A fascinating documentary sheds light on an elderly Russian couple who have been living alone in an abandoned village, with animals as their only companions.
Just 2 people are living in Bashkortostan
In the short film uploaded to YouTube by Patruschves, the unnamed man and woman, aged 75 and 82 respectively, welcome viewers into their country home which is located in a remote western territory known as Bashkortostan.
While roaming through the unkempt fields, the lady explains that all of the residents died ‘or they left our beautiful village’ and now she and her husband are the sole residents.
Keeping them company are a number of animals, with their most recent addition being a cow called Daughter.
His woman can’t live without milk
The man explains that he got the heifer for his wife because she ‘can’t live without milk’ and he ‘always supports her.’
But he says later in the short film that he’s not a fan of Daughter as she is ‘too shy’ and would ideally like to get rid of her.
He also got some chicks for his wife and at one point in the film, the fluffy yellow birds can be seen running riot around their dimly-lit kitchen.
A cat, some pigs and a cockerel are among the other animals to feature in the film.
What is their source of energy?
The lady says with a big smile on her face: ‘I can’t live without animals. They give me energy!’
Along with animals, the woman says nature gives her comfort. As all of her family have gone, she says she likes to hug a birch tree by the house ‘instead of my brothers.’
She explains that her brother Nikolay planted the tree ‘many years ago.’
The woman says that in the summer some people visit the area but ‘most of the year we are alone here.’
He apparently had three houses in the village at one point but ‘now everything is gone.’
‘My brothers died, they had no kids, nobody. All houses in a village are demolished,’ she continues.
Reason they stay in the abandoned village
Drone footage of the abandoned village shows that it is surrounded by farmland, with no tarmacked roads in view.
Despite the isolated conditions, the pensioner says she loves living in the countryside and ‘hates’ the city.
‘While I can walk, I don’t want to leave this place,’ she confirms.
It is not clear what they will do later in life but they reveal that they do have an apartment in the city if needs be.
The couple, who have been married for 36 years, still seem to be very active and in one scene, the man performs a dance much to his wife’s amusement.
