Odesa, a large Ukrainian city on the Black Sea coast, is often called “The Pearl of the South”. But it is known not only for its beautiful architecture. Odesa has an incredible system of catacombs stretching even beyond the city limits.

Most of the catacombs are former quarries, in which shell stone was mined for the construction of Odessa. Mining was done chaotically and as a result a huge underground maze appeared.

underground Odesa

Tags: abandoned · Odessa city

Bilychi is a village with a population of about 1,400 people located in the south-west of Lviv Oblast, about 102 from Lviv. This village, surrounded by mountains on all sides, stretches from east to west for almost six kilometers.

Here you can see an interesting wooden church surrounded by an unusual round fence – the Church of the Holy Archangel Michael (1857). Bilychi on Google Maps. Photos by: Maxim Ritus.

picturesque wooden church

Tags: church · Lviv oblast

Romashky is a village with a population of about 800 people located in Kyiv Oblast, about 100 km south of Kyiv.

The main architectural attraction of the village is the Holy Protection Church built in the style of classicism in 1843. This church impresses with its massiveness and architectural design unusual for the countryside. In 2016, the restoration of the church was completed. Romashky on Google Maps. Photos by: Maxim Ritus.

unusual village church

Tags: church · Kiev oblast

Pidhaitsi, first mentioned in written sources in 1468, is a town with a population of about 2,700 people located in Ternopil Oblast, about 64 km south-west of Ternopil.

This town has preserved a number of interesting architectural monuments. One of them is the Assumption Church (1650-1653) – an architectural monument of national importance constructed in the Renaissance style in combination with Ukrainian church traditions. Pidhaitsi on Google Maps. Photos by: Maxim Ritus.

unique defensive church

Tags: church · Ternopil oblast

Zaporozhye aluminum combine is an industrial enterprise of the metallurgical industry of Ukraine, the only producer of primary aluminum in the country.

The construction of an aluminum plant in Zaporozhye began in 1930. The plant became the first enterprise of the Soviet aluminum industry. The first aluminum ingots were produced in 1933. Before the Second World War, it was the largest aluminum smelter in Europe. Zaporozhye aluminium combine on Google Maps. Photos by: Lana Sator.

post-apocalyptic industrial views

Tags: abandoned · Zaporozhye city

Isai is a village with a population of about 800 people located in Lviv Oblast, about 138 km southwest of Lviv.

In the center of the village, next to the stone church of St. Michael the Archangel (1938), you can see the wooden church of St. Michael the Archangel (1663). Nearby, there is a wooden bell tower built in 1722. Together they form a monument of architecture of national importance. Isai on Google Maps. Photos by: Maxim Ritus.

picturesque ensemble of churches

Tags: church · Lviv oblast

Ilnyk is a village with a population of about 1,500 people located in the Turka District in the south-west of Lviv Oblast. Here you can see one of the most harmonious Catholic wooden churches in Ukraine – the Chapel of the Paramanny (Mourning) Mother of God built in 1932-1933.

This is one of the eleven existing wooden Catholic churches of the first half of the 20th century located in the Lviv region. Unfortunately, this picturesque building doesn’t have a status of an architectural monument, it is abandoned and is gradually being destroyed. Ilnyk on Google Maps. Photos by: Maxim Ritus.

beautiful wooden chapel

Tags: church · Lviv oblast

Matusiv is a village of about 4,500 people located in the Shpola district of Cherkasy Oblast, about 69 km southwest of Cherkasy.

The main architectural attraction of this place is the majestic Ascension Church built in the style of late classicism in honor of the heroes of the Patriotic War of 1812 (the French invasion of Russia) in 1812-1818. Matusiv on Google Maps. Photos by: Maxim Ritus.

elegant stone church

Tags: Cherkassy oblast · Cherkasy city

In early May, the weather in the Ukrainian Carpathians can be very changeable. It would seem that winter has long ended, snow has completely melted, green grass and flowering trees are everywhere.

And one night it suddenly snows and winter comes back, even if only for one day. Thanks to this relatively unusual natural phenomenon, you can see very picturesque views of the Carpathians, when snow clearly shows the smallest folds of the relief. Photos by: Vlad Sokolovsky.

spring in the Carpathians

Tags: Zakarpattia oblast

Butsniv is a village with a population of about 1,200 people located about 12 km south of Ternopil. One of the landmarks of the village is the Church of Saints Peter and Paul – an architectural monument of local significance.

It was built as a Catholic church according to the project of the Lviv architect Julian Zakharevich in 1890-1891. During the First World War, the church was partially destroyed. In 1922-1923, the building was restored. Butsniv on Google Maps. Photos by: Maxim Ritus.

picturesque stone church

Tags: church · Ternopil oblast