Travel To Ukraine

Travel to Ukraine has a lot to offer the history buff and the very physically fit traveler, who wants to explore this ancient region of the world for its museums and rugged landscape. The Ukraine was the center of the first Slavic state, Kievan Rus, in the 10th and 11th centuries when it was the largest and most powerful state in Europe. A series of conquests over the centuries greatly diminished it's power, and its final conqueror was the Soviet Union. Traveling to this part of the world gives a visitor a chance to view its colorful history through its many museums and view up close the works of one of its most famous authors, Chekov, when visiting the Chekov house-museum, where the playwright spent the last five years of his life.

In Kiev, a number of tour guides offer hiking, biking, and mountain climbing for the adventurous tourists wanting to experience a more physical type of vacation. Built in the 11th century, St. Sophia Cathedral is the country's oldest church, and it is decorated with mosaics and frescos that are stunningly beautiful. Including Kiev in the plans to the travel to Ukraine agenda also gives one the opportunity to visit the Chernobyl Museum, which documents the worst non-wartime nuclear disaster in history. The Caves Monastery, founded in 1051, has a guesthouse for visitors, and guests can join in prayer with the monks. Travelers may also include a visit to Yalta, which became an upscale resort on the Black Sea when Alexander II made nearby Livadia his summer residence.

If the traveler is interested in WWII history, the northwest part of Odessa has a network of tunnels that sheltered partisans during the war. These catacombs have been turned into a Museum of Partisan Glory. Guided tours to the area are available, but only in the Russian or Ukrainian languages. Traveling in this part of the world will also include a wide variety of different cuisine. The country produces a wide variety of fruits and vegetables that are prepared in a multitude of tasty recipes. One cautionary note for visitors, though, is to be sure to drink bottled water. Travel to Ukraine could turn unpleasant with the illnesses possible by drinking tap water.

Visitors to this part of the country have the opportunity to see a country which has had a democratically elected government for a very little time, and that was achieved when the people demanded the corrupt regime be replaced with one led by a reformer by the name of Victor Yushchenko. There are three branches of government that Americans will find familiar: Executive, legislative, and judicial. Visas are required for travel to Ukraine, and may be obtained in Washington D.C., San Francisco, and Chicago. The people of Ukraine are hard-working and determined to take care of themselves, physically and spiritually. Scripture has this to say about self-sustaining people: "He that tilleth his land shall have plenty of bread: but he that followeth after vain persons shall have poverty enough." (Proverbs 28:19)