Going to both Odesa and Crimea can be a worthwhile and interesting trip.

Although Yalta itself is just a hill-town resort area, and not a place of utmost interest, it's a good place from which to visit many sites along the Crimean coast. Of architectural/historic interest are Vorontsov's Palace, Livadia, Swallow's Nest castle, the church at Foros (recently rennovated), and the (former) summer home at Masandra. Most of these are accesible by ferry along the coast. There is also Nikitsky Gardens and, of course, the Black Sea. If you travel over to Sevastopol, you can visit the nearby diorama/museum and tribute to those lost in WWII, and within Sevastopol there is one for the Crimean War. Also, for some old architecture, visit Chersonesus (goes by various spellings) which is an ancient Greek settlement near the sea at Sevastopol. You can ring the town bell (newer bell mounted within ancient stone arch), and see the reported place of Christening for Peter the Great.

Odesa has some interesting architecture, numero uno is probably the Opera House, but also the Mayor's Office and some of the older hotels/buildings in that same area. You may also be able to tour the underground caverns outside of town that were created from mining the limestone used to build Odesa, and where many took refuge during the Nazi invasion. These are reported to be the largest man-made caverns in the world. Mark Twain remarked that Odesa was the most "American looking" city, but of course that was over a hundred years ago. Being a seaport, it is probably the most metropolitan of all former USSR cities (even the language is of it's own).

It is also interesting to stand at the
Primorsky/Potemkin Steps near the statue of Richelieu and look out to the sea, for the stairs have a mysterious quality. While looking down the stairs you can only see the landings, and not the steps. On either side are parapets which seem parallel, there is no convergence of perspective. And then from the the bottom looking up, a person can only see the stairs, not the landings, and the stairway appears longer than it really is.

So although one would not compare these to quaint old Bavarian towns or like, they have their own history and certain flare.

Sorry, meant "cosmopolitan" not metropolitan.

Did you post a report on Kiev? If not, please do. I am planning a trip for Aug-Sep that includes Kiev--and finding information about it on this forum is not easy! Thanks! Jane

Jane,

Email me at charlesstathoulis@yahoo.com

No one has mentioned Chernobyl.

Q: How do you make Chicken Kiev?

A: Preheat Kiev to 450 degrees....

Hi,

You guys are great. Along with welcoming more/additional input on the questions I initially posed, I would like to ask a couple more questions. (1) I hear a lot about Sevastopol. Is it much of a sightseeing destination or is it predominately a naval base/tourist resort? (2) Regarding Odessa, would you say that the historic architecture there is in decent shape/condition or would you say that overall it is in serious disrepair? I read something about Odessa and the article gave me the impression that the city is falling apart.

Hello,

I recently rented the Lonely Planet ‘Eastern Europe’ guidebook. Along with Kiev and Lviv, Lonely Planet also highly recommends the following 5 places: Kamyanets Podilsky, Sevastopol, Ivano-Frankivsk, Chernivtsi and Uzhhorod. Of these places, which do you think are of the same architecture/sightseeing caliber as Kiev and Lviv, which ones do you think don’t merit a trip within their own right but are cool ‘stopovers’ and which ones do you simply think are unimpressive?

If you're heading west, I'd stop at Kamyanets Podilsky and Ivano-Frankivsk. I wouldn't go out of my way to Sevastopol unless you are going on to Crimea.

I thought the architecture in Odessa was on par with Kiev and Lviv.

Ukraine is huge and slow to get around by bus and train. How long will you be there? Most of the places that you're interested in are worth going to. Plus, its always nice to meet up with Ukrainian friends when you get a chance.

I've gone to Ukraine every year since 2000 to meet up with my former students and colleagues and its always a well spent summer holiday, even if we only visit a few new places.

Hi winniep,

I am planning to travel to Ukraine in Aug. I am always fascinated with East European culture. any leads to where to stay, I would like to live with a family for a few days.
any where in Ukraine will be fine.

thanks,
wadid2@gmail.com

It is wonderful to see replys about the Ukraine.
I am planning on going there in early July to work as a volunteer at Chersonesos. I will fly into Kiev but not arrive until 8:30 at night. I would like to hire a guide in Kiev so I can make the most of my 2.5 days there-so much to see & not enough time. Any suggestions?
A guide would be helpful in Odessa too. Referrals would be welcome.
I also want to visit Bakhchysaray- the palace, monastery and Chufut Kale, the cave city but am unsure of transportation options. My reading about these places lead me to believe that they would be a nice addition to your travels. There is a larger cave city, Manhup Kale. Would this fit with the architure interest?
Any suggestions for Kiev, Odessa or sights in the Crimea would be most welcome.