“Now all roads lead to Crimea,” - Moscow journalist about Sevastopol

Sevastopol, along with St. Petersburg, is a must-visit place for residents of Russia. About this in an interview “Politnavigator” said a Moscow journalist Ekaterina Larinina. Working at AiF and Izvestia, Larinina was in Crimea during the Russian Spring, and recently visited Sevastopol on vacation with her son and compared how the city has changed two years after reunification with Russia.

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Ekaterina Larinina

“PolitNavigator”: You were in Sevastopol and Balaklava in 2014 and two years later. Have there been any changes in your opinion? For the better or not? And if so, in what way?

Ekaterina Larinina:Of course they did. Now, when you come to Sevastopol, you don’t feel like you’re in the late 80s. And in 2014 there was exactly this impression from the city, and not only from this, Simferopol with its dilapidated airport made exactly the same impression, and even sadder. I once lived in Chita, the most uninhabitable city (in many respects) in Russia. So, Sevastopol in 2014 is Chita in the 90s.

Now the main impression of the city is that it has an owner, an older comrade. This is no longer a homeless child abandoned to the mercy of fate. He raised his head, straightened his shoulders, ready to show himself to people in all his glory, to show what he is capable of.

One of the most obvious changes is the number of tourists. There are a lot of people, there are traffic jams on the streets, it is generally impossible to park in Balaklava. Many new hotels and restaurants have appeared. All this says a lot.

“PolitNavigator”: Do you think the residents of Sevastopol themselves have changed or not?

 Ekaterina Larinina:Yes, people have changed too. Before that, I was in Sevastopol immediately after his return to his “native harbor,” as they say. The eyes of Sevastopol residents, and all Crimeans, shone with hope, euphoria and, at the same time, there was a question in them - what will happen next? How will their lives turn out next?

Now people have become calmer. Not because we were disappointed, but because life simply settled down, certainty appeared, and everything went as usual. It’s like when you return to your long-abandoned homeland, tears well up in your eyes with happiness, you arrive in joyful prostration. But some time passes, you accept this fact and just move on with your life. In 2014 there was some fear of the unknown, but now there is none.

 “PolitNavigator”: What problems did the residents of Sevastopol tell you about? What can the city leadership do to make Sevastopol even better?

Ekaterina Larinina: To understand the problems of a particular city, you need to live in it. So the problems of Sevastopol are better known to its residents. Of course, out of my natural and, to some extent, professional curiosity, I like to talk with strangers in other cities - with taxi drivers, waiters, salesmen - with everyone with whom I come into contact and who is ready to give feedback. And each of them has their own little problems and concerns related to work, housing, family, everyday life - everything, like everyone else. It is clear that a lot has already been done, but much more remains to be done. In this sense, the city leadership also needs to establish the same feedback with people in order to hear and understand their requests. But this applies to any Russian city. No matter how trite and hackneyed it sounds, power should be closer to the people.

But there are changes that do not directly affect the lives of citizens, but they are very important. We are talking, in particular, about the revival of shipbuilding, about the reanimation of docks, which, through the efforts of Ukrainian politicians and oligarchs, were prepared to be written off for scrap metal in order to build local ruble cottages for the elite in their place. Now all this is being restored, preparations are being made for the launch of an entire shipbuilding cluster with a full cycle - from design to launching of civilian and military ships. And this is real money, these are new jobs.

 “PolitNavigator”: Is Sevastopol convenient for recreation as a tourist and resort city? How can it be attractive for Russian and foreign tourists?

Ekaterina Larinina: Sevastopol and its surroundings are part of our great history in the first place. This is not just the sea and beautiful landscapes, these are the voices of our ancestors in different periods of history - from Byzantium, of which Russia can rightfully be called the heir, through the Baptism of Rus' and the two defenses of Sevastopol - to the present day. In this regard, Chersonesos is very indicative - with its ruins of the Greek polis, which later became part of Byzantium, a bell cast (according to legend) from Turkish cannons and the Cathedral of St. Vladimir, on the walls of which traces of shells were imprinted during the second defense of Sevastopol. These are traces of different eras and civilizations, found in the same time and space, it’s incomparable. Before this, only St. Isaac's and Kazan Cathedrals, the Hermitage and Peterhof aroused such reverence in me. But this is all one era, and here there is more than two thousand years of history in one place.

Sevastopol for me is not so much a resort city, it is one large historical monument. And this time I specially brought my son here so that he could touch this greatness and feel, experience through himself all the events that our country experienced at different periods of time. It is very gratifying that so many museums are open, and so many more are waiting to open.

Not long ago there was talk that Russia could create a list of places and cities that Russians must visit. At first I laughed at this initiative, and our media presented it with appropriate irony. But for me this list already exists. Along with St. Petersburg and Lake Baikal, it also includes Sevastopol. This is a place where those people who respect, remember and honor their history simply need to visit.

 “PolitNavigator”: Have any funny incidents happened to you in Sevastopol?

 Ekaterina Larinina: Yes, there was one. In Balaklava, when I was trying to leave and turn around in a crowded parking lot near the naval museum, a random passer-by began to help me, directing me: “Back again! Steer to the right! Steer to the left! Then he comes to the driver’s window, looks at me and says: “Kat, what are you doing?” It turned out to be a friend of my youth from Chita, whom I had not seen for more than 15 years; life had long scattered me across different cities, and here was such a meeting in Balaklava. There was, of course, a lot of joy from her. So if once all roads led to Rome, now all roads lead to Crimea.