The story of the Alushta slum captivity

Guides telling about Alushta, necessarily mention the ruins of the fortress of Aluston, as originally, in the Middle Ages, the city was called. The interested reader will be sure to clarify that Alushta is no doubt less famous than Yalta. However, to call her “younger sister of Yalta” is incorrect. In reality, Alushta is fifteen hundred years older than the “neighbor”, having appeared through the efforts of the Byzantine emperor Justinian I in the now VI century AD. Maybe, maybe; at least that’s what historians tell us.

However, if the city, according to historians, was founded by the Byzantines, why was the fortress garrisoned by Goths? The people who came to the peninsula at the end of the IV century AD, long before the Byzantines appeared here. Oh, those dark mazes of history. According to the authors of guidebooks from the Byzantine, or still Gothic (?), the city and preserved the medieval name "Aluston", as well as the remains of fortress buildings on the central city hill.

Every tourist who in the labyrinth of alleys of the "old" part of Alushta without the help of the "navigator" will find "The open-air Museum "Aluston Fortress" must be assigned a category for orienteering. Directly from the embankment to go to the remains of the fortress is impossible.

Motivated to achieve the goal, the traveler will have to either, rising from the embankment, bypass the top of the city hill counterclockwise; or, starting from Soviet Square, overcome the path along their street. Lame to the equipped area with a view of the city; then turn to the street. Upper and go to the gate of the mosque Yukara-Jami.

The mosque is running out of asphalt. On the right, along a series of dusty cypresses, a narrow passage is visible. At the beginning of which there is an information plate with a red arrow. The text tells you that you are on the right path and to the address you need. Upper dead end 3, just a little bit left.

The official website of the open-air museum "Aluston Fortress" invites you to look at "... five building horizons in the history of the development of medieval Alushta from the Byzantine fortress to the Genoese trading station ...". The reality is much more modest.

You have a view of a small area covered with dried grass and a rare prickly shrub. The surface is uneven and, for the convenience of visitors, two boardwalks are built, connected by a path.

The accessible remains of the fortress itself consist of a pile of stones, in which you can see the foundations of the walls of once existing buildings and a lonely fortress tower in the far corner of the site. A large mock-up reconstruction of the fortress in the Middle Ages will tell visitors that there were three towers; to our time, two have survived; without adventure, you can get close to only one. Inspection completed...

It is impossible to see the walls outside. On the outer perimeter, the ancient walls and towers are covered with the slums of the “old” Alushta and are braided with rusty gas distribution pipes.

And yet, if you are vacationing in Alushta, take the opportunity and climb from the embankment to the city hill to the ruins of a medieval fortress. Overcome the tangled tangle of streets and alleys climbing steep slopes. Touch the real story without a hint of a newcomer. As a result...

The look of the bees:

• Real historical ruins are not disfigured by modern renovations, called "restoration".
• It is within walking distance from the resort center of the city and the embankment.
• Visited by a small number of tourists interested in real history.
• The main object of the museum "Round Tower" is accessible from the outside, without the need to go directly into the fenced area.

The look of the fly:

• Public transportation to the top of the hill is impossible, only on foot.
• A place in the alley for parking at the entrance to the museum territory is not provided at all.
• The museum area is adjacent to old unfinished buildings, hanging over visitors with their shabby walls.
• Not all preserved historical sites are paved paths; you have to look from afar.
• Outside the medieval walls and towers adjoin the wildest slums.