Secrets of the Polotsk Land: where do the people living here draw their strength from?

I am trying to find out where this seemingly fragile woman, who bears complex and honorable responsibilities from both the Belarusian Orthodox Church and the public, draws her strength:

— You are a recipient of the Order of Saint Cyril of Turov and the President of the Republic of Belarus Prize "For Spiritual Revival," an honorary citizen of Polotsk, and "Person of the Year of Vitebsk Region," as well as the initiator of large-scale restoration works and numerous campaigns for the revival and development of monastery infrastructure. You sleep five to six hours a day and spend seven to eight hours in prayer… How do you manage to endure and combine it all?

Abbess Evdokia's answer is brief:

— The Lord gives strength. And, believe me, He will not burden any of us with more than a person can bear. Therefore, this is my calling – to serve God and people with all my soul. For the sake of peace, goodness, and love for one's neighbor.

Save My Life

…It happened a few years ago. In a private sector of Polotsk, a 79-year-old pensioner was painting a gable end and fell from a ladder. Directly onto a rusty metal rod, which pierced her heart through and through. A miracle: she not only survived but also tried to pull it out herself for more than two hours…

When the patient was taken to the operating room, the head of the surgical department, Petr Gavrilov, was horrified – the metal rod, as thick as a man's finger, had damaged both her heart and lung. It had entered her chest and protruded from her back…


— Yes, perhaps this is the most unusual operation I have had to perform in my 25 years of surgical practice, — says Petr Alexandrovich. — We could not even imagine such serious injuries, especially since the woman was conscious. And when the full extent of the wound was revealed on the operating table, we had to experiment. When removing the cut part of the rod by rescuers, the grandmother could have died from blood loss at any moment – there was no artificial blood circulation apparatus. But my colleagues and I found another solution to the problem: we adapted a urological catheter. With its help, at the very moment ofessential moment and reduced the bleeding intensity…

In a word, everything ended well, and in three weeks the sprightly pensioner was watering vegetables in the greenhouse. She would have finished painting the ill-fated gable if her relatives hadn't stopped her…

Recalling this case, Petr Gavrilov is laconic: work is just work. Of course, there are such extraordinary cases. But every patient is unique in their own way. And saving lives is a duty. What can be heroic about it?

…It seems to be all correct. However, hundreds of patients who have passed through the hands of the experienced surgeon will disagree. Petr Alexandrovich has been heading the surgical department of the Polotsk City Central Hospital for about 17 years. Several generations of Polotsk residents know him well. Many owe him their lives and health.

And yet, insists Petr Alexandrovich, a saved person is not the merit of a single surgeon:

— We have an excellent team, combining the unconventional thinking of young people with the invaluable experience of doctors with many years of practice. We have all the necessary equipment. There are three laparoscopic stands alone. If you compare yesterday's and today's conditions, it's like heaven and earth. Not long ago, we couldn't even imagine operating on complicated appendices, perforated ulcers, or inguinal hernias using laparoscopy. And today it's a reality. So, the present and future of medicine are the merit of the state as a whole.

By the way, Gavrilov's daughter Polina, a sixth-year student at Vitebsk Medical University, fully supports this point of view. And there are also two sons growing up in the surgeon's family – Dmitry and Rodion. It is quite possible that in the future they will also want to continue the medical dynasty.

The Murashko Family's Haven

Who thinks that life in the countryside is unpromising? Leonid and Oksana Murashko from OJSC "Novye Goryany" will challenge this opinion of agro-pessimists with many arguments in favor of the opposite. Young, beautiful, in love with nature… He is the head of the farm, she is the chief veterinarian.


— We met back in our student years, — recalls Oksana. — We studied together at the Luzhesnyan Agricultural College — that's what it was called back then. We got married as soon as we received our veterinary diplomas. And we went to work in my husband's homeland — in the Gluboksky district. In 2003, we moved here, to Novye Goryany. We liked it. We'll probably retire here too.

Having strongly linked their lives with agriculture, the young specialists not only never regretted it but also involved their children in this work. For example, their daughter Katya is an economist and plans to work as an accountant at the farm after her parental leave. Her husband has mastered the profession of an inseminator. Their 14-year-old son Alexander intends to study engineering.

The head of the family is confident:

— Today, there are excellent prospects for young people in the countryside. There is always work here, the opportunity to build your own house, and raise children in environmentally friendly conditions. And housing prices are negligible compared to the city — for $5,000–8,000, you can buy comfortable housing. We have our own kindergarten, school, House of Culture, several shops — everything you need. And the places are beautiful: a magnificent forest, the Western Dvina River is nearby. And what floods there are in spring at the mouth of the Dvina and the Oblyanka flowing into it! It's worth seeing, believe me...

At the Murashko family's home, everyone is used to being together, both at home and at work, says Oksana:

— How did it all start? My husband was a veterinary technician, and I was a veterinary sanitary inspector. He became a veterinarian, and I became the farm manager... And so it went.

Six months ago, Leonid Alexandrovich took the position of farm director, and Oksana Vladimirovna became the chief veterinarian. The enterprise, which specializes in pedigree dairy farming, employs over 140 people. And there are over two thousand cows, some of which produce 10–11 thousand liters of milk per year. There are also record-holders — five buckets a day!

— The task is to achieve even greater productivity, — Leonid shares his plans. — We have an excellent calf crop. We sell young stock to other farms in the region. We have two complexes and three farms. We receive about 11 thousand rubles daily from milk sales. We are gradually expanding the areas for fodder production. The enterprise is working withstable, the average salary is over 800 rubles.

The average age of employees is about 45 years. Not bad compared to other farms. And Murashko is confident: this is just the beginning. The future of the village belongs to the young.

Archaeologists are Born

Underground temples, ancient frescoes, ancient architect's drawings right on the brick… Alexey Kotz, a lecturer at the Department of History and Tourism of Polotsk State University, can work for days in archaeological "digs," sifting through the soil centimeter by centimeter. And failures do not disappoint him, on the contrary, they inspire him. Alexey Leonidovich is confident: the longer the streak of unsuccessful searches, the more significant the success will be.


"The Polotsk land is a boundless field for research, a treasure trove of past, present, and future discoveries," Kotz asserts.

Alexey became interested in archaeology in his school years. And now, in his early thirties, he has already managed to infect dozens of students with his passion for science:

"See these two parts of an ancient brick?" the scientist introduces the findings of recent years. "And now look what is depicted here…"

I peer into the fine strokes erased by centuries… Exactly! Human figures are clearly visible…

Kotz deciphers the drawing:

"We found the brick during excavations at the site of the gallery of the Savior-Transfiguration Church. It depicts street musicians. One of them has a cap on his head – such headwear could be worn by a skomorokh (a medieval Russian jester), and in his hands, he holds a gusli (a type of zither). This is where the main secret lies. They are wing-shaped. It turns out that this is the earliest depiction of this musical instrument in the territory of Ancient Rus. Until now, it was believed that such gusli appeared in the early 13th century, but our brick is from the mid-12th century. This means another myth has been debunked…"

And so, drop by drop, the chronicle of the Polotsk region is replenished. For example, the remnants of decoration found in the upper part of the Savior-Transfiguration Church allowed us to learn how richly the temple was adorned. Green, yellow, blue nests of ornamental masonry, fragments of small and lar...of the large arched belts.

— The temple was even somewhat oversaturated with decorations, — reasons Alexey Leonidovich. — This means it is closer to the Kiev-Chernihiv school of architecture. Russian architects, including those from the St. Petersburg Hermitage, with whom we cooperate closely, also lean towards this opinion.

The question of the greatest stroke of luck for historians makes the archaeologist think: can each artifact be evaluated separately if they all together constitute the indivisible history of the ancient capital of the Principality of Polotsk? Nevertheless, he names the most important evidence found that there was another temple under the Transfiguration Church:

— There have been no similar archaeological discoveries anywhere — from Riga to Moscow and from Ladoga to Kyiv. And what about the seal of Euphrosyne of Polotsk herself, discovered during the excavations? The remains of ancient frescoes, which adorned the walls of the temple more than 850 years ago, are also priceless. This, by the way, is the largest preserved ensemble in Eastern Europe, and specialists are currently working on it.

Perhaps soon we will see the canvases of ancient painting restored from these fragments. And if we believe the scientist, then there will be enough work for many generations of archaeologists in the Polotsk land.

On the way to a delicious dream

Before the trip to distant Pesaro, Ekaterina Voychenko, of course, was very worried. After all, Italians are world-renowned gourmets. How can an ordinary Polotsk woman surprise recognized professionals of culinary art? She surprised them. And how!

The honorable jury of the prestigious international culinary competition, in which 12 representatives from different countries of the world participated, could not resist the mini potato pies with meat filling and unanimously awarded the Belarusian first place.

And we, journalists, were also lucky at the meeting with Ekaterina Anatolyevna, a technician-technologist and production manager of the Polotsk cafe "Spatkanie": we were treated to delightful author's pastries.


…The most delicate biscuit, covered with white Belgian chchocolate, emphasizes the indescribable taste of cherry cream cheese. Believe me: you won't just lick your fingers, you'll swallow them whole! While we are enjoying the explosion of taste, Ekaterina tempts: you won't try such a delicacy anywhere else, she says. As, by the way, do dozens of other unique dishes prepared according to her recipes.

— The choice of profession was a spontaneous decision, — she recalls with a smile. — After school, I completed a year-long chef's course and immediately started working in this cafe. Then, I studied by correspondence at college. Professional development in Vitebsk, Minsk, Moscow… I quickly realized that my profession had become a hobby. I wanted to improve further.

Thus, the talented culinary specialist began to conquer the peaks of professional competitions. And not only in Belarus. Latvia, Lithuania, Czech Republic… Along with the geography, the chef Voychenko's own "repertoire" expanded. Complex signature dishes, new recipes, unusual combinations — the field for creativity opened up immensely. It is especially interesting, she admits, to combine traditional Belarusian cuisine with the foreign experience gained. The result is a kind of culinary handmade in the style of "old recipes under a new concept". 

Now Ekaterina Voychenko is a well-known professional in the country, a member of the Guild of Cooks and Chefs of Belarus, "Person of the Year of Vitebsk Region," an organizer of a children's culinary school and master classes for young Polotsk residents aged 4-11. And the cafe "Spatkannie," where Ekaterina Anatolyevna continues to work, is the most in-demand catering facility in the city. Weddings, banquets, anniversaries, off-site events, delivery of festive lunches to homes — here, the most modern forms of service are implemented for the residents of Polotsk and numerous guests of the city. Ekaterina is sure that when her culinary school students grow up, they will all together turn Polotsk region into the capital of gastronomic art. May it be so!