Photos

Hi All,
This is another picture from my last year tour of Irkutsk. Irkutsk was founded in the 1661 as a fort to colonize Siberia. It was the main Russian fort behind the Ural mountains, so all the expeditions to colonize Kamchatka and Alaska have begun there. For centuries Russian emperors and communists (later) exiled political prisoners to Irkutsk, so many brainy Russians spent years in the city and this influenced the average IQ level of inhabitants.Irkutsk kept the spirit of 19th century Russian city. In the center, there are blocks of traditional wooden buildings with typical carvings. Most of this kind of buildings were destroyed in Moscow and other Russian big cities during Industrializtion in the 20th century.
Irkutsk is also a starting point for expeditions and tours to Baikal Lake, which is just in 1 hour ride from the city. In Summer, there are a lot of travellers from all over the world going to the lake from Irkutsk. If you don’t have time for the lake but just several hours in the city, I recommend you to visit the central market with its fabulous fish rows. You can buy any type of Baikal lake fish there as well as caviar. Irkutsk is a really nice place to spend several days, or just going to the trip to Baikal Lake.