Church of Elijah the Prophet in Sovetskaya square at the heart of of Yaroslavl.
I finished my first round of Russian work meetings in Yaroslavl between Halloween day and the following Saturday. I arrived late on Halloween evening after a miserable day of unheated airports, bumpy flights, trains, metros and taxi-cabs. On the bright the long day of travel really made me appreciate getting to my hotel…and what a hotel it was. I stayed at the Pearl Hotel (Hotel ZHEMCHUZHINA or in Russian ОТЕЛЬ ЖЕМЧУЖИНА). The hotel was built in the shape of a paddle boat and sits in the Volga River.
The Pearl Hotel is more of a giant pier than a real boat but still it looks cool and you have to cross a small bridge over the Volga to get into the hotel.
The Pearl Hotel.
Not only does it look cool, but it is very nice. They have clean rooms with fancy showers (they had water that came out of multiple nozzles and a built in radio) and of course great views of the Volga. In addition, the bar/restaurant staff was really nice and we spent the early part of our evenings usually chatting with them.
Yaroslavl is part of the Golden Ring (like Vladimir) a series of towns located to the north and east of Moscow. The term Golden Ring is relatively new and used to describe the series of old Russian cities that once held prominence in medieval Russian history and now maintain many forts and beautiful churches. Yaroslavl was established by Prince Yaroslav of the Rostov Principality in 1010 (the city is currently preparing for their 1000 year anniversary in 2010).
Doing the Yaroslavl bear walk.
The land had been inhabited by Vikings and Finnish-Urgo/Slavic tribes prior to Yaroslav’s arrival.
Yaroslval stands at the meeting point of the Volga and the Kotorosl Rivers it was an excellent spot for military and trade purposes. Yaroslav built a fort where the city’s kremlin stands today. The story of the city’s founding goes like this: when Prince Yaroslav arrived he found pagan tribes people inhabiting the area. He slew the sacred bear they worshiped and thus subjugated them under his rule and converted them to Christianity. The slain bear is represented on the city’s coat of arms holding a halberd (that’s sorta like a pike and axe mixed together).
After Yaroslavl’s establishment in the 11th century the city grew slowly from a northern out post of the Rostov Principality into an independent principality in the early part of the 13th century as the ancient Rus Empire began to disintegrate.
Yaroslavl chapel back lit at dusk.
The new found independence did not last long, however, the Mongol and Tartar Hordes swept through the area in the mid 13th century wiping out Yaroslavl and the other cities of the Golden Ring all of whom attempted to stand against the Mongols independently rather than fighting together. As a result of their internal squabbling and inability to coordinate their defense each city fell one after another and the Mongols/Tartars established themselves as the rulers of Russia for the next two centuries.
Yaroslavl survived this period and grew into a major trade city but it never again would be independent and it would always be a smaller cousin to the great Moscow. During the 17th and 18th centuries the city experienced a true economic boom.
Borscht, brown bread and beer...the necessary B's of Russian cuisine.
Peter the Great invested in the city and built textile manufacturing plants there and the Volga trade brought enormous wealth into the cities coffers. These were truly the golden years of Yaroslavl and much of the churches and old buildings you see when strolling through the center of the city were built during this period.
As for touring the city today, there are many things in the center to see. Surrounding the center of the city is the Volga and the Kotorosl Rivers. Walking along their banks is an enjoyable and relaxing way to spend time and it gives you some fabulous views of the city as a whole. You can also visit the city’s kremlin (which is also the original town). There you can see numerous churches and some relatively interesting museums (all in Russian though no English.
Where the Volga and Kotorosl Rivers meet.
You can also climb up the ramparts for some nice views of the city. Aside from those two major attractions there are many lovely onion domed churches scattered throughout the center. To enjoy the city merely spend your time strolling about and entering churches (though be warned many are not in great condition inside). If you’re interested in learning more about some of the churches you can look here http://www.waytorussia.net/GoldenRing/Yaroslavl/Guide.html.
Aside from historical touring the city also has a great atmosphere. The people are friendly and the town is filled with a slew of great places to eat including some good pizza joints, traditional restaurants and a really Jamaican restaurant/Pizza joint. There are also a lot of chill coffee shops serving nice coffee and chai (chai (ЧАЙ) is the word for tea in Russian) to keep you warm.
Church of Elijah the Prophet reflecting in a puddle.
The night life is also good and I must admit that much of the time not working and sleeping during my trip to Yaroslavl was spent at some of their fine drinking and dancing establishments. In particular a cocktail bar/club/restaurant called Mojito and a good dance club called Friday’s playing a good mix of Russian House music.
Well that’s about it Yaroslavl was a pretty town and friendly town with plenty of history, architecture, nature, good food and good drink to keep me happy. I would definitely recommend Yaroslavl for a visit if you’re touring the Golden Ring. It’s probably worth at least two days and if you can fit it into your plans try to be there on a Friday or Saturday night.
At bar Mojito in a Soviet Army helmet.
As always, more high resolution pictures are available for viewing at my picasa page: http://picasaweb.google.com/mpadraicmurphy/YaroslavlNov2007.
