From: psychoteddybear24
22/05/2008 | Moscow News №20 2008
Sochi: Beyond the Olympic Hype
The first thing that naturally comes to mind when speaking about Sochi is the 2014 Winter Olympics. For many Russian citizens, Sochi’s successful Olympic bid sounded funny, if not absurd, because ski and snow is not the first thing associated with this southern paradise: Sochi is generally considered a place to vacation under the high, hot summer sun.
Sochi has always been a summer resort. Russian vacationers flocked to Sochi and began investing in the city in the 1950s, due in part to the fact that Stalin had one of his dachas in the area. It quickly became the primary and most prosperous Russian resort. As the self-proclaimed longest city in Europe (at 145 kilometers) the “Greater Sochi” area consists of a number of small towns and villages criss-crossed by valleys and rivers into four large administrative districts named central Sochi, Lazarevsky, Khostinsky and Adlersky. The last area hosts the region’s airport and is adjacent to the Russian border with Abkhazia.
Just looking at a city map, with its several straight boulevards and twisted and bending streets, gives you a first impression of what Sochi is like – a purely southern and mountainous city, which is also a melting pot of Russian and Caucasian cultures.
The city welcomes you with the very modest and weather-beaten Adler airport. Yes, there is a new terminal, but apparently International Olympic Committee delegation and Russia’s top bananas are the only ones privileged to it so far.
The Adler district bears all the traits of a separate southern city, and presents better and cheaper lodging options. They include seaside blocks packed with small private hotels, as well as large Soviet-style sanatoriums, all within a 15-minute drive from Sochi’s center via a modern highway that meanders over valleys and through huge tunnels.
Driving all the way to central Sochi with a local driver at the wheel can be an extreme experience for the uninitiated, especially if you take an old Gazelle marshrutka that will tremble, rattle and whirl you along. Moreover, it will not even brake at bus stops and shout. But the pleasant thing is that it will stop anywhere you like if you manage to get in.
Sochi has always been an all-Soviet resort. Its importance and popularity only increased after the Soviet Union collapsed, and the other traditional resort on the Crimea peninsula became part of a separate country. Almost no famous cultural landmarks, museums and monuments can be found in Sochi except for a Stalinist rail station and port. The very center of the city is the crossroads of the highway’s Kurortny Prospect and Gorkogo Ulitsa with St. Michael’s granite column from one side and vast open book of the Moskva Hotel from the other.
This is the main square of the city, where decent restaurants, shops and a marketplace are located. If you head a little farther along Kurortny Prospect and cross the Sochi River you stumble upon Riviera Park, a typical amusement park. Gorkogo Ulitsa, beginning at the square, leads uphill to the railway station and narrow and cozy side streets among houses scattered around the hills.
It is impossible to imagine Sochi without the sea. Take a stroll along central Sochi’s seaside lined with caf?s, restaurants, clubs and shops selling all kinds of Sochi related kitsch. Go up near Zhemchuzhina (Pearl) Hotel and the so-called Winter Theater with countless columns under a massive portico.
Not far from there is Sochi’s famous Arboretum, a large botanical garden with tropical trees from many countries. One unique feature is its “Mayors Alley” – a line of palm-trees planted by the mayors of different cities of the world. The garden lies on a smooth long slope and it is possible to take a cable car to get to the top and take a walk down enjoying the city and view of the Black Sea.
Among one of the most famous tourist must-sees of Sochi is the 663- meter Greater Akhun mountain, which is topped with a 30 meter limestone tower that is accessible by bus. The tower presents a breathtaking view of the whole Sochi area, and even Abkhazia’s Gagra and Pitsunda resorts looming near the horizon along with the snow crowned Caucasian peaks.
Kudepsta, another seashore resort is notable for the Vorontsov Caves that stretch for some four kilometers away from the shore. The largest cavern has a length of twenty meters. Another natural landmark to have a walk in is a grove of yews and boxwood, a part Caucasian Biosphere Reserve situated not far from Khosta. A very pleasant grove with a map of routes and paved paths with benches standing in the most picturesque spots offers tourists a great place to relax and muse.
The 2014 Olympic Games in Sochi are generally to take place not in central Sochi, but in the so called Krasnya Polyana (Red Glade), originally an unremarkable ski resort which in recent decades developed into a big and fashionable winter sports resort (especially after Vladimir Putin spent his vacations skiing there).
The place is located about 40 km from the sea coast and lies in a valley between mountain peaks. Usually popular in winter, it is also worth visiting in summer to enjoy mountains view, fresh air and take a chairlift up to the Aibga crest (at 2,500 meters).
Today’s Sochi offers quite a lot of opportunities for peaceful rest between the sea and mountains, all in harmony with nature.
However, Olympics hysteria was felt a long time ago, with prices soaring, construction booming, traffic growing worse. Things only promise to get more hectic – and more modern – as 2014 draws near.
It is strongly recommended not to visit Sochi during the high seasons of winter and summer, unless you are completely obsessed with skiing or bathing in the sea. At other times of the year, Sochi still has lots for you to see and do. ■
By Alexander Usoltsev
Special to The Moscow News
