Vologda.

  Vologda is the main city in Vologda oblast, situated 400 kilometers from Moscow. I have been there for several times, and despite its poor condition I like it very much. Vologda is one of those places where many features of Russian culture have been preserved. It's good that in 2000s--a time of big prices for oil and a rise of the Russian economy--Vologda had no great influx of money. Therefore, beautiful historic buildings of Vologda were not demolished and replaced by ugly shopping malls and apartment blocks. So, Vologda is a place where the spirit of old Russia remains, however ruined its condition may be in some parts of the city.


      This time I arrived there by train. When I travel by the train I like the night trains. You can spend the night sleeping and arrive at your destination in the morning, around sunrise. I wrote "sunrise" just formally, since actually Russia cannot boast of many sunny days during wintertime. Usually the sky has a milky color at this time. Just an off-white sky. The train makes three stops on the way to Vologda. A one-minute stop in Alexandrov, a long stop in Yaroslavl, and a twenty-minute stop in the town of Danilov. I was awake when the train stopped in Yaroslavl, so I got off the train and went to see the station. It’s a typical building from Stalin's time. Typical, but pretty. I generally like the architecture of Stalin's time, despite my opinion that this is a lesser type of architecture compared to the buildings of tsarist Russia. The photo above I took with my smartphone, as I was too lazy to use the camera just then.

   It was ten minutes to five when the train arrived in Vologda. I have a friend in this area, but he lives outside the city and the buses don’t operate that early. So, I started to search for a place where I could wait for a couple of hours. The problem is that Vologda isn't a large city, and there are almost no cafes or restaurants open at night. The local McDonalds was due to open soon, so I went there. It was the first time in two years that I had I visited a McDonalds. I’m not fond of junk food, but at the same time I like McDonalds because when eating options are very limited, they’re at least are open a full day and you’re not likely to get food poisoning there.

  A traditional monument to the Great Patriotic war--a tT-34/85 tank on a pedestal. There is a joke that if you were to gather all the weapons used as monuments in Russia you won’t get top quality, but you will get the largest army in the world. I’m not a militarist, but I like these kind of monuments. They show a piece of live history of the nation. You can see the main Vologda administration building behind the woods. Built in the 1980s, with its strict and mighty form, it could play the role of "ministry of love" or "ministry of truth" in dystopian movies.

  Vologda was founded in 1147, and that makes the city a contemporary of Moscow. However, some scientists have doubts about that official year, and say it’s later, more like 1264. But I choose not to believe them, because it's more interesting for Vologda to be a contemporary of Moscow. From the beginning, Vologda was part of the Novgorod principality. The population of the town and surrounding area significantly rose after the Mongolian invasion, because many people fled from the land when it was visited by these uninvited Asian guests. From the end of 13th century, the lands of the current Vologda region became the object of wars between the Novgorod, Moscow and Tver principalities. That led to the situation where Vologda came to be controlled by both Novgorod and Moscow at first, but it ultimately became part of the rapidly-rising Moscow principality. That happened in 1397, when Moscow’s Prince Vasily the First permanently brought the power of Moscow to the city. Novgorodians couldn't agree with it, and tried to regain control several times.
  Vologda also became one of the objects of Muscovite civil war of 1425-1453. As a result of the defeat from Dmitry Shemyaka, the prince Vasily II Dark was banished to Vologda in 1446, and the city was given to him. He became the first prince of Vologda. But being the prince of just a small principality left him unsatisfied. The next year, he went to the Kirillo-Belozersky monastery, where hegumen Trifon was released from the oath not to claim the Moscow throne, and then again continued to fight with Dmitry Shemyaka. In 1450, Vologda was besieged by the troops of Dmitry Shemyaka, but without any result. After the death of Vasily II in 1462, his son Andrey became the prince of Vologda. In 1481, after the death of Prince Andrey, who left no heirs, Vologda became part of the Moscow state. Under Moscow and Prince Ivan III, Vologda became a place to gather troops during military campaigns, the storage of Treasury and grain reserves, and a place of exile. Kazan Khan Alegam, Crimean Khan Aider, Lithuanian hetman Konstantin Ostrogski, the sons of Uglich prince Andrey Bolshoi - all of them lived as prisoners in Vologda in 14-15 centuries.
   The real rise of Vologda happened during the reign of Ivan IV, more known to foreigners as Ivan the Terrible. Thanks to its convenient location, the city became an important center of trade with countries of western and northern Europe and with Siberia. In that time Vologda played an important role in Moscow-British relationships. The kingdoms of Great Britain and tsarist Russia established diplomatic relations in 1553. It happened when three British ships which tried to find a north-east passage to India and China were hit by a storm.  One of ships, captained by Richard Chancellor, reached the land of today’s Arkhangelsk region. The crew disembarked at the harbor of Saint Nikolai, near the Nikolo-Korelsky monastery, and contacted the locals. When Tsar Ivan the Terrible heard of Chancellor's arrival, he immediately invited the exotic guest to visit Moscow for an audience at the royal court. Chancellor made the journey of over 600 miles (over 1000 kilometers) to Moscow. After meeting with the tsar, he returned to England and was sent back to Russia in 1555, the same year the Moscovy Company was established. The Muscovy Company had a monopoly on trade between Britain and Muscovy until 1698. As the headquarters of the Moscovy Company, the English were provided a large house near the Moscow Kremlin, which is still there, and known as the "Old English Court."  In Vologda, they opened the trade point.
    In 1565, Ivan the Terrible introduced the policy of Oprichnina, and included Vologda into the structure of Oprichnina lands. That year, he visited the city for the first time and decided to make it the center of Oprichnina, and consequently the capital of the country. Large construction works were begun in Vologda. The main task was to build the Kremlin—a mighty fortress for the new capital. Several years later those plans were canceled, and the tsar left Vologda forever. No one knows definitely why.  Perhaps failures and defeats from the Livonian war were the reason. Remnants of the Kremlin survived until the 19th century, when the stones from it were used by locals to build new houses. Unfortunately, the same fate fell to other Kremlins in Russia. In Kolomna, for instance, the remnants of their Kremlin were saved only by direct decree of Emperor Nikolaus I. The Vologda Kremlin currently consists of a large complex of chambers and several churches. Its main structure, remaining from the time of Ivan the Terrible, is the huge cathedral of St. Sophia (in the photo above).

  The only photo I've taken inside the Kremlin.
A remote part of the wall. As you see there is a small park behind the Kremlin. The entire Vologda Kremlin and area around it is named "Nason gorod".

  Vologda is a city of wooden houses and churches. Although most of Vologda's districts were built during the Soviet period, pre-revolutionary architecture still dominates the historic center. There are a lot of churches in Vologda, and there used to be even more. Unfortunately, many churches were demolished during the Soviet time.

Very typically Russian.

  Outside the Kremlin is the Verhni Posad, which is the historic district of the city, full of colorful wooden houses. This is the oldest district of Vologda, the place where the city developed before the time of Ivan IV. The district is very interesting because of its historical wooden buildings. The building in the photo above is the house of Zasetsky family--the oldest remaining civilian building in Vologda. Not in many places can you see such a large amount of old wooden architecture as in Verhni Posad. Unfortunately, the cultural level of our modern population is low, and the cultural level of Russian authorities seems to be even lower. That leads to the unfortunate fact that not many people appreciate our historic architectural heritage. Historical houses everywhere in Russia rot and burn, after which modern barbarians demolish them only to build tasteless disposable structures in their place--very ugly garbage in violation of many building technologies. I am not enemy of modern architecture; actually, I’m a fan of it. I present only photos of old buildings in my posts, not because I’m especially keen for the antique theme. I do it because there is nothing to show in Russia except old architecture.  There is no modern architecture here except some projects in Moscow, St. Petersburg and several other cities. With the policy of liquidation of historical architecture, the towns and cities in Russia lose their identity. They all begin to look very similar--interesting to neither visitors nor their own inhabitants.

  The mansion of the merchant Dmitry Nikolayevich Panteleyev. In it now is a museum called "the world of forgotten things".

A church with a very unusual look.
  One of houses around it. Wikimapia says that this is the house of a pre-revolutionary railway employee.

The houses here are really very nice. This is a private house, and I am very pleased that the owners maintain the condition of their homes. Not all landlords do the same in Vologda. Many houses are either in poor condition or totally abandoned. Demolition of historic buildings is constantly going on in the city. Some historic-looking houses are actually built on the site of demolished old houses, and are concrete and brick imitations covered with wood.

The improvement and repair of old buildings is not strong in Vologda. The city budget is small, and the infrastructure is broken. Anyway, I believe that this church will be restored. Many of them actually have been restored during the last several years. I don't think about all of Vologda with this photo or another photos in this post. It looks like an ordinary city, with grey apartments, shopping malls, schools, parks, hospitals, etc. My self-appointed task, however, is not to show the city life, but rather the history of the city.

  Gorny Assumption convent.

  Soon, I had finished studying the Verhni Posad and I decided to run to Spaso-Prilutsky monastery, located a few kilometers from the city center. I ran along the ice of the river of Vologda. There were many fishermen around. People here like winter fishing. Many of them had tents and cars. On my way, I noticed this interesting building. It's Skuliabinskaya almshouse, a monument of history and architecture from the second half of the 18th century. Secured by the state, ha ha. That's how we actually take care of the monuments. The prospects of restoration in this case are vague, most likely the house will continue to collapse. Next to the almshouse is the house of merchant Christopher Semenovich Ledentsov, which is now occupied by the Office of Escorting for the Federal Penitentiary Service--famous Vologda convoy, infamous stories of the Gulag, and songs in the genre of criminal chanson.

  On the way to the Prilutsky monastery, I noticed a bell tower of this abandoned Church and decided to examine it closer. It took time to find a place where I could cross the railway. Coming closer, I saw an old cemetery, and a small church that seemed from afar to be abandoned. It actually seems to be under restoration.

  The window openings were covered by insulated glazed windows, in many places with visible signs of repair.  Even a new dome had been delivered, but then the roof of the temple collapsed.

  A sad sight.

Although only a part of the temple’s interior is restored, church services are held there on holidays.

The area around the church looks quite interesting and is called Yamskaya Sloboda. Although administratively it's part of Vologda, it looks more like a remote village.

Horses, hay, and Russian-made vehicles combine to create the strong rural smell and atmosphere of this village.

      Soon I came to the river bank near the monastery, near the railway bridge. The monastery was founded in 1371 by Saint Dmitry Prilutsky, a disciple and follower of Sergius of Radonezh. Its name was due to the fact that it is located in the bend of the Vologda River (излучина in Russian). From the beginning, the monastery was a stronghold of Moscow princes in their struggle for Vologda. In 1812, the treasures of the Patriarchal sacristy, the Trinity-Sergius Lavra, and a number of other Moscow monasteries and cathedrals were kept here. After the revolution, the monastery housed a colony for street children, a transit camp for the dispossessed during collectivization, and later a military unit. In poor condition, the complex of monastery buildings was eventually transferred to the Vologda regional museum. Now, it is a functioning monastery, with more than twenty monks.

  The colorful coloring of the tower is not the fruit of modern trends in design, it actually was painted even before the 1917 revolution.

  Other walls and towers are painted in traditional white.

 The architectural core of the monastery reminds me of the Pafnutevo-Borovsky monastery in the Kaluga region. The Cathedral of the Transfiguration was built in 1537-1542. It is the oldest remaining stone building of the monastery, and where its founder is buried.

  Behind the Cathedral is an old wooden church, the Church of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin. Built in 1519, it was originally located on the area of the Alexander Kushtski monastery, near Lake Kubenskoye. Because of its location in a remote and underpopulated area, the Alexander Kushtski monastery was poor, and in 1764 it was completely closed. The wooden Assumption Church was transported to the area of the Prilutsky monastery during the 1960s.

  Near the monastery I wanted to buy marshmallows and sweets for my siblings. The shop there didn't accept bank cards, so I went outside to search for a terminal to get cash. I found one nearby, but on the way I happened upon this house. I find it more interesting to photograph houses in bad condition than good. Maybe because well-maintained buildings are more likely to stay that way, but houses in bad condition are not. At least I'll preserve them on my photos!

     I bought the sweets, then went to the local cemetery and on the bus, after which I came back to Vologda.

  As you can see, there’s a mannequin in a fireman uniform on the top of old fire tower. This is a tradition of firemen, and you can see the same on many of the remaining old  historic fire towers.

  A typical historic Vologda house.

  Atypical historic Vologda house.

  Finally, I present here photos of two Soviet mosaic panels which I accidentally found on the wall of one of the local factories.

  What is very unusual is the comparison between the two very spirited Soviet mosaics. One was obviously created after the collapse of the Soviet Union. In it, the man holds on his shoulder a girl with a Russian flag in her hand. Next to them, you see an old computer and mobile phone. 

  “Labor will be the lord of the world.”