Odessa Things to Do

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One thing that every visitor to Odessa must do is walk down the Potemkin Steps, also known as the Potemkin Stairs, Ïîòüîìê³íñüê³ ñõîäè ( Pot’omkins’ki Skhîdy) in Ukrainian and Ïîò¸ìêèíñêàÿ ëåñòíèöà (Potemkinskaya Lestnitsa) in Russian. They had many earlier names, including Boulevard Steps, Giant Staircase, Richelieu Steps and Primorsky Stairs, but they were officially given their current name in 1955 to honour the 50th anniversary of the Battleship Potemkin uprising, which took place here. They featured prominently in Eisenstein's 1925 film, "Battleship Potemkin", in which there are memorable scenes of the Cossack troops shooting the people of Odessa as they flee down the steps and the famous scene where the baby in the pram starts to roll down the steps after its mother has been shot.

They must be one of the biggest flights of stone steps in the world and are a lot bigger than Rome's Spanish Steps, for example. They were originally constructed between 1837 and 1841, under the supervision of an English engineer called Upton. The stone used was greenish-grey sandstone imported from Trieste in Italy, but this eroded easily so, in 1933, it was replaced with pinkish-grey granite. There were once 200 steps, but when the port was extended the bottom 8 were removed so today there is a total of 192 steps. The steps are divided into ten flights, separated by ten landings and they look today much the same as they did in the film. The top step is 27 metres higher than the bottom one, but the steps extend a distance of 142 metres. They fan out from a width of 12.5 metres at the top to 21.7 metres at the bottom. They lead from the city down to the port. If you don't want to climb back up again, there is a funicular railway next to them, built in 1906.

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Two important figures from the turn of the ninetenth century are connected in this statue. Ivan Martos (1754-1835) was a great Ukrainian neo-classical sculptor. His sculpture of the Duc de Richelieu, which stands at the top of the Potemkin Steps, is one of his most famous works. The Duc de Richelieu (1766-1822), meanwhile, was a great French statesman and friend of Czar Alexander I, who in 1803, became the Governor of Odessa. During the eleven years that he was in charge, the city greatly increased in both size and importance.

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MMMMMM.....
if you are in Odessa the first thing what you should do will be swiming in Black sea!
Enjoy fresh salty water! The best way to do this will be nice beach on black sea called "Riviera". This is one of the best beaches on Black sea. There are many beaches on black sea one of them is Arkadia but Rivea is really the best beach. THere are realy cleen water and cllen sent. There you can get the mattress, sunshade and chaise longue! but you should pay for this during the week 30 grn and during the holidays 50 grn. (1 EURO-7grn).
Beach is open from 8 00 to 20 00
Also there is night club which work all night. almost everyevening they have new styl party!

The circus in Odessa is in a very old wooden building from 1894. They have a spectacular show with dance, costumes, music and nice acts. It is between Vul Zadova and Vul Pastera in a building. The taxidriver will know. Tickets you can buy at teatralna kassa, so everywhere in town. We payed 70 UAH per person, wich were first class seats.

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When you walk down Rishelyevskaya St. (Risheliu) you will inevitably reach this beautiful ornate building. What I thought was a mosque, and even a middle-eastern palace, turned to be the Arab Cultural Center. Odesa is known for it’s ethnic diversity and tolerance, so if there is room for Jewish, Greek and Bulgarian cultural centers, why not to find it for the Arabic one.

The center was opened in 2001 on funds contributed a Syrian businessman (married to a Ukrainian). The center is open for everybody who wants to learn about Arabic Culture or learn Arabic. But even if you are passing by, it’s worth spending couple minutes to enter and admire the luxurious interior, done in the best traditions of the “Thousand and One Night.”

The very best English school I think is Odessa Language Study Centre previously called the Oxford College. I went to their center several times while I was living in Odessa. The school is expensive though. Here is a listing of Russian language schools in Odessa : http://www.2odessa.com/wiki/Business_directory#Russian_studies

Since this is a wiki, you can add some more Russian schools you like, without registering.

I would also suggest going to the English Club in Odessa. http://www.2odessa.com/wiki/English_club Many of the people who go to this club are English teachers and can teach you or know who can teach you Russian.

The English resources section on 2odessa.com is also helpful:

http://www.2odessa.com/wiki/Business_directory_in_Odessa#English_and_translation_services

If you have any more questions about Odessa, go to the message board on 2odessa and we will be happy to answer your questions.

Visit the city Zoo that is not far from the railway station.
The Zoo was founded in 1938.
You can see lots of animals and birds from all continents there. There is also an acquarium representing the fish population of the underwater realm.

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The residents of Odessa rightly boast of their unique Opera and Ballet Theater built in the 19th century.
The theater possesses a unique hall with excellent acoustics, luxurious lobby, really royal staircase and mirrors.
The horseshoe-formed circles of the hall yield a good view of the stage from all points of the hall.
You can admire the exterior of the theater for hours: its central and side portico, sculptures, the magnificent dome. The central portico is crowned with a picturesque sculpture group representing the goddess of theater whose chariot is pulled by four panthers. Below this sculpture you can see two large groups that personify dances and music.