Village of the Old Believers

June 22, Saturday. This morning we crossed back into Russia. That meant an early AM passing of passports at the Mongolian border, meaning we were awake and dressed soon after seven, and then no showers until 12:35 PM or later when we are moving again after clearing Russian passport control.  I'm never really awake without my shower, so I will be happy to be moving again. This afternoon, they will take us off the train to visit a community of Old Believers, and then we will rejoin the train in Ulan Ude. 

Off the train, our first stop was at a site that is a religious shrine for both shamanism and orthodoxy.  Its main purpose, however, seemed to be to view the river from this hilltop.

This archway was dedicated to shamanism.  Many coins were scattered on the ground undisturbed.
They are dropped by superstitious Russians of all faiths or none to bring good luck.
In that spirit, I suppose picking them up would be VERY bad karma.

Across the road, we could see the hilltop orthodox cross

View of the river looking to the left...

...and to the right

 The Old Believers village was a true highlight of this trip. We were greeted by two ample ladies, the younger of whom explained everything to us about the older lady's house. They repaint their wooden homes every year, usually around Easter. Today, although they maintain the old ways in their religion, many of them work at mainstream jobs. They dress "normally", drive cars, and own modern appliances while still living in tight, exclusive communities to maintain their identity.  When I saw painted houses elsewhere in Siberia sprinkled among the regular unpainted wooden homes, I was told by Tatiana that those painted houses did not belong to Old Believers but instead to regular Russians who simply chose to paint their homes. 

The house we visited

On the left is the owner of the house, who lives there with her husband.
Their children live nearby but were raised in this house.
The lady on the right is the power player in this village.  She was our guide in the house, the narrator  of the entertainment we enjoyed at dinner, and the lead singer at that time as well.  It is her mission to help everyone see that Old Believers are not weird or other-worldly but like everyone else in their hopes and dreams.

  

The fence and gate were delightfully decorated with painted plastic water bottle caps.

Explaining the outbuildings.  The one with the starburst over the window is the outhouse, I think.

This is the door leading into the summer kitchen.

On the far left,  you can see just a little of the very large woodpile they have amassed so far for winter heating.
The shed where the pig lives in winter

A small part of the thriving garden that produces plenty for the family as well as for sale.

The summer house with its exuberant paint

After seeing the house and grounds, we moved on to see their church. The priest explained some of the differences in their rituals compared with the current Russian Orthodox Church. The Old Believers split off in then1600s when a reformist archbishop made changes they didn't want to accept. During the Communist era, they were persecuted even in this remote area, with whole families being killed and the lucky few fleeing to countries all over the world, including Japan, Australia, the US, and Europe. The Old Believers have a long history of persecution. They were exiled to Poland at the time of their split from Orthodoxy, then the Ukraine.  Then Catherine the Great decided that Siberia needed population and forced them to walk thousands of miles to Siberia.  They were always hard working, clever people, and managed to prosper in this harsh climate. Their houses are colorful and immaculate, their gardens thrive and usually provide for not just the needs of the family but also cash crops, and they are now a World Heritage protected people. Their spokeswoman made very clear that they are really just like anyone else, seeking peace, joy, safety, and comfort just as we do.

This small but lovely church is clearly not as well endowed as the
golden-domed Russian Orthodox churches we have seen. Of course, we
were not allowed to take photographs inside.

The priest and our guide both here and a few days ago in Ulan Ude

The priest proudly told us this ancient jeep still runs.

After admiring the church, we crossed the street to the museum, curated by the son of the priest. It contains many interesting items from the daily lives of their people throughout the time of their existence in Siberia. 

The exterior of the museum

The first exhibit we saw was a pile of ancient bones we were told included mammoth bones

A collection of samovars.  Other collections included mugs, sewing machines, a coffin
(traditionally made by it's future occupant), farm implements, furniture, clothing, and many more.

This overview of just one corner gives an idea of the huge amount of "stuff"
from daily life through the years that has been preserved here.

The walls throughout this museum were decorated with these wonderful floral motifs.

Finally, we went to a local cafe, the only place in town large enough for our entire group, where the ladies of the community served us a delicious meal of their home grown organic foods. John and I loaded up on all the veggie options and were feeling quite content when we were suddenly served with plates of tomato flavored rice and peppers stuffed with veggies. Of course we had to eat that, too!  Not a sacrifice at all, but we were STUFFED in the end. As soon as dinner was over, we were entertained by four wonderful singers, who finished their performance with a mock wedding in which two of our number became the bride and groom. It was a very funny performance that further emphasized that people all over the world truly are the same.

This is just the beginning--the appetizer course.  There was MUCH more to come, including
a delicious very late arriving vegan course for John and me.  We were always well taken care of throughout this trip.

Buses 1 and 2 in the cafe

The singers, who sang perfect harmony at full volume.

We bussed back to Ulan Ude and the train after a long but fascinating day.