If you fancy European fairytale towns with cobblestone streets, charming city squares and Baroque architecture, Lviv in Western Ukraine should be on your list. A UNESCO World Heritage Site located near Ukraine’s border with Poland, the city has changed hands several times over the centuries. It’s also been known under the following names: Lwow, Lvov, Lemberg and Leopolis reflecting Polish, Austro-Hungarian and Russian influences over the years.
I visited some weeks back and I must say the environment reminded me of more popular destinations such as Prague or Krakow except that Lviv has a more authentic feel (think: buildings in varying states of disrepair, fewer touts and lack of people dressed up in tacky medieval costumes). If your impression of Ukraine is of a country with freezing weather year-round and gray, Soviet buildings; Lviv will surely change that.
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