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Flights to Sevastopol

07/05/2011

Sevastopol is the largest maritime trade port and in the same time it is an industrial, recreational, cultural and historical center of the southern Ukraine. It is located on the southwestern part of Crimean peninsula. Translated from the Greek Sevastopol means “majestic, worthy of worship, the heroic city”. And Sevastopol justified its name with its history.

Many centuries ago, people estimated the value of these comfortable places for leaving. Remains of ancient settlements discovered by archaeologists dated with the first millennium BC. Tauri, Scythians, Sarmatians tribes lived here. In the 5th century BC on the shores of this quiet bay settled the ancient Greeks. They founded Khersones (Chersonesos) the city-state, which existed for two millennia (from 5th century B.C. to 15th century A.D.). On the territory of Kherson Reserve you can find a bath where Vladimir the Great was baptized.

In all times Sevastopol was an important military target and experienced a lot of attacks during its history. In Sevastopol was located the Black Sea Naval of Russian Empire and than the Black Sea Naval of Soviet Union. In one of Sevastopol bays on August 25, 1899 has been established radio communication between warships for the first time in the world history.


The battle events from Sevastopol history were immortalized in monuments of architecture and art. In 1905 in Sevastopol was created the largest panorama the Defense of Sevastopol in 1854-1855 (Crimean War). The military actions of the Second World War are depicted in the largest diorama in Ukraine “The assault of Sapun Mountain May 7, 1944”. The length of this canvas is about 25.5 m and height is about 5.5 m.

Tourists can find a lot of sightseeing located around Sevastopol and in the city. The oldest aqueduct in Crimea is located in Sevastopol. Aqueduct is channel or pipe for supplying water to the city, located above the sources. It was built in 1840. In 1837-1843 in Sevastopol was built the largest Coastal Battery of casemates in Europe – the Nikolaev Battery. The length of it’s facade is about 460 meters, with the casemates for 194 guns. In Sevastopol you can see the highest lighthouse in Commonwealth of Independent States. It is the Eastern lighthouse in Inkerman (its height is about 186 meters above sea level). In Sevastopol you also can find the highest ladder in the Crimea, it leads to the St. George Monastery in Balaklava. The ladder comes down from the height of about 200 m. Sevastopol has a huge amount of ladders there are 82 of them in this city. There is no other city in the Crimea and perhaps in whole Ukraine with such amount of ladders.

In 1931 near Sevastopol was built the first wind power station in the world. Another sightseeing located not far from Sevastopol is the largest underground building of the Crimea security-guarded in Soviet times. The underground building was built at a depth of 180 meters and had a role of backup command post for the Government of USSR during 1979 - 1992. The building has three underground blocks. Each of them has 2-5 floors. Those blocks are connected with each other with ladder, passages and underground roads, where could drive 2 armoured troop-carrier at the same time. The distance between the entrances to the underground building is more than 600 meters.

Sevastopol is a good jumping-off place to see some of the sites from the Crimean War. There is an amazing museum called a Panorama, which depicts the siege of Sebastopol (from the Russian point of view) with a display a little like a diaorama, but much more impressive - there is a huge circular canvas of about 2000 square metres as a backdrop, and then lots of props such as cannons and models of redoubts in the foreground. It's narrated in Russian but you can hire an audioguide in English or French. Admission is about 20UAH plus 5UAH for a camera.

There is a park with war memorials on Sapun Gor nearby, though it focuses on the battles of the World War Two siege of Sevastopol. You can visit the "Valley of Death", where the famous Charge of the Light Brigade occurred, and you can also visit nearby Balaklava, site of another famous battle, and an interesting little town, formerly a Russian submarine port.

The Greek city of Chersonessus is located about three kilometres from Sebastopol, near the city centre; admission is 20UAH for Ukrainians plus 5UAH for a camera, and 40UAH for foreigners (camera included), though if you speak Russian and argue you can get in for the Ukrainian price. There is a good guidebook available from the ticket office for 15UAH. This is where Volodymyr, the first leader of the Kievan Rus to convert to Christianity, was baptised; there is a large cathedral at the spot, rebuilt in 1999 after being closed down by the Soviets in the 1920s and blown up by the Nazis in 1944. Also on the site are various Byzantine basilicas, including a famous one with marble columns, and the 'foggy bell', made of melted-down Turkish cannons in the late 1700s, which was taken to Paris after the Crimean War and returned in 1914. Tourists swarm all over the ancient monuments with little respect for their antiquity. Few signs tell you what is what. Still, the atmosphere is nice. Consider bringing your swimming gear - the locals do, because there's a narrow but beautiful beach located in the grounds.

There are many Soviet war memorials - Sevastopol is one of the thirteen Hero Cities of the Great Patriotic War. There is a large statue of Lenin, with soldiers, peasants and workers, on ul. Sovietska which is the spine of the main section of the city. There is a statue of Nakhimov, who defeated the Turkish fleet and masterminded the defence of Sevastopol at the time of the Crimean War, in a square at the head of the main part of the city.

Sevastopol have own airport "Belbek" (UKS) located in 8 km from north side of Sevastopol. This is late military aerodrome, was remaked to civilian not long ago. Before 2010 year it used only by ruling clique for arrival to Crimean's resorts. Now it start to accept flights from Kiev, Moskow and Dnepropetrovsk. Nearest international airport is "Simferopol". It located at a distance of 100 km. from Sevastopol.