Our first stop was
at the Chimera Building in downtown Kiev. It is now a Presidential Administration building, and it is one of the most ornate we've ever seen! It was built around 1900 and is said to be haunted by the architect's daughter.Next we went to St. Sofia's Cathedral, Kyiv's oldest standing church. The interior has frescoes and mosaics, mostly original from the 11th century! So of course, we could not take photos. I'd like to give a brief art lesson, but I'm not that good! So follow the links because we saw a lot of frescoes and mosaics in Europe! There was a large gold altar, and many Orthodox worshipers. It's weird being a tourist in the same place as people are having such a deep religious/spiritual experience!
Next we walked to
the Golden Gate, which is now in the middle of the city. It was once part of the wall the went around the city, and was originally built in 1037. It was enormous!Then, another Cathedral: St. Volodymyr's. It was built in the late 19th century to mark 900 years of Christianity in Kyiv. The interior was remarkable...the main wall color was black, with few mosaics. It was very dark, but beautiful with gold detailing. And our tour of European churches is just beginning...
