October 26, 2008

Chekhov’s House - Yalta

The Russians have likened Anton Chekhov to the Shakespeare of Russia.  Anton Chekhov was born on 29 January 1860 in Taganrog, a port on the Sea of Azov in southern Russia.  He started writing as a young student …

October 25, 2008

Things to do in Yalta - Cable car ride

Filed under: Ukraine River Cruise, Yalta - Things to See & Do, Yalta - Ukraine — Helen @ 25 Oct 2008

When we were doing our trip out to Livadia Palace, we saw these colourful cable cars criss-crossing each other in the skyline.  We subsequently found out that the base station was just opposite from where our boat …

October 24, 2008

Sun, Pebbles & Sea - Yalta’s Beaches

Filed under: Things to See & Do - Yalta, Ukraine River Cruise, Yalta - Ukraine — Helen @ 24 Oct 2008

At dinner time on the cruise, it’s common for fellow travellers to share stories about their activities and discoveries of the day and recommend to each other interesting things that they had done.  A couple of our friends had ventured …

October 22, 2008

Yalta Embankment and Bay - Ukraine River Cruise

Yalta is blessed with a deep harbour which allows cruise liners to come into Yalta Bay and river cruisers such as ours to moor at the Embankment. The Embankment is Yalta’s main thoroughfare and the centre of all …

October 19, 2008

Swallow’s Nest - “Maya Lastochka” - Yalta, Ukraine

Swallow’s Nest is one of the tourist icons that you’ll see on any visit to Yalta, especially if you are arriving by boat.  The famous Swallow’s Nest was built in 1911 by Baron von …

October 4, 2008

A walking tour of old Odessa town, Ukraine

Filed under: Odessa - Things to See & Do, Odessa - Ukraine, Ukraine River Cruise — Helen @ 04 Oct 2008

On a brief stopover in Odessa, one of the best ways to get a feel for the city is to do a walking tour of the old town.  As our ship was moored at the sea passenger terminal, …

September 28, 2008

Count Vorontsov’s Palace: Odessa, Ukraine

Filed under: Odessa - Things to See & Do, Odessa - Ukraine, Ukraine River Cruise — Helen @ 28 Sep 2008

To experience more of the history of Odessa, walk to the northern end of Primorsky Boulevard and here you’ll find the Palace of the Governor General Mikhail Semenovich Vorontsov.  The Palace is yet another architectural design of F. …

September 27, 2008

Deribasovskaya Street: Odessa, Ukraine

Filed under: Odessa - Things to See & Do, Odessa - Ukraine, Ukraine River Cruise — Helen @ 27 Sep 2008

On any walking tour around Old Odessa, you will no doubt come across Deribasovskaya Street, one of Odessa’s most famous streets.  The street was named in honour of the founder of Odessa, Joseph de Ribas, a commander of …

September 24, 2008

Londonskaya Hotel - Money exchange in Odessa, Ukraine

We were on a mission to get some Ukrainian hryvnia this morning and our guide brought us to the Londonskaya Hotel on Primorsky Boulevard.  Did other people wonder, as I did, as to why we would change money …

September 21, 2008

Potemkin Steps - Odessa, Ukraine

Filed under: Odessa - Things to See & Do, Odessa - Ukraine, Ukraine River Cruise — Helen @ 21 Sep 2008

Sergei Eisenstein’s 1925 black and white classic, the Battleship Potemkin, brought cinematic fame to Odessa’s Potemkin Steps.  Movie buffs will easily recall the famous scene where innocent civilians were massacred on the Steps and the tension-filled sequence …

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