Friday 3 August 2018



Approaching the outskirts of Kiev - where the rich folks live......



Statue on the hillside.



More civilisation.



Passing yacht.



Local town to port.



Now that is rich!.......



...... as is this.



Kiev on the horizon.



Local rich folks checking us out..... fast........



...and slow.



This is what happened to the last cruise ship that didn't pass muster!



Not sure - maybe a floating restaurant?



Where the plebs live - at least they have a local beach.



Approaching the Darnystkyi bridge.



Our first glimpse of the imposing Kiev skyline.



Still being checked out.



About to go under the Paton Bridge - the 'Motherland Monument' is on the hill.



Panoramic view of Kiev.



A closer view of the Motherland Monument - 62m (203ft) tall.



St. Sophia's Cathedral complex.



Passing traffic as we approach our moorings.



Lots of pleasure cruise boats.........



.... and local graffiti.



Monument to the Magdeburg Rights. - the oldest monument in the city.



Soviet era River Passenger Terminal - our berth is just to the right past the cruise boats.



St. Andrew's Church undergoing restoration.



The Motherland Monument dominates the skyline.



Our shore excursion - to the 'Monastery of the Caves'



Faded mural at the entrance......



... and the front entrance to the complex.



The Cathedral of the Dormition inside the grounds.



Looking back to the entrance.



Ruins of the city wall in the gazebo.



The Great Lavra Belltower.



Ornate entrance.



Standard icons inside.



Arty shot...



... say what you like......they are rather photogenic



Riches to the right, poverty to the left - or some such pithy observation.



Another arty shot.........



.... I just can't stop myself.



"Meet us by the black cross" said our guide.



Statue on the walk down to the caves.



Structure near the cave entrance.



About to board our coach - Archangel Michael statue - with the Church of Mammon(?) behind.



The entrance to Saint Sophia's Cathedral.



St Sophia's - yet another cathedral - but very photgenic.



The meaning of life???



Bohdan Khmelnytsky Monument in Sophia Square.



Mirror image.



Approaching St Michaels' Golden-Domed Monastery.



Monument to Saint Olga and Saint Andrew, Saints Cyril and Methodius.



Another view of St Michaels Cathedral.........



.... and the mural on the approach.



Holodomor Memorial in Mykhailivska Square, Kiev - memorial to the famine in 1932-33.



Government building as we walk towards St Andrews Descent.



'After Two Hares' monument on St Andrew's Descent.



St. Andrew's Church on the Descent.



Looking down the cobbled street.



Old wooden house.



No, not Cary Grant - but writer Mikhail Bulgakov.



Street mural called 'Revival' symbolising the new Ukraine.



'Coffe Bus Club' - there's a double-decker bus in there somewhere.



Monument to Petro Konashevych-Sahaidachny in Kontraktova Ploshad (Square of Contracts)



Former Greek Monastery with the clock tower - now a branch of the National Bank.



Landward side of the Kiev River Passenger Terminal - as we walk back to our ship.



Soviet era 'People's Friendship Arch'.



Evening visit to 'Tsarskoe Selo' restaurant for our 'Ukrainian National Folklore Dinner'.



Inside the restaurant.



Pig statue outside the front door.



Leaving the restaurant for the coach journey back to the ship.
 
©Ken Duffey

August 2018