Life in the Coldest Village on Earth −71°C (−95°F) A Journey Through All Four Seasons

7 AM. Kirill Petrov, the man of the house.

The first thing that he does every morning is to heat the house with a wood-burning stove to keep his family warm on the ice-cold morning in Yakutia. Because of the severe climate, Kirill needs a lot of wood to heat the house for 9 months nonstop.

Just like a desert, drinking water in a Yakut village is precious.

There are no water treatment facilities because the pipes freeze during the long winter, so ice is the main source of water. Kirill and the villagers harvested the ice from the river in the middle of November, when the temperature was favorable to harvest the ice.

Meanwhile, Kirill’s wife Liubov, is making a delicious, traditional breakfast - Kyercheh - whipped cream with a strawberry gem which was harvested during the summer. in Yakutia, due to the harsh climate it is almost impossible to grow

the summer. in Yakutia, due to the harsh climate it is almost impossible to grow fruits and vegetables, so most of the Yakut desserts consists of dairy food.

It’s 7:40 AM and it’s time for Arian, the youngest son, to wake up.

Arian, wake up! It’s already 7:40 am! Wake up!

Arian is 9 years old and attends the local primary school. The children

in Yakutia will go to school when it’s warmer than -54 degrees. But When the temperature drops below -55 degrees its too dangerous to go to school.

Today is relatively warm in Yakutia, only -40 degrees, which means, Arian must go to school.

Like most people around the world, he washes his face and brushes his teeth.

Arian uses the ice cold water that his dad prepared earlier.

How did you sleep last night?

Good Any dreams?

Nope I made a whipped cream for you Breakfast. fatty pancakes, and whipped cream are high-energy

Breakfast. fatty pancakes, and whipped cream are high-energy food that warms you up during cold days. Arian loves his mom’s fresh whipped cream.

Arian’s older sisters are living and studying in the university far away from the village.

His parents wish for him to study well so he can live his life as he wants.

Since we live in the coldest region on Earth, I’m trying to educate them to work hard.

Every parents have to raise their children to be a good person.Who loves work, hardworking, honest and kind.

In Yakutia, locals understand the importance of learning the right clothing to survive in such extreme winters.It is an absolute must to wear several layers of clothing, and wear insulated pants, because the knees are particularly prone to freezing.

Arian’s mom always makes sure that Arian wears enough clothes because without proper dressing, the cold will reach deep inside your bones threatening your life.

She also makes sure that his face is fully covered otherwise the exposed parts can get frostbite Study well, see you later When we send our kids to school, we are always worry if they arrive to

school safe. Every single parent in Yakutia is worries about their child, during cold winters

school safe. Every single parent in Yakutia is worries about their child, during cold winters The temperature outside is so cold, so the moisture immediately forms little icicles on his eyelashes. 10 minutes in the fresh air can be enough to cause fatigue,

stinging pain in the face, and long-lasting aches in the fingers and toes But little hardy Yakuts knows how to fight the cold.

after a few minutes, the icy weather begins to assert itself forcefully. Arian has been on his way for 10 min already, and now, the 9 year old Arian is freezing.

Luckily, the last few meters are left, and Arian is finally at school.

Arian arrives in time and there are already many children who have also arrived by foot. Arian is studying in the 3rd grade of primary school. The primary school lasts 4 years and in Yakutia, education lasts 11 years before going to university

primary school. The primary school lasts 4 years and in Yakutia, education lasts 11 years before going to university Sit down, please, let’s start our Sakha language class There are about 8 students in the class today and 5 hours of daily studying begins.

What do you see in the picture? Field, trees, mountains (Sakha language class) Today they have Maths, Literature, Art, Geography, History and Languages. Yakut

people study 3 languages at school - Russian, English and Sakha. Sakha is the mother tongue, which belongs to the Turkic group and is totally different from the Russian language For daily life, studying and working, knowing the Russian language is essential.

After the first two lessons, it’s time for a second breakfast. Todays menu is apple and eggs Eating regularly is essential to increase energy in the cold winters for the little Yakut.

After breakfast they play indoors. The temperature is too cold to play outside and after all, it takes too long to dress up again.

I like going to school, my favorite subject is physical culture. Because

we are training there and have hunting and fishing classes. We are running and playing… Usually, the classes end at 2 pm but today Arian finished a little earlier. Now he is on his way back home with his friend and like kids all around the world, they’re can’t ignore the local snack shop!

Everyone likes ice cream and Arian and his friend are no exception. They love sweet, creamy frozen ice cream, despite the extreme cold.

Arian and his friend, on their way home, are playing little games and having fun.

Parents are not worried about their children. It’s a close knit community, all the locals knows each other and there are about 800 people in the whole village.

Almost all the houses are made of wood. Each resident burns more than 60 cubic meters on average every winter. For the house to keep warm and to protect the house from the freezing air, they make sure to fill every gap with oakum or snow, but still the cold finds a way to come through.

Wild Yakutian horses are also neighbors in this icy land. They have thick skin and heavy hair coat and are able to effectively forage in the snow for vegetation to eat. The horses can cope with temperatures down to -70 degrees.

Arian is back home and ready to help his father.

Most men in the village, are engaged in cattle breeding, hunting or crafts, same as Arian’s father.

I started making crafts from my middle school, when I was a kid my teacher taught me how to do it. So I appreciate him a lot, now I can work as a craftsman and feed my family. Mostly, I work with iron to make knives, jew’s harps.

I think every single man has to be able to make something by his hand. At least knives or dishes Kirill Petrov is well known craftsman in Yakutia. Krill makes traditional Yakut knives For many centuries, knives have played an important role in the lifes and culture of Yakut people Yakut knives are well known around the world for their strength and beauty.

Arian’s father is teaching him this traditional crafts that has been passed through the generations.

The blade is traditionally forged from locally sourced iron ore. The knife handle is made from birch wood, which is extremely strong.

I want to be a craftsman like my father.

Another of Arian’s daily duties is to chop the firewood. Arian knows from an early age that daily work is necessary to survive in such extreme cold.

Now, it’s time for lunch and Arian is always here to help his mum. They are preparing a crucian carp fish which his dad caught in the river. People love eating fish and meat, in a raw frozen, boiled or fried state.

Oh, mum, did you just mess it up? Seems like

Arian’s older sisters are studying in the university far away from our village. So now he is the only one who is helping us. Chopping wood, shovel the snow. He is helping me to cook as well.

Sometimes he even encourage me to cook more.

After the work is done, Arian rushes to the toilet outside. In Yakutia, there are no indoor toilets because the pipes freeze easily. Everything happens outside is done very efficiently and no one spends more time than necessary out in the cold.

This fish is Arian’s favorite. It’s so tasty and the most delicious, fatty and nutritious part is the fish roe eggs.

So tasty.

Of course its tasty.

Don’t forget to drink fish’s soup.

Ouch, its too hot.

Eat it with bread.

Where shall we go for fishing later? Are you going fishing? Yeah, this afternoon. Telgege (a lake name in the village)

fishing later? Are you going fishing? Yeah, this afternoon. Telgege (a lake name in the village) When you live in the coldest place on Earth, you can survive only if you are able to work hard. And hunting or fishing are one of the main sources to feed your family

Fishing and hunting are important sources of food in Yakutia. From early spring until the autumn cold, the Yakuts are eating fish. Arian loves fishing with his father. At

the beginning of March, it’s the perfect time for “Kuiuur” which is traditional ice fishing.

Using their rods and nets, they start fishing.

Arian loves spending time with his father in nature. They are fishing, hunting and working hard to survive in this extremely cold, but beautiful land Yakutia.

After a few hours, finally, Arian has caught fish!

You don’t need to worry about bonking the fish because in just a few seconds, it is shock frozen.

Life in Yakutia can be difficult, unpleasant and dangerous, but we have learnt how to live in harmony with mother nature and we appreciate the beauty, treasures and gifts that surrounds us. We can always find a beauty even in this extremely cold climate. After all,

us. We can always find a beauty even in this extremely cold climate. After all,

there is no such thing as bad weather, there is just weather and your attitude towards it.