Kharkiv Throught the Eyes of a Tourist

Welcome to Kharkiv!
Some words about the city: this is the second largest city of Ukraine after Kiev (Kyiv) with the population numbering around 1.5 million. Local people are very proud of that fact that long ago in a distant past it was a capital of Ukraine. Though now it's not but I think some still believe it is, lol. It's my personal impression, I can't claim it's the right one. Oh, Kharkiv was a host city for UEFA EURO 2012 and judging from a number of signboards which remained after the event, local people are proud of that.


If you are coming here by train, your first view will be exactly the same as on the picture above and if it's summer time you will also enjoy this fountain.

When I was taking the first picture, it was behind me.

Really, this summer was very-very hot even for Kharkiv as far as it's situated in the North-Eastern part of Ukraine and it's usually a bit colder there in comparison with Kirovograd. Fountains were the greatest salvation from the heat and there are really lots of them in Kharkiv.

The first impression is great and the only question is left: what to see in Kharkiv?
Actually, there are many places to see there but as far as I had only three days at my disposal and it was very hot (don't forget about that) I was a lazy tourist. If you are the same then go to Sumska St. (Sumskaya St.), a lovely place to walk along. There are lots of luxury modern boutiques as well as many old buildings, cafes and even a huge Japanese restaurant. Go along the street and sooner or later you will get to the Freedom Square, that is the 6th largest square in Europe. It is really large!

I think I'm in the middle of it. This is the statue of Lenin.

This is what I have behind: the building of Regional State Administration in Kharkiv.

If I knew beforehand that behind Lenin there is a world-known Derzhprom constructivist structure, I would definitely went and saw it but I didn't. There is another reason to go to Kharkiv again:) More about those buildings you can find in Wikipedia just like I did.

A nice place to stop and have a rest is the Shchevchenko Park. But I'm going to write a whole post about it. So keep tuned for updates!