A trip to Baikal begins with Irkutsk, the largest city near the lake, for most part of tourists. And this city is not just a point on the route: in addition to many of its interesting peculiarities, one cannot stay away from its architecture.
Gold has been attracting people since ancient times. Quick and easy enrichment at the expense of this precious metal has always led people to the farthest regions of the world, such as Alaska, South Africa, Australia, and Siberia. The coast of Lake Baikal had its own deposits of gold. The works on them had been conducted for more than a hundred years from the mid-nineteenth century until 1960-s.
One of the most interesting settlements located near Lake Baikal is undoubtedly the one called Tarbagatai. The Russian Old Believers exiled to Sibera have been living here for three centuries in a row.
The fate of the fleet of Lake Baikal is closely associated with the civil war that overwhelmed Russia after the October revolution. We’ll tell about the way the Baikal “Titanic” built by the British was destroyed, as well as about the fate of its counterpart, the “Angara” ice breaker.
Vessels loaded with tea and silk became a slice of the pie for the pirates of Lake Baikal. Let us tell you about the way they appeared on the Lake, the way they won their fame and the location of the cave of the Baikal Ali-Baba.
Gourmet features of the cuisine of the Baikal peoples are due, first and foremost, to their main crafts: hunting and fishing. The Siberian cuisine has a wide variety of fish and meat dishes; each tourist will find something of his or her own, a favorite dish; and the abundance of dishes and recipes won’t leave anybody indifferent.
