© PANORAMA 2005
It’s logical to begin a first-time visit to a country with a tour of the capital. Kiev offers many amazing must-see monuments, and beyond the city limits, the surrounding oblast has a great wealth of architectural, historical and natural sites that should not be overlooked
Once you have seen just some of the monuments with which Kiev and the surrounding region abound, you will understand why this land is still inspiring geniuses and ordinary people alike, just as it did centuries ago. Historians suggest that sightseeing in the capital of Ukraine begins with the Upper City, located on the high hills of the capital. The majority of the most interesting monuments of antiquity are here.
Capital of Ukraine
The Golden Gate (40a Volodymyrska St.) is the most prominent fortification from the time of Yaroslav the Wise. Built between 1017 and 1024, it was restored in 1983 to commemorate the 1500th anniversary of Kiev. It includes a museum with weapons and household items of ancient Kievans (tel.: (+380 44) 224-7068).
St Sophia’s Cathedral, Kiev’s oldest church, is near the Golden Gate (24 Volodymyrska St., tel.: (+380 44) 228-6152, open 10.00-17.30 daily except Thursdays). The magnificent thirteen-domed church was founded by Yaroslav the Wise, who is buried in the cathedral, in 1037 in honour of the victory of the Kievan Rus Army over the Pechenegs. Most of its ancient mosaics and frescoes have been preserved. Near the Cathedral is a 76-metre-high stone bell tower (1699-1706) that offers a beautiful view of St Michael’s Monastery of the Golden Domes.
St Andrew’s Descent is at a ten minutes walk from St Michael’s Monastery. This “Montmartre of Kiev”, where you can visit many art galleries, nice restaurants and cafés and find a large variety of souvenirs, is very popular among tourists. The Descent begins at Desyatynna St. where St Andrew’s Church is located (23 St Andrew’s Descent, tel.: (+380 44) 228-5861). Designed by famous architect Bartolomeo Rastrelli, the Church was built in 1754.
As you go down the Descent, you will enter Kiev’s legendary Podil District with its ancient streets. Kontractova Square is the heart of Podil and home to the Kiev-Mohyla Academy (2 Spaska St.). Founded in 1632, the Academy was the alma mater of Hryhoriy Skovoroda and Mikhail Lomonosov.
The River Station is located in nearby Poshtova Square. Go there for a river cruise on a motor vessel or waterbus (tel.: (+380 44) 416-1268).
Going up from European Square, you should visit Mariyinsky Park, where another one of Rastrelli’s works, the Mariyinsky Palace, is located at 5 Hrushevskoho St., near the Ukrainian Parliament building. Built from 1750 to 1755, the Palace is now used for the President’s official receptions. The Museum of the History of Kiev (tel.: (+380 44) 224-1970) offers tours of the Mariyinsky Palace.
The Kievan Cave Monastery (21 Sichnevoho Povstannya St., tel.: (+380 44) 290-3071, open 10.00-18.00 daily except Tuesdays) is the main point of interest in Kiev. The Monastery was the cultural and religious centre of Eastern Europe during the 12th century. The complex of buildings includes, among others, the Dormition Cathedral, Ukraine’s highest bell tower (96.5 m) and the Near and Far Caves with relics of Christian saints.
Travel back in time when you visit the picturesque Museum of Folk Architecture and Folkways (Pyrohovo Village, tel.: (+380 44) 266-5542, 266-2416, open 10.00-17.00 daily). The Museum’s 150 hectares include 300 rural buildings from all over Ukraine dating from the 16th and 17th centuries, such as homes, wooden churches, closets, wells, mills and beehives.
Museum City
Thanks to the efforts of Ukrainian historian Mykhaylo Sikorsky, the city of Pereyaslav-Khmelnytsky located near Kiev rivals the capital in the number of museums (23 museums with over 165,000 exhibits).
The outdoor Museum of Folk Architecture and Folkways of the Middle Dnipro Area (tel.: (+380 4467) 52936) covers 30 hectares and includes 104 examples of folk architecture and folkways from the 17th-19th centuries. Many of them were brought here from the areas that were submerged when the Dnipro reservoirs were created.
The 12 halls of the Museum of History (tel.: (+380 4467) 54103) present the history of the Pereyaslav Region from the 16th century to the present. Among the 12,000 exhibits, you will find Cossack and Polish weapons from the Great Revolt of 1648-1657 under the leadership of Bohdan Khmelnytsky.
The Hryhoriy Skovoroda Memorial Museum (tel.: (+380 4467) 51448) is located in the Pereyaslav Collegium Building (1738) where the great philosopher gave lectures on poetry in 1753. You can see the cell where he lived and worked.
At the Museum of Discovery & Peaceful Space Exploration (tel.: (+380 4467) 52936) you can see unique exhibits such as Lunokhod-1 (the lunar roving vehicle), a landing capsule, a working model of the Baikonur Cosmodrome and the spacesuit and parachute of the world’s first cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin.
You can also visit museums in Pereyaslav-Khmelnytsky like the Kobza Art Museum (tel.: (+380 4467) 53641), the Ukrainian Towel Museum (tel.: (+380 4467) 52936), the Beekeeping History Museum (tel.: (+380 4467) 51612), the Bread Museum (tel.: (+380 4467) 52936) and more.
Gardens & Parks in Kiev Oblast
Oleksandriya, one of Ukraine’s most beautiful parks, is located on the Ros River in the town of Bila Tserkva in Kiev Oblast (tel.: (+380 4463) 40551, 40547). In the late 18th century, Polish nobleman Ksaveriy Branytsky built this beautiful park in honour of his wife Oleksandra. It covers over 200 hectares and includes around 1,500 different kinds of plants and many original architectural monuments, such as the Echo Colonnade, the Chinese Bridge and the Lion Spring. The Oleksandriya Park Museum (tel. (+380 4463) 41418), housed in the palace that was the Branickys’ residence, has 16 marble sculptures by Italian artists.
Besides Oleksandriya, Kiev Oblast also has Kaharlyk Park and Sulymivka Park. The 32-hectare Kaharlyk Park (Kaharlyk, tel.: (+380 4473) 60983) was designed in 1793 as a replica of the Earth in miniature. Sulymivka Park (Sulymivka Village) began as several trees planted around a 16th-century church founded by Ukrainian Cossack Hetman Ivan Sulyma. Today it is a 16.7-hectare park that has, among other things, a Scythian stone idol on display.
History & Arts of Kiev Oblast
The beauty of Kiev Oblast has been a profound inspiration for many artists and composers. Kateryna Bilokur (1900-1961), a Ukrainian folk artist, lived and worked in Bohdanivka Village in the Yahotyn District. In her time, she exhibited her works in Paris and had great success - Pablo Picasso himself admired her art. Nine of her original works from her time in Bohdanivka are on display in the Kateryna Bilokur Museum in Yahotyn (tel.: (+380 4475) 55603).
Parkhomivka Village in the Volodarka District has a church decorated with two mosaics designed by the brilliant Nicholas Roerich from 1903 to 1906. The Intercession of Our Lady is above the main entrance, and a smaller mosaic, The Holy Face, is above the entrance to the small St Viktor the Great Martyr Church in the same complex.
The 8-hectare territory of the 1943 Battle for Kiev State Museum Reserve in Novo-Petrivtsi in the Vyshhorod District (tel.: (+380 4496) 45123) has 650 metres of trenches and bunkers and the observation point of Nikita Khruschev, then Lieutenant General. The Battle for Kiev, Lyutizh Bridgehead, 1943 Diorama Museum is also worth a visit. It offers many paintings, sculptures, photos and documents from the Second World War.
Places to Stay and Relax
Premier Palace Hotel*****
Housed in a 1908 building in downtown Kiev. Rooms with all amenities (telephone, mini-bar, air-conditioning, Internet, cable TV and safe), a restaurant, bar, four conference halls, business centre and car rental. Prices include fitness centre and buffet breakfast.
Address: 5-7/29 T. Shevchenko Blvd, Kiev; Tel.: (+380 44) 244 1201
Dnipro Hotel****
24-hour concierge service, Internet, individual safes, restaurant, bar and other services. Prices include breakfast.
Address: 1/2 Khreschatyk St., Kiev; Tel.: (+380 44) 229-8591, (+380 44) 229-8213
Perlyna Dnipro Floating Hotel****
Built in 2003 on the Dnipro. Has a restaurant, café bar, two banquet halls and sauna. All rooms have air-conditioning and cable TV. Single: UAH730, Executive suite: UAH1,660
Address: Naberezhno-Khreschatytska St., Pier #5, Kiev; Tel.: (+380 44) 451 5566
Getting there:
UIA offers convenient, daily flights to Kiev from almost every capital of Western Europe. Visit us on the Web at www.flyUIA.com or call the UIA office in Kiev at (+380 44) 581-5050.
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