Odessa is unique in everything. There are many attractions and iconic places. But not every guide will be able to show you the stairs and tell you their amazing stories. If we hear the words: Odessa and stairs, then Potemkinskaya immediately comes to mind. But in the city there are other stairs, the fate of which is no less interesting. For example, this is a staircase connecting Zhvanetsky Boulevard and Primorskaya Street, there is a Staircase of Death. But today we will talk about Moldavian.
Stairs in Moldavanka
The famous neighborhood keeps a lot of secrets. Mishka Yaponchik walked and rested here. But Moldavanka is famous not only for this, but also for its stairs. There are more than a dozen of them. There are short, intermittent and long. But the most famous is Kursantskaya.
Why was the staircase named Coursantskaya? Everything is simple. Cadets of the Higher Maritime Academy pass the steps every day. The so-called "towers". They march here twice a day. By the way, an interesting fact. Basically, stairs are named after the squares and parks where they are located. In our case, the situation is the opposite. The park is named after the stairs.
Criminal component
Previously, this staircase was notorious. Under it gathered young people who had fled from orphanages. They did not disdain robbery, robbery and theft. The authorities of the city are tired of these juvenile criminal elements. The police quickly put things in order.
After that, this place fell in love with homeless people. They built their shacks out of cardboard and rags. But they were also asked to leave this hospitable place. In addition, the staircase became famous for the fact that it was here that a cadet was killed. There was a fight here in 2018. One of the combatants took out a knife and hit the 23-year-old cadet in the chest. The guy died on the spot. The offender was able to detain already in Zaporozhye.
Cadet staircase today
The staircase has been restored. Replaced old steps. Now there are railings. Lighting was added throughout the stairs. Now it is somewhat uncomfortable for criminal elements to live here. The flights of stairs have been changed beyond recognition. The coating itself was made up of small paving stones.
Old slabs were installed along the stairs, next to the parapet. The staircase consists of 17 flights. I mean, it's pretty long. While you rise, you will get tired three times. Now you can rest. A couple of benches were placed in the middle. As a result, it turned out a cool, bright staircase. She became an ornament of Moldavanka.
This is the staircase that now adorns the famous Moldavanka microdistrict. This is not the last staircase I will talk about. Come visit us in Odessa. If you want, contact me, I will conduct tours.