The Crimea was actually our
second choice when we were
trying to decide where to go for our one-shot weekend trip at the end of our six weeks in
Kiev. We had been hoping to go to Moscow as our first choice, but as time passed we
realized that we could not get train tickets, (they were all bought and were being
sold on the black market), so we decided to take advantage of an offer to fly to the
Crimea. There was a lot of conflicting information from local travel agents no matter which
way we decided to go. Some Ukrainians that we knew, and trusted, told us that we could get a
flight to Simferopol for the same cost as a Ukrainian citizen, if we let them do the
arrangements. That meant turning over our passports, and some cash to them--it seemed
risky--but we did it, and everything turned out O.K., Whew!!! What might have been chancy in
hindsight, worked out to everyone's satisfaction. The Crimea was our destination, so we looked
forward to it.
We flew out of Kiev's city airport on a Friday
evening, in an Air Ukraine twin-engine plane, headed south for the Crimea. After the two-hour
flight, we landed in Simferopol, in the middle of the Crimea, at about 10:00pm. From there we
still had a two-hour bus ride south, to a hotel (sanatorium), well past Yalta, near the town
of Alupka on the southern tip of Crimea. The bus was provided by a local tour agency that we
booked in advance, so we felt safe, and proceeded expectantly, if not a little giddy about
being out of Kiev. Along the way, I noticed that there was hardly any traffic on the highway, and hardly
any lights in the distance, but light from a multitude of stars up in the sky seemed to
comfort me as we drove through the night. We reached the sanatorium at about 1:00am, and the
staff was waiting for us with tea, bread and jam. What hospitality!
The next morning, we awoke two-to-a-room to bright, warm,
sunshine outside, and the blue waters of the Black Sea about 100 yards below our balcony. From
this point on, we had two days of hurried-sightseeing along the mountainous southern rim of
the Crimea, with our tour guides Vasily and John. Unforgettable! I must say, though, to be a
little bit critical, the sanatorium food was disappointing, and the Crimea used to be the
most popular holiday destination of the whole USSR, but after a few years of neglect, it
left a lot to be desired. The beach was not very attractive below our hotel and consisted
mostly of broken amusement stalls, but this was a lesson to me about what is more important
in life. Plus, I wish we could have spent more time in the City of Yalta itself, and explored
more of its historical sights, but we only had a limited time there. I think I tried to make
the most of it, however. Find out what I did on my excursion to Yalta and the Crimea in
Part III of my Kiev Diary.
Click here for a map of Ukraine and Crimea
