Crimea 2021: Simeiz and Alupka
Crimea welcomes guests in a modern and spacious airport.
The new terminal in Simferopol was opened in 2018, its main attraction is a huge green wall of plants (100 meters wide, 15 meters high).
Simezi
Going in Simezi- a resort on the southern shore of the peninsula, a mecca of nudists and climbers since the times of the Soviet Union and to the present day.
From Simferopol to Simeiz a little more than a hundred kilometers, that is, three hours to go by bus, two by taxi. The cost of tickets is from 300 rubles for a place in public transport and from 2000 rubles for the comfort of the car.
In a small Simeise, a combination of different, sometimes contradictory, architectural styles strikes.
For example, the buildings of the bus station and the cinema "Chernomorets", which are almost "back to back" - a legacy of Soviet times.
Nearby there are modern buildings made of glass and concrete, hotels and cafes, many shops and just a busy street trade.
The main wealth and uniqueness of Simeiz is its beautiful and elegant villas and cottages, which were built in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries.
Architectural styles: neoclassicism, modern, neo-Gothic, neo-Baroque and pseudo-Moorish style.
The main trouble and sadness of Simeiz is that these unique buildings, monuments of architecture, are often in emergency or semi-emergency condition.
Villa "Dream" survived the earthquake of 1927, the Great Patriotic War, and in the middle of the twentieth century became part of the anti-tuberculosis sanatorium "Red Lighthouse".
Villa "Xenia" is a famous attraction of Simeiz and the object of cultural heritage of Russia of regional importance. After nationalization, a hotel and a residential building were located in the building.
Villa Kameya was built for rent to wealthy holidaymakers, after the revolution of 1917, it also did not escape nationalization, it housed an anti-tuberculosis sanatorium.
A unique feature of the building is the observation gazebo on the roof, which is made in the form of a rotunda.
Near Kameya, closer to the sea, is Villa Sviyagina, an early neoclassical building that is also known as the Dacha Sviyagina, an architectural monument.
In the eastern part of Simeiz there is an architectural monument, the former boarding house of N. K. Alexandrov-Dolnik. Currently - the hotel "Ligo Marine".
The author of the project is a military engineer Y.P. Semenov, the building was built in 1910-1913.
Hayal is a dacha that belonged to Nadezhda Izmailovna Shlee, the widow of a Simferopol merchant. Built in 1913 by architect Pomerantsev.
After nationalization, the building housed medical institutions, in recent years - anti-tuberculosis sanatorium "Red lighthouse".
You can see Simeiz from a bird's eye view from the Diva rock - a steep stone staircase leads to its top. Another way to the observation deck is to go over the suspension bridge.
All roads in Simeiz lead to the famous cypress alley. It is a place of dates, meetings, evening concerts and rest from the heat of the day.
The alley with copies of ancient sculptures appeared here in the early twentieth century thanks to the efforts of the Maltsov family, who are considered the founders of the resort village.
Not far from the bus station stands the minaret of the Juma-Jami mosque. The building has its own complicated history. Construction of the mosque began in 1913 and was not completed until World War I. During the years of Soviet power, the building housed a kindergarten, a police station, housing for tourists was rented.
The mosque was returned to the faithful in 1994.
The resort is actively living and developing: in Simeiz a beautiful embankment (opened after restoration in early 2021), modern children's and sports grounds are rented.
Rock climbers from all over Russia, professional athletes and amateurs, hone their climbing technique on rocks near the village. Favorite and proven places: Cat Rocks and Swan Wing.
Alupka
From Simeiz to Alupka - 6 kilometers, this distance can be covered on foot or reach in a few minutes - by taxi (cost about 300 rubles) or by shuttle bus (ticket will cost 50 rubles).
The resort town near the foot of the Ai-Petri mountain became famous thanks to the Vorontsov Palace and the luxurious Alupkinsky Park, a monument of landscape art, which was created by the German gardener Karl Kebach.
Families with children love to relax on the so-called children's beach.
There is a small depth, comfortable for swimming small, and the water is crystal clear, here you can catch crabs and watch the life of the fish.
In Alupka, as in Simeiz, many ancient buildings are in the status of monuments of architecture, but, unfortunately, the state of devastation and neglect in which they are striking.
For example, the whole street Frunze (former Vorontsovskaya) consists of former cottages and mansions that were built before the revolution. After 1917, they were nationalized and transferred to the state.
Unique and beautiful buildings on Frunze Street for many years were used by the Soviet state as buildings of the sanatorium "Solnechny".
Now the sanatorium "Solnechny" is closed, but no one is restoring or repairing the buildings.
The former dacha "Olgin" (belonged to the journalist M. Pogodin, later Olga, the wife of the merchant Smurov).
It is hoped that the amazing buildings of Simeiz and Alupka, silent witnesses of Russian history, will soon be restored.
Text and photo: Polina M.
Prices are indicated at the time of publication of the article - August 2021.
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