Most important port city in Soviet times

Odessa is the third most populous city in Ukraine and an important tourist centre, seaport and traffic hub on the north-western shore of the Black Sea.

During the Soviet era it was the most important trading port of the Soviet Union and a Soviet naval base. It used to be the most populous city in Ukraine in the second half of 19th century until it was topped by Kyiv. Although Ukrainian is the country's only official language, the native language of most of the inhabitants here is Russian.

Extended baggage checks on the border

At the Moldavian-Ukrainian border we all had to get off the bus and have our bags checked. To be precise, we entered the Ukraine from Transnistria, not Moldova, a country that actually doesn't exist (since it declared itself independent after a war, but was never recognized by other countries). From such a semi-legal construct like Transnistria naturally also things can be smuggled. In my backpack the customs officer was especially interested in my thick book called Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy. He asked me what I wanted with the book. "Read", I said. Sigh.

The extensive bag checks delayed my entry into the Ukraine by more than 1 hour.

Accomodated in an aristocratic house

I reached Odessa, the important port city on the Black Sea around Friday evening. My hostel was called Babushka Hostel, which means Grandmother Hostel.  A chic hostel in the style of an aristocratic house from the 18th century. Unfortunately I could only stay 1 night, because it was fully booked for the other nights. Thus I had to change to another hostel the very next morning. But in the new hostel, there were a lot of elderly people and the atmosphere was quite unfriendly so that the guests hardly talked to each other. For my third and last night in Odessa I found a great single room for a good price on the internet - and I had 3 beds for me alone.

Enjoying the last summer day on the beach

On my first day in town I walked around a bit and then went to the beach. There was almost no place left for my towel, because many people enjoyed the last beautiful sunny day at the beach. The calendar already showed the 22nd of September.  Not exactly the beach of Odessa is blessed with beauty.

On the way to the beach I walked through the park, which stretches along near the Black Sea. From there one could also see the huge harbour of the city, where a terrible noise originated. While walking through the park I heard a loud mechanical banging all the time.

Visiting a cool jazz bar with my Canadian friend

My second night in Odessa I bumped into my Canadian buddy Johnny, whom I had met before in Moldova. We went to dinner with a 2 Ukrainian girls and later shared a cognac in a cool jazz bar. We wanted to go to a club in the evening, but we realized that Odessa doesn't have so much to offer in post-summer period. Many bars and clubs were already closed. Normally, the nightlife of Odesa is concentrated in the Arcadia district, around 8 km away from the city center.

Many Mediterranean-influenced buildings

The next morning I went on a city tour that only a handful of people had joined. Our guide took us to some interesting buildings. Odessa is full of historical buildings that have preserved their beauty - or not. They have more a Mediterranean rather than Russian style, as it was strongly influenced by French and Italian styles.  Some buildings combine a mixture of different styles like Art Nouveau, Renaissance or Classicism.

One of the most famous buildings is the neo-baroque style opera house. The unique acoustics of the horseshoe-shaped hall enable the artists to convey even a whisper-quiet sound from the stage to any part of the hall. Although I had planned to see a performance in it, because one can watch excellent performances for a very low price, the performances (a lá ballet) did not suit my interests.

The most famous staircase in the world

Also in Odessa you can find probably the most famous staircase in the world, the Potemkin Staircase. The 192-step open staircase connects the Black Sea port with the city. In the 1920s it achieved legendary status through Sergei Eisenstein's film Battleship Potemkin.  There, the staircase serves as the scene for the bloody suppression of an uprising.

The construction is designed for perspective effect. Only the landings (and no steps) can be seen from above, only the steps (and no landings) from below.  Since the staircase at the bottom is much wider at 22 metres than at the top at 13 metres, it looks - when viewed from above - the same width over its entire length. The city is thus visually drawn to its harbour and the Black Sea. From below, this perspective trick makes the staircase look as if it is much longer and as if the urban scenery at the top of the staircase is more powerful. Odessa seems to be enthroned in heaven.

However, some of the historical buildings that are not demolished due to the protection of historical monuments, although they are totally dilapidated. This worsens the cityscape in my eyes. In general, the city lacked some atmosphere in my opinion.