Sightseeing & Excursions
Uman
Uman is a regional center of Cherkassy province with population about 100,000. It is situated 210 km south from Kyiv and 230 km north from Odessa on the highway Odessa - Kyiv.
The half day trip to Uman from Kiev or Odessa or en-route between this cities
The Sophia park
There are but a few other parks in the world that can rival Sofiyivka in the harmony of nature and design. It is very popular among the Ukrainians and guests from abrod. There are nice restaurants with Ukrainian and Russian cuisine at your disposal.
Sofiyivsky Park is a landscape park in Uman, the masterpiece of park and garden culture. One of the most beautiful parks in Europe, originally built by the leading architects and park engineers of Western Europe for one of the richest magnates of Poland Count Pototsky or, rather, for his Greek wife Sophia. Later it was rebuilt to match the tastes of the new owners - the Royal family of Russia.
•It was founded in 1796 by Count Stanislaw Szczesny Potocki, a noble Polish szlachcic and named after his wife Sofia being the symbol of their eternal love
•There are many scenic areas in the park including waterfalls, fountains, ponds and a stone garden. There are a lot of amazing scultures and architectural monuments placed there.
•It is one of the most famous examples of late 17th or early 18th century European landscape garden design that has been preserved to the present time.
•The Sofiyivsky Park was named one of the Seven Wonders of Ukraine on August 21, 2007, based off a voting by experts and the internet community.
The Jewish Uman
Uman is also the burial place of Rabbi Nachman of Breslov, the Rebbe of the Breslov group of Hasiddic Jews. Rabbi Nachman spent the end of his life in Uman, and specifically requested to be buried there.
During Rosh Hashanah (The Jewish New Year) there is a major pilgrimage by Breslov Hasiddism and others to visit the grave in Uman.
This practice dates back to 1811, the year after Rabbi Nachman was buried in Uman. During the Soviet regime the pilgrimage was forbidden by the authorities, but was resumed in 1989 after the dissolution of the Soviet Union.
The Rosh Hashana kibbutz is a large prayer assemblage of Breslover Hasidim held on the Jewish New Year. It specifically refers to the pilgrimage of tens of thousands of Hasidim to the city of Uman, Ukraine, but also refers to sizable Rosh Hashana gatherings of Breslover Hasidim in other locales around the world.