We went to the world's oldest and deepest lake. Lake Baikal is the world's most voluminous freshwater lake, it contains roughly 20% of the world's surface fresh water. We stayed on Olkhon Island, there we stayed at a bombastically stylised hostel called Nikita´s place (named after its 1986 Russian table tennis champion owner). A very fun place. It was situated in the centre of Khuzhir, a small 50% tourism 50% fishing village.
Being off season, it was somewhat ghost-townish, vastly wide empty lumpy mud streets, where for every person you encounter, you encounter 18 crows, 3 cows, 1 bull, and 6 hungry dogs.
**The dogs seem to fully understand tourists. As soon as you decide to stroll, one of these fellows will come up to you and stick with you, guiding you through the streets all bouncy and smiley. Until they have to growl at other dog guides who come over and try and poach you. The stores look closed, but are always strangely bustling once you enter the door. And once you exit without any food to give your dog guide, he guides you back bitterly, at a distance. And stops off to find muddy old bones to munch on during the cold nights. This place and its distinctive Siberian architecture had a feeling like nothing else. Except perhaps a little like a wild west movie set.
We went on an excursion around the chilly autumn island in a monstrous russian van. You can't go long in Russia without seeing this exact model of van. It's everywhere. And it rules. It can go anywhere and do anything. We were almost driving sideways at one stage.
It was freezing but beautiful.
**Please note the sign our pooch is quietly reading. It says "Cautiously the Malicious Dog".
the malicious dog with rabies?
ReplyDeleteoh throw the dog a bone
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