My Last Week in Crimea

My final week in Crimea passed very pleasantly. On the weekend I went on a little trip to a town called Eupatoria. It is on the Black Sea and is known for its health spas and particularly for the healing properties in the mud found in the area. It also boasts religious diversity and a history dating back to 500 BC.

My first visit was to a synagogue.

We then went to Cuma Cami Mosques - the largest in Ukraine. They had very strict dress policies, unlike the mosques in Istanbul which are used to tourists, and I had to dress up.

"Tanya I love you. Please forgive me!" Apparently it is common for men to do this. Ukrainian men also give their girlfriends/wives flowers on a nearly weekly basis.

This is a street in the old town of Eupatoria. The street layout has been virtually unchanged since its construction. As a result the streets twist and turn at random and are very difficult to navigate.

The tower that you see in the background is a reconstruction of the main gate that existed at the site during the Medieval ages. Today it has a museum and a restaurant.


After some tea and sweets at the restaurant we headed home to Simferopol. We were caught in the rain while waiting for the tram.

Back in Simferopol my friend Iliya wanted to teach me how to make borsh! We had a lovely dinner of borsh and some local cognac for dessert. :D

During my last week I was thinking about all the things that I should take pictures of before I leave. I am somewhat surprised to say that the thing I wanted to take a picture of most was - mud. In particular, the mud puddle near the house I was living. This stupid mud puddle (or more precisely mud lake) was the bane of my existence. It was huge and it never dried! As a result my shoes were constantly dirty which aggravated me to no end.

On my final day in Simferopol our bus was forced to detour before of a political rally. Later I found out that the participants at the rally are mostly public servants who were explicitly told to attend and students university students who were also expected to attend. Moreover, apparently there are people who take attendance to ensure that those who were 'invited' arrive.

I passed the rally to get to an event called 'Global Village'. My colleagues and I, as well as a few other individuals, participated by sharing with everyone information about our countries. We also prepared food. I made 'croque monsieurs' - a French Canadian open faced sandwich. (And for the May's Austrlian friends who read my blog - May made cookies that Austrlians used to make to support WWII efforts. Unfortunately she didn't have the proper ingredients and was rushed. To make a long story short, when all was said and done they resembled ammunition more than cookies. I almost broke my tooth trying to eat one. Sorry May, it had to be told. :D)

After Global Village we headed to our friend Emir's house for a traditional Tatar dinner. To get there we had to go through one of the several underground passages. I took a picture because I had been meaning to. The underground passages are full of florists and other vendors.

We arrived at Emir's and were greeted with a presentation about Crimean Tatar culture and a wonderful home cooked meal prepared by his mother. It was amazing!

Mavile and I in Crimean Tatar hats. She is wearing the women's version and I am wearing the men's version.

Good company, good food - it was the perfect way to end my time in Simferopol.