Tag Archives: Crimea
Ukraine in 2011
Ukraine is never far from my thoughts these days. One can only imagine the fear & hardship that innocent citizens are facing. Ukrainians are our friends. A proud & hospitable nation that made me feel so welcome in 2011, less than a year before they hosted Euro 2012 with their great Polish neighbours. Here are […]
Ukraine Tour 2011 Part 4 – Bakhchiseray & Sevastopol
Continuing the recount of my tour of Ukraine over a decade ago. See my previous posts from Odesa, Sevastopol Arrival and Balaklava. Khan Do Attitude Bakhchiseray is a stop off on the main line from Sevastopol to Simferopol in Crimea. Back we went to the scene of the previous day’s hell. I was pleased to […]
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Ukraine Trip 2011 Part 3 – Balaklava in Crimea
Continuing our wonderful trip to Ukraine from over ten-years ago. Picking up where we left off, we had at last found a hotel in Sevastopol after a horrid overnight bus journey from Odesa, followed by a frustrating time at the train station trying to procure train tickets to Lviv. The Balaclava Hemet A sixty-minute kip […]
Ukraine Trip 2011 – Part One, Odessa
In 2011 I visited Ukraine, first arriving by train in Odessa from Moldova. I wrote about the trip a few years ago and with the awful events taking place at the moment, I thought I’d share my travels during far happier times, whilst I pray for a return to peace. Train Journey: Chișinău to Odessa, […]
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Euro Match Day 17 – Ukraine v Sweden
The final match of the round of 16 takes place in Glasgow. Ukraine The ex-nuclear submarine base in Balaclava in the Crimea was such a secret that the town of Balaclava did not appear on maps and even the families of engineers, scientists & technicians who worked there had no idea that the base existed! […]
Euro 2020 Match Day 7 – Ukraine v North Macedonia
This Eastern European match up kicks off the days proceedings, played in Bucharest. Not too far to travel then. Ukraine Crimea is disputed territory at present, but in 2011 it was still very much officially part of Ukraine. The Khan’s Palace was occupied by the Tatars, an Islamic minority that resided in Crimea. Built in […]
A-Z April Challenge – X Is For eX-Submarine Base In Balaclava, Crimea
Balaclava Submarine Base Museum
My Iconic Travel Moments Part 2 – 2011 to 2019 (10 to 6)
Number 10 – Train Trip from Sevastopol to Lviv, Ukraine 2011 This remains as my longest train ride to date. 27-hours with one change of trains at Simferopol. The journey started in the Crimea, the disputed region that has now been annexed to Russia. It was a wonderful trip from south to north travelling in […]
Friday Photos – The Khan’s Palace, Bakhchysarai, Crimea
The palace was built in the 16th century and became home to a succession of Crimean Khans (as in Genghis Khan), leaders of a Turkic Islamic Khanate. Many of the islamic population was wiped out during the Crimean War, as the Russian Empire used it as an excuse to purge its lands of tartars and […]
A-Z April Challenge – X Marks The Spot, Balaclava
The eX-nuclear submarine base in Balaclava in the Crimea was such a secret that the town of Balaclava did not appear on maps and even the families of engineers, scientists & technicians who worked there had no idea that the base existed! The facility is built into the cliff face and was hidden from the […]
