Mr. Traveller

In 2010, Odessa citizens have been waiting for a good cruise season. Just because the world crisis forced foreign cruise operators to significantly reduce the number of expensive flights. And all believed that foreign tourists immediately will rush to Odessa and the Crimea... However, this did not happen. Frankly, I also expected an increase in cruise ship calls in the port of Odessa. It was assumed that the global crisis will hit the wallet of foreign tourists, and they will begin a mass campaign to buy tickets for holidays in Ukraine. I thought that the cheaper route, to which I mistakenly attributed the ports of Ukraine, will be more attractive to the cruise season of 2010. However, these expectations are not confirmed. Really, the calls at Ukrainian ports to foreign cruise operators cost far more than the call at ports of other countries in the same Black Sea. And sometimes more expensive at times! How can this be? Imagine, can! This is because of an incredibly high level of va...

В 2010 году в Одессе были ожидания хорошего круизного сезона. Просто хотя бы потому, что мировой кризис вынудил зарубежных круизных операторов существенно сократить количество дорогих рейсов. И все полагали, что зарубежные туристы тут же ринутся в Одессу и Крым... Однако этого не произошло. Признаться, и я ожидал увеличения круизных судозаходов в Одесский порт. Предполагалось, что мировой кризис ударит по кошельку иностранных туристов, и они в массовом порядке начнут скупать билеты на отдых в Украину. Я полагал, что более дешевые маршруты, к которым я по ошибке относил порты Украины , будут более привлекательны в круизном сезоне 2010. Однако реальность этих ожиданий не подтвердила. Оказалось, что судозаходы в украинские порты обходятся иностранным круизным операторам намного дороже , чем заходы в порты других стран того же Черного моря. Причем дороже иногда в разы! Как такое может быть? Представьте, может. Виной тому - неимоверно высокий уровень всевозможных взносов и поборов. Вид...

Sometime ago I've been thinking about a possibility to conduct two Middle Asian trips: to Uzbekistan and to Azerbaijan. Uzbekistan attracted me by its sufi Islamic culture, beautiful Uzbek women and Azerbaijan by its historical heritage. Authors of the Uzbekistan travel and Tashkent hotels web-site reminded me that there is no problem for any Ukrainian to travel there, because Ukrainian citizens can enter this countries without having a visa. Azerbaijan visa support needed only for UK, USA and other Western countries' citizens  but not for Ukrainians. This news makes me happy. This spring I'm going to travel Western Ukraine, but autumn will reserve for Uzbekistan and Azerbaijan.

Just found very special wedding dress - red one! Looks very good, but I think this color is not hundred percent appropriate for a wedding idea, because the meaning of the red color is quitte different from the white one. Scarcely red color can point to innocence, which is the main symbol of white wedding dress. But anyway, comparing to the other wedding variations, red dress can be a kind of innovation, especially in Ukraine and Russia, where traditional wedding color is still white. http://venchanie.info/wedding-dress.html

Until recently, historians and public opinion have widely believed that the Zaporozhye Cossacks were rather of dissolute life, caring little about God and moral values. This view was based on the concept of a religious person, which must conform to the ideal life of a monk, not missing a single church service and observing all the fasts. This also contributed to the playful image of the Zaporozhye Cossacks in the folk songs who can not distinguish between "the priest and the goat". Recently published researches on Zaporizhzhya Cossacks by D. Yavornytsky, M. Grushevskiy, N. Kostomarov, A. Apanovich and others have refuted this claim, making it possible to conclude that Ukrainian ancestors were deeply religious people that followed the Christian Orthodox faith. Cossacks come out in defense of their faith, and consequently - the nation, resisted the Polish gentry-expansion, as well as the Catholic Church. Living under constant military action, the Cossacks did not spare the l...

Father Daniel Sysoev and his assistant priest Vladimir Strelbitskiy were shot on November, 19 to 20 in the courtyard of the Church of St. Thomas in Moscow. Father Daniel died, his assistant was seriously injured. Father Daniel Sysoev is well known to the Russian public as one of the greatest missionaries who fought against sects, and conducted a polemic against Islam.  Among the most likely motives for the murder of Daniel Sysoev law enforcers and experts cite a wide missionary activity among non-Orthodox population of Russia, particularly among Muslims.  Previously, father Daniel several times reported on death threats, which he received especially after a dispute with the representative of Islam.  Orthodox and Catholics of Odessa express their sorrow and sympathy to the Orthodox brethren, as well as to the family members of executed priests.

That was a little disappoitment to me. WBC heavyweight champ Vitaly Klitschko has been dominating over Mexican puncher Chris Arreola all 10 rounds, but after that the fight was stopped by Arreola’s trainer Henry Ramirez, who told referee to stop the bout. “He was taking too much punishment,” said Ramirez, who always has been in Arreola’s corner since his professional debut. So, I've been disappointed because of the stoppage. Guys, is it BOXING, or what? Areola has been crying heavily... See the full fight report.