Balaclava shore excursion - from antique time till...

Balaclava, a small town (its name in Turkish meaning Fish's Nest - Balykly-Yuve), is located on the shore of a curved spectacular bay, resembling a fiord.
This area is associated with Odysseus' jorney, with legendary Temple of Diana and other events. Balaclava marced its 2, 500th anniversary.
As the legend goes, in the year 890, several Greeks were caught by a storm on this rock. They offered their prayers to Saint George and he appeared before them amidst glittering lightning. The storm ended, and the survivirs saw on the rock an icon with the saint image. Balaclava is home to one of the oldest monasteries - Saint-George Monastery, founded in 891.

And a 600-meter long tunnel runs from inside the harbor, allowing submarines to sail straight in for maintenance and repairs.
Seven submarines could be accommodated. This milirary object was one of the most secret in Cold War period in Soviet Union.
So secret was the project, Balaklava disappeared from official Soviet maps.
'In the case of a nuclear attack, the base could stand a direct hit by a nuclear bomb, '' reads a sign.

We can tour:
-former Soviet submarine base inside the mountain,
-ruins of Italian medieval fortress,
-Orthodox Church of 12 Apostols,
-we will visit the monument and special viewing platform of Charge of the Light Brigade, October 1854 (Crimean War period),
-then we can take a walk around the enchanting harbor city (possible have lunch in a traditional local cafe).