Hotels in Odes(s)a/MAU Congress

[Robert DeLossa]

Prof. Vitaly Chernetsky at Columbia U. (and originally from Odessa) sent
the following and has graciously agreed for its reposting:

>
>As for the hotels, sadly, the only hotel in Odessa that was certified as
>satisfying international standards is the hotel-ship Taras Shevchenko
>anchored at the city passenger sea terminal (right at the bottom of the
>famous Potiomkin steps). But the hotels reserved for the congress are not
>that bad by post-Soviet standards.
>
>"Londonskaya" and "Krasnaya" [sic--to my knowledge this is how the
>owners--these two hotels are a privatized mini-chain--refer to them in
>English; I guess the correct Ukrainian versions would be Hotel'
>Londons'kyi and Hotel' Chervonyi, but they supplied you with London and
>Krasna] are located in glamorous nineteenth-century buildings in the heart
>of the historic city center; Londonskaya is right on the Prymors'kyi
>Boulevard, on the block between the City Hall and the top of the Potiomkin
>steps, with a beautiful view of the harbor. Krasnaya is on the corner of
>Pushkin and Bunin Streets (about 10 min. walk from Londonskaya), across
>the street from the Philharmonic and a block away from the Western and
>Oriental Art Museum; the sidewalk near the hotel is rumored to be the
>hard-currency prostitute hangout. Both of them were Intourist hotels in
>the Soviet era, as was the concrete box of a building named "Chorne More,"
>which is actually nowhere near the sea, sitting at the busy intersection
>of Richelieu (Ryshel'ievs'ka) and Mala Arnauts'ka Streets (about 15-20
>min. walking distance from Krasnaya in the direction opposite to
>Londonskaya), across the street from the Central Department Store and
>couple of blocks away from the main train station. This is still the city
>center, but a less glamorous part of it, and with tons of traffic rolling
>by (while Prymors'kyi Blvd. is closed to through traffic, and Pushkins'ka
>is paved with cobblestone and traffic on it isn't heavy--instead, it is a
>popular street for strolling). Chorne More was recently subjected to a
>"evroremont," but I haven't been inside since then, so I cannot tell you
>how substantial the repairs have been. In any case, it is still an ugly
>building standing at a busy intersection. "Viktoriia" is a non-Intourist
>hotel built in the '70s; prepare for Soviet spartan style; its only plus
>is that it is close to the popular Arcadia Beach, as well as to the Palace
>of Sports, the botanical gardens, and the formerly posh "inner suburb"
>district of Frantsuzs'kyi Boulevard (which may be a mixed
>blessing--Arcadia and the other nearby beaches may get very noisy, with a
>bunch of open air discos and other entertainment). It is about 15 min. by
>trolleybus or tram from the railway station area and Chorne More.
>
>I'm not sure where the conference sessions would take place--I guess at
>the university, which has two campuses in the city: one downtown, the
>other on the French Boulevard (humanities are housed in the latter); both
>are not quite within walking distance from the hotels.

____________________________________________________
Robert DeLossa
Director of Publications
Ukrainian Research Institute, Harvard University
1583 Massachusetts Ave., Cambridge, MA 02138
617-496-8768; fax. 617-495-8097
reply to: rdelossa at fas.harvard.edu
http://www.sabre.org/huri/