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The Annual Fair started in 13th of August and lasts till 17th of August in Velyki Sorochintsy village . The tradition of holding the fair on this place between cities of Poltava and Mirgorod, takes its roots from the 19th century. In general the fairs were very popular in Ukrainian and Russian culture since times immemorial. Starting from the 1840-ies, Ukraine has held up to 12,000 fairs, annually.

Many years ago, Sorochintsy Fair wasn’t distinctive among other fair events which usually marked some significant religious or popular holidays. It wasn’t particularly big or small, just a traditional bazaar where local craftsmen sold their goods.

With time, probably thanks to the novel of Ukrainian writer Nikolay Gogol, Sorochintsy fair obtained its popularity and still remains one of the biggest events in Ukraine. Gogol's novel “Sorochintsy Fair” is a well recognizable piece of reading among Ukrainians.

The book realistically describes the character of contemporary Ukrainian nation, the life of Ukrainians in 19th century; their values, moral principles and the problems of Ukrainian peasants. Also, the genuine and purely Ukrainian humor reveals both, good and bad sides of the people's life. The novel still remains surprisingly modern, for it describes unique national features of Ukrainians.

The Soviet time brought changes into society structure. The fairs in Ukraine were closed in the twenties of the 20th century. Much later, rather due to lucky trick of fate than to a plan, the Sorochintsy Fair event was renewed, and quickly became one of the few fairs which follows and observes all of its ancient traditions! Every year sellers, craftsmen and artisans from all Ukrainian regions come to Sorochintsy to represent their works or perform on the Fair. The fair had also become a great place to make new contacts and to set new business projects.

The president of Ukraine, the governmental officials and diplomats visit the Biggest Fair in Ukraine annually. According to the preliminary estimates, the fair is going to be visited by half of a million people this year. Nowadays, Sorochintsy Fair becomes not only the place of market and business arrangements, but also the great national pop culture event and an art festival.

The Ukrainian Fair continues every year with lots of costumed dancers, re-enactments of Gogol’s stories and Ukrainian folk singers. Gogol himself was baptized here in an 18th century Transfiguration Church which is still open for people there.

The literary Museum of Gogol is located in Sorochintsy, with the collection of Gogol’s private things which he used when traveling about Europe and to the Middle East. Gogol’s novel “Evenings in a Village Near Dikanka” provide a picturesque introduction to the superstitious culture of rural Ukraine, another his famous book “Dead Soul” describes how the capitalist’s relationships were born in society. - article prepared by M. Pristinskaya

http://www.discover-ua.info/group-traveler/

Sorochinsky Fair

There is an old and very good tradition among the people in the Poltava Region to have a fair in the village of Velyky Sorochintsy. This Sorochinsky fair usually takes place at the end of summer. The village of Sorochintsy is widely known in the whole world because of this fair. M. Gogol, an outstanding writer, described it in his famous works. The people of Sorochintsy organized this incredible fair very well. The people from the nearest and the distant villages come to the fair and sell their products and buy consumer goods. Many guests from different parts of Ukraine, Russia, Poland, Bulgaria and from many other countries come to Sorochintsy to take part in this fair. The representatives from many plants and factories bring their products to advertise and sell them. They make agreements on cooperation between different enterprises and try to do their best to co-operate with each other. At the Sorochintsy fair one can meet many interesting and talented people, one can listen to folk songs. Different exhibitions will show you the works of famous Ukrainian artists and ancient folk crafts. You may visit videosaloon and take part in different entertainments. You are all welcome to Sorotchintsy fair during the last decade in August.

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(not far from Kyiv)

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http://www.visacomtour.ru/музей-пирогово-украина-киев-фото-опи/

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(in Lviv)

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The Sophia Cathedral or St. Sophia of Kyiv was built during the reign of Prince Yaroslav the Wise to commemorate a great victory gained by the Kyivans at this site over the Pechenehy, who had been constantly threatening Kyiv and devastating Rus lands.

The Sophia Cathedral suffered destiny of many structures of Old Rus. It was ruined in the 13th c. during the Tatar invasion and subsequently suffered many times from wars and religious strife.

Metropolitan Petro Mohyla restored the cathedral in 1633. During the 17-18th cc., as a result of many alterations, the cathedral acquired the architectural aspect which has come down to us. During this time an ensemble of buildings in the style of Ukrainian baroque was created around the cathedral consisting of the Metropolitan's palace, the refectory church, the belfry and the fence.

Of unique value, from the scientific and the artistic points of view, are the ancient mosaic decorations in the cathedral, which ornament the principal altar, the central dome, the arches and pillars. The art of mosaic inlay work, which was widespread in Byzantium, was further developed in Kyiv. Employing smalts, the artists of the 11th c. created remarkable pictures.

Most of the ancient frescos were covered by later oil paintings. As a result of research work conducted within the cathedral, the original frescos were discovered. Of considerable interest are the portrait representations, discovered in the central nave, of the members of the family of Yaroslav the Wise: his wife Irina and three daughters – Anna, Yelizaveta and Anastasia. On the opposite side two figures of his younger sons have been preserved. The image of Yaroslav the Wise, which was painted on the western wall, has not come down to us.

The frescos of the two staircase towers depict the life and manners of Old Rus. Here we have hunting scenes, dances, performances of musicians, buffoons, and so forth.

A precious specimen of artistic carving is the white marble sarcophagus of Yaroslav the Wise. Also worthy of attention are the bronze gilded doors in the western wall with ornaments of the 17th c. and the filigree carved wooden iconostasis of the 18th c.

The cathedral and the entire set of buildings are of great cultural value for the Ukrainian people. It has therefore been declared a state monument-museum.

Софіївський собор

Софіївський собор або Свята Софія Київська був побудований протягом володарювання князя Ярослава Мудрого, щоб відсвяткувати велику перемогу, одержану киянами над печенігами, які постійно загрожували Києву і руйнували російські землі.

Софіївський собор мав долю багатьох будівель Старої Русі. Він був зруйнований у XIII ст. під час вторгнення татар і згодом багато разів страждав від воєн і релігійної суперечки.

Митрополит Петро Могила відновив собор в 1633 р. Протягом ХVІІ-ХVІІІ ст., у результаті багатьох змін собор набув архітектурного вигляду, який дійшов до нас. Протягом цього часу ансамбль будівель у стилі українського бароко був створений навколо собору, що складається з палацу митрополита, трапезної церкви, дзвіниці й огорожі.

В соборі унікальну цінність з наукової і мистецької точки зору мають стародавні мозаїчні прикраси, які прикрашають головний вівтар, центральний купол, арки і стовпи. Мистецтво мозаїчної інкрустації, яка була поширена у Візантії, розвивалося в Києві. Використовуючи смальту, художники XI ст. творили чудові картини.

Більшість стародавніх фресок були покриті пізнішим олійним живописом. У результаті дослідження, що проводилося в межах собору, були виявлені оригінальні фрески. Особливо цікавими є портрети, знайдені на центральному нефі, членів сімейства Ярослава Мудрого: його дружини Ірини і трьох дочок – Ганни, Єлизавети і Анастасії. На протилежному боці було збережено дві фігури його молодших синів. Зображення Ярослава Мудрого, яке було намальоване на західній стіні, до нас не дійшло.

Фрески двох веж із гвинтовими сходами зображають життя і звичаї Старої Русі. Тут ми маємо сцени полювання, танців, виступів музикантів, блазнів і так далі.

Дорогоцінний зразок мистецького гравірування – білий мармуровий саркофаг Ярослава Мудрого. Також гідні уваги бронзові золочені двері в західній стіні з орнаментами XVII ст. і філігранна робота різного дерев'яного іконостасу XVIII ст.

Собор і повний набір будівель мають велике культурне значення для українських людей. Саме тому пам'ятка була оголошена державним музеєм.

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The nature reserve was established in 1898 by Friedrich-Jacob Eduardovych Falz-Fein (1863–1920)
The Askania-Nova Nature Preserve, in Kherson region in the south of Ukraine, is a unique place in Europe
At first, the aim was to preserve the wild animals, and later, to create a dendrological and zoological park. Prominent Ukrainian scientists began research on the acclimatization of animals and plants, meteorology, etc. As of today, the preserve occupies 11,000 hectares of steppe.
A trip to Askania-Nova in the warm season will make an unforgettable impression.

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My house is my castle.
Мій дім - моя фортеця.

East or west, home is best.
Всюди добре, а вдома найкраще.

Every bird likes its own nest. Усякий кулик до свого озера звик.

Every dog is a lion at home.Удома кожен великий герой.

there's no place like home в гостях добре, а вдома краще