16 days in Crimea (04.08.2016-20.08.016)
This year we were a family for the first time in the Crimea. Before the trip, I try to carefully prepare. I study the reviews and the subtleties of the places we go to. There were also many questions and doubts about Crimea. Air tickets were bought in the winter. The guest house is booked. Below I propose to get acquainted with my impressions and observations about the trip to Alupka in August 2016. (04.08. 2016-20.08. 216)
[b]1. About communication and preliminary preparation. [/ B]
The very first question for me was the quality of communication in the Crimea and the opportunity to communicate both among themselves and with the home region. As it turned out, only MTS catches well there. We hook Smart and use communications and the Internet in Crimea, just like at home. There are some places where the connection is unstable. But, these are small pieces between cities. So it's irrelevant. Almost everywhere there is 3G. In Crimea at all local MTS.
I was in Crimea for the first time. Therefore, I installed a couple of offline maps in advance (Navitel and Maps. Me). The second one is good because it even shows stairs in parks and towns. Then I installed a couple of applications for attractions and excursions. Keep in mind that the playmarket will not allow you to install any program. Google clung to the sanctions against the Russian Federation and introduced restrictions. GPS in Crimea almost did not work on two different smartphones. I saw a maximum of 1 satellite. At home, everything is fine with this.
" " " " "'" "" "» »» »»»» »"» »""S" Be Certainly; } } Be sure we take with us we Definitely We Be sure to take with us the medicines With us we will definitely take with ourselves medicines with ourselves - intestinal disorders and cold/sore throat. Moreover, not only coal, but also enterosgel + chloramphenicol + ecofuril. Alas, each of us needed medicines in the first direction. Sun cream and a beach umbrella were not forgotten. A little stressful. But do not depend on the ATM. And you do not need to pay tribute for cash withdrawals in the form of at least 100 rubles. for every operation. We reserve seats on the plane and call a taxi to Simferopol airport.
[b]2. Arrival in Crimea. [/b]
We arrived in Simferopol late in the evening. As a transfer from Simferopol airport, a couple of days before arrival, I ordered a Crimean taxi. Issue price - 2000 rubles. On the eve of departure, I received an SMS containing data on the driver and car. We received our luggage pretty quickly. Then we went to the square in front of the station. It was already dark, so I didn’t get much impression from the road to Alupka and its environs. Travel time took about 2 hours. GPS in Crimea worked for the last time on that trip.
[b]3. About traffic jams, roads, transport and gasoline. As you know, the Crimean coast is connected by two roads. They are conventionally called upper and lower.
The lower road goes through settlements and passes near the seashore. There are many beautiful places for photo and video shooting. True, there is 1 serious minus - the slowness of traffic due to narrow streets and heavy traffic. This is what taxi drivers and visiting drivers prefer to get from point A to point B along the Crimean coast. The upper road has the status of a government highway. Therefore, it is kept in good or even excellent condition. Of course, it would not hurt to add another stripe. Then there will be 2 lanes in each direction. Currently, the middle band is reversible. Priority for those who ride uphill. There is no lighting between the towns at night. Serious accidents often occur due to non-compliance with the speed limit. There are no radars here, no cameras on the roads. DPS is extremely rare. Always stand in certain places. On the way from Alupka to Simferopol, I counted only 5 cars with traffic police.
If if you leave the upper road the roads deteriorate before your eyes. As it seems to me, the road canvas in the coastal towns was laid during the USSR.
A few words about gasoline and gas stations. Gasoline in the Crimea is expensive. The 95th costs about 40 rubles. 90 kop. Gas stations in the Crimea have different companies. But, I did not meet such gas stations as Rosneft, Lukoil or Bashneft there. As the driver explained to me, they are not here. These oil companies are afraid of falling under Western sanctions. However, gasoline is supplied in a roundabout way to the existing gas stations in the Crimea. I repeat, this information was given to me by the driver who gave us a lift after the tour. As soon as Crimea was annexed to Russia, many local residents went to the Krasnodar Territory or Moscow to buy cars. Many bought used foreign cars assembled in Russia. Moreover, even the numbers of the regions did not change. Therefore, you can often see region 123 (Krasnodar Territory) on the numbers. Local Room Region Code: 777 or 82.
Machines in Crimea I would share 3 classes: barely running six + seven + nines, modern foreign cars of the Russian assembly and expensive jeeps and minivans.
Many drivers buy a license and chauffour during the holiday season. Some drivers just bomb on the sly. At the same time, it is not always possible to leave many sightseeing places. It is difficult to find taxi drivers and private traders. For example, I have been looking for a bombilla near the Aivazovskoye sanatorium for a long time.
When planning a trip, traffic jams in the Yalta and Simferopol regions should be taken into account. Usually, they begin in the afternoon and continue until the evening. So, the driver who drove us to the sanatorium "Aivazovskoye" by 11 am returned to Alupka only by 3 pm. Since the movement in each direction goes along one lane, the time to overcome this section greatly increases. When driving in a traffic jam downhill, many drivers simply turn off the car and slowly roll down from time to time. Local drivers often drive along streets that visitors do not drive into. This way you can take shortcuts and save time.
[b]4. Beach and the road to it The second is at some distance. The wild beach is easy to find if you search for "Wild beach" Named after the monk Berthold Schwartz "". The path to any of the beaches lies through mountainous terrain. Part of the way you have to go up the stairs. For those who follow the figure - that's it. The streets are long overdue for renovation. Coating of the times of the USSR. During the high holiday season, all construction is frozen.
On the wild beach, the access to the sea lies through stones of various sizes. There is no sand here. There are pluses and minuses to this. For easy entry / exit to the sea, people buy special silicone slippers for 390 rubles. They are worn on the leg and do not fall off. It is very difficult to go into the sea without slates or slippers, your feet sink into pebbles. This causes a certain discomfort. The stones are large, covered with moss. Because of this, they are very slippery.
The water in the sea is crystal clear. In the morning it is usually quiet and calm. By noon, the wave begins to slowly rise. Of course, there is no question of any service here. If you come without a beach umbrella, consider that you will immediately burn yourself. The first week the water was warmer. Yes, the temperature was higher. Moreover, both day and night. You go to sea without tension. If you brought swimming goggles or a mask with you, consider that you saved on free diving. There are very beautiful underwater views. Large rocks are overgrown with various underwater plants. Fish of different sizes, sometimes small jellyfish. Very beautiful. Visible underwater. When there are waves on the surface of the water, all this vegetation sways in time with the waves. There is no entertainment on the wild beach. They are on the city beach. In our case, the optimal time spent on the beach was from 7 am to 11 am in the morning and from 3 pm to 4 pm in the evening. At 18h the sun began to go behind the mountain and stopped hitting the beach. On the left side of the beach there was a kind of swimming pool for small children. Therefore, parents with children usually went to this part of the beach. We must pay tribute to the vacationers - no one littered. The beach is always clean. Being on the beach, you can see Mount Ai Petri.
Now about the city (municipal) beach. We discovered it for ourselves a few days before departure. More because of the waves that appeared on the wild beach. There are several eateries on the city beach. There are elements of entertainment in the form of riding on a banana or on a tablet. There are no breakwaters (they are not needed there), no large stones. There are small and medium pebbles. This beach is located in a bay. This has its pros and cons. Of the pluses, the wind does not enter there, there are no such sharp and strong waves. Of the minuses - the water is not as clean as on a wild beach. At some distance from the shore, the bottom becomes sandy. Because of this, the water near the shore has a somewhat cloudy whitish hue. Then the water darkens and turns blue. There are more people here.
[b]6. About parks and excursions. [/b]
Swimming in the sea was in the first place. Nevertheless, we have determined for ourselves a certain minimum of attractions that you need to visit. Here is the list in order of visit.
1. Vorontsov Palace (Alupka)
2. Park of the sanatorium "Aivazovskoye" (Partenit) + Yalta embankment + boat trip.
3. Livadia Palace in Crimea
4. Forossky Park Since it was close to our place of residence, we just drove 4 stops on a regular bus to a stop called "Bus Station". We went down and found ourselves at the entrance to the Vorontsov Palace. We handed over the backpack to the left-luggage office, bought tickets for an excursion to the palace. Otherwise, don't get there. Unfortunately, I can’t say that something hooked me on this excursion. Then we went outside, took a backpack from the storage room and bought a 30-minute tour of the park on an electric car for 1100 rubles. for two adults and one child. The electric car rolled through Vorontsovsky Park, the driver made comments during the trip. There was a stop so that we could take pictures.
After a little walk, we went down to the sea and went down to the "children's" beach. In general, we stayed in the Vorontsov Palace with a park for about 4 hours. In the evening we got up to the stop and drove to the "Green Cape" on a regular bus for 13 rubles. from the nose.
[b]The second excursion[/b] was a trip to the Aivazovskoye sanatorium. It is there that the most well-groomed botanical garden, called Paradise, is currently located. For 800 rubles. taxi kindly took us to this point. We bought a tour for 350 rubles. for an adult and 150 for a child and went inside. Join some excursion. The guide said right away that the tour would take about an hour. This park is very well looked after. Look after. It is forbidden to walk on the lawns, climb on the sculptures, touch them, pick flowers. Like all parks in Crimea, this park is mountainous. Previously, the sanatorium with the adjacent park belonged to some Ukrainian oligarch. After the tour ended, we were left to our own devices. We sat on the bench for a while, coming to our senses. Then we went for a walk, taking photos that we did not have time to take during the tour.
Having completed the review, we went to the bus stop. The interval of movement of the bus we needed to Yalta was 45 minutes. After waiting 20 minutes and seeing that there were noticeably more people at the bus stop, we decided to try to catch a taxi. However, this turned out to be no easy task. You will not find taxi drivers there during the day with fire. Finally, I saw one man on the six and asked him if he would not deliver us or he would reach the Yalta embankment. For 700 rubles. he drove us almost to the desired point. It was faster for us to walk part of the way than to drag ourselves in a traffic jam. This was due to the fact that there are traffic jams in Yalta. So we ended up on the Yalta embankment. Policemen check all entering the territory of the embankment (general inspection and check of bags). Used metal detectors, dogs. Immediately bought an excursion on the ship, General "Pushkin". One-hour excursion: 30 minutes sail to the Swallow's Nest and the same amount back. In one direction we sailed on an empty ship. Our ship departed from the Swallow's Nest fully loaded. After all, it was the last flight to Yalta. We landed in the dark. We immediately agreed with the taxi driver that he would pick us up near the Spartak cinema. We walked along the alley where artists sell their paintings. Many of the paintings are very well done. And they cost from 6 to 30.000 rubles.
[b]Fourth excursion[/b] - the park of the sanatorium Foros in Foros. There we stayed for a day. The park left a faint impression of an abandoned park. The thought of how it is possible to launch the once majestic park in such a way did not leave me. Many paths have long lost traces of concrete, instead of it there was a crumb. Many of the steps were painted and broken long ago. In Foros, only the embankment has been put in order. There are numerous cafes there. If desired, you can take a plastic deck chair for 200 rubles. You will be told about this later, after some time. Without leaving you the opportunity to refuse to pay. I did not find any ads about paid sun loungers. The beach is more or less even, relatively small pebbles. The water is clean and transparent. In the Foros park itself, there are multi-level reservoirs. They are abandoned. Overgrown with water lilies. The remnants of former luxury are reminiscent of floating golden fish and turtles. Handrails near ponds could be painted.
Of all the parks we visited, I would mention the park of the FSBI "Sanatorium" Aivazovskoye "(Partenit). It is called Paradise. Vorontsovsky Park is also interesting.
[b]7. Food and shops. Prices[/b]
* Usually we had breakfast on the beach, lunch at home, dinner in a cafe or canteen. Next to us, a 10-minute walk away, was a canteen under a roof, but without walls, a cafe, a pharmacy, several grocery stores, a non-food store. The cafe had a good variety on the menu, cooked well. The dining room was also good, the choice of dishes was present. And cheaper than cafes. A very pretty and attentive Sveta is in charge of the dining room.
There were several shops around us. We went to a store called Marina. It works 24 hours a day. There is a good selection of food and drinks. Alas, there I was stabbed twice. Maybe that's how lucky I am. The fact is bad. The pharmacy has everything you need. Usually they buy either from an intestinal disorder, or from a temperature or a sore throat. This is the problem of all resort towns. So great is the temptation to get rich on vacationers. Locals go to the wholesale base and buy a month in advance. I expected to eat local vegetables and fruits. Alas.
[[b]8. Departure from Crimea[/b]
2 days before the departure time I called the Aeroflot help desk to clarify the time of departure of the flight and book a seat in the cabin. Then I ordered a taxi 2.5 hours before the start of the flight check-in. Running forward will say that the road took exactly 2 hours.
On the return journey there was a CHEVROLET CRUZE car. Comfortable, with air conditioning. The driver was not talkative. We drove without haste. All trips related to the departure from Alupka are laid by drivers through the upper road. Screening at the airport was also not some kind of draconian. It immediately caught my eye that there were very few seats in the waiting room. The flight and landing in Ufa were very professional.
[b]9. Summing up the trip…[/b]
I didn't have a clear impression. Alas, I did not become a fan of the Crimea. Other family members have a more positive opinion about the trip. Much more needs to be invested in the development of Crimea. The previous authorities have done practically nothing since the collapse of the USSR. All I saw was that the main track was always well maintained. At the same time, many hotels along the sea over the past 5 years have been erected on private capital over the past 5 years.
As for the private... Positive impressions were left of the flights, transfer, the sea, hotels, 2 parks (see above), Yalta Embankment ( including an exhibition of artists) and a boat trip. I didn’t like the prices for everything, poor infrastructure, beaches and the entrance to the sea, the abandonment of the once flowering parks, broken sidewalks and roads in the towns that had not been repaired for a long time. A large number of buildings and structures that require, if not demolition, then at least repair. Sometimes the thought that I went back to the 70s did not leave me.