Having come to the harbor on the island of Joy, he saw a Church before him, shining in the morning sun. Only a quiet expanse of water, which felt cold, separated him fr om the temple...

Agree, some kind of novella or travelogue could start this way. And this way your tour to the village of Stankovo and your acquaintance with the Church of St. Nicholas may start easily. You should definitely go to the marina, which is on the outskirts of the village at the edge of the water. It is located in the beautiful park of Hutten–Czapski ‘s estate, which has been partially preserved. At first you can enjoy the view of the Church in a distance, and then come closer to see the interior.

The place where the Church of St. Nicholas is standing now has never been empty. This was the place wh ere temples used to be built from the XIV century. It was just a tradition.

So in 1858, the first service in the Church of St. Nicholas was attended by a lot of people – not only the residents of the village of Stankovo, but also by the inhabitants of neighboring villages. In 1852 count Emeric Hutten-Czapski decided to build a Church, so the stone building finally opened its doors and became the delight of the congregation.

In 1936 the Church was closed and the conduction of worship there was stopped. In 1961 the temple was dismantled for construction of a dam.

Ten years

Only in 1997 an Orthodox parish was opened, and the Church gradually, brick by brick, began to recover. Everyone who could help did his best. It took a decade to make the temple re-opened. So long have the villagers waited for that, so often did they imagine their children to come to the Church. The hoisting of the cross on the dome in 2010 was a real New Year gift. It is very symbolic that the cross is not only a symbol of faith, but it also connects the past with the future. The fact is that it was made on the basis of the descriptions which were found in the archives by the researchers, so the cross is just the same as that one, which had been destroyed previously.

When the bells toll

You can't call the interior of St. Nicholas Church lush from the inside. But its simplicity and modesty creates a special atmosphere and some comfort. If you climb up the wooden stairs, you will reach a choir gallery, a cell, as well as a bell tower. Yes, there is a bell tower in the Church and the bells ringing during the holiday awaken the whole district. They proclaim that it is the day of great festival. The next day they will "tell" about the time for a prayer to come to the Church of St. Nicholas.

It is very important that the ringing of bells was heard as often as possible and didn't stop for ever in the village of Stankovo; so that more people met the sunrise on the pier and admired the beauty of the rising sun and the restored Church of St. Nicholas bathing in those rays. Let every traveler who arrives in a village, hear the chimes and keep them in his heart for a long time. Someone will surely want to come back.