Day 8 - We continued our Discoveries in the Golden Ring (an arc of cities where magnificent pieces of Russia’s past have been preserved) with a stop at Yaroslavl.
Instead of visiting yet another Cathedral, we were bussed to a Valenki factory which manufactured a variety of felt winter boots. From the processing of sheep’s wool into felt to the finished procudt, a lab supervisor led us through loud machinery and steamy conditions with no apparent safety measures for the female manual workers.
Day 9 – Today we learned the art of creating blinis, a small Russian pancake that was served with sour cream and strawberry jam plus tea while we cruised on our way to Lake Onega. We also were treated to a Russian Fairy tales Presentation featuring the universal character of Baba Yaga (wicked witch).