Travel in Ukraine

[Nickolas]

Very soon I'll be going to Ukraine.

So I'm looking for good travel destinations.

Friendly towns. Fresh air. Places to relax.

Any ideas?

[itsastruggle]

I just got back from Kiev on Jan 15th and it is a wonderful city. Me and my Ukrainian woman went to see the Ballet at the Opera house. We saw the Nutcracker. Very nice place and the opera house was amazing.
We also went to a memorial to WWII or to the Ukrainian's, The Patriotic War". It was a huge statue of a woman holding a shield and a sword. We went to the top. An elevator will take you about half way up and then you have to climb the rest of the way up via ladders. It is not too physically demanding but you may get tired. They put a harness around you waiste and attach it to a rope next to the ladders so that you won't fall. Once at the top you have a wonderful view of Kiev. Underneath it is a museum of WWII things. The grounds around it are also dedicated to WWII with many small statues showing the troubles of the Ukrainian people during that period.
We also went to a monistary called I think "Lavre".
You can take a free tour but if you want to go to the catacombs to see the mummies of the monks then you have to pay.It is very cheap though. You are not allowed to take pictures anywhere inside since it is after all a holy place.
It still has monks living there.
Our time was short in Kiev so that is all we had time for.
We then went to her hometown of Kremenchug but there is nothing to do there.
While in Kiev if you have a craving for American food then you need to go to The Arizona Barq restaurant. It is totally American with the surroundings and American tv and food. We went there my last night and I felt like I was already back in the United States.
If you don't speak the language I would suggest an interpreter. I used one from the website firstdream.com.
It is primarily a dating site but they provide many services. It is owned by an American, Jack Bragg. He is very well respected in the Russian\Ukranian Woman dating community. If you call him he can set you up in a nice apartment and provide you with an interpreter in Kiev. Mine was Galina and she was wonderful. She knew just about everthing about Kiev and its history.
I hope this all helps. I had a great trip and can't wait to get back in June.
Good luck,
Keith

[Nickolas]

Keith and Sevas,

Thanks for all the info.

[icegoal]

Thanks for sharing the info. Looks like Crimea is a must-visit spot.

[Irene1972]

I believe you will mostly get responses form peopel who are interested in selling you theri services rather than those who are will to give you an advice unselfishly. It all depends on what you want to see. If it's nature Crimea and Carpathians will be th ebest. If its' architecture adnight life it's Lviv, Kiev and Odessa. But in any way you shoudl fist try andmake friends in these places. THen your vacation will be much more nteresting and meaningful.