BERDYCHIV (Бердичів)

We made one hour stop at Carmelite (Roman Catholic) monastery with impressive brick walls. It was founded in 1482 as a Lithuanian fortress. The 16th-century walls survived, as does the Church of Our Lady, which lords over the complex, dates to the 17th century. The French novelist Honoré de Balzac married Eveline Hanska, a wealthy Polish widow in 1850 after an 18-year courtship. You’ll find the Polish-funded Joseph Conrad Museum and Berdychiv’s modest Regional History Museum within the monastery grounds, with small exhibits on Balzac and Conrad, plus the usual Soviet WWII and ethnographic exhibits.

Parking location – Berdychiv: 49.896784N 28.572461E