After spending the night at the beautiful multistorey home of Vladim's family on the North Eastern outskirts of Krasnoyarsk, Vladim and his girlfriend Olesya offered to show me some of the local sights.
First we visited a ski lift. In summer the lifts take you up the mountainside to the edge of a national park. From here to view is brilliant. The ski lift is quiet and you run along neat treetop level. Very peaceful.
Next we stopped at a lookout beside the river, the site is named after an author Viktor Astafiev who was born in the nearby village. The lookout is a favourite site for wedding parties to take photographs. I think there were at least four couples there at the same time. To bring good luck, couples attach padlocks to the railings around the lookout. These are sometimes specially made ones in the shape of a heart and engraved.
From the lookout we drove about 20km South of the city up to a hydroelectric power generator a the base of a large dam at Divnogorsk. Beside the dam is are two elevator for ships to be lifted up from the river below the dam so that they can continue South along the river to Abahan. The elevators run on rails.
Next we visited the village of the strange rocks. This is a pleasant village beside the river. On the opposite side there are tall rock outcrops. One was once the home of a hermit monk and so is now know as Monk Rock.
Returning to Krasnoyarsk we stopped at a cafe that specialised in Georgian food. The food was vety good but the servings were so large we ended up bringing at least half home.
Today was the cities 350th anniversary celebration. We drove into the centre of the city and walked around the festivities. Much of it was over by this time but it we good to see the enthusiasm the locals have for their city and its celebration.
We then got a telephone call saying that the Imp was ready to be collected. We drove to the North East of the city to the factory. The technician there suggested that I should leave the car overnight so that the adhesive could cure better. Apparently it takes up to three days to cure fully. The outside does not look out of place without the thick rubber seal, but the inside does seem a bit odd. Regardless, for the first time in many years it won't leak when it rains.
Vladim has very graciously allowed me to stay in his home for another night. Tonight is banya (sauna) night in the household. This was my first time in a banya. Then experience is much more pleasant than my description will suggest. The banya is in the lowest level of the house. It is a room about 2.5m x 1.5m with an electrically heated box of rocks in one corner. I was directed to lay face down on the bench while Vitality, Vladim's father used fans made from for tree branchlets to waft the hot steam over my back. The steam is almost unbearably hot. Then Vitality used the fans in a beating / brushing manner on my back. As the steam cools he adds more water from the kettle and resumes beating across the legs buttocks and back. It is actually more relaxing than it sounds. When this is done I stepped out into the adjoining shower area and Vitality dumped a whole bucket full of cold water over my head. This was quite a shock. After that, a lie down to relax. It might be hard to say the experience is enjoyable, but I'm certainly glad to have had it.
Tomorrow its back to the road. 4100km to Moscow.
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