sven haakanson is steering his boat. and. have lived here since time immemorial. over the thousands of years to solve this seascape each time they put out to sea. but they use good news with a couple of paddles instead of comfortable motor boats with powerful engines. very very difficult to hunt an individual you need to group in order to. capture for example you look at the sea lions over here in order for you to hunt one of those. on a summer day and seven hundred forty one scores of natives of the land hunting expedition. they spotted on ships on the horizon. those big

sail boats belonged to an expedition russian explorers. made its appearance on. the first colonists were guided by those maps on the island more than forty years later seventeen eighty four the city of kodiak was the capital for fifteen years. streets to serve as a reminder of. many of them still bear the names of russian travelers and merchants . there is still the street name a shell a call who all founded with his wife now tell us where we first russian permanent settlement in alaska and then there is still a coffs son in law. named after nikolai. who are was ripped.

the government and also. american companies. this sea otter pelt has the think asst for any animal the most furs per square inch this is the animal itself the sea otter this animal was what caused the fur gold rush to alaska by russian. a. russian traveler. first came to alaska in two thousand and nine he organized an expedition to retrace the steps of his fellow countryman. the ghost in

was the first ever european to reach alaska's hinterland in this unexplored land and establish contact with the aboriginal people. local people welcomed warmly just as their ancestors welcome his agustin two hundred fifty years ago their homes may have changed a lot but their attitude to russians remains the same. shit over clearly will welcome the east into places that it once served as bases as a ghost can expose. the russians many of the local people said they had russian and . when the russians came to the lives of the indigenous people changed. many of them began to work for the russian american company jobs in hunting for sea otters fishing and taking part in the building of new settlements

russian priests and monks visited alaska and baptized of the locals and people with the dogs fish russian married local girls. russian men married local women and the children were called creole. creoles were well educated they held top posts in the russian capital to ship as well as in the colonial administration you know ask. svend lives a life entirely different from his ancestors to him putting out to sea is more like fun than work. proud of his traditional bathhouse he sees it as a symbol of successive generations and imbedded russian traditions. when the russians came. the thing that is similar are the rocks and the he. inside and that's something that we've been doing for centuries and tradition where

we have a wooden house which is a russian just. taking. a bath. sven sees the history of his people as a mission he curious a museum which is one of the principal tourist attractions of. when few tourists visited during local people come here when the russians actually took over. claimed alaska for russia. one of the friends together with his family is listening to his story although his name is of russian origin he doesn't know a single word of the language spoken on the other side of the bering strait nor does he know much about where his last name comes from. earthing out what my mom told me that morning or us and her there were taken people off to her to grant and there underneath your honor and they couldn't say our last name so a bit of

a russian. spy you don't see me and often doesn't need to speak russian all services in the orthodox church in kodiak city are held in english. father in again she was born in new england a place that is far away from here he has no russian roots nevertheless he decided to serve as an orthodox priest in alaska but it was a long story. it's a story of growing up in a christian church a protestant church but always wanting a seeking out for a face a fuller experience of authority and finding that in orthodoxy as a young man and eventually answering the call into the priesthoods of.

the church were father in a county sears stands with the first church in the new world used to be alaska is still predominately orthodox u.s. state. and the priest said then came didn't force us to not speak our language. not follow our traditional ways of living we did you know stop practicing our all the religious practices but pretty much everything else. language but then. when the americans came they wanted to civilize us. american archaeologist david mcmahon is exploring the remains of russian legacy on alaska. these are. they would have been used by employees of the russian american company. for this is one of the most important

finds of his career some of the objects were found at the site of the first russian settlements others on the ocean floor so. this is. this together with. david mcmahon raised many remains of the russian ship kodiak from the depths of the ocean. the ship belonging to the russian american company sank near the shores of kodiak island in eight hundred sixty i strayed was very lucrative because the gold miners in california needed for their drinks so even if. they would still make a good profit the ship was leaving and it hit a rock everyone got off the ship but because of the board the ship stayed afloat for several days before finally sank. the archaeologist twenty five meters deep to explore the remains of the ship the kodiak was one of a dozen ships keeping the lines of communication with russia open similar ships

regularly sailed the length of the north pacific many saw the ship wreck as a symbol the russian american company was in dire. it's. at the beginning of the eight hundred sixty s. the company reached the edge of bankruptcy that caused a debate on whether alaska could be sold the vast territory was inhabited by eight hundred colonists at the very most this number was well below what russia needed to control and offended. at the fact that those factors led to a serious discussion about a potential sale they were held in an atmosphere of secrecy laws only a handful of fischel knew about them the league. america was not particularly keen on buying the faraway territory a russian envoy to washington eduardo steckel was told to do his best to convince the u.s. government that it would gain norma's benefits by acquiring alaska. steckel had the

support of the u.s. state secretary william seward who was in favor of a u.s. territorial expansion. finally in one thousand nine hundred eighty seven after lengthy negotiations alaska was sold to the united states for the price of seven point two million dollars. on october the eighteenth eight hundred sixty seven the russian flag was lowered in the former alaskan capital of sitka. its stand america's colors were raised. today happy alaska day is one of the major holidays of the forty ninth state. during the bright show of the residents of citgo reenact the procedure of handing over the flag from russians to americans. in eight hundred sixty seven the ceremony for placing the russian colony under u.s.

control was much more modest. the american government was weary of accusations that they had wasted a lot of money. splashed across the newspapers scoffed at the. purchase describing it as nothing more than a box of ice. that of the seven point two million dollars paid some two hundred thousand was given to senators in the form of kickbacks. deliberate steps were taken of. swaying some some of towards a hitch free ratification of the treaty. after alaska came under u.s. control the russian american company lost its influence and the russian settlers were offered a choice either return to russia or live in the reservation like settlement of ninilchik. what became of the money earned in the alaska deal was shrouded in mystery. the official version claimed that the whole payment reached russia and was

spent on the construction of railways. rumors persisted however that the ship carrying the gold received for the sale of alaska had sunk in the pacific. culture is that so much of an oldish each musician. that the mark of the new exit is christians leaving the whole we christians have lived in historic palestine since the advent of christianity alongside muslims. we'll. bring you the latest in science and technology from. the future covered. that still. with us. as.

gary i was born and raised in alaska like many alaskans he refers to other states as the lower forty eight. sure that americans have a poor impression of the forty nine most people in the lower forty eight don't know that alaska is part of america some believe. but many believe that it's own country and they wonder what kind of money they're going to have to use when they're here. and those kind of things i've i've actually had people compliment me you sound just like america. has lived in the small settlement. since birth. here his grandfather knew a few english words gary however doesn't speak russian my grandfather passed away a couple of decades ago and my grandmother. passed away soon after that just

some distance from here my father is buried in most of my relatives and one day i will be too. right after the peninsula was sold to the americans the village was built on the sea shore all of the employees of the russian american company who refused to move to russia had been banished here by the u.s. government one of the older buildings is right down below us doesn't have a window in it is built in the old log dovetail design with the dovetail corners there are several other buildings that are throughout here including sheds that were used for fishing the older ones were built as as old as the late eighteenth hundreds all the residents of new chick are related to each other one way or another they entered the houses irene she died in one thousand nine hundred five one of the most successful people born in india is laurent lehman who was a distant relative of gary. four years ago he was the lieutenant governor of alaska

. his only passing through today and has decided to stay with his uncle and aunt their ancestors were russians and they still use russian words in their everyday lexicon. which is married were. a few hours later he will visit his father at a nursing home in the town of sold. and utica i tell him i tell my father that everything. oh you do that if it. doesn't see that russian heritage simply as a distant episode in the history of his native state he remembers well that when he was a child far more people spoke russian than english. with my brother's russian heritage and we often joked about it when we within about ten miles.

were doing what we call speaking then we start talking like my father telling some of the stories it is still a very. part of my heritage. more in a rising around lunchtime he visits his father at the local nursing home he says a few phrases in russian. mikko i. was there qantas pre-race. nick lehman can't remember names and faces clearly last year he had a stroke. yes he. does believe. that's my son nick lehman's condition sometimes makes him imagine he's not it's old news nursing home but in the old settlement of. where everyone has a boat where christmas is celebrated in early january rather than in december and where people in nearly every home speak russian. or why they

want to know there's. going to be. a group of. nick lehman is one of the few people here who still remember the russian air of the land its former legacy is gradually being forgotten much in the same way as old people's memories fade away i'd like to teach my children about their heritage and we've shared it. especially with our oldest child our son and i think the best way we can do it is to talk about it sure some of the stories maybe even some of the language i want them to understand are very rich cultural heritage is it makes me think of the. phrase and here is one of the most popular teachers at high school. he used to teach english to russian children in the russian town of. course today he teaches russian in alaska none of the

children in his class has a slavic name all of them are americans who have decided to learn the language that was once dominant in this part of the world. your wont during briana while. well a. fair bit of the you know this that. i'm not. here. the gory season self as a representative of the new wave of russian settlers of alaska who fears he makes himself at home the russian legacy is everywhere. because today there are at least about seven hundred. conspicuously russian for example. then the

presence of the churches here so you know the words. let's put it like this here in . the presence of the past. after. trying to stick to a lifestyle of siberia. people first came here in one thousand six to eight this is the first house they have built. why they feel you're not young enough how do you choose in a naval mine for some reason trying to guess why there's no escape for you dressed to kill. is famous. and. particularly fond of her because she is the only always ready to talk to journalists. and they always prefer.

the founders of. the soviet union to america to escape persecution. in alaska. trying to distance themselves from civilization much like they would. if initially it was a private. that the signs had been removed and now people can visit us they can talk and meet. today it is even something of a tourist attraction the cafe run by. the most lucrative business in the. big. for three decades it never occurred to the old believers that someday americans might be among the neighbors they tried to escape visiting other towns but now the american house stay

near the russian evacuees no matthew has five children he moved. seven years ago after buying one third of the local land his american dream is slowly becoming a reality the land was. pretty good price the russians. russians the people that are here the orthodox. have a nice set of values. relations with matt but as the years ago by she becomes ever more apprehensive of the prospect of. losing its status as a russian enclave and turning into just another quiet settlement. children in the still russian national dress but english is now their mother tongue. for growing up in a russian village we. learn english not as much russian i think or the

time. i. played which. the new wave of settlers who moved to alaska during the last decade came from siberia. twentieth century russian destinations changed in comparison with the eighteenth century the majority preferred. city anchorage rather than. out of the cities three hundred thousand strong population five thousand are migrants from russia. situated in. this perfect english hides his true. he was born in the town of.

children of the russians who came here in one thousand eight hundred. nine hundred ninety s. are about twenty years old now just this russian generation has grown up in alaska they speak very good english and understand spoken russian it is indeed a new generation of music. one of the songs of the group says there's a place where everybody's going. to be. different places. but the new will have taken the him like lines close to the. russians don't see themselves as. they see themselves as. the travelers among them. once

again they will retrace the steps of earlier. to go through a strenuous course of training before the second expedition they intend to use the same gear that the early russian explorers. discover a. then we want to know the actual truth and that's why we didn't have a choice of transport. says van haakanson head of the community of indigenous people. takes a dim view of the desire of europeans to make more difficult. to see. keeper for. as motorboats. thinks giving up the perks of civilization is a foolish thing to do. yet despite embracing the modern era in wordly he still remains committed to the simple principles preached by his ancestors. we were here

for thousands of years. but you know we didn't have this system of paper saying that we can claim this land because in our philosophy in our worldview. you can own land the land owns you you know how can you say you own that when you're only here for a little bit and then you got it's a whole different philosophy of owning it versus living with it.

discovery.

communicate with. nature can give you. russia's medication costs. finds. its resolution. sending out congratulations across the atlantic and encouraging up to the same leaders to be a little bit more active these are just some of the topics covered by the russian president during his. interview to the heads of russian television channels. and the russian central bank is not increasing refinance race we'll have more on that in business in twenty minutes time.

six pm in moscow good to be with you here on r t our top story russia's lawmakers have launched their debates on ratifying the nuclear arms reduction treaty with the united states after at one backing in the u.s. senate the lower house of parliament has already given its preliminary approval when it's set to finally sign off on the deal new year what's being hailed as a diplomatic victory by presidents medvedev and obama. has more on what's happening from moscow. seems so the russian devotees are very optimistic and also along with the all the americans they've been celebrating this tremendous victory the final read if you cation of the new strategic arms reduction treaty on capitol hill we know there have been those long heated debates on pros and cons of this major.