AQUAMARINE – Квартиры полностью меблирована

Все о здании

“Аквамарин это шикарный комплекс апартаментов
для отдыха в КК”Золотые пески”. Он расположен
в 150м от пляжа у гостиницы “Одессос”. Это
9-тиэтажный комплекс, в нем 74 апартамента,
часть которых выходит на море. На подвальном
этаже предусмотрен Интернет зал,
а на бельэтаже – торговая часть.

Люксозные апартаменты продаются в завершенном виде, в том числе с оборудованием кухни и с кондиционером. Предусматривается их полное оборудование. У жилищ одна или две спальни. Цены от 1000 до 1400 евро за м2. Клиентам купившим недвижимость в Аквамарине предусматривается охрана и поддержка. У них есть право отдавать недвижимость под аренду.

Прогнозные цены на:
двухкомнатную квартиру – 5000 евро;
трехкомнатную квартиру –8000 евро;

Описание ройона

Вряд ли нужно долго описывать КК”Золотые пески“. Этот современный курорт, сочетавший 50летнюю традицию и историю с современными тенденциями – небезизвестен в России. Он расположен в 18км от г.Варны среди природного парка Золотые пески, объявленного в 1943 году защищенной зоной. Расположение у моря, мягкий климат /зима мягкая, а лето не так жаркое из-за прохладного морского ветерка – бриз/ отличают его от других национальных парков. Здес пахнет и морем, и лесом, что действует укрепляюще на здоровье. Среди лиственных /с хвойными/ лесов разброшены гостиницы. Из-под тени, иногда вековых деревьев, сквозь зелень и пестроту цветов Вы сможете наслаждаться лазурным морем. А журчание фонтанов успокаивает и заряжает энергией.

Комплекс Аквамарин расположен у гостиниц “Одессос”, “Амбасадор” и “Шипка”. Он находится в 150м от пляжа. Пляж широккй, с мелким золотистым песком, с барами, зонтами и шезлонгами, что делает его один из самых хороших и желанных в Европе.

Historic houses of Romania collage (©Valentin Mandache)

I composed the image above from 60 selected photographs taken during my fieldwork this year, mostly in Bucharest, but also Iasi (NE Romania) and Sinaia (the Transylvanian Alps). In my opinion the collage is extremely suggestive of the exuberant historic architecture found within the territory of Romania: a peculiar crossroad of Western, especially French, and Central European influences blended together on a Balkan background with old Ottoman echoes. I hope the pot-pourri of houses, decorations and ornaments, often painted in garish colours, would give you a more wholesome image of the vast field represented by Romania’s historic architecture. I also use a version of this collage for my Twitter page background, have a look here: http://twitter.com/historo

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I endeavor through this daily image series to inspire appreciation of the historic houses of Romania, a virtually undiscovered, but fascinating chapter of European architectural heritage.

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If you plan acquiring a historic property in Romania or start a renovation project, I would be delighted to advice you in locating the property, specialist research, planning permissions, restoration project management, etc. To discuss your particular plan please see my contact details in the Contact page of this weblog.

Xenophon (430-354 BC)

In The Practice of Management, published in 1954, Peter Drucker write: “The first systematic book on leadership is: the Kyropaidaia of Xenophon – himself no mean leader of men – is still the best book on the subject.” Xenophon also wrote Anabasis (commonly known as The Persian Expedition) in which he explains how, in the fourth century B.C., he and others in a Greek army of 10,000 hired by the pretender to the Persian throne Cyrus the Younger, fought their way back to the Black Sea against overwhelming odds.

In Drucker on Leadership, William Cohen explains that after being selected to be the commanding general, Xenophon selected and then summoned subordinate generals, instructing them on leadership. Here are the basic principles, first articulated almost 4,500 years ago:

1. Leaders must set the example in terms of both attitude and behavior. They must be the first to do the most difficult and most unpleasant work.

2. Leaders need to be more courageous than those who follow them. This is especially important when in harm’s way and specific perils are unknown.

3. Leaders must be in total self-control and exercise firm discipline fairly and consistently. They expect outstanding results.

4. Leaders train others to think in terms of actions each must take that will achieve success. Help them to “see” the benefits to them.

Cohen also offers a “distillation” of all of Drucker’s thoughts about leadership from an abundance of resources. He provides a model suggesting the five basic components of effective leadership:

• Strategic planning by the leader as the foundation
• Business ethics and personal integrity as necessary conditions
• Leadership as taught in the military as a baseline model
• Correct perception and application of the psychological principles of motivation
• The marketing model as the general approach

In my review of Cohen’s book, I briefly discuss these five components.

What do you think is the best book on leadership?

Exotic Destinations a Trend

 Yesterday one of our regular customers booked a cruise from Buenos Aires, Argentina to Santiago, Chile—a 12-day voyage around the bottom of South America.  He’s going in February which is peak summertime in the destination.  Some of his stops include Montevideo, Uruguay, the Falkland Islands and Ushuaia, Argentina (the world’s southernmost city), as well as a passage through the Straits of Magellan, before ending in Santiago, Chile.

 While his itinerary is rather routine for a South America cruise, it is symbolic of a larger trend of cruisers who want to visit more unusual places on their cruise vacation.  And the cruise lines are adding new destinations at a record pace to satisfy the increased in interest in new ports to visit and experience.  New additions might be Longyearben Island in the far north, or a port in Greenland, or Iceland.  The options continue to expand for 2010.

Other places seeing significant expansion include cruises to Egypt, Israel, Turkey, Greece and Italy, or to the Black Sea and the Crimea.  With the growth in fleet size the cruise lines are scrambling to find places they can send their older ships that will keep them full, and the winner is all of us.

While these more exotic cruises are becoming more prevalent, they do tend to be longer and a little more complex to book and experience.  They might require special visas, inoculations, or other details, but, with enough planning time, none of those things is a problem.

Sven Väth @ Dance Weekend 0.2, Black Sea Coast – Constanta

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Sven Väth @ Dance Weekend 0.2, Black Sea Coast – Constanta

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Three weeks. It’s been three weeks since I was last home. A lot happens to a man in three weeks. His whole life can change in three weeks. Mine did.

Three weeks ago, discreetly invited by Matchstick for a private scotch-tasting event, I strode into One Hazelton, a trendy restaurant in Toronto’s Yorkville district. The staff greeted me by name and took my coat, not an uncommon occurrence. After a quick glass of brandy with the manager – and a lively, though abbreviated, discussion on the merits of a program proactively providing guests with a choice of “dates” for the evening – I was ushered into a private room toward the back. Lined with tables, the room was buzzing with activity, and I found myself sitting among the most influential members of the city’s online community. A little out of place, I felt like Number 6 in the Village. But with a scotch in hand, and several more on the table before me, I was prepared for a hard night’s work.

Within an hour, I had devoured no less than six glasses of fine Macallan scotch… 10-year old Macallan, 12-year old, 15-year old, 21-year old. I couldn’t stop myself. A presentation on the Macallan brand and its history described in great detail its methods of barreling and aging. Our affable host then held up a small vial of clear liquid, explaining it was Macallan scotch aged only one day. I never imagined such imbibitions existed.

Fuelled by scotch, alcohol raging through my veins, I leapt to my feet and bolted toward the front of the room. Racing toward our host, I zeroed in on the panic in his ever-widening eyes. Swooping in, I grabbed the small vial of day-old scotch, opened it and drank it down, all in one quick motion.

Indescribable. It’s the only way to describe the feeling. It was the fix I’d been searching for my entire life. Standing there, all eyes affixed on me with looks of fear and contempt sweeping across the sea of faces like a tidal wave, I felt invincible. Unleashing an other-worldly roar, my voice sounded like nothing I’d ever heard in the natural universe. Men and women around me began to sob, quivering with fear as I felt the scotch coursing through my body.

I quickly grabbed the bottle of 21-year old Macallan scotch from our host’s paralyzed arms, as he stood transfixed by what I’d become. Within 20 seconds, I had gulped down two-thirds of the bottle, and shattered it on the table before me. Holding half the broken bottle, dripping with sweet, sweet scotch, I saw myself start swinging wildly. People climbed over one another to get out of my way, crying and screaming madly as they dove for cover. Men were even throwing women in my way in order to save themselves. Cowards. Before long, I found myself outside. Snarling and frothing at the mouth, I had managed to get away with several bottles of each Macallan scotch before I escaped the claustrophobia of that crowd, the negative energy affecting my scotch-fuelled spree of sin.

The next few weeks, I traveled across the globe in a scotch-induced stupor. Using my considerable resources and delusional judgment, I destroyed anything in my path. While in Morocco, half a bottle of 12-year old scotch preceded the severe beating I administered to a camel and its owner after it spit in the vicinity of my Nike dunks. After a stern warning to the camel’s owner, he mumbled some anti-Semitic remarks under his breath. I used the remaining half-bottle of booze to light the fire to heat the branding iron I needed to brand his forehead with a Star of David. Then I kicked his ass. And that of his camel.

Climbing the mountains of Nepal, I was enlightened after sharing two bottles of 18-year old Macallan scotch with a clan of Buddhist monks. Having spent the previous six years in complete silence, we communicated through an intricate series of hand-gestures, eye-movements and breathing patterns. They considered me a deity, and I shared with them the warmth and comfort of Macallan scotch. In return, they taught me karmic self-control, and the deadly ancient martial arts. I hadn’t the heart to tell them I was already well-versed in both.

Sailing the Black Sea, I boarded a stolen ship crawling with Somali pirates. After a few bottles of Macallan 15-year old scotch, and a violent but rousing game of Backgammon, I surprised my hosts by physically overpowering the entire crew, one by one. After returning the ship to its rightful owners, I stole a helicopter from a Greek military base and, before long, touched down in Haiti.

Having saved the best for last, I quickly consumed half my remaining stash upon landing – three bottles of 21-year old Macallan. My killing power increased exponentially, I staged a one-man bloody coup and seized control of the island within a day. Once my buzz faded, I grew weary of the responsibilities associated with running a brutal dictatorship and decided to return home.

I built a crude rocket of only monkey bones, coconut shells and palm fronds. Using just one ounce of 21-year old Macallan scotch, I was able to fuel my vessel across the horizon and back to Toronto. With only two bottles remaining, I decided to sacrifice them for the good of this blog posting, and finished them both before sitting down to recount my adventures.

Three weeks. That’s all it took for Macallan scotch to change my life. Thank you Macallan. (and thank you Mark Twain)

Please be sure to check out this quick survey about The Macallan scotch. A $2 donation goes to Redwood Women’s Shelter for each survey filled out. What are you waiting for? An angry woman to beat the hell out of you?

by Igor Golubenkov

from marinephotobank flickr

“Oil covers a seabird on the beach on the Tuzla Spit in the Kerch Strait which connects the Black Sea with the Sea of Azov.

Because the storm in the Strait of Kerch is getting stronger, there is no possibility to stop the flow of oil in the sea andorganize its collection and removal. The black oil stains are taking over the entire marine territory and the catastrophe is becoming bigger and bigger.

And thus, the ancient land of Taman has gotten a full taste of what oil is. This is by no means economic prosperity, as many investors have promised. It is dead birds and fish, a polluted sea and beaches. The fuel oil left on the bottom of the sea will be long remembered, and will continue to poison the region’s maritime ecosystem for many years”

- Andrey Rudomaha, Victoria Kucherenko

(Environmental Watch on the North Caucasus)

Simple, but balanced crisp Art Deco design of a mid 1930s seaside villa, Eforie Nord on the Romanian shore of the Black Sea. (©Valentin Mandache)

These examples of beautiful inter-war seaside villas were in general well maintained during the communist times as the regime used them for high ranking officials. Unfortunately now, 20 years since the fall of communism, many of these emblematic edifices are lost due to botched renovations or illegal demolitions performed by a new generation of ignorant indigenous owners and entrepreneurs. It will take probably another generation for them to realise the value of the architectural heritage put in place by their much more cultivated and sophisticated forefathers.

Dear Historic Houses of Romania readers,

I have a new website address for my bolg at www.historo.wordpress.com (domain name derived from ‘Historic Houses of Romania’), with an entirely new and dynamic look. I very much hope you will like the new format. All my old articles and images are also contained within the new site, so you should not have any problems in accessing them there. For one month between 1 Nov. ‘09 and 1 Dec. ‘09, I will post simultaneously, in order to avoid confusions and allow for a smooth transition, my forthcoming architectural history articles and images on both old (‘viapontica’) and new (‘historo’) sites. After that date www.historo.wordpress.com will become my sole active blog site dedicated to the Historic Houses of Romania.

Best regards,

Valentin

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I endeavor through this daily image series to inspire appreciation of the historic houses of Romania, a virtually undiscovered, but fascinating chapter of European architectural heritage.

***********************************************

If you plan acquiring a historic property in Romania or start a renovation project, I would be delighted to advice you in locating the property, specialist research, planning permissions, restoration project management, etc. To discuss your particular plan please see my contact details in the Contact page of this weblog.

Simple, but balanced crisp Art Deco design of a mid 1930s seaside villa, Eforie Nord on the Romanian shore of the Black Sea. (©Valentin Mandache)

These examples of beautiful inter-war seaside villas were in general well maintained during the communist times as the regime used them for high ranking officials. Unfortunately now, 20 years since the fall of communism, many of these emblematic edifices are lost due to botched renovations or illegal demolitions performed by a new generation of ignorant indigenous owners and entrepreneurs. It will take probably another generation for them to realise the value of the architectural heritage put in place by their much more cultivated and sophisticated forefathers.

***********************************************

I endeavor through this daily image series to inspire appreciation of the historic houses of Romania, a virtually undiscovered, but fascinating chapter of European architectural heritage.

***********************************************

If you plan acquiring a historic property in Romania or start a renovation project, I would be delighted to advice you in locating the property, specialist research, planning permissions, restoration project management, etc. To discuss your particular plan please see my contact details in the Contact page of this weblog.

I thought I would post some of the beautiful images of one of God’s daily, but extravagantly beautiful masterpieces that I took at the Black Sea in Bulgaria a few weeks ago.

Blessings, Torben

de Cosmin ŞTEFĂNESCU

Mi-aş dori să nu mai fiu trist

să nu mai locuiesc într-o lume bolnavă,

într-un spaţiu acoperit de lavă, insist!…

vreau să exist – insist să-mi distrug masca cea gravă.

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Am uitat că m-am născut între aştri

şi-am coborât odată cu Adam şi Eva din paradis,

sau poate a fost vis!… voi răscoli printre nouri albaştri,

îi voi întreba pe-ai posterităţii pilaştri dacă am căzut în abis.

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Aş dori să redevenim iar puri şi-n vogă să fie liniştea,

iar de nu s-o luăm pe drumul cenuşii şi cu ajutorul acestuia noi, supuşii

Îngenunchind Lui ne vom spune rugăciunea

numai astfel ne vom dobândi înţelepciunea şi vom fi iar mai copii.

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Dar mă trezesc şi nu mai vreau să fiu trist,

vreau prin drumul cenuşii să-mi tăvălesc existenţa

şi să uit că mai exist

insist… insist… insist…

MAREA NEAGRĂ - PONTUL EUXIN - BLACK SEA

This post is part 8 of 17 of my trip to Istanbul. The series intends to give more than just a I-saw-this-and-did-that review. It aims to share the voice inside my head as I explore a world I’ve only read in books.

The Bosporus River is the winding water way that divides Turkey into two. Most tourists stay on the European side and take short day trips across to Uskudar or Kadikoy, which is located on the Asian side. It’s vice-versa with Istanbulites. Many of them live on the Asian side and commute via ferry to the European side.

Every guide book and website I came across before my trip to Istanbul said that the Bosporus cruise is a must-do. So JC and I boarded our ship at Eminonu. The cruise was about 6 hours long and took up the entire day. We made alternate stops along the European and Asian side of the river. Some people got off and others got on. The length of the cruise varies depending on the amount of time you spend exploring each port.

The Rainbow Warrior

It would be very lengthy, and extremely boring, if I were to share with you everything I saw along the river. If you’re interested, Rick Steve does an incredible job with his self-guided tour of the Bosporus Cruise. But he never told me that we’d be getting a nice surprise from Greenpeace. They were there to protest for a ban on the trade of  Bluefin Tuna in the Mediterranean.

When our ship left the dock at Eminonu, it gave us an amazing view of the Hagia Sophia, the Topkapi Palace and the Blue Mosque. All along the river, left and right, grand villas and marble palaces added a modern twist to the stone fortress and small fishing villages nearby. We cruised by the Dolmabahce Mosque and Dolmabahce Palace where the sultan lived after he and his royal family moved out of the Topkapi Palace in an effort to become more westernized.

We passed under the Bosporus Bridge and came upon the Rumeli Hisari, also known as the Fortress of Europe. It was built by Mehmet the Conqueror  in 1452. The entire fortress was completed in 4 1/2 months. It was built to control the passage of ships up and down the Bosporus. The Rumeli Hisari became a checkpoint when Constantinople. It was also used to hold war prisoners. Today, the fortress is a museum and contains an open-air theater for summer concerts and festivals.

In about an hour and a half, our ship docked at Anadolu Kavagı. JC and I got off and hiked up to Yoros Castle. We were a little confused as to why there were no maps or signs to direct us. The path was isolated and eerie. Our route took us by a horse that seem to have appeared out of no where and we encountered a number of stray and very hungry dogs. We also passed through a cemetery and a couple of Turkish military bases. The soldiers did not look friendly. Once we arrived to the foot of the hill where the castle was located we realized that if we had just turned one more page in Rick Steve’s guide book, we would have seen a set of directions that would have taken us up to Yoros Castle. Instead we went off the beaten path.

When we reached the top, we were rewarded with a panoramic view of where the Bosporus River meets the Black Sea – the name sounds so ominous. Before the Byzantine period, the Yoros Castle was used by the Greeks and Phoenicians for trade and military purposes. There use to be a massive chain that extended across the width of the Bosporus from the Yoros Castle to the Rumeli Kavagı, located on the opposite side of the river. The chain was used to prevent attacking warships from entering the strait and into the city. What’s left of the Yoros Castle now are the ruins and the castle’s surrounding walls. The mosque and towers have disappeared.

The wind was gusty at the top of Yoros Castle but it felt so good against my skin. JC and I climbed as high as we could along the wall and sat there for a few hours. We stared out to sea as it turned from patches of blue to sea-green. When we saw that the gray clouds were coming in from the Black Sea, we decided that it was time to head back. We didn’t want to get caught in the rain. I took a nap on our cruise back to to Eminonu and by the time we docked, it was starting to get dark and we were starving. We walk towards the fish boats on the dock and had fish sandwiches for dinner again.

For more details click on the map

Odessa or Odesa (Ukrainian: Одеса; Russian: Одесса; Romanian: Odesa; Greek: Οδησσός; Yiddish: אדעס) is the administrative center of the Odessa Oblast (province) located in southern Ukraine. The city is a major seaport located on the shore of the Black Sea and the fourth largest city in Ukraine with a population of 1,029,000 (as of the 2001 census).

Odessa was founded by Hacı I Giray, the Khan of Crimea, in 1240 and originally named Khadjibey after him. After a period of Lithuanian control, it passed into the domain of the Ottoman Sultan in 1529 and remained in Ottoman hands until the Ottoman Empire’s defeat in the Russo-Turkish War of 1792.

The Russians renamed the city Odessa in 1794. From 1819–1858 Odessa was a free port. During the Soviet period it was the most important port of trade in the Soviet Union and a Soviet naval base. On January 1, 2000 the Quarantine Pier of Odessa trade sea port was declared a free port and free economic zone for a term of 25 years.

In the 19th century it was the fourth largest city of Imperial Russia, after Moscow, Saint Petersburg, and Warsaw. Its historical architecture has a style more Mediterranean than Russian, having been heavily influenced by French and Italian styles. Some buildings are built in a mixture of different styles, including Art Nouveau, Renaissance and Classicist.

Following the Bolshevik Revolution in 1917 during World War I, Odessa was occupied by several groups, including the Ukrainian Tsentral’na Rada, the French Army, the Red Army and the White Army. Finally, in 1920, the Red Army took control of Odessa and united it with the Ukrainian SSR, which later became part of the USSR.

During World War II, from 1941–1944, Odessa was subject to Romanian administration, as the city had been made part of the Transnistria occupation district. Romanians used the name ‘Odessa’ as the Ukrainian version of the city. The Romanian occupation may be described a “soft one” compared to the short period of German occupation in 1944.

The Romanian commanding General made an unofficial armistice with the partisans hidden in the city’s catacombs, who in turn did not mount much resistance to the Romanians.

When the people of Odessa suffered from hunger, the Romanians transported grain from Bessarabia to Odessa in 1942 and 1943. It is told that the Romanians imported the best cognac and wines, in addition to two train loads of the best French food in 1942 to the restaurants of Odessa, from France.

During the April 1944 battle Odessa suffered severe damage and many casualties. Many parts of Odessa were damaged during its siege and recapture on 10 April 1944, when the city was finally liberated by the Red Army.

Following the Siege of Odessa, and the Axis occupation, approximately 25,000 Odessans (mostly Jews) were murdered and over 35,000 deported. Most of the atrocities were committed during the first six months of the occupation which officially begun on 17 October 1941, after the bombing of the Romanian HQ and the subsequent brutal response of the Romanian military.

After this time period, the Romanian administration changed its policy, refusing to deport the remaining Jewish population to extermination camps in German occupied Poland, and allowing Jews to work as hired labourers. As a result, despite the tragic events of 1941, the survival of the Jews in this area was higher than in other areas of occupied Europe.

Source: Wikipedia

Travel journal

If you are in Chisinau and you want to arrive in Odessa, the best idea is to get a vehicle –a bus from North Station (near Calea Basarabiei market).

So we did.

At 07.30 we took the first bus which goes to Odessa and we paid for a ticket 93 Moldavian lei (it means 5.8 euros). The bus-driver gave us an inquest to complete for entering in Ukraine.

A half of this inquest you give when you come in the country and another one when you leave it. We passed the customs very quickly, without problems and in 4-5 hours we arrived in Odessa.

As we didn’t have a map for orientation, we started to ask people how to arrive to Potemkin Stairs, which was our first visit. Honestly, we tell you, you must be patient with Ukrainian people because how many people you ask, you will receive different contradictory answers to arrive at the place you need

In this way, we took the trolley number 5, we paid for the ticket 1 grivna (0.08 euros) and after 4 stations we were on Tiraspol’skaya Street. We walked for other 15 minutes among some nice old buildings and we arrived at the Poteomkin Stairs.

By the way, the streets from Odessa are very nice in autumn .

We visited the Passage from Odessa which impressed us very much by its architecture. We have to recognize the prices from those shops were pretty high. On the streets, we saw a lot of expensive bars, restaurants and pubs, but interesting arranged, however, with few clients.

From the beginning, we were a bit disappointed a cause of those stairs-we thought it would be more imposing, but it looked like some usually stairs. From the right side, there was a funicular which leave you down, at the beginning of the stairs.

Sincerely, we don’t see the meaning of this funicular because the distance is not so long, it’s only 142 meters you can descend in 2 minutes!

A funny moment was when we had to split thousands of balloons threw from the roof of a building-people from Odessa celebrated the inauguration of a shopping center. It was nice to see people of all ages doing a thing that gave them a smile on theirs faces.

If you are in Ukraine, it is impossible to not respect the tradition- we bought beer and dry salt fish! How the harbour was near, we had a freezing walk on the promenade; the sea was not so hospitable with us.

At half past 5 we had to take the bus to return in Chisinau so we had to hurry to arrive at the bus station. We had the same problem: all people we asked what trolley we must take gave us different answers, but in the end we arrived to the final destination.

From the bus station we bought some carrot pies (3.5 griva=0.25 euros each pie). The ticket price Odessa-Chisinau was 53 grivnas/person (equal 4 euros). At the customs; we gave the second part of that inquest we completed before we entered in Ukraine and in 4 hours we were in Chisinau.

Odessa seemed us to be a nice, pretty big city, with a lot of interesting places to visit, however, better in summer

Bus station (Avtovokzal)

A kiosk with all kind of crumpets, just near to bus station

A soviet block

A very width tram (the ticket is 1 UAH which means 0.08 EURO)

Just a photo from the center, with ukrainian yellow marshrutka

A bus...

A nice building, with Cuba Cafe

Paved road in the old center

Trolley...

Old center (the road to harbour)

Military of Ukraine (Southern forces)

Real hypermarket

You can observe the colour of the bars (Ukrainian flag)

I think this is Preobrazhenskiy Cathedral from Sobornaya Square

Beeline mobile phone company from Russia and life:), Kyivstar, Golden Telecom and MTS from Ukraine

The Passage from Odessa (1899) "baroque style"

Built in 1899, by polish architect Lev Vlodek, the passage belonged to the merchant Mendelevich. Now, passage is one of the lare largest auction centers in Odessa

McDonald's

An exchange panel

This is the monument of the founders of the city, build in 1900, restored in 2007

Nice buildings...

That was near to the Potemkin Stairs

The 142-metre-long Potemkin Stairs

Slavic style

Wedding near to the Black Sea

The Potemkin Stairs were constructed between 1837–1841

Hair for all Ukraine from Yulia Volodymyrivna Tymoshenko (Ukrainian: Юлія Володимирівна Тимошенко), the Prime Minister of Ukraine

In Kiev is cheaper

Trains near to the Odessa Harbour

I love you, my Odessa

The highway from the harbour

An info panel at the harbour

An ukrainian vessel

Other vessels

Hotel Odessa on the Black Sea, just near to the harbour

UKRFERRY "Caledonia" which can take you to Istanbul

Lenin is alive

A cute ukrainian cat

Public phone cabin

A panel with the condition of weather in the Bus station

     We absolutely loved our cruse to Greece, Turkey, Egypt and the Black Sea.  It was just amazing.  Well, the wash is done and the suitcases are almost empty and our internal clocks are way off.  We have to find another way to get home from Europe.  Ray went to the Dr. this morning and had x-rays and a cortisone shot in his knee.  It turns out he didn’t have too much cartilage in his knee and when he fell, he smashed what was left.  He has pills and if it doesn’t get better they will try some lubricating shots.  If that doesn’t work, he might need knee replacement.  I went to the eye Dr. this afternoon and it looks like I might need cataract surgery in about 18 months.  Ray goes to the eye Dr. on Wednesday and I get my teeth cleaned on Thursday.  Enough of this stuff — we have to get ready for our road trip to Florida on the 24th or 25th for a week and then a cruise with Ray and Joanie November 2 to 7 to the Bahamas!

     We were up by 3 AM, put the last few things in our carry-on bags and went upstairs for a quick breakfast.  When we got down to the terminal, Stanley already had our bags on the trolley with a porter.  We had to meet our cab just outside the port gates.  We were there around 4 for our 4:15 pick-up time.   We saw a lot of the crew just coming back to the ship after a night on the town.  Our driver showed up shortly with 4 name cards.  I showed him ours and we were the third cab to leave.  The ride to the airport was so much shorter than arrival day.  The airport had screenings as you entered the building and then again at the gate.  When we checked in, we asked if it was possible to have 3 seats so Ray could stretch and they did.  Istanbul is 7 hours ahead of the East Coast and Madrid is 6 hours ahead.  It was about a 4 hour flight from Istanbul to Madrid.  We had 3 hours and 45 minutes on the ground and then an eight hour flight from Madrid to JFK.  We got in a little late, but there were only about 6 Americans on the plane so Immigration was easy.  There was a bit of a wait for the luggage and I was getting nervous about making the 6 PM flight. We got in a cab and hit some traffic but he got us to La Guardia airport on time.  When we got to the gate they were boarding and said we would have to check our carry-on bags as there was no more room in the overhead compartments.  I removed my laptop and let the rest go.  They checked it through to Myrtle Beach.  Otherwise we would have had to go through security and screening in Atlanta.  After 2 hours in the air we got off the plane in Atlanta and we were right next to Nathan’s Hot Dogs.  Ray was so happy he didn’t have to walk any further.  We ate a hot dog and then got on the train to the next concourse.  They were boarding when we got there so we went right on.  Another 50 minutes or so in the air and we touched down in Myrtle Beach.  We were in the house shortly before midnight.  It was about 28 hours since we woke up, a long, long day.  We love to travel, but it is always nice to get home.

Ukraine_Crimea peninsula

Today, just weeks after the United States backed out of a missile defense agreement with Poland and Czechoslovakia intended to ward off potential aggression by Russia, Ukraine sent a message to Russia by beginning military exercises. In the next few weeks I intend to write a column on last year’s invasion of Georgia and Russia’s recent efforts to reclaim territory from the former Soviet bloc countries.

The Washington Post reports:

On maps, Crimea is Ukrainian territory, and this naval citadel on its southern coast is a Ukrainian city. But when court bailiffs tried to serve papers at a lighthouse here in August, they suddenly found themselves surrounded by armed troops from Russia’s Black Sea Fleet who delivered them to police as if they were trespassing teenagers.

The humiliating episode underscored Russia’s continuing influence in the storied peninsula on the Black Sea nearly two decades after the fall of the Soviet Union — and the potential for trouble here ahead of Ukraine’s first presidential vote since the 2005 Orange Revolution.

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The AP reported:

Ukraine sent hundreds of troops, five ships and 15 aircraft into the Black Sea region Thursday for day-long military drills off its Crimean peninsula, a potential flashpoint with Russia.The exercises commenced just as a Russian state news agency said Russian drills in the same body of water were coming to a close.

Crimea, Ukraine’s only autonomous republic, is a focus of rising tensions between Russia and Ukraine. The peninsula hosts Ukrainian ships and Russia’s Black Sea fleet. Moscow has sternly objected to Ukrainian President Viktor Yushchenko’s plans to evict the Russian navy when the lease agreement expires in 2017.

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We didn’t rush getting off the ship today, I wanted to have my posts ready in case we found an Internet.  Stanley and Susie went ahead of us.  This was a tender port.  I tried to use the Internet at the dock but they didn’t have any WiFi codes left.  We had to pay $5 each for a round trip shuttle bus into town.  On the way out of the port there were very many ladies selling crocheted things hanging on lines.  Almost at the end I spotted a tablecloth that I liked.   There were many women selling things in town, also.

They dropped us off by the Cathedral so we went in for a look.  We bought a book of pictures of the church.  There were vendors all around the church.  I was told there was Internet in the post office around the corner so Ray sat on a bench and off I went.  There were lines for almost anything you could want, except for the Internet.  I started walking looking at cafes to see if anyone was using a computer when I spotted a hotel.  I went in and asked if there was a WiFi Internet nearby and they had one.  I was allowed to use it and there was no code needed.  They wouldn’t accept US dollars, so I didn’t get a drink.

     I found my way back to Ray and we crossed the street and found a pedestrian area, the Opera House and then the flea market.  It was fun looking at everything but we couldn’t find a hat.

     We got on the shuttle bus to go back to the port and I had decided to get that tablecloth.  I spotted it again and the bus kept going and going and going.  I said I wasn’t going back that far.  Ray headed for the ship and I started walking to look for another one.  Well, I ended up walking to the end to buy it.  The tender ride was about 15 minutes to the ship.  It was rougher in the afternoon than it was in the morning.  I took these pictures in the morning.

     The entertainment tonight was Smokey Joe’s Cafe again and another Crew Show which we went to.  I got a great video of “Fountains”.

     Varna, the gem of the Bulgarian Sea, is situated at the end of the big Varna Bay, with a convenient and well conserved water area.  The city’s peculiar sea charm is sublime and moving.  Ancient, medieval, renaissance and modern cultures mingle and coexist throughout the city.  Apart from being a beach resort, Varna rivals the great cities of Sofia and Plovdiv, in it’s offering of cultural attractions and historical buildings, museums and art galleries.  The currency in Varna is the Bulgarian Leva.