KIZHI

This peninsula on the northern shore of Lake Onega is first and foremost an open-air museum of wooden architecture. Wooden structures have been brought here from the surrounding region, including some cute little peasant houses (izba) and several churches. The island boasts an interesting icon collection, though the most famous relic on Kizhi is the much- photographed twenty-two-cupola wooden Church of the Transfiguration that was built without nails. People tired of inhaling second-hand smoke will be glad to hear that Kizhi is a no-smoking zone.

You can use St. Petersburg as your base to get to Kizhi, or else head to the town of Petrozavodsk and take a boat from there (summer only). Located on the southwest shore of Lake Onega, this depressing industrial town's only merit is that it is convenient to Kizhi.

How to Get There

The City Excursion Bureau has two days/one night or four days/five night cruises to Kizhi and Valaam two or three times per month. Naberezhnaya Krasnogo Flota 56. No nearby metro. Open 10:00-18:00 Mon-Fri. Tel: 311 2445.

Sputnik offers cruises to Valaam and Kizhi. The Valaam cruise happens every summer weekend and is a two-day/one-night affair. The Kizhi cruise lasts five days and includes stops in Valaam and Petrozavodsk; it runs only in the end of May and in September and October. They can provide translators if necessary. Ulitsa Chapygina 4. Metro: Petrogradskaya. Open 10:00 -18:00 Mon-Fri. Tel: 234 3500.