The Black Sea

Situated between southeast Europe and Asia, the Black Sea was significant to the Greeks and later Romans who colonised its shores. The importance of this inland sea grew with the founding of Constantinople, now Istanbul, in AD 330 by Roman Emperor Constantine I, as it provided a commanding position for trade routes to the Aegean Sea. The Black Sea holds a wealth of history and what better way to appreciate it than with a cruise exploring the highlights of the region and visits en route to some of the wonders of the Mediterranean.Odessa, at the mouth of the Dnieper, was a purpose-built and planned city and film buffs will recall the dramatic scenes on Odessa Steps in Sergei Eisenstein’s 1925 experimental film ‘Potemkin’. Stand on the sea-front and gaze up at the ten flights of stairs which spread down from Primorsky Boulevard. Covering more than 27,000 sq. km and washed by the waters of the Black and Azov seas the Crimea is a unique, cultural preserve displaying renowned historical landmarks, museums and architectural ensembles. It has also marked a crossroad in the life and works of numerous Russian writers, poets, composers and artists including Tolstoy, Chekov and Pushkin. Yalta is forever associated with the famous talks that brought Stalin, Churchill and Roosevelt together in 1945 in the Livadia Palace.