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Opening of the tourist season 2019
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As authors writing about travel and as creators of the Facebook group "Green Tourism in Ukraine" , we are very sensitive to the people who develop tourism in Ukraine. Therefore, we are very happy to tell you about our trip to Kamyanets-Podilskyi for the opening of the 2019 tourist season. We were invited there by a wonderful team dreaming of creating a "Mecca" for travelers in one particular city of the Khmelnytsky region.
And right away, a life hack that will come in handy for traveling to Kamyanets by train: if the Ukrzaliznytsia website shows that there are no tickets left from Kiev to Kamyanets-Podilskyi (the route is popular), then don’t hang your head ;-) and try dialing Kiev-Larga (this is the next station after the one you need). There is a very high probability that you will be able to buy several lucky tickets, just don’t forget to get off one station earlier. We hope that someone from the railway management will read this and launch additional trains to Kamyanets-Podilskyi so that travelers don’t have to “spin like an eel” trying to get to the “Youth Capital of Ukraine 2019” .
And so, we walk around Kamianets-Podilskyi, the first impression is vertical landscapes, very unusual for city dwellers living on the plains. Novoplanovsky Bridge is one such example.
The view from this bridge is simply incredible: you can see the river, the forest, the rocks, the climbers and one of the city's landmarks - the giant blue umbrella - all at once .
We were accommodated in the hotel complex "Gala" , which surprised us with its territory. Usually, chains like "Hilton" do this, when the reception is in one building, the restaurant in another, and the rooms in a third, etc. Here, guests can play tennis on the court, entertain children on a special playground, visit a bathhouse/sauna.
The hotel has a restaurant called "Poirot". Of the several types of breakfast there, for some reason I liked the "Canadian" one. I remember it for its delicious cottage cheese casserole. And the second object to remember was the chic aquarium in the restaurant, where colorful fish were "scurrying" and only the catfish, who had learned Zen, was peacefully hanging on the glass, sticking out his lips in our direction.
After breakfast we went to the Art Gallery on Pyatnitskaya Street for spiritual food. The mastery of straw embroidery was a revelation for me. The drawings on the dark blue background of the canvas looked absolutely as if they were embroidered with gold. There, in the gallery, we got to a master class, where the craftswoman taught us several ways of tying a khustka. It seems that it is easier to take and tie a scarf, but no - this is a specific matter, with its own technique, with a certain set of symbols, with its own historical meanings...
After the master class, I found an authentic namisto in one of the halls and took a photo of it, because I knew that the opening program of the season planned to set a record for the number of beauties wearing such jewelry at the same time. By the way, the record was set: the audience was able to see 507 girls at once during the day, and each of them had a namisto on their neck. Next to the gallery is a museum of old-timers, where (as it seemed to me) I found an image of an alien, who is spreading his arms in surprise on one side of a stone pillar (apparently he had also already looked at the diverse collection of the museum) ;-)
But the most striking exhibit that I remember was this canvas in the gallery, created from multi-colored ribbons. Bright, atmospheric and, perhaps, one of the most impressive works.
We decided to spend the next part of the day in nature and went to the main attraction of the city - the Kamyanets-Podilskyi fortress. We were lucky that in April the fortress is captured by Saxatilis, or more precisely, Aurinia Saxatilis (Aurinia saxatilis), which means Rocky Aurinia . It clings to the smallest protrusions and depressions of the fortress walls, covering the fortress with bright yellow flowers, which makes the gray walls more festive. The guides will definitely tell you the legend about Aurinia, and I will leave them "their bread" and will not reveal the details of the appearance of yellow flowers on the ancient walls ;-)
If the main fortress was seen by everyone who visited Kamyanets-Podilskyi, then its part called "Ruska Brama" was visited by few. Firstly, it is located far below, and we got to it along a narrow forest path that runs at the foot of the fortress walls. Once there, you begin to wonder: how many interesting events have these walls seen over the years? How many people have tried to conquer them since their construction?...
All the participants of our blog tour specially climbed the wall of the fortress to take a photo of the "Ruska Brama" from above, and it's very good that the photo does not convey at all the attack of fear of heights that overcame me there ;-)
The festive opening of the "Russkaya Brama" was made solemn by the smartly dressed children with their songs and dances. And the effect of perception was reinforced by the magical mamalyga , cooked on a fire, with meat and cucumbers, which all the guests washed down with aromatic tea.
The courtyard we entered after the grand opening is a classic example of knightly life. It seems that Ivanhoe is about to come out to greet us, and the carriage in the center was probably left by Friar Tuck from Robin Hood's gang.
Inside the "Brama" itself there is now a museum, where there is something to see for lovers of weapons and armor, and "military" tourists have the opportunity to "photograph a fashionable Look with a bow" ;-) and, if desired, even shoot at targets.
And now about the main thing! In the thirteenth century, the "Magdeburg Law" was formed in Europe, and already in 1374 this right was granted to the city of Kamianets-Podilskyi!!! At the same time, the City Hall was built, and literally on the "round" date, the 645th anniversary, I managed to try on the Chairman's chair in the Magdeburg Law Hall, which is located in the Kamianets-Podilskyi City Hall. I presided until (the cleaning lady did not chase me away) all the bloggers gathered for greetings and acquaintances.
This is what the Town Hall looks like today. It is clear that the architecture was influenced by the 17th and 18th centuries, but this did not bother the bloggers who gathered here at all. (After all, they only need to take pictures and write;-)
If you ask me what surprised me about Kamyanets-Podilskyi, the first word will be: "Festivals" . Today, the city hosts a huge number of festivals. The first of them I will note is the "Aeronautics Fiesta". This year marks the 235th anniversary of the launch of the first hot air balloon in Ukraine (which took place in Kamyanets) and if you want to see a reconstruction of this event, then come here on May 17-19. You will fly in balloons and celebrate the city day at the same time. 🤘
There is also a film festival, a medieval reconstruction festival, a rally and much, much more. See the calendar of festivals and events here .
As serious people, we of course went to the conference dedicated to the opening of the tourist season. The level of representation was off the charts: all the city and regional leaders and even the Rada deputies were there. It's really cool when these people direct their efforts to the development of tourism in Ukraine. At the conference, we learned in detail about each upcoming festival and personally met the masters who make souvenirs of all possible types.
What is worth noting separately is the place of the city in History. Here empires crossed, inventions were introduced, history changed.
Be sure to take a guide who will show you the residence of Symon Petliura
He will tell you interesting things about the streets and alleys, tell you about the first Ukrainian hot air balloon, and also about the fact that the first Ukrainian bus was also made in Kamyanets-Podilskyi.
Well, you will find the giant blue umbrella yourself after the tour.
In 2019, exactly 100 years have passed since the First Ukrainian Oath was pronounced.
My blogger friends and I were lucky enough to attend the unveiling of the memorial stone dedicated to this event. I was very moved by the details of the events that took place a century ago and proudly held my hand on my heart while listening to the anthem during the unveiling.
What I will never forget after my trip to Kamyanets-Podilskyi is the dinner at the Fortress. I have seen many times in films how knights spend their evenings, but it was the first time I got into the atmosphere of "A mountain of feast + artists who delight". I want to thank the entire Kamyanets-Podilskyi tourist team for their love for their city and for the holiday they created for the guests. That evening we said many kind words to each other, sang an incredible number of songs and danced in the dark, under the glowing towers of the Fortress (now I know for sure that the knights of the Middle Ages had fiery night discos in their castles ;-)
And I would like to finish my story about the opening of the tourist season in the city of Kamyanets-Podilskyi with such a selfie. Here I am together with the cool folk group "Petridava" celebrating the opening of the tourist season in the Kamyanets-Podilskyi Fortress.
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