Exploring the towns of the Golden Ring of royal and imperial towns around Moscow and travelling the Volga-Baltic Waterway between the new and old capital of Russia, Moscow and Saint Petersburg, one acquires a superb insight of 'deep Russia', in its combination on one hand of rural landscapes and villages, often not very prosperous, but genuinely testifying to a strong identity and an authentic cultural history, and on the other hand, the provincial brilliance of Orthodox monasteries and churches which have withstood the turbulent flow of time, Mongolian invasions, wars with Poland and Sweden, and – not in the least – the Soviet inside enemy of architectural heritage connected to the tsarist past or religion. The Volga-Baltic Waterway is an original way to penetrate into the deeply rooted character of these lands, its nature of dense forests, cold rivers and huge Nordic lakes. That Russia is more than just Moscow and Saint Petersburg is an evidence, and yet one is in for some very interesting surprises while undertaking the river and canal voyage between the two cities. So, join in.