Must Visit Attractions in Kiev

Deep teal-colored onion domes, bejeweled with gold trimmings sit atop this grand Baroque church in the heart of Kiev. The church is perched atop the Andriyivska Hill and it offers from its vantage a soul-stirring panorama of Podil's historic neighborhood. The Saint Andrew's Church was built in 1754 to honor Saint Andrew, known to Ukrainians as the 'Apostle of Rus'. Designed by renowned Italian architect Bartolomeo Rastrelli, the church was built when Russian Empress Elizabeth decided to build her summer abode in the city. She herself laid the first symbolic brick of the new palace and church. Among the many features of this splendid church, the sweeping stucco interiors and the tracery of iconostasis under the gold-laced central dome are held in high regard.

A series of gilded domes, undulating and gently cascading in their capacity, adorn the bright-green rooftops of one of Kiev's most extraordinary monuments, the Saint Sophia's Cathedral. This cathedral was built in the first half of the 11th Century to commemorate the victory of Yaroslav the Wise over the Pecheneg tribe. For years, the cathedral served as the interring site for several Kievan royals including Yaroslav himself. At the outset of the 12th and 13th centuries, the cathedral witnessed a wave of deterioration by Vladimir-Suzdal forces and Mongolian invasions, a situation that remained largely unchanged until the 16th Century. After Metropolitan Peter took the reins of the Orthodox church in 1633, the church slowly underwent a marked revival that continued well into the 18th Century. At this time, the cathedral's baroque extension included a bell tower, a seminary and a bakery, among other features. Today, St. Sophia is rightfully considered as the treasure of Ukraine and is protected by UNESCO.

One of the most sacred sites for the Eastern Orthodox Christian community, the venerated Kievo-Pecherska Lavra is a historic monastery that sits sprawled on a grassy knoll above the Dnieper River. Since its inception, this has been one of the most significant Orthodox Christian monasteries, and now finds itself listed as one of the Seven Wonders of Kiev. The site is home to some of the most notable architectural monuments in the city that date back to the 17th Century. The classical style Lavra Belltower and the Dormition Cathedral with its glistening gold cupolas are two of the most remarkable structures among the many monuments that dot this massive complex. While the museum near Upper Lavra houses a gleaming repertoire of historical items molded from Scythian gold, the subterranean catacombs that lay hidden in Lower Lavra house nearly 100 mummified monks.

One of the most ancient streets. In age of knyazi (Russ lords) there was the shortest way from the Top city, where lived nobility to the Podil, where lived handicraftsmen and merchants. Nevertheless, it looks now the same - cozy low houses, stone blocks, set of steps. Also there lived many remarkable persons - writer Mihail Bulgakov, artist Oleksandr Murashko, doctor Teofil Yanovsky and others. Today on Andriivsky Uzviz (Spusk) are located the set of museums, picture galleries, workshops of artists and souvenir benches.

Kiev's central street, a time-beaten thoroughfare pulsing with an aura of history and hope, cuts through the famous Maidan Nezalezhnosti. Destroyed first by heavy mining by the Red Army, and then by Germans during World War II, this street received a dramatic facelift shortly thereafter. A troupe of Stalinist buildings deftly arose on the city's horizon, several stippling a major part of Khreshchatyk street. While some succumbed to the vicissitudes of time, others survived its tyranny, including the City Council House or the Kyivrada, and the Post Office. This historic street also operated as one of the first stations to be launched under the Kiev Metro. Over the years, the street came to be recognized as a busy shopping hub in the city, bolstered by the arsenal of shopping malls and stores that dot its flanks.

Mother Motherland was built in 1981 to commemorate the soldiers and workers who lost their lives for the Soviet Union. At 103 meters (340 feet) tall, this stainless steel statue stands out in the Kiev skyline. It is a sculpture of a woman holding a sword in one hand and a shield in the other, the shield bearing the emblem of the Soviet Union. At the base of this monument are the names of 11,800 heroes. The landscape also features other related sculptures as well as Soviet-era tanks. An ascend to the top of the shield offers stunning view of the city.

The Golden Gate (Zoloti vorota) was once the main entrance to the ancient federation of Kievan Rus'. It was believed to have been built by Yaroslav the Wise in the 11th Century, to ward off nomadic tribes with an intent to invade. The celebrated gate was one of three entrances into the city, and the only one to have survived, albeit barely, the test of time. Having suffered a number of damages through the years, including Mongol invasions during the Middle Ages, the heavy-set gate was reduced to a mere shadow of its former formidable self. Vestiges of the gate faded into the earth, and they lay there until part of the 19th Century, when they were dredged up from the bowels of the earth for the modern world to see. Its magnificence came into full view only in 1982, when Kiev, a 1500-year-old capital at the time, rebuilt the gate with its rediscovered fragments. Today, the gate stands on the cusp of history and modernity, emulating the very ethos and spirit in which it was built.

Forged in a kingdom wrought with history, Maidan Nezalezhnost went from being an undeveloped marshland to a striking modern-day square. Also known as Independence Square, the maidan was originally framed by wooden Lach Gates that were torn down during the start of the 18th Century. As the scars of the city's Medieval past dissolved, a troupe of stone buildings arose around the square. After the Soviet Union fell in the late 20th Century, a free Ukraine christened this capital city maidan as Independence Square. A decade later, the square underwent a dramatic transformation that focused on beautification. Fountains were built, the sculpture of Archangel Mikhail captured the heart of the square, and an array of cafes and restaurants appeared rapidly at its fringes. Today, the Khreshchatyk, Kiev's main thoroughfare cuts through the square and the entire maidan comes alive with a riot of events and celebrations around the year.

The Podil is historical area of Kiev, a part of the Podol district, received its name because of an arrangement at bottom of the Kiev hills on the bank of Dnepr. In age of the Kiev Russ on the Podil were main trading and craft constructions. Up to now on the Podil are many historical and architectural places of interest.

The collection of Kiev Zoo numbers over 2,000 fauna representatives from all over the world, including mammals, birds, snakes, fishes and insects. The zoo boasts a pair of elephants. Over 130 kinds of trees and bushes decorate the zoo lands. It also serves as a scientific research centre, where the specialists work on acclimatization of the far lands animals.