Here’s a collection of some of the photos I have taken in Lviv. Well, almost all were taken in Lviv, except for one. Are you able to point that out? Anyway, many of the photos are not captioned yet. I’ll upload a more detailed guide to Lviv, and caption these photos these few days. Meanwhile simply enjoy these photos.
The grand railway station of Lviv
A typical Lviv tram doing a roundabout near the main railway station on a winter day
Signboard at tram stop outside Lviv’s railway station, indicating that both trains 1 and 9 reach the city centre
On the 28th of December, Saturday, we took a morning train from Ternopil to Lviv. Both cities are in the western part of Ukraine, and Lviv is a 2-hour train ride, northwest of Ternopil. Due to the proximity, there are many trains between these 2 cities every day. These trains usually go through Ternopil, and terminate at Lviv, but start at cities in Ukraine which are further east, or even from Moscow, Russia. Some of these trains do not terminate at Lviv, but perhaps at Uzhhorod, which is further west, while I have seen one train that terminates in Sofia, Bulgaria. Whatever it is, from Ternopil, after getting on the train, there should be one stop at a minor station before it arrives at Lviv.
There are at least two different types of trains, a faster and a slower one. The faster one takes a bit less than 2 hours, while the slower service, which I had not taken before, takes about 3 hours, according to a local. I paid about 26.50 Hryvnias (just USD 3.29, EUR 2.50) for a ticket.
The train station is not too far from the city centre, where the Lviv Opera and Ballet Theatre is situated. Just outside the grand railway station, across the minor road, there is a tram roundabout/u-turn spot and a tram stop.
A typical Lviv tram doing a roundabout near the main railway station on a winter day
There are 2 trams, 1 and 9, and both head towards the city centre. I recommend tram 1 because it’s more direct. If you’re not in a hurry, you can take tram 9, to enjoy the sights as it makes a slight detour before reaching the city centre.
Signboard at tram stop outside Lviv’s railway station, indicating that both trains 1 and 9 reach the city centre
Each tram ride costs 1.50 hryvnias (USD 0.19, EUR 0.14). Purchase the ticket onboard from the driver by putting the money into the slot in the door to the driver’s compartment, and telling him/her how many tickets you need. Here, knowing the numbers in Ukrainian makes life much easier, because the driver might only understand odyn, dva, try (one, two, three) and not English. The driver will then give you your ticket through the same slot, and change is given (this is a really good feature that many other places I’ve visited don’t have). You should then punch a hole in the ticket at any of the hole-punchers on the sides of the tram. Failure to do so might result in a fine of 30 hryvnias, issued by inspectors who appear rather frequently.
Assuming you are going to the city centre, it is not difficult to know when to get off. If you’re taking tram 1, you will reach Svobody Avenue (2 parallel avenues with a park in between, and a statue of Taras Shevchenko and the big Lviv Opera House to your left), followed by the market square (a squarish plaza with a tall tower in the centre). If you’re taking tram 9, you will reach the market square followed by Svodoby Avenue. Both these places the busiest parts of Lviv, and you know you’re at the correct place after recognising these landmarks.
This morning we took a 2 hour train from Ternopil to Lviv in western Ukraine. Lviv and Ternopil are both in the Galicia region (not to be confused with Galicia of Spain), and have some similarities in history and are both strongholds of Ukrainian culture and patriotism.
The moment I exited the magnificent train station, I was awed by the difference in the two urban landscapes. It didn’t come as a surprise, as Lviv is a city of about 750 000, while Ternopil has about 210 000 people. The architecture in Lviv, as we first saw on the tram to the city centre, was absolutely marvellous, and it could be mistaken for one of the more famous European cities like Prague, Budapest or Vienna (though I’ve never been there). Lviv should be on the same scale of architectural brilliance as them.
Here are 2 photos of the city centre near the tower. Unfortunately I’m unable to upload my photos from my better camera these few days. These photos from my phone camera absolutely do not do justice to the great architectural beauty of the city.
Later in the day, we hope to catch a ballet performance at the famous Lviv Opera House. Little known fact: a river runs through BELOW the opera house! Many years ago, during the Hapsburg era, the king wanted to build the opera house, but this minor river stood in the path. He didn’t want to have a city centre that replicates Venice’s waterways, so he wanted the river to be covered. If you were to enter the opera house’s eastern side gate (it’s just opposite our hostel), and head to the basement, you can see the remnants of a bridge over the river. Yes, all these below the grand opera house.
In addition, there’s a cafe in the same basement. I guess it’s opera themed. We had to take off our jackets, and put on one of the fancy drama costumes the cafe provided, before we were allowed to enter. (Thank you Leo for the introduction to this river and cafe!)
hek.va travelled 