Twelve of us arrived at the dacha turned into a year-round house of a couple (Vladimir and Rita) who worked as jewelers, creating filigree silver and enameled objects. They showed us examples of their work, such as rizas, the decorative metal covering for icons with openings to show the face and hands of the painting. There were the traditional three toasts with home-made vodka, followed by bites of brown bread and/or home-made pickles. After some back and forth questions, tea was served with an apple cake. The couple grew all sorts of vegetables on their property and had several different fruit trees.
After the home visit, we were dropped off in town for the guided tour.

Bridge to the kremlin of Uglich; a kremlin was the fortified
center of medieval Russian cities, often the domain of royalty

Chapel of Alexander Nevsky (a monument to all defenders of the homeland)
and the Church of Our Lady of Kazan (1778)

Transfiguration Cathedral (1713) and Belfry

The belfry has electronic chimes installed by the former local company of Chaika/Seagull, which manufactured watches with jeweled enameled watch bands.

Winter Church of the Epiphany (1827), where we saw a performance of a
singing ensemble, with the highlight being the Song of the Volga Boatmen

Kent poses by the contrabass balalaika

Tamiko in rain gear (KSS)

Kent in rain gear

Prince's Chambers (15C), the oldest structure in Uglich is where
Prince Dmitri and his mother lived after the death of his father,
Ivan the Terrible, during the reign of regent Boris Godunov

Memorial to Prince Dmitri, who at age 10 (in May 1591)
reportedly died by accident while playing
with a knife/dagger (seen at his feet) (KSS)

Approaching the Church of St Dmitri on the Blood

Church of St Dmitri on the Blood (1681-1692) and Belfry (KSS)

The frescoes in the narthex of the church are
unique because of the naked figures (Adam & Eve)

The wooden litter that carried the exhumed body of Dmitri
to Moscow to prove his death

Frescoes in the nave, some of which tell the story of Prince Dmitri (KSS)

Here the legend is illustrated where the henchman of Boris Godunov
asks to see the necklace the prince is wearing, in order to expose
the child's neck for the "accidental" slitting of his throat (KSS)

The bell that rang the news that Dmitri was dead,
was symbolically punished by Boris Godunov, who
ordered its "tongue" cut out, had it whipped,
and sent it to Siberia!