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T: 044 455 9318 CONTENTS 3 Kyiv City Guide #23 March/April 4 Kyiv Basics 8 Events, Movies 12 Museums, Sights 21 Hotels, Apartments 27 Restaurants, Bars, Pubs 34 Shopping Museums 12 Events 8 37 Health, Sports 39 Transport & Travel 42 Out of Town 44 Yellow Pages 46 Nightlife, Clubs 50 City Maps 53 Street Index Nightlife 46 Movies 11 WWW.KYIVCITYGUIDE.COM - YOUR FAVOURITE TRAVELMATE 4 GENERAL INFO Facts & Figures History in brief Your mini dictionary LOCATION: Eastern Europe, bordering 4500BC Flourishing of the Late Neolithic Hello -pryvit Good morning -dobry the Black Sea, Romania, Moldova, Hun- Cucuteni-Trypillian culture. ranok Good afternoon -dobry den gary, Slovakia, Poland in the west, Bela- 482AD Foundation of Kyiv (founded, How are you? -yak spravy? Yes -tak rus in the north, and Russia in the east. according to legend, by first settlers Kiy, No -ni Please -budlaska Excuse GEOGRAPHY: Ukraine is the second Shcheck, Horiv and Lybid). me -vybachte Thank you -dyakuyu largest state (slightly smaller than 882 Kyiv becomes the centre of the first You are welcome -proshu Help Texas) in Europe and consists mostly of Slavic State - Kyivan Rus, which during -dopomozhit Hotel -gotel Hospital plateaus. The only mountain chains are the 10-11th centuries was the largest -likarnya Doctor -likar Food -yizha the Carpathians (west) and the Crimean and most powerful in Europe. Water -voda Right -na pravo Left -na Mountains. 988 The ruler Vlodymyr the Great con- livo Straight -pryamo Street -vulytsya HIGHEST POINT: Mount Hoverla verts Kyivian Rus to Christianity. Square -ploscha Terminal -vokzal Post 2,061m (Carpathians). 1240 Genghis Khan’s grand-son, Batu office -poshta Open -vidkryto Closed LONGEST RIVER: Dnipro 2,200 km Khan conquers Kyivian Rus. -zachyneno Pull -na sebe Push -vid sebe (1,204 km within Ukraine). 1362 Weakened by internecine quarrels What is your name? -yak vas zvaty? CLIMATE: temperate continental; Medi- and Mongol invasions, Kyivan Rus was My name is... -mene zvaty... Nice to terranean on the southern Crimean coast. incorporated into the Polish-Lithuanian meet you -pryemno poznayomytys The summers are warm, even hot in the Commonwealth. Goodbye -do pobachennya Where is... south. Winters vary from cool along the 15th century The cultural and religious Black Sea to cold farther inland, sum- -de znakhodytsya... Cheers! -Budmo! legacy of Kyivian Rus laid to the founda- May I have the bill please -rakhunok mers are warm across the greater part tion of Ukrainian nationalism and a Cos- of the country, hot in the south. The bud’laska Monday -ponedilok (Пн) sack quasi-state, the Zaporizhian Host Tuesday -vivtorok (Вт) Wednesday heaviest rainfalls are observed in July. was established. Snowfall is common in winter. Average -sereda (Ср) Thursday -tchetver (Чт) 1648 After uprising against Poles lead Friday -pyatnytsya (Пт) Saturday temperature: July +21°C, January 6°C. by Cossack leader Bohdan Khmelnitsky (South). -subota (Сб) Sunday -nedilya (Н) the Hetmanate remained autonomous Spring -vesna Summer -lito Autumn THE FLAG: consists of two equal hori- for well over 100 years. zontal bands of azure and yellow repre- 17th century Ukraine was progres- -osin Winter -zyma Please take me to senting grainfields under a blue sky. sively incorporated into the Russian the ... hotel -gotel ... budlaska Arrive ADMINISTRATIVE DIVISION: Unitary Empire despite the promises of Ukrain- -prybuvaye Depart -vidhodyt Is there state divided into 24 provinces (oblast) ian autonomy given by the Treaty of an information desk nearby? -chy and one autonomous republic Crimea. Pereyaslav. ye po blyzu spravochna? I would like Additionally, two cities Kyiv and Sevas- 1917 following the collapse of czarist to order a taxi -ya hotiv by zamovyty topol, have a special status. Russia in 1917 independent Ukrainian taxi How much does it cost? -skil’ky LANGUAGE: The official language is People’s Republic was proclaimed. tse koshtuye? Ukrainian, an Indo-European, Slavic 1920 Soviets reconquered Ukraine and group language, which is similar to Rus- forced to endure a brutal communist Public holidays sian. Russian is widely spoken in Kyiv, on regime that engineered artificial famine the North-East and South. - Holodomor (1932-33) in which over 8 When a public holiday falls on a weekly RELIGION: Ukraine is predominantly million Ukrainians died. day off (for example, Sunday), the fol- Orthodox Christian. Greek Catholic on 1941 German troops invade Ukraine. lowing working day (often it is Monday) the western part. turns into an official day off too. For the 1944 Soviet army occupies Ukraine most of Ukrainian employees weekly LOCAL TIME: Eastern European Time again. In WWII, both German and Soviet (GMT+2) and Eastern European Summer days off are Saturday and Sunday. If only armies were responsible for 7 to 8 mil- one or two working days are between a Time (GMT+3) zones, along with Fin- lion deaths. land, Baltic States, Greece, and Turkey. public holiday and another day off then 1945 Ukraine became the member of the Government usually shifts these the United Nations. Area: 603,628 sq. km working days onto a certain Saturday 1954 Crimea transferred to Ukraine by following that day off. Population: 46,179,266 (2008 est.) Soviet leader Khrushchev. Capital: Kyiv, 2,819,566 1986 Horrific Chernobyl disaster. January 1 New Year Major cities: Kharkiv 1,470,902 1990 Proclamation of sovereignty and January 7 Orthodox Christmas Dnipropetrivsk 1,065,008 independence from Soviet Union. March 8 Women’s Day Odesa 1,029,049 1996 Adoption of new Ukrainian Consti- Donetsk 1,016,194 tution; the Hryvnia is introduced as the April 24 (2011) Orthodox Easter Ethnic new Ukrainian monetary unit. May 1,2 Labour Day composition: Ukrainians: 77.8 % Russians: 17.3 % 2004 Following peaceful mass protest May 9 Victory Day Belorussians: 0.6 % Orange Revolution Victor Yushchenko June 12 (2011) Orthodox Pentecost Moldovans: 0.5 % becomes the president of Ukraine. June 28 Constitution Day Crimean Tatar: 0.5 % 2008 Ukraine became the member of others: 3.8 % the World Trade Organization. August 24 Independence Day KYIV CITY GUIDE #23 MARCH/APRIL ARRIVING IN KYIV 5 At the airport At the train station By car There are two airports in Kyiv. Located in the city centre the The main route to Kyiv from The Kyiv Boryspil Interna- Central Train Station has two the West is via Poland, through tional (KBP) serves interna- terminals, one is refurbished the 24h border post Dorohusk tional (terminal B) and domestic (termi- old Ukrainian Baroque style terminal (Poland) and Yagodyn (Ukraine), Volyn- nal A) flights and has a separate terminal (build in 1927) and the other is ultra- ska province. The nearest significant C for VIP and officials. Inside terminal B modern, Pivdenniy (Southern) terminal. town on the Polish side is Lublin, and it is there are post office, 00-24 Internet cafe, The tracks located between the termi- easy to find the road by following the restaurant, bank offices, exchange nals, info tel. (044) 503 7005, www. route #373 to Kovel and Lutsk or by points, and several ATMs (bankomats), uz.gov.ua. Each terminal has an ex- watching numerous lorries and trucks luggage room on the -1 floor (open 00- change point, however, rates usually are heading East. The first question you will 24, no breaks), rent-a-car offices, and a unreasonable. A good option would be be asked when entering Ukraine, proba- handicapped travellers service in the ar- ATMs (bankomats) that are located in bly, is ‘let me see your vehicle insurance rival hall, and related facilities www.air- the main hall of both terminals. The old police’ (in Ukrainian of course) which port-borispol.com.ua, tel. 8 900 116 terminal has also a post office. The metro means you must have insurance police 5711 (657 from mobile), lost luggage station Vokzalna is situated near the old which applies to Ukraine too. A good tel. (044) 281 7498. Airport located 35 terminal, constituting the station’s main idea is to buy one in your home country km from the city centre. Taxi ride to the intersection with city transport. South- or in Poland. Otherwise you will be re- city centre takes about 40 minutes de- ern new terminal is more convenient for quired to insure your car on the border pending on traffic. The reasonable fare getting a taxi. Kyiv Passenger Railway and, for sure, pay exaggerated fee. Once would be around 250 hryvnias ($30), Station provides long-distance service you are in Lutsk, just follow the main however, some pushy taxi drivers may including international destinations to road to Rivne, Zhytomyr and Kyiv. Speak- hard-sell a $50 or even higher ride. There several European capitals and CIS coun- ing of fuelling, premium brands in are also shuttle buses available that ride tries, and also a short-distance trains Ukraine are Shell, Okko and WOG. They roughly every 30 minutes (see timetable (the so-called elektrichkas) for nearby trade fairly good petrol and diesel fuel. at the bottom of page). The ride takes regions. Remote regions may be ac- about one hour and gets you to the Kyiv cessed with overnight trains. Central Train Station, and the fare is 25 hryvnias ($5).