From the book
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…Standing on high riverbank of Lodeynoye Pole, I’ve been enjoying the view of the wide Svir River, its swift current. I looked across on Finland’s shoreline, covered with forest that spread far away and disappeared into horizon in pinkish dusk’s clouds. There it was, evergreen by the shore, further away leafy with slightly brighter green colour, and beyond that – burnt forest intersected by the road to Alexander Svir’s monastery, Olonets, Finland, and Petrozavodsk. I had little interest in Svir with its commercial/industrial character and population. Proximity to St.Petersburg has left mark of big city culture. I’ve crossed the river by the ferry and went deep into the land where I hoped to find intact customs and primeval simplicity. I took direction to Finnish border. This part of the region was densely populated by the Korels. They were the ones I wanted to get to know closer. Having passed 25-30 versts that way, one already finds villages where Russian is rarely spoken. The further you go the more authentic and pristine becomes the country. . . . The road went on to meander along small Korelian villages all the way to Olonets. when I stopped for a snack in one of the villages, for the first time I found myself in a difficult position because of my inability to speak Korelian. They didn’t speak Russian. If it was not for the help of my coachman who served us as a translator, I would have been forced to communicate with Korels by mimics and gestures, the same way as with Aussies or Africans. Translated by Margarita Matthew, 2024 |