Kostroma



Kostroma

Name: Irina Yemets

Age: 37

Profession: Documentary photographer

City: Kostroma

How long have you been doing photography? What type of photography most interests you? Since 2012. Documentary photography and portraits.

Your website? http://www.irinaemetc.com

Instagram? iraemets

Can you give us a short description of your city? Kostroma was founded in 1152 and is situated on the banks of the Volga River. It is part of the Golden Ring tourist route and was the hometown of the Romanov family. Kostroma is the only city in Russia where historical buildings are preserved in the first three blocks of the city center. Kostroma is also the hometown of Snegurochka, the granddaughter of Father Frost, and it is the jewelry capital of Russia: 56 percent of all gold or silver jewelry is made here. The city is also famous for its cheese. 

What is something about your area that only locals would know? (1) All residents of Kostroma know the shortcut to Moscow. It's the one that Ivan Susanin showed the Poles. (2) If you don't have anywhere to stay, the residents of the Kostroma shelter will let you stay in their boiler room.

Which places or sites are a must for someone to see if they visit your area? The Ipatyevsky Monastery and Anastasinsky Convent; the Museum of Wooden Architecture, where they have brought in from all over the region wooden houses belonging to all levels of society, from a peasant's house to the house of a landowner, to a wooden church built in 1713; the Church of the Resurrection on the Debra River; the trading rows which have been standing since 1789; the Noble Assembly and Romanov Museum; one of Russia's first drama theaters; Ostrovsky's alcover on the city embankment; Snegurochka's House; the Flax Museum; the Museum of Theatrical Costumes; the Museum of the Foreign City Leader; the city's market, where farmers, antique dealers and others gather from all over the region.



Like this post? Get a weekly email digest + member-only deals

Some of Our Books

Chekhov Bilingual

Chekhov Bilingual

Some of Chekhov's most beloved stories, with English and accented Russian on facing pages throughout. 
Stargorod: A Novel in Many Voices

Stargorod: A Novel in Many Voices

Stargorod is a mid-sized provincial city that exists only in Russian metaphorical space. It has its roots in Gogol, and Ilf and Petrov, and is a place far from Moscow, but close to Russian hearts. It is a place of mystery and normality, of provincial innocence and Black Earth wisdom. Strange, inexplicable things happen in Stargorod. So do good things. And bad things. A lot like life everywhere, one might say. Only with a heavy dose of vodka, longing and mystery.
93 Untranslatable Russian Words

93 Untranslatable Russian Words

Every language has concepts, ideas, words and idioms that are nearly impossible to translate into another language. This book looks at nearly 100 such Russian words and offers paths to their understanding and translation by way of examples from literature and everyday life. Difficult to translate words and concepts are introduced with dictionary definitions, then elucidated with citations from literature, speech and prose, helping the student of Russian comprehend the word/concept in context.
Jews in Service to the Tsar

Jews in Service to the Tsar

Benjamin Disraeli advised, “Read no history: nothing but biography, for that is life without theory.” With Jews in Service to the Tsar, Lev Berdnikov offers us 28 biographies spanning five centuries of Russian Jewish history, and each portrait opens a new window onto the history of Eastern Europe’s Jews, illuminating dark corners and challenging widely-held conceptions about the role of Jews in Russian history.
At the Circus (bilingual)

At the Circus (bilingual)

This wonderful novella by Alexander Kuprin tells the story of the wrestler Arbuzov and his battle against a renowned American wrestler. Rich in detail and characterization, At the Circus brims with excitement and life. You can smell the sawdust in the big top, see the vivid and colorful characters, sense the tension build as Arbuzov readies to face off against the American.
The Pet Hawk of the House of Abbas

The Pet Hawk of the House of Abbas

This exciting new trilogy by a Russian author – who has been compared to Orhan Pamuk and Umberto Eco – vividly recreates a lost world, yet its passions and characters are entirely relevant to the present day. Full of mystery, memorable characters, and non-stop adventure, The Pet Hawk of the House of Abbas is a must read for lovers of historical fiction and international thrillers.  
Tolstoy Bilingual

Tolstoy Bilingual

This compact, yet surprisingly broad look at the life and work of Tolstoy spans from one of his earliest stories to one of his last, looking at works that made him famous and others that made him notorious. 
Turgenev Bilingual

Turgenev Bilingual

A sampling of Ivan Turgenev's masterful short stories, plays, novellas and novels. Bilingual, with English and accented Russian texts running side by side on adjoining pages.
Faith & Humor: Notes from Muscovy

Faith & Humor: Notes from Muscovy

A book that dares to explore the humanity of priests and pilgrims, saints and sinners, Faith & Humor has been both a runaway bestseller in Russia and the focus of heated controversy – as often happens when a thoughtful writer takes on sacred cows. The stories, aphorisms, anecdotes, dialogues and adventures in this volume comprise an encyclopedia of modern Russian Orthodoxy, and thereby of Russian life.
The Little Humpbacked Horse (bilingual)

The Little Humpbacked Horse (bilingual)

A beloved Russian classic about a resourceful Russian peasant, Vanya, and his miracle-working horse, who together undergo various trials, exploits and adventures at the whim of a laughable tsar, told in rich, narrative poetry.

About Us

Russian Life is a publication of a 30-year-young, award-winning publishing house that creates a bimonthly magazine, books, maps, and other products for Russophiles the world over.

Latest Posts

Our Contacts

Russian Life
73 Main Street, Suite 402
Montpelier VT 05602

802-223-4955