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There are numerous vendors at The Duke in Maritime Boulevard (Primorsky Boulevard) offering you lots of souvenirs including those dating back to the Soviet times.
I would describe it as a trap because lots of foreigners are attracted by the good-looking Soviet orders made of silver and guilded ones dating back to the times of the World War II.
The problem is that they are sold freely for $10-$15 a piece like the one on the picture - the Order of the Patriotic War, First Class;
But you can hardly take them home through our strict customs at the airport for according to the Ukrainian legislature they belong to historical values and may not be taken across the stateborder...
My American friend whom I saw off at the airport had to give me three orders back hoping to be able to take them home some day later...When?...
Unique Suggestions: Buy some simple badges and not orders that belong to historical values.
If you still have them, try to make an innocent face passing the Ukrainian customs at the airport red lane, especially after your baggage has been X-rayed and your souvenirs have been discovered. They will be confiscated without any ceremonies...
Just smile it off...
Just remember the soldiers and officers had to fight for those orders during the whole war...
Fun Alternatives: buying some simple badges and souvenirs
Updated Oct 1, 2011
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When we arrived in Odessa, first we wanted to find a place to sleep. We checked in our guide-book for some reasonable priced hotels and went to see what they can offer. To our surprise and disappointment and concern all were full. Then we tried at some local tourist office where the lady told us it won't be easy to find a place to stay just for that day but for some 5 days.
Unique Suggestions: If you want to stay in Odessa in summer, make sure you book in advance or you'll end up wandering around searching for a free bed.
Fun Alternatives: Luckily we found a place to stay. Check my hotels & accomodations tip.
Written Aug 7, 2005
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The Potemkin Steps are in every top10 things to see in 0dessa, & if you go there, you must take them in, but they're probably best seen after dark, when local folk are just enjoying an evening stroll, as in the day, this is a busy, bustling area. This key feature of the city has traded names over the years, originally known as the Boulevard Steps, then the Giant Staircase, or Richelieu Steps, today they are officially titled The Primorsky Stairs. HOWEVER, the association with General Potemkin persists, & in proper Russian, this makes his name an adjective, so they're actually called 'Patyomkinskaya Lyestneetsa'...
Unique Suggestions: If you're an English speaker, than like me, you've probably been mispronouncing 'potemkin' for years, & it ain't us to blame, because Cyrillic Russian is pathetically lax at indicating pronunciation, especially of vowels. What you need to know is that there are 10 vowels in Russian - 5 'hard' & 5 matchiong pairs, 'soft', & 3 actual letters 'e' - although 2 of the letters 'e' are printed identically. I regard this to be a daft deception, because the second version of 'e', which should be printed with 2dots over it, isn't an "e" at all, it's a "YO" (& I use capitol 'Y0' to emphasise that this is the vowel under stress in the word.) Also, the 'e' with 2 dots is really more like the Russian '0', because the actual 'o' sounds more like a 'u', or an 'a', in a word when another vowel is stressed - & 'Y0' is ALWAYS stressed. So, to properly pronounce "Potemkin", say "pa-tYOm-kin"!
Fun Alternatives: If you don't care to stretch your legs on the steps, there's a funicular lift nearby...
Written Jan 17, 2013
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Watch out for missing canal grids in Odessa. Especially at night they can be dangerous tourist traps ;-)
Unique Suggestions: Cry out loud.
Fun Alternatives: At night only go the same streets you already took during daylight.
Written Aug 31, 2004
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