Ukraine: Kharkiv – Holy Annunciation Cathedral

Next – Kharkiv. The most spectacular sight in Kharkiv is the red and white Holy Annunciation Cathedral, towering on the river bank and shining with its many golden onion domes. There are 5 domes and a massive belltower and the candy-striped body, making the cathedral look like a Christmas decoration. The original wooden church was built here in 1655, while the present day stone structure was built in 1888 as one of the largest and tallest churches in the Russian empire at the time, with the worshipper capacity of 4000 people.