Russian Travel Guide

Underground World of the Azish-Tau Mountain Range

The Azish Tau Ridge in the Western Caucasus is known for its karst caves, which permeate a group of mountains, creating a complex network of underground routes. Some of them, such as the Great Azishskaya Cave, were first studied and explored many years ago and are nowadays equipped for tourist visits. The majority of these caves however, will only ever be documented and described by scientists and researchers – not tourists. RTG TV host Denis Golovko went along with professional speleologists to help study the underground pathways. Prehistoric animal bones and darkness-loving bats waited for him in the Earth’s depths, where he learned how to explore sunken caves using scuba equipment.

Коллекция Russian Travel Guide. Рыбалка. Мурманская область

Kizhi. Wooden Church Architecture

The first churches appeared in Russia in the 10th century, built by Byzantines. These constructions served as models for Russian architects. They were models in stone, however. In the forested northern parts, everything was built in wood – a material that was cheap, light and easy to work with. The Russian architects, like translators, had to interpret the Byzantine canon in wood. Gradually, the Russian masters developed their own style of construction. Wooden architecture reached its peak in the Russian north in the 15th to 18th century. Learn how unique churches arose on the island of Kizhi, and hear the legends that surrounded them in a film by RTG TV.