Krasnodon Things to Do

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Young Guards memorial museum was built in 1970.
Victory Banner panel is at the entrance to the second floor of the museum.
The panel is also called Immortality.
Young Guards Memorial museum is perhaps the only place in Luhansk region and in the FSU countries in general where you can see a statue of Joseph Stalin (!) who "won the war".
Why not have a picture of yourself taken with it?
It is a unique sculpture I must say.
I have never seen anything of the kind during all my trips in Ukraine and Russia.

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As soon as you arrive to the bus terminal, you can proceed to the city center as you come to the main street - The First Mounted Army Street - and walk past the Orders Sign and then turn left and walk past the city hotel to Young Guards Square.
You will see the memorial museum to your left and the administration building to your right and the school in front of you.
The famous Oath Monument is to your left in the middle of the square.
The monument was dedicated on September 12, 1954.

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The city leisure center is called Young Guards Palace of Culture.
It was built in 1959 and has been the cultural hub of the city and of the entire Krasnodon County.
Concerts, gala meetings, shows and festivals have been held here within the fifty years of its existence.
The city disco takes place here in the lobby on weekends.
The leisure center is famous for its audience hall and its huge chandelier.
The chandelier is never lit now for it is covered with a thick layer of dust. They do not switch it on for the lamps can blow up.
But when I came to the stage, I asked Valery, the electrician, to tell me the story. He was so kind as to switch on the chandelier for a couple of minutes to enable me to take pictures. What an honor for me! Another local guy who was there, a twenty-year-old worker, run up to us to see the lit chandelier that he had never seen in his life...
I am sorry the chandelier has not been dusted for over twenty years.
It can be lowered after the stalls chairs are removed, but it's a huge and expensive procedure.

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Krasnodon became a memorial city of the last world war.
It became world famous oqing to the activities of Young Guards underground organization.
The old Soviet slogan
/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/
Nobody is forgotten,
nothing is forgotten!
/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/
is especially well seen and felt here in Krasnodon.
As you arive to the bus terminal, you only have to walk a hundred meters and then turn left at the Orders Sign.
This is where you can see the main monuments and memorials.
The Oath Memorial and Mourning Mother Memorial are located downtown and are the most visited places by tourists from all over the Former Soviet Union countries.
There is Eternal Flame at the Mourning Mother monument and at the back of Mourning Mother memorial you can see an inscription taken from a prison cell after the liberation of the city in February 1943:
Death to German invaders!
There were 92 members of the Young Guards all in all.
The youngest member was 14 years old and the oldest one was 21 years old.
Five members of the Young Guards became Heroes of the Soviet Union posthumously.
"Oath" monument in Young Guards Square is dedicated to them.
Oath monument in Young Guards Square was erected on September 12, 1954.
It depicts five leading Young Guards members during their solemn oath of fighting against the Nazis.
You can see a Young Communist League (YCL) badge and the inscription, To the heroes of the Young Guards
from the Young Communist League
Twenty-eight Young Guards members studied at School 1. The building of this school is another historical site of the city.
School #1 was built in 1930 as a people’s construction site. All the city residents took part in its construction and dedication.
This is perhaps the only school in Ukraine that was awarded with the Order of Honor in Soviet times.
The school is called after Maxim Gorky (1968-1936), a famous Soviet writer.
The Gorky monument stands to the right of the school entrance.

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You can see the entrance lobby where the city dicso takes place on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays.
It starts at 7 p.m.
I find it nice to dance on what I call the eight-point star
of communism.
We have a similar eight-point star in Luhansk in the lobby of the present-day College of Arts, but nobody ever dances on it.
I wonder what the implication of this star was fifty years ago.
I went to the second floor where there is a foyer and nice Corinth columns.
They were being refurbished for the 50th jubilee of the leisure center (1959-2009).
I also took pictures of the three Soviet era murals in the foyer on the first floor.

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I am sure you will enjoy your visit to the Young Guards Palace of Culture, or the city conference center.
Here are some more pictures I was allowed to take inside the conference/leisure center: the old Soviet murals depicting the symbols of the socialist construction.
The unique chandelier in the main hall is worth seeing too.
Have a nice stay!

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When you enter the audience hall of the conference center, take a look at the huge beautiful chandelier. It is a work of art indeed!
It is never lit now for it is 50 years old and is not dusted regularly, hence a thick layer of dust on its lamps, which can be dangerous and lead to an explosion.
I was privileged to see it lit for a couple of minutes. Valery the electrician had mercy on me and lit the chandelier and told me its story.
Valery told me that some VIPs from Kiev had wanted to buy the chandelier from Krasnodon "to free the people Krasnodon of the trouble of cleaning it", but the locals refused.
Well done, Krasnodon residents!
Guard your memory!
We should not surrender to the Big Purse!

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Krasnodon is a huge city as to its area.
The locals say the city has two centers: the first one is touristy and includes the area around the Young Guards Memorial: Tourist hotel, district administration and coalmining administration buildings.
The second center is mainly used by locals. It is the area around Lenin monument:
Gulliver store;
Gorky Palace of Culture (city and district leisure center);
Ukraine hotel;
Heroes Alley.
The second center includes a lot of modern multi-storeyed apartment houses.

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The museum has been the main city attraction for years.
It consists of two floors and has a very special architectural design.
It is dedicated to the life story of the members of Young Guards underground young people's organization that was active in the city during the Nazi occupation in 1942.
The museum is also known for its Stalin statue that is perhaps the only one I have seen in all other museums.
Some more information about the young heroes:
Young Soviet Heroes Will Always Remain in People’s Memory

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Krasnodon has a lot of monuments, among them
- the unique Perished Coalminers Memorial in Pioneer Street;
- Lenin monument in Lenin Square;
- different war memorials.