The Onega Lake is the second largest lake in Europe. It’s encompassed by 1,650 islands and islets. They are reflected in the water of one of the purest lakes in the world. The northern end of the Onega lake reveals the fairytale island of Kizhi with its morning mists and breathtaking sunrises in the sum-mer. The island of Kizhi is renowned for its historical restoration and the Open Air Museum of Architecture. The collection of wooden churches, chapels, bell towers, houses, barns, wind-mills and bathing huts that are spread out along the southern tip of the island is a Unesco World Heritage Site. The three-tiered Transfiguration Church with its twenty two domes built without the use of a single nail or a piece of iron, with chisel and axe only, creates a true image of a fairy-tale featuring the old Russian architecture. According to the legend, the church was built by Nester the carpenter. When the church was completed he was said to have thrown his axe into the river yelling, "this church was erected by Nester. There is no other church like it - neither will there ever be".