Rich history a wonderful climate, excellent food, joyous character of inhabitants, masters of singing and dancing – are you ready to visit Ukraine?

A little bit of history: Scythians, Sarmatians, and Goths were nomadic people who arrived throughout the first millennium B.C in what is called Ukraine now. Greeks and Romans established trading outposts there that eventually became city-states at about the same time. Slavic tribes occupied central and eastern Ukraine in the sixth century A.D. and played an important role in the establishment of Kiev. Situated on lucrative trade routes, Kiev quickly prospered as the center of the powerful state of Kievan Rus.

In the 11th century, Kievan Rus was, geographically, the largest state in Europe. Christian missionaries, Cyril and Methodius, propagated the Christian faith and the Cyrillic alphabet. Kievan Rus Prince Volodymyr converted the Kievan nobility and most of the population to Christianity in 988. Conflict among the feudal lords led to decline in the 12th century. Ukrainians moved north. On the move they mixed with locals, starting the new nation “Russes”.

Ukrainian princes founded many Russian cities, including Moscow. They say “Kiev is the Mother of Russian Cities”. Part of Ukrainian population, called the Cossacks, earned a reputation for their fierce martial spirit and love of freedom. They present a different culture. In 1793 much of modern-day Ukraine was integrated into the Russian Empire. In 1991 the legislature proclaimed Ukraine's sovereignty.

Kiev is a 1,500 year old city of 2,5mln inhabitants with the spectacular location on the hilly shores of Dnieper river. Its political, but not cultural, importance started to decline somewhat during the Mongolian invasion 1240. The city prospered again in the 19th century. At that time, a large Jewish community emerged in Kiev, developing its own ethnic culture and business interests. It is a lovely town today, with chestnut spacious boulevards, grandeur architecture and festive atmosphere.