Our first tour of the day was to Bachtschisarai, where we visited the Kahn palace, which has become a UNESCO site. The Khans were Tartar (Muslim) rulers in the 15th century. Among other things, the palace included minarets, a mosque and a harem, beautifully decorated in marble and colored class. We stopped in a restaurant for Turkish coffee, which was enjoyed in a rooftop setting.
From the beautiful 15th century palace of this morning, we went to a “submarine repair shop,” which was a top secret operation of the Russians during the cold war. Built between 1955 and 1961, it was dug into the mountains in the town of Balaklava, and designed to withstand a nuclear attack.
On our drive back to Sevastopol we stopped to take pictures of the "Valley of Death" - the valley made famous by Alfred Lord Tennyson in his "Charge of the Light Brigade." I remember studying that poem, way back when, but I don't believe I ever gave any thought to the fact that it took place on the Crimean Peninsula.
On our drive back to Sevastopol we stopped to take pictures of the "Valley of Death" - the valley made famous by Alfred Lord Tennyson in his "Charge of the Light Brigade." I remember studying that poem, way back when, but I don't believe I ever gave any thought to the fact that it took place on the Crimean Peninsula.
One of the agricultural products of the Crimean Peninsula is wine, so I had to buy some. Unfortunately, it was kept behind the checkout counter and the market we were at, and the young woman at the cash register was sullen and not about to attempt to communicate, so I had to go by a picture on the bottle, seen from across the counter. As we were leaving, a nice man with only rudimentary English skills told us that it was very good wine, made in this city, which was what I had meant to buy. I’m drinking it as I write. It reminds me of Sangria – very fruity and sweet.
We leave Sevastopol tonight and arrive in Yalta by morning.
The Khans' palace was built over a period of 200 years as various Khans changed it. It was started in the 1300s.
The front of the palace is quite impressive.
The palace was largely destroyed by the Germans in WWII. These doors were one of the things left undamaged.
The entrance to the secret base is hidden in this harbor (at the right). The ruins in the background are a 13th century Turkish fort.
The secret submarine repair base is built in a large tunnel with nuclear blast doors.
The secret submarine repair base is built in a large tunnel with nuclear blast doors.
The light brigade charged past this house in the Crimean war. Unfortuantely they misunderstood the general's command - they were supposed to watch the flanks and stop cannon from retreating not charge the valley - and all died in vain!
Sandy got some pretty good wine - despite the clerk!
Sandy got some pretty good wine - despite the clerk!
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