The Monument to the Tourist appeared in Novgorod not so long ago - on June 17, 2009; it was installed to celebrate City Day. But in just a few years, this charming sculpture has become a favorite of both locals and visitors. Everyone takes photos by it, even Dmitry Medvedev, who during his presidential visit to Veliky Novgorod sat down on the bridge parapet to take a picture.
The Tourist is a young woman, our contemporary, in an ordinary blouse and skirt. She has settled onto the parapet by the Kremlin Pedestrian Bridge with her back to the river. The girl is leaning on her hands, reclining back and turning her face to the sun. Her handbag is standing nearby on the parapet, and her shoes have been kicked off and lie beside her bare feet. It is quite a realistic scene from the life of any person who has gone on a long walk through a big city, got tired, sat down to rest, and taken off annoying shoes. At dusk or in the glow of the evening lights, this sculpture can even be mistaken for a real person, especially since the Monument to the Tourist is made exactly life-size. A local legend claims that you must leave a coin in one of the girl's discarded shoes, and then you will definitely return to Novgorod.
The author of the monument, Novgorod sculptor Vadim Borovykh, created the sculpture by commission from publisher Nikolai Sumarokov, who wanted to give his hometown an unusual and charming present.
