Russia (bbabo.net), - The Kaliningrad region is trying to overcome the seasonality in tourism and attract travelers at any time of the year. Summer is the time for a beach holiday, in spring and autumn you can comfortably explore the natural beauty. And in winter, when rain mixed with snow falls from the sky, various cultural discoveries await guests of the Amber Territory.

Let's talk about the five most, in our opinion, unusual museums in the Kaliningrad region.

Prison in the Teutonic citadel

Tapiau Castle in Gvardeisk, built in the 13th century, became a museum a few months ago. It is unique for two reasons. First, it is one of the best-preserved Teutonic citadels in Europe. Secondly, since 1879, the castle has served as a prison.

In East Prussia, petty criminals were placed there, and then convicts, including opponents of the Hitler regime.

After World War II, when part of East Prussia became part of the Soviet Union, Tapiau's appointment did not change. Since 1945, a pre-trial detention center, a transit prison and a correctional colony have functioned there. The last convicts from the castle were convoyed only in 2021.

During the "prison" century and a half, specific outbuildings appeared on the territory of the castle. But there are also premises that have survived from the time of the Teutonic knights. These are the northwestern wing and the cellars of the eastern wing.

Now the northwest wing houses an exhibition on the history of the castle. It was organized by the Kaliningrad Regional History and Art Museum, which became the new owner of an unusual historical site. "Excursions to the Tapiau Castle are an absolutely unique offer not only in our region, but throughout the country," emphasizes the Minister of Culture and Tourism of the region Andriy Yermak.

How to get there: Gvardeysk, Dzerzhinsky street, 12

Tourists are invited at their desk

In the village of Ilyichevo, Polesskiy region, there is a museum "Old German School Waldwinkel", which annually receives several thousand tourists. Kaliningrad schoolchildren are frequent guests.

At first, the founder of the museum, Inessa Natalich, did not even think about excursions. She only wanted to clean up the destroyed school where her mother once worked so that she could settle there after her retirement.

But in the rubbish heaps there were many interesting things from the school's past life: the pencils with which German students wrote, a real German map of the Labiau area - now the Polesie region.

In addition, citizens of Germany, who in the 30s and 40s were children and studied at the Waldwinkel School, began to visit Ilyichevo. They shared memories, things. The Kaliningrad woman learned about how Soviet schoolchildren and teachers lived in the post-war period, communicating with the first settlers. This is how several expositions and a tour were born, telling about the German and Soviet past of the school.

How to get there: Polessky urban district, Ilyichevo village, Lesnaya street, 24. To visit the museum, you must first call Inessa Savelyevna by phone 89212629228.

Visit the whaler Vasily

The Whaleman's House Museum, located in Kaliningrad, is dedicated to the Soviet period of the city's history. It is unusual in that it keeps not only the exhibits of the 1960-1980s, but also the memories of local residents.

In a communal apartment, which is a museum, live the whaler Vasily, his wife Antonina, their schoolboy son and student daughter. Why a whaler? Because the port of Kaliningrad was the base for the Yuri Dolgoruky Antarctic whaling flotilla, which was legendary in the city.

The family's neighbor makes a living by selling the deficit, so the museum has rare gramophone records, foreign alcohol, and even real Wrangler jeans from the 80s. “Almost all the things that can be seen in the museum were presented to us by Kaliningraders,” says Alexander Bychenko, one of the founders of the “Whaler's House.” My wife Natalya and I announced the collection of exhibits on social networks. Soon our apartment was half turned into a “Whaler's House”.

But not only the exhibits themselves are important, but also the life stories behind them. The entire excursion is accompanied by an audio performance based on real memories of Kaliningraders.

How to get there: Kaliningrad, Prospect Mira, 9-11, courtyard of the Regional Scientific Library, entrance from the side of the Energetikov Square

Vova Dorofeev's Cellar

The Cellar with Stories Museum, dedicated to the Great Patriotic War and the history of pre-war Konigsberg, is located in the basement of a residential building in Kaliningrad.

He does not have a clear working schedule, because the founder of the museum, Volodya Dorofeev, who is also a guide, is only 13 years old. A young historian needs to go to school, learn lessons. Visitors are asked to call in advance in order to accurately find the student at home.

It all started with a gas mask bag. Five years ago, eight-year-old Vova found her on the street. I brought it home, washed it myself and told my parents: for the kit, you urgently need to buy a gas mask.Parents reacted to the idea with understanding and took the child to a flea market. And now the collection of antiques that Vova found, bought or received as a.jpgt from friends and acquaintances became so huge that he had to move it from the apartment to the basement.

“The idea to conduct excursions came up when I accidentally saw a couple of tourists out of the window photographing our house,” the schoolboy recalls. “I went out into the yard and asked:“ Would you like to visit my museum? ”The name -“ Cellar with stories ”- later my mother's friend suggested it. I really liked it, because all my things have their own interesting stories. I combined these stories into the excursion. It lasts about an hour. "

How to get there: Kaliningrad, Rizhskaya street, house 14. To visit the museum, you must first call Volodya Dorofeev by phone 89062140705

"Morsvin" made of marine garbage

The Kaliningrad Museum of Garbage - "MU MU KA" - is located in the village of Sosnovka not far from the resort town of Zelenogradsk. Its exhibits are art objects that contemporary artists have created from waste.

For example, the creation of Zelenograd artists "Morsvin" is made from the remains of trees and pieces of fishing nets found on the Baltic coast. This is a life-size sculpture of a whale that constantly lives in the Baltic Sea. The artists remind that the porpoise is endangered. And they call to protect nature.

The Garbage Museum is a part of the Green Cat ecological site. It is adjacent to the point of reception and sorting of separately collected waste and a junk market, that is, a place for the exchange and sale of unnecessary things.

How to get there: Zelenogradsky urban district, Sosnovka village, Kaliningradskaya street, 4a.

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