Travel to Crimea!

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Balaclava is one of the districts of Sevastopol 12 km far from the city centre. Geographically Balaclava is the most convenient bay of Black Sea. It’s narrow (200-400 m) and deep (till 17 m). There are no storms. The Balaclava bay isn’t seen from Black Sea side, that is why numerous ships stayed hidden in Balaclava.

The age of this place is more than 3000 years old.  First lived there Tauris, the native inhabitans of the Crimea. Splendid and beautiful town of Balaclava is situated in a small cosy bay. The ancient Greeks who settled here in 422 called this locality  Syumbolon Limpe that is Harbour of Signs or Persage.

View on the Cape Aia

Homer mentioned  Balaclava in «Odyssey under the name of Lestriomer described the bay in the tenth canto of «Odyssey»:

«For six days and nights they had been riding the waves, and on the seventh one

They entered a glorious harbor of lestrigongs;

It was formed by the cliffs,

Steeply rising from the both sides, coming together at

The estuary so big, facing each other from the dark deep

Of the sea sticking up rocks, blocking the entrance and exit…”

In the small ancient town of Balaclava the remnants of the Genoa Cembalo Fortress are notable. In 14^th century Syumbolon was conquered by the Genoese and called Chembalo. Balaclava became the Genoese colonization.  The remains of the Genoese fortifications are viewed in a good way on the top of the cliff at the entrance of the harbor.

Genuese fortress Chembalo

Since 1475 local Tatars inhabitants  gave the town a new name – Balaclava (distorted own from the Turk’s “balyk-yuve”, i.e., fish-pond). At this period of time Balaclava became a shipbuilding centre.

Equally numerous are the legends about immeasurable treasures of the English «Black Prince» frigate sunken during the members Crimean War, in 1854. In the Balaclava battle, the of many aristocratic families of Great Britain perished.

Now town of Balaclava is a popular touristic place especially among the participating countries of the Crimean War. Even Prince Charles once visited monument  «Battle of 1854″.

Numerous hotels, fish restaurants and cafes welcome you at every corner of the Balaclava bay, museums and exhibitions will tell you about main events that took place in Balaclava : history of Chembalo fortress, Crimean War, the World War II, the Russian Emporers who visited these places, sercrets of Sovjet Union, misterious past of Saint Georgi Monastery. But if you simply walk, or even swim on the boat (there are big choice of the small boats to hire) you  will fill the mixture of all those events that have ever occured this misterious and at the same time very romantic small Crimean town – Balaclava.

look at our slideshow Balaklava –  slideshow

more information about unique museum of Crimean war in Balaclava, here