The island on the island
N 53°13'36.1'' E 107°24'47.1''
Day: 52-56
Sunrise:
06:13 – 06:20
Sunset:
21:38 – 21:31
Total kilometers:
12365.53 Km
Temperature – Day (maximum):
31 °C
Temperature – day (minimum):
19 °C
Temperature – Night:
8 °C
Latitude:
53°13’36.1”
Longitude:
107°24’47.1”
Tanja
With the prospect of finally seeing the legendary Lake Baikal and being able to experience it together with Denis, my arrival in Irkutsk is an unspeakable joy. The night before our crossing on the Barguzin, the ship from Irkutsk, I am so positively excited that I keep waking up.
Happy to have left the trailer behind, we cycle the length of the island. Sometimes I think I’ve mutated into a wimp because cycling through the sand seems quite strenuous. In return, we are rewarded with wonderful camps. We enjoy magical campfires and a fabulous view. Drinking hot steaming tea. I am taking the special occasion of being here to prepare more of our delicious Rapunzel dishes than usual. So now we sit eating pasta with basil pesto and listen to the waves and the crackling of the fire. We are aware of our good fortune and the joy of being able to experience this nature up close.
If we already feel the island of Olkhon intensely as a place of power, Simone and Leonid have created an island on the island. As soon as we enter the property, I feel comfortable and at ease. We are enchanted by the beautiful garden with vegetables and flowers, which is cultivated according to Maria Thun’s method. The charming, professional construction of the houses and cottages. Leonid has been working on this with dedication and attention to detail for years. They kindly invite us to go to the beach with them. They show us their entry point to go swimming in Baikal. “You don’t need a bikini, we always swim naked,” Simone calls out as she is already on her way and throws on her bath towel. The two don’t particularly like waiting. There is always so much to do. “We’ll walk ahead. Turn left up ahead and you’ll find us,” says Simone. I quickly jump and fetch Denis. I almost lose my breath as I watch how skillfully Simone shimmies down the rocks. Leonid jumps the last part and faster than we can see, the two of them are stark naked and Leonid is plunged headfirst into Baikal. It should be mentioned at this point that Simone is almost 70 years old and Leonid is 68. “In winter, we go ice swimming, which is always very refreshing. We like to stand in the sun on the ice afterwards. After the bath, it’s not cold at all,” says Leonid, his eyes shining. During our stay, I enjoy cooking for Denis and myself in the available kitchen. Simone takes me by car to Chushir to buy groceries. The roads have mutated into muddy slopes due to heavy rain. While Simone tells us parts of her interesting life, she surfs us over the slippery surface. Back again, we buy curd cheese from a neighbor. To shorten the route, we take a short footpath and Simone climbs over a wooden fence. Following her, I can’t help but grin broadly. Fascinated by this infectiously cheerful and life-affirming woman, I could fill pages of books talking about her physical and mental energy and agility and her big heart.
Bernhild Halemeyer is generally called Simone. Originated from her maiden name Simon. Simone is easier to pronounce for the Siberians. She was born at 7:00 a.m. in 1940. Her father volunteered for the war against Russia at 9 a.m. on the same day and was killed in 1942. Simone was a vicar for 25 years of her life and unfortunately lost her husband in a fall from a tree. She met her current partner Leonid at a clay house construction project for families in Chernobyl Minsk. They traveled to Siberia together as tourists 15 years ago. Because they were so impressed by the landscape and the people, they settled here on the island of Orkhon. Simone repeatedly travels back to Germany to see her three sons and grandchildren and tells her church congregation about the terrible circumstances under which children lived and still live here. It sets up an account and funds are used to support the children in various ways and for their education and studies. As she tells me all about it and remembers the conditions back then, her eyes fill with tears.
My heart has been filled and expanded with positive experiences and the wonderful example set by Simone and Leonid. I will never forget the landscape, the sound of the waves of the Baikal and the evening fires with the intoxicatingly beautiful view, which is why I am leaving a part of my heart here in exchange.
