Great trip to the village of Stradch, Ukraine (EN)

Hi friends! How was your weekend?
I have a friend, Olya, who always takes me for short walks. I am grateful to her for this))) Because lately I really like to stay at home...
So, this time I didn't even know exactly where we were going. Stradch is a small village near Lviv. Once upon a time, I visited there several times, because there is a monastery and caves there and it is a place of pilgrimage. But I missed it!

In the Arboretum

My friends are not very religious people, why did they choose this particular place to travel?
It turns out that there is also a very nice place, a park. This is an arboretum (honestly, I can't remember thіs word), a place where rare species of trees and shrubs grow. It is a department of the Lviv Botanical Garden, which was created at the university. Why didn't I know this place until now???

At the entrance to the park, we saw old and quite original buildings. Apparently, people who studied plants lived there.

The alley with tall thuja trees was the most memorable. People walked there like ghosts. I am glad that Olya and Artem were dressed in red jackets) It is difficult for them to get lost among these dark colors of late autumn.

I think it is very beautiful here in October.
Now the deciduous trees have shed their leaves, but the large number of conifers gave us their mystical atmosphere. The bushes, which seemed to burn with an orange flame, became a wonderful addition to the deep green needles.

We jokingly called this sculpture "Girl Taking a Selfie". (Well, she seems to be holding a phone in her right hand).

A barberry bush catches my eye...

Undoubtedly, an excursion with a professional would be appropriate here. Everywhere in the park there are signs with inscriptions of tree species, but bare deciduous trees are now all "on one face". But among the conifers I also recognized giant firs. How beautiful, powerful and strict they are! I have never seen such giants even in the Carpathians!

In the photo below is a coniferous tree with yellow needles, which sheds them for the winter. This is larch, similar trees sometimes also occur in our mountains.

A little more beauty in the details. I was intrigued by the black berries that grow in tassels. (Later I will try to add a species here).

The Japanese maple still delights us with its colors.

We went around the park quite quickly, even wandered into the thickets, but the short day forced us to move to the second part of the trip.

In the mystical caves

On the hill not far from the botanic garden is the more famous location of Stradch. It is an ancient church, a former cave monastery and a way of the Сross, which are located in a very beautiful pine forest. We did not have time to go the Stations of the Cross.
So we chose the most interesting, that is, caves.
We went up the hill by road on foot (I didn't remember if the road was good here for cars). And here are the stairs to the cave. People are usually here in the morning and the afternoon. Dusk will soon fall. But how nice that we are here alone!

The monastery existed here in the 11th-13th centuries. Also, people often hid here from enemy attacks! It is now a place for prayer, meditation and reflection. And this place also symbolizes the cave in which Jesus was buried.

At first glance, there is nothing behind this altar. But look closely, there is a door deep into the cave! You can get here until 17.00!
There is lighting inside, which is not bad). It's cool here in the summer, but not too cold in the winter!
We are underground!!! Enjoy!

The light ended, but the cave did not! At one point I remembered an interesting fact. Once I secretly joined a small group of people who walked down a passage where tourists don't usually go. We then walked for a long time and came to the surface of the earth in another place. Why not repeat this experience?

At first we walked straight, and later squatting. My backpack was hindering me... But it was interesting! We saw two branches from the main course, but did not go there.

We saw an icon with a flashing electric lamp. Hooray, so there are sometimes people here!

The next find was a small bat. They usually live in colonies. Why is it alone? It did not like the light of our phones.

Unfortunately, the passage became very low... We did not find a way out. Perhaps it was worth going to the side corridor a little earlier. Later, the friends went to the official exit. And I stayed a little behind and sat in complete darkness for a while, turning off the flashlight. It was a really strange and new experience. The moment the voices stopped, I found myself in complete darkness and silence. I am interested in repeating this in the future. There was not much time.

This guy scared me a little(

In conclusion, we took a quick tour of the church. The service was going on inside, so it was not possible to take a photos. Maybe another time. We went down another road.
Thanks to Universe and our Ukrainian army which protect us from enemies for such a good trip. I guess I'm a bit of a dwarf. Caves are my element. What do you say?

Great trip to the village of Stradch, Ukraine (EN)

In the Arboretum

In the mystical caves

Thanks for your visit in this nice community!!!

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