ЯЛТА

Day trip! Today we took a trip to the coast to visit Livadia and Yalta. It was in Livadia Palace that Churchill, Roosevelt and Stalin worked out the terms of the peace, in effect ending World War II and beginning the cold war. Aside from the significant history of the area, it is quite simply an incredibly beautiful place. Its generally called the Crimean Riviera, and is the top beach vacation destination for many Ukrainians and Russians. In the Soviet days, one of the few opportunities to escape the soul-crushing grind of communism was to take your 4 week state mandated vacation at Yalta. Of course, in the Soviet Union, it is possible to be more equal than others....and it was only the most equal that actually got to cash in on their Yalta time.

And of course, there is the obligatory statue to guess who!?!?