Crimea, Simeiz: attractions, description, history and interesting facts

2024 Author: Henry Conors | [email protected]. Last modified: 2024-02-12 02:48

Travelers who love warm sunny places, and even with an abundance of luxurious landscapes, it is best to go to Simeiz. Its attractions and entertainment are quite interesting. This is a small town in the Crimea, near Y alta.

Translated from Greek, Simeiz means "sign", or "a point that is noticeable", (meaning - for sailors). Not far from the town, archaeologists have discovered the remains of two ancient settlements dating back to the Bronze Age. It is believed that the Taurians were the first to inhabit these places. It was they who, at the entrance to the harbor of enemy ships, set fire to a huge fire - a signal of danger to the entire area. In the early Middle Ages, this area belonged to the Byzantines. It was they who built a small castle to protect against nomads. The ruins of this building have survived to this day. Then, when the Byzantine Empire was significantly weakened, the castle and the surrounding area were captured by the Genoese. By the end of the fifteenth century, the Ottomans began to dominate here, although the population remained Christian. But when in 1783 Simeiz became part of the Russian Empire, then there were no more Christians in it.

Sights of Simeiz: description

In Simeiz everything is amazing, inimitableand original to such an extent that it is simply impossible to see something similar in another place. Take the sea. Only here it is an unusual light blue, even pale turquoise. The landscape of the area - for every taste. Luxurious villas, subtropical beaches, mountains with unusual and romantic names (Mount Cat, Virgo, Swan Wing).

Tourists will be offered excursions to these places. Mount Koshka is so named because it resembles a graceful domestic animal preparing to jump. At the top of the cliff is the Limena-Kale fortress. Built in the fourteenth century on the ruins of the defensive fortification of the Tauris, the castle has perfectly preserved its structures.

What to see in Simeiz? The natural sights here are really very beautiful. For example, Scala Diva. It is also a magnificent natural monument. In addition, a favorite place for filmmakers. It was here that the filming of the films "Amphibian Man", "Ten Little Indians", "Savages", "Sappho" took place. This rock is depicted on the coat of arms of the city itself.

Probably, Diva deserves special attention of those who came to Simeiz. Attractions near the city are also interesting. For example, the rock of Panea is located in this zone. The remains of ancient defensive walls have been preserved on it. Not far from the beach, under the Diva rock and on the way to the Panea rock, there is a park area. It grows cypresses, pines,palm trees. The park includes a juniper grove. Therefore, the air here is surprisingly clean, filled with the aromas of mighty trees. Behind the park there is a cypress alley or the alley of Apollos. Its name is more than eloquent, it speaks for itself. The middle of the alley is occupied by several ancient statues, separated by beautiful flower beds. On both sides, there are clean asph alt paths framed by tall cypresses, in the shade of which there are benches and a row of lanterns.

Villas "Xenia" and "Dream"

What else is Simeiz famous for? The sights of the city, of course, attract travelers. And which of them deserve special attention? For example, Villa "Dream". It was built in 1911. This is an amazingly beautiful two-story building. It is built in oriental style. The building resembles a fairy-tale palace of a padishah.

Two years later, Villa "Xenia" was built nearby. It is noteworthy that its owner, Countess Chuikevich, never once visited the elegant house, reminiscent of a castle in miniature, with sharp roofs, Gothic windows and balconies. The villa itself was eventually converted into a hotel, then into a house with communal apartments.

As a result, a beautiful and exquisite building has become terribly neglected. Now the locals, not without a share of bitter irony, call it the "Haunted House".

Selbi Villa

What other interesting buildings can be seenthose who visited Simeiz? The sights worth seeing are the villas. Next - villa "Selbi". According to legend, it was built on the eve of the wedding of the beautiful daughter of a merchant and a young cadet. The honeymoon of the newlyweds was interrupted by the outbreak of the First World War, then the Civil War. The married couple experienced forced separation from their homeland and death in a foreign land. The villa itself was a very prestigious sanatorium in Soviet times. No wonder. After all, the architecture of the building is simply amazing. The two-story building with a deep semicircular niche of the front facade, high doors and windows, balconies, decorated with forging, looks amazing. The building is an example of Russian Art Nouveau architectural style.

Observatory

What can you see for those who came to Simeiz? The sights of the city will be of interest to tourists. If they rise above the villas, they will be able to see the Simeiz observatory. It is still visible from the road with its turrets for telescopes and a snow-white dome. Its creator is M altsev. He conceived in 1900 to build an observatory at his own expense. At first it was a small building for just one telescope, then more and more were completed. When M altsev met Gansky, an astronomer at the Pulkovo Observatory near St. Petersburg, in 1908, his interest in astronomy grew so much that he made a serious decision. He handed over his observatory to the Imperial Academy of Sciences. Unfortunately, like most progressive people of that time, M altsev was forced to leave his homeland after the establishment of Soviet power. But the fate of the observatory worried its creator so much that he constantly provided significant funds for its functioning, and also supplied the latest equipment. The building was badly damaged during World War II. But it was restored already in 1946. Over the entire history of the observatory, 8 comets and 149 asteroids have been discovered on it.

Juma-Jami

The city of Simeiz itself and its sights are truly interesting. I would like to tell you about one more thing. In Simeiz, it is worth visiting the building of the Juma-Jami mosque, which was recently handed over to believers. Built at the very beginning of the twentieth century, the building with the advent of Soviet power was used as a kindergarten, a rest home and even a police station. The beautiful minaret was destroyed in 1922. In 1994, the mosque was handed over to the Muslims. It was completely restored only sixteen years later.

Interesting places

What else will be interesting for those who came to Simeiz? There are also more modern sights in the city. For example, a tribute to fashion - a wild nudist beach, which is always crowded.

And also the magnificent Blue Bay water park. Near the water park there is a place for lovers of recreation in tents. This is a well-equipped paid camping area, which is also guarded.

Conclusion

Now you know what Simeiz (Crimea) is famous for, we have considered its sights. We hope that the information about them was interesting and useful to you.