The Residence of the Bukovinian and Dalmatian Metropolitans in Chernivtsi is one of the most extraordinary buildings in Eastern Europe, a red-brick complex of towers, domes and arcades that looks like a cross between a Byzantine monastery, a Moorish palace and a Victorian college. It was designed by the Czech architect Josef Hlávka and built between 1864 and 1882 as the seat of the Orthodox metropolitan of Bukovina and Dalmatia, then provinces of the Austrian Empire. The roofs are covered with coloured glazed tiles in patterns derived from the folk art of the region, the interiors are lavishly decorated, and the complex includes a seminary, a church and gardens. Today it houses the Chernivtsi National University, and it was listed by UNESCO in 2011. Students fill the courtyards, and guided tours show the main halls, including the stunning Marble Hall.
Chernivtsi was the capital of the Austrian crown land of Bukovina, and in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, it was a remarkably cosmopolitan city, with Ukrainians, Romanians, Germans, Jews, Poles and Armenians living side by side, and a lively cultural scene in German. It was often called Little Vienna, and its centre, with a theatre, cafés and Art Nouveau buildings, still recalls that era. The poet Paul Celan was born here in 1920, as were many other writers and artists, and the city's Jewish community, once a large part of the population, was largely destroyed in the Holocaust.
After the First World War, the city became part of Romania, then in 1940 it was occupied by the Soviet Union, and today it is part of Ukraine, a short distance from the Romanian border. Its history of changing borders is visible in its architecture and its people.
The riding in the area is varied. The roads into the Carpathian foothills to the southwest, towards Vyzhnytsia and the Cheremosh valley, are scenic and winding. The surface ranges from good to poor, with potholes common.
Chernivtsi has fuel, mechanics and plenty of restaurants. Try banosh, cornmeal porridge, and varenyky, filled dumplings. Ukraine is at war, and although Chernivtsi is far from the front lines, air raid alerts occur across the country; check the current official travel advice very carefully before considering any trip, and follow local instructions.