Visiting foreign country

Three days ago we came to Ukraine. We have friends in Kamyanets-Podilskyi, so most of the time we will spent there. We will try to make each day  interesting, to get ecquainted with a lot of people and places. And now, we would like to show you some pictures and tell more about this beautiful town, and especially about places we visited yesterday and  will visit .We were very tired after flight, so we decided to stay at home and have a rest. And yesterday, full of energy, we made an excursion to the Old Town. We saw the castle, canyon  and cathedral.

 a Kamyanets-Podilskyi is called "the flower on stone".Maybe because of its castle or landscapes. And you will agree with us, that this castle is like from the fairy-tale.

Of course in the days when it was exploited according to its intended purpose—fight against the enemies—it didn’t look that pretty. Those peaked towers were built later and you might see the red bricks which definitely weren’t  used in the 13th-14th centuries when the castle was erected. Nevertheless, it does impress one with its firmness, strength and dignity.

 

Kamyanets is located in Podilski Tovtry National Nature Park famous by Smotrych River canyon, one of the most beautiful in Europe. If you are lucky, you may get to one of the festivals regularly held in Kamyanets, for example ballooning festival, military history festival, motor rally, or others.  

 We have just come home. We were walking in New Town all day long. We also have understood that religion plays an important role in life of people, who live there. We  have seen a lot of churches,  cathedrals. In the 19th century  three Orthodox churches were built in the city: the church of St. George in the Polish section, the church of the Intercession in the Ruthenian section, the church of St. Alexander Nevsky in the New City. The last one was rebuilt and opened again in 2011.

We also have seen fountains, lake with swams and a lot of people of all ages here. And we had an opportunity to feed the swams. It was really funny. We were wet. 

Kamyanets-Podilskyi is also known as "the town of three bridges". The best view is from the bridge, which is called "running deer" and we are going to see it tomorrow. We would like to fly on baloon. =)))

So, are really impressed. We liked Old City most of all. The nature and architecture are beautiful, people are kind. 

The different peoples and cultures that have lived in the city have each brought their own culture and architecture. Examples include the Polish, Ukrainian and Armenian markets. Famous tourist attraction include the ancient castle, and the numerous architectural attractions in the city's center, including the cathedral of Saints Peter and Paul, the city hall building, and the numerous fortifications.

Balooning activities in the canyon of the Smotrych River have also brought tourists. Since the late 1990s, the city has grown into one of the chief tourist centers of western Ukraine.  Annual Cossacks Games (Kozatski zabavy) and festivals, which include the open balooning championship of Ukraine, car racing and various music, art and drama activities, attract a lot of tourists and stimulate the local economy. More than a dozen privately-owned hotels have recently opened.
We will write more about our adventures...  Hope, we will like our vacation.