Enfolding its main hill in crescentic embrace, the legendary Monastyrsky Island is Dnipro’s urban nucleus and undoubtedly most mysterious and romantic sight.
The elegant pedestrian bridge leading to the island is considered to be a landmark of its own. An unusual sculptural exposition – the Bench of Sweethearts and the Tree of Happiness, forged by Dnipro’s blacksmiths – is installed near the bridge at the city’s side. It’s no coincidence that these original symbols of love appeared here. For a long time already, local residents fasten up so called locks of happiness to the bridge and throw the keys in the Dnipro River – in this way the sweethearts believe to link their hearts and destinies forever.
The Monastyrsky Island’s history is uncertain, and therefore, it’s surrounded with numerous legends since olden times. According to one of them, this place existed as far back as the 1st century: it was then that Apostle St. Andrew the First-Called stopped here during his trip to the eastern lands with Christian mission. Since those times the Monastyrsky Island is considered to be one of many Orthodox outposts.
The island got its name from the Byzantine Monastery, which is said to have stood here in the 9th century. At that time, the famous trade route from the Varangians to the Greeks passed through the Dnieper River, and the Monastyrsky Island was often used as sort of stopping post. It is considered that thousand years ago, the Old Russian princess Olga waited for a storm to pass in the monastery on her way to Constantinople. And shortly after that, the prince Vladimir the Great, heading to the Chersonese, rested within its walls. The monastery existed until 1240, and then it was completely destroyed and ransacked during the Western crusade of Batu Khan. For the next seven centuries, the island was empty…
Today Monastery Island is home for one of Ukraine’s largest monument’s to the world-famous Ukrainian – Taras Shevchenko, but the real gem of the island is built in 1999 the St. Nickolay Church. Raised of white stone and crowned with golden dome, it can be clearly seen from city’s different points and is a modern symbol of Dnipro city.
In recent years city did a lot to make Monastery Island the place to be in Dnipro: different cafes and restaurants were open, as well as a small zoo, aquarium and a quite impressive artificial waterfall, which falls on the picturesque cliffs in the Dnipro.