Odessa

The grand curtain of the Opera House dazzles. Jud admires a garden in the City Park. SNACers enjoying Odessa; fantastic ornamental passageway; mother-in-law bridge, with wedding locks, overlooking Black Sea port; grand Opera house inside and out; one of many beautiful fountains; Odessa train station; the orthodox Cathedral across from our hotel.

We senior volunteers had another great SNAC (Senior Volunteers network) meeting in another great city, Odessa. Odessa is a port city on the Black Sea built under orders from Catherine the Great of Russia in the19th century. What a feast! A unique cosmopolitan mix of Russian, Ukrainian, and Mediterranean.

Our Hotel Tsentralnyy, as its name suggests, was well located across from a lovely park and the largest Russian Orthodox church in Odessa. The bells chimed on the hour all day and night. The art and craft show was lovely too.

The city has beautiful architecture, with heavy French andItalian influence. Buildings from the pre-Soviet era, many restored and rehabilitated, have lots of ornamentation, fantastic statuary, intricate wrought iron work, gargoyles and stone carvings. Many of these fantastic decorations, reminders of ancient artisanal traditions and pride of craftsmanship, are around the high ledges above shops and boutiques. Our tour guide Anatoly showed us a stunning example as we took a shortcut between Deribasiva and Preobrazhenskaya streets on our walk toward the Black Sea and the Opera House.

We strolled along tree-lined boulevards and promenades, past statues and fountains, through parks and gardens. We walked over the "mother-in-law" bridge, noted for the hundreds of locks of all sizes and styles left by newlyweds for good luck; past an impressive City Hall; a statue of Russian poet Alexander Pushkin; past the Potyomkinski Skhody, a grand stairway that leads down to the Sea; and on to the stunning Opera House and Ballet Theatre.

Along the way we saw dozens of young couples, just married, dressed in their wedding finery, posing in front of the great statues, fountains and buildings. I've never seen so many beautiful wedding dresses, and high heels worn effortlessly by elegant young women. This is a great Ukrainian tradition, these wedding poses in front of notable buildings and monuments. We volunteers came from all over Ukraine, but we all know this tradition! Odessa was in full wedding swing on this perfect autumn weekend, sunny and bright under clear blue skies. We hoped all this tradition and good weather portended long and happy unions for all the happy couples.

We then did different things around the city, and there's plenty to do. The Jewish museum, archeological museum, and art gallery. Going to the beaches, where many seniors went swimming. Taking a boat ride or cruise along the Sea. For some of us, a highlight of our Odessa trip was a night at the Opera House and Ballet Theatre, one of greatest and most beautiful in the world, a French rococo and gold leaf delight. We all agreed that it ranked right up there with La Scala, the Vienna opera house and, Jud and I thought, the Budapest opera house. We enjoyed a delightful ballet, Paquita, a cornerstone of the traditional classical ballet repertory, according to the program notes, accompanied by a wonderful full orchestra, and after the intermission, a colorful interpretation of Faust, with devils, witches and temptresses galore. It was lovely to be surrounded by such awesome beauty and classical music traditions, in the style of master dancers like Mihail Baryishnikov, Anna Pavlova, Vasyl Njinsky, and Rudolph Nureyev.

A walk through the city at night, full of lights, music, and happy, friendly people, ended our SNAC-filled day. No matter our ages, sites, or experiences, Peace Corps Volunteers know how to have a good time, enjoy each other's company, and embrace the beauty that surrounds us. Odessa was another wonderful Ukrainian adventure.