Odessa is the Black Sea gateway to Ukraine. It is the country’s largest commercial Black Sea port and a large industrial city.Odessa is a crossroads of cultures, languages and trade. Pushkin lived here in exile during the 1820s, and also it was home to writer and film director Alexander Dovzhenko.The site of Odessa was controlled from 1526 to 1789 by the Ottoman Turks. In the 18th century Russia took this region and constructed a new port at Odessa. It was named after the ancient Greek colony Odessos. By the 1880s it was the second biggest Russian port and an important industrial city. Odessa was a hotbed of the 1905 revolution.The beauty of Odessa is in Prymorsky boulevard with its beautiful buildings and the Potemkin Steps. Film director Eisenstein used Potemkin Steps in his film "Battleship Potemkin". The 193 steps, built between 1827 and 1841, descend from the statue of Duc de Richelieu. At the eastern end of Prymorsky boulevard Pushkin statue and a British cannon from the Crimean War stand in front of the Odessa City Hall.Several of the city’s fine museums are the Museum of Maritime History, the Literature Museum, the Pushkin Museum, the Museum of Western and Oriental Art and others. The Archaeology Museum is the first museum of this kind in the former Russian Empire. Its Gold Room has jewellery and coins from early Black Sea civilizations, including the first Slavic coins of St Volodymyr with the trident symbol on them.Odessa is famous for its beaches. The southern beaches are less crowded and more picturesque than the northern ones. The Arkadia area is the most popular and has lots of restaurants and activities.
Текст на русском:
По европейским меркам Одесса является молодым городом. Она была основана Екатериной II в 1794 году, когда русская императрица решила, что стране нужен порт на Черном море для расширения связей с Европой. Когда-то на месте сегодняшней Одессы располагалось древнегреческое поселение, затем здесь жили крымские татары. Их сменили турки-османы, основавшие крепость Хаджибей, которая была захвачена русскими войсками в 1789 году.
Удачно расположенная географически, Одесса быстро превратилась из небольшого поселения в торговый, промышленный и научный центр европейского значения. К 100-й годовщине своего основания Одесса занимала 4-е место в Российской империи по количеству населения и уровню экономического развития после Санкт-Петербурга, Москвы и Варшавы. Во время 1-й мировой войны и гражданской войны в России город пережил разруху и хаос, во время 2-й мировой войны был частично разрушен.
Несмотря на исторические потрясения, за последнее столетие население Одессы увеличилось почти втрое. Сегодня город продолжает развиваться, теперь в качестве крупного промышленного и курортного центра Украины. Мягкий климат, множество песчаных пляжей и теплое море ежегодно привлекают тысячи туристов в город, который давно и заслуженно носит титул "Южной Пальмиры".
На английском:
By European standards Odessa is a young city. It was founded by Catherine II in 1794, when the Russian Empress decided that the country needed a port on the Black sea to expand relations with Europe. Once on a place of today’s Odessa the ancient Greek settlement settled down, then Crimean Tatars lived here. They were replaced by the Ottoman Turks, who founded the hadzhibey fortress, which was captured by Russian troops in 1789.
Successfully located geographically, Odessa has quickly evolved from a small settlement in the commercial, industrial and scientific center of European importance. By the 100th anniversary of its founding Odessa ranked 4th in the Russian Empire in terms of population and level of economic development after St. Petersburg, Moscow and Warsaw. During the 1st world war and the civil war in Russia, the city survived the devastation and chaos, during the 2nd world war was partially destroyed.
Despite historical shocks, the population of Odessa has almost tripled over the last century. Today, the city continues to develop, now as a major industrial and resort center of Ukraine. The mild climate, many sandy beaches and warm sea annually attract thousands of tourists to the city, which has long been deservedly bears the title of "southern Palmyra".