Before I begin on the Ukraine, I have to document what we did this morning. In order to get to Greece, we had to retrace our steps backward from Ukraine, out of the Black Sea and once again sail through the Bosporus River. (The Turks spell it Bosphorus and the English spelling is Bosporus.) This is something that is rarely done on a cruise; sailing through the same area twice. So we got to see Istanbul again from a slightly different perspective and it was just as beautiful the second time around. The palaces on the banks of the river are magnificent and indescribable. If Ed got some good pictures I’ll put them on the blog in a couple of days.
So, Sevastopol! Because of our experience in Sochi we had lowered our expectations of Sevastopol and, as happens many times, we were very pleasantly surprised. We had chosen not to stay in Sevastopol but to travel to Yalta which is the coastal town that on the Crimean Riviera and is the site of the palace of Tsar Nicholas and Alexandra.
We had a wonderful guide named George, who has been a tour guide for 38 years and was fluent in English. We got to see some of the city on our way from the port to the countryside. It was foggy and rainy and 45 degrees, so the city looked dull and gray, but the white limestone buildings were clean and majestic looking from the bus windows. George told us that the word Sevastopol means “City of Glory”, which is a name well-suited to a city boasting over 4600 monuments, most of them commemorating the Crimean War.
The 92 kilometers between Sevastopol and Yalta were also a very pleasant surprise. The coastline was gorgeous. On the left were the Crimean Mountains rising 4500 feet above sea level, with rocky cliffs jutting upward. On the right was a steep hill with sweeping views of the Black Sea and the resorts towns at the base of the hill. When the landscape leveled, there were hundreds of acres of vineyards that produce the famous sweet Muscatel wine from this region. The vineyards were also a location of great historical significance. The Crimean War had been fought over this territory and many lives had been lost here. This was called “The Valley of Death” and was the site and subject of Tennyson’s poem “The Charge of the Light Brigade”. Far across the vineyards, nestled at the base of the mountains, was the city of Balaclava, used by the enemies of Russia as encampments during that war.
Yalta is a tiny picturesque town perched high above the sea. The palace, named Livadia, is now a museum and served not only as the last home of Tsar Nicholas and his family, but was the setting for the Yalta Conference starring FDR, Churchill, Stalin and a cast of many others. This 8-day meeting was held to decide the fate of the world after WWII. Our guide, George, was at that conference acting as an interpreter and was also at the palace when President Nixon visited in the 1970’s.
After our tour of the palace we had lunch at an adjacent restaurant, complete with caviar, vodka and Ukrainian entertainers. On the way back to the ship we had photo stop at the Swallow’s Nest, which was a lovely castle that appeared to be precariously balanced on a cliff overlooking the sea.
That was the end of our day in Ukraine. Tomorrow we sail into Santorini, Greece. We are happy to be leaving Eastern Europe and getting back into the Western world.
So, Sevastopol! Because of our experience in Sochi we had lowered our expectations of Sevastopol and, as happens many times, we were very pleasantly surprised. We had chosen not to stay in Sevastopol but to travel to Yalta which is the coastal town that on the Crimean Riviera and is the site of the palace of Tsar Nicholas and Alexandra.
We had a wonderful guide named George, who has been a tour guide for 38 years and was fluent in English. We got to see some of the city on our way from the port to the countryside. It was foggy and rainy and 45 degrees, so the city looked dull and gray, but the white limestone buildings were clean and majestic looking from the bus windows. George told us that the word Sevastopol means “City of Glory”, which is a name well-suited to a city boasting over 4600 monuments, most of them commemorating the Crimean War.
The 92 kilometers between Sevastopol and Yalta were also a very pleasant surprise. The coastline was gorgeous. On the left were the Crimean Mountains rising 4500 feet above sea level, with rocky cliffs jutting upward. On the right was a steep hill with sweeping views of the Black Sea and the resorts towns at the base of the hill. When the landscape leveled, there were hundreds of acres of vineyards that produce the famous sweet Muscatel wine from this region. The vineyards were also a location of great historical significance. The Crimean War had been fought over this territory and many lives had been lost here. This was called “The Valley of Death” and was the site and subject of Tennyson’s poem “The Charge of the Light Brigade”. Far across the vineyards, nestled at the base of the mountains, was the city of Balaclava, used by the enemies of Russia as encampments during that war.
Yalta is a tiny picturesque town perched high above the sea. The palace, named Livadia, is now a museum and served not only as the last home of Tsar Nicholas and his family, but was the setting for the Yalta Conference starring FDR, Churchill, Stalin and a cast of many others. This 8-day meeting was held to decide the fate of the world after WWII. Our guide, George, was at that conference acting as an interpreter and was also at the palace when President Nixon visited in the 1970’s.
After our tour of the palace we had lunch at an adjacent restaurant, complete with caviar, vodka and Ukrainian entertainers. On the way back to the ship we had photo stop at the Swallow’s Nest, which was a lovely castle that appeared to be precariously balanced on a cliff overlooking the sea.
That was the end of our day in Ukraine. Tomorrow we sail into Santorini, Greece. We are happy to be leaving Eastern Europe and getting back into the Western world.
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