Andrew’s descent – the mystical street of Kiev.
Even when it seems like everything about him, he surprises with something unexpected. Here are 15 unusual facts about your favorite area.
1. The portal between the worlds
Now Kiev is divided into two banks, but before it was divided into Upper town – the Old Kiev with rich residences and Lower Hem with craft shops and homes of ordinary people. And the only “bridge” between the worlds rich and poor served St. Andrew’s descent.
2. Walking or driving?
Now Andrew’s descent – conditionally pedestrian street, it was built. But by order of the Kiev Governor in 1711, the descent was enlarged for carts pulled by oxen and horses.
3. Castles Castle
Here is one of the three Bald hills of Kiev – where else can you meet witches, not over the mystical St. Andrew’s? On top were two: first, wooden, the Lithuanian Governor of Vladimir Olgerdovich, and after that stone, the Kiev voivode Adam Kissel. Because the mountain became known as the Castle.
Lada Luzina, writer: About the Castle there are many legends and tales. About the curse of the castle of the Lithuanian Grand Duke, who for the sake of its construction destroyed all the animals on the mountain. The crucifixion on the mountain witch Dove. About the burning on the mount of the Kiev witches. It’s a stupid bike – Kiev was the capital of the witches, they are never burned. But there is a true story: the Castle was located on the block where beheaded sentenced to death
4 .Wasdealing vantage point
Opposite the Castle is less known mountain with the strange name of Vodyankina. The story is this: in the times of Kievan Rus to the Castle was a military camp of the Prince’s retinue, which would not let women. They came to the mountain in front and a bitter sigh for the beloved. Hence the name.
5. Ring Of Prony Prokopovnu
There is a legend that if you RUB a ring on the hand Pronya Prokopovna from the monument “For two hares”, the marriage will be successful. It is not surprising that the decoration is the polished detail of the monument.
6. Modern format
Andrew’s descent – the only street of Kiev, which has its own website.
7. Bottle howl
Beautiful building, St. Andrew’s, the castle of Richard the Lionheart, scare the new owners in a matter of days. As one said, from the walls, they hear a terrible howl, the blood grows cold! Only as here lives a Ghost. Modern historians say the whole thing in the empty bottles, immured in the walls of the castle to revenge his first mistress, which is characterized by quarrelsomeness. But Ghost, of course, interesting.
8. The red light district
Bohemian St. Andrew were once the dens: almost every building housed a brothel. After a cozy street was chosen by the pious writer of Ants, size of the descent had to be changed. The ants became the first resident of the street, and “red light district” moved on Horse. It’s about her Kuprin wrote a novel “the Pit”.
9. Silver medalist
St. Andrew’s descent, according to the guides, the most popular tourist street of Kiev after Kreschatik.
The author and guide of the tourist office “Secret courtyard” Yulia Bevzenko said that tourists can not plan a tour of St. Andrew’s, but when you see the unusual shape of the street, be sure to decide on it to walk.
“The descent is really pretty cool, it attracts attention. If the tourist is St. Andrew, most likely, he’s headed there for Souvenirs – usually embroidered. There is another category of tourists – admirers of creativity of Mikhail Bulgakov. Such passing of Andrew’s are not. Most foreigners are surprised at the beauty of St. Andrew’s Church. And yet – turn on Vozdvizhenka. As it is such a beautiful area, so many restaurants and cafes, and almost no people?”, – says Julia.
10. The fashion for murals
Mural of Andrew’s descent is not the first example of large-scale murals in the city. The same author, Julien Mullan, painted the wall of Kyiv-Mohyla Academy, the company informed. But it is portrait-Ukrainian girl called “Revival” and is done in collaboration with Alexei Kislov, has launched Kiev fashion for murals.
11. The humiliation of the mountain
When the Castle was built the castle, the mountain vozdyhalnitsu decided to make a lower “demeaning”, as stated in the official decree. All so she towered over the Castle and it was impossible to fire at the Windows of the fortress. Lament of the women on the mountain the authorities are not banned.
12. Almost the last hero
At Andrew’s descent, 19a is one of the last wooden houses of Kiev. It survived the demolition of the huts-the huts, the fires, several reconstructions. The building in the Russian style – a real monument!
13. Figure 13
Baker’s dozen is inextricably tied to St. Andrew’s. In his 13th room lived and worked Bulgakov, and only in the house he spent 13 years. By the way, the buildings with the address “St. Andrew’s descent, 13” the descent two: 13A (house-Museum of Bulgakov) and 13B (restaurant).
14. Goodbye, Perun!
Since St. Andrew was the only street that connects Upper and Lower town, for her, was dragged a wooden idol of Perun. The same man who then “vidual” from the Dnieper.
15. Where the bell of St. Andrew’s Church?
While admiring the luxurious exterior of St. Andrew’s Church, we immediately noticed that there are no bells. Legend has it that on the site of Kiev was the sea, and when Andrew put on the site of the Church cross the water went under ground. But if you put in the bells, the sea once again come to the surface and flood the entire Kyiv. In fact, the Church was conceived as a chamber the chapel of the Empress Elizabeth Petrovna, at her summer residence in Kiev, and to call the faithful to prayer bells was not necessary.
I hope we could surprise you! Well, I’ll meet you on Andrew?
