Gorky Park. This one of the favorite places of all Kharkiv residents was first opened in 1907, and in 2012, in anticipation of the fact that Kharkiv was one of the cities of Ukraine hosting Euro 2012, the park was completely reconstructed and improved.
The park covers an area of about 130 hectares, where everyone can find something interesting for themselves - from extreme attractions to quiet green alleys.
The territory of the park is divided into thematic zones: sports, children's, extreme, family, medieval, French, retro. This is done so that people of all ages can enjoy their time in this place. For example, dance evenings for the elderly people are held in the retro part of the park. And in the family part there is entertainment for the youngest children.
Despite the large number of rides and cafes, the park surprises with the number of trees and greenery around. There is even a lake where ducks and swans live.
One of the visiting cards of the park is the cable car that connects Gorky Park with another recreation area called Sarzhyn Yar, this place deserves a separate story, so I will also write about it later. Initially, the cable car was built for workers of the Kharkiv Machine-Building and Aviation Plants for their comfortable getting to work from the nearby area where the workers lived. Its length is 1400 m, and the height in some places reaches 26 m. After the development of infrastructure in Kharkiv, the cable car has become an attraction and a convenient way to get from one recreation area to another, with the opportunity to see a beautiful view.
Another and main place from which a beautiful view of the city opens is the Ferris wheel. Its height is 55 meters, which allows you to see Kharkiv from a completely new angle.
Near the Ferris wheel there is a stage where concerts and entertainment events for children are held.
In 2022, the park was hit by russian shelling many times, the rides and cafes were damaged. But gradually the park is being restored, its brave workers do not stop monitoring the cleanliness and landscaping of this wonderful place, although, of course, some wounds will remain forever.
P.S. Why do I love his place so much? In addition to everything I wrote about earlier, I love it for the details that are given a lot of attention there.
UPD
In April 2023, I visited Central Park for the first time, that's how it is now called. Of course, I knew the place hadn't been spared by change, but nonetheless, I was impressed with my first visit since the full-scale russian invasion.
To be honest, it wasn't so much the visual changes that attracted my attention, but the sound changes. Previously, when every attraction and cafe worked in the park, music and voices could be heard from everywhere. Now everything is closed there, and with it, almost complete silence has come.
But be that as it may, I was glad to see those few people there who enjoyed the warm spring evening. We all try to cling to things that give us sensations from a former life. And today I was once again convinced that this feeling is illusory.
