旅人る - Tabibito

 

Nilov Monastery

 

A venerated spiritual landmark on Stolobniy island on the Seliger lake 10 km north from Ostashkov. It is connected with the mainland by the bridge.

 

As in Joseph-Volokolamsk Monastery, cats are respected and fed here.

 

The summer was very hot in 2022. The cats were wrecked by 30 degrees Celcius.

 

In Soviet times, the monastery was used as a colony, as a hospital, as a nursing home, and as a camp site. To date, it hasn't been fully restored yet, but what has been restored is richly gilded.

 

"Gothic" fraternal building.

 

The detached temple of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross (1788) used as a baptistery.

 

Former harbor, now just a gazebo.

 

You can climb the cathedral's bell tower for a fee.

 

Right to the giant clock.

 

The monastery from above.

 

The Seliger lake.

 

Pigeon nests in the belltower.

 

The monastery is tourist friendly, just don’t wander in certain off limits areas.

 

However most of the memory in the camera was occupied not by the monastery or the lake, but by the mayfly sitting on the railing of the pier.

 

It just shed for the last time.

 

And ready for the final mating flight.

 

Getting in (as of June 2022): 15 minutes drive or two buses a day on weekends from Ostashkov. The parking lot near the bridge can be cramped.

Where to stay: the monastery has a hotel for pilgrims on its territory. Holiday resorts near Seliger are usually fully booked for months in advance. So consider the hotel in Torzhok or Tver.

What to buy: I did not like the monastic kvass, but a lot of other things are sold in the kiosk at the entrance. If you are returning from Ostashkov or Nilov Monastery in late summer or early autumn, buy blueberries from berry-pickers along the road.

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