How many of you have heard the name “Transdniestr?” Not too many, I’m guessing. Transdniester – also known as Pridnestrovie in Russian – is a small rogue nation occupying a narrow strip of land along […]
I’m here. In Tokyo. Finally. During my idle time on the flight over I kept on thinking, “what am I going to write to everyone once I finally get to Japan?” Most of you already […]
Picture yourself looking up at a blue sky peeking through a huge canopy of leaves on a perfectly clear day in Kyoto. As the faint sound of Japanese flutes recedes softly into the background, it’s […]
At long last, I made it to Petra. Petra is a place that’s intrigued me since before I even knew its name – since I first saw Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade as a […]
On December 20th of 2006, I received an e-mail from my dad. It contained this Powerpoint file. The forwarding messages all included such phrases as: “I CANT EVEN LOOK AT THE PICTURES WITHOUT GETTING DIZZY!!” […]
The tram ride back from Arcadia Beach just may’ve been the unexpected highlight of my stay.
After spending most of the afternoon sipping vodka on the sand with our new Russian friend Sergei, Peder and I were perfectly “In The Zone” – we had great energy and, despite not getting to bed until 8am the previous evening, somehow didn’t feel even the slightest bit tired.
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After being so pleasantly surprised with the quality – and fun – of Odesa’s Arcadia Beach, we decided that (despite not getting to bed until nearly 8am), we had to fit in at least a few hours under the sun before our next night out.
But first, a quick reality check.
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My initial expectation for Odesa’s beach was that it’d be small and fairly mediocre – I’d heard that despite the city’s immense popularity among vacationers, the beaches themselves really are nothing to write home about. It’s more the people and the fun that’ve made Odesa so famous.
So imagine my surprise when we arrived Saturday morning evening around 5pm to find a vast sandy stretch so packed that despite its size, there was scarcely a place to lay our towels. It felt like Suma in Japan – only bigger – and didn’t start thinning out until after 7, when the sun finally receded behind the hill.
I could get used to this.
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Although there are countless bars and clubs lining Arcadia’s bustling promenade, two in particular stand out from the rest: Ibiza and Itaca. These are the famous megaclubs, the names you’ll invariably hear if you ask, “Where should I go for the best night out in Odesa?”
Our plan for Friday evening was to spend an hour or two roaming the streets, socializing, getting the lay of the land, and working on our buzz before committing the remainder of the night to one of these two hotspots. And although we’d learned (from our third police shakedown of the day) that we would have to scrap the “working on our buzz” part of the plan, we figured we might as well risk spending some time on the street anyway.
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Getting from central Odesa to Arcadia Beach takes about 15 minutes by taxi – a ride that can cost anywhere from 35 to 200 hryvnias, depending on your negotiating prowess. Like most third-world countries, taxis in Ukraine do not run on meters – so your best bet is to find out the “real price” beforehand from someone trustworthy. Then just make your quote to the driver – before getting in – and you’ll be paying the local rates in no time.
Although our first night in Odesa had started on a sour note, by the time we pulled up at the entrance to the Arcadia walking promenade, we’d managed to drive our energy back up to full. We popped on our bling, hopped out, and with two huge smiles, started off towards the clubs. Continue reading »
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