Fort Ross Harvest Festival.

Fort Ross is an old Russia settlement on the North California Pacific Coast.  These days it is a historical park that attracts the fast growing Russian community and many curious non-Russians too.  

For my son it was a place where all Russian Falk Tales I was reading to him were coming to life.  They have everything: a magical Russian stove, samovars, mortars, crane well and of course loud cannons and a bell. During seasonal festivals it gathers big crowds with bright traditional dresses, music and rites performed by the amazing group of Russian tradition enthusiasts called Russian House Kedry.  

We were especially lucky this time around: the weather was awful, there were few visitors, so we had a more intimate experience and the light coming inside through windows was especially enigmatic.