St. Nicholas Church, Vyzhenka

Vyzhenka is a typical Carpathian village in Bukovyna. The road to the Nimchych Pass runs through it, which is actually the main street of the village. The village itself is famous for St. Nicholas Church.

St. Nicholas Church in the village of Vyzhenka, Chernivtsi region, near the town of Vyzhnytsia, was built in 1921-1925 according to the canons of the Hutsul school of folk architecture characteristic of this area and is located in the southern part of the village on a hill, near a steep bend in the road. The church of St. Paraskeva in the village of Ust-Putyla is similar.

Thewooden church of St. Nicholas is cruciform in plan, three-story, with almost identical octagonal tops over all three parts of the building. The nave has large extensions on both sides, crowned with cupolas, which creates the illusion of a five-story Galician church. Today, the church is almost completely covered with tin (except for the lowest part of the log cabins, which is painted green). The church is surrounded by a large free space, so it is good to see it from different sides. Only on the northeastern side, from the road, are there a few trees. On the north and west sides, a cemetery stretches at some distance.

Not far away is a stone bell tower, which is somewhat similar to the bell tower of the neighboring church of St. John of Suceava in the same village. The bell tower is of the wall type and consists of five columns. By the road, near St. Nicholas Church, there is a stone chapel covered with a shingle roof. According to historians, it was built in 1848 in honor of the abolition of serfdom in the Austrian Empire. Numerous inscriptions on the chapel testify to the wanderings of the peasants on the serfdom, to the heavy obligatory duties, illnesses, and all the hardships of the locals that fell to their lot in the nineteenth century. These inscriptions are popular with travelers and travelers, because the village of Vyzhenka is one of the centers of green tourism in Bukovyna.

Today, the Church of St. Nicholas in Vyzhenka is a functioning church, distinguished by its original construction and impressive size, belongs to the diocese of the UOC-MP and is an architectural monument of local importance. Further to the south, the road begins to climb the Nimchych Pass, and there is also a recreational area nearby - the Luzhky tract.

Vyzhenka used to be an important resort, where people came from all over the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Several villas in the center of the village and a Jewish bathhouse (mikvah) have survived to this day. You should definitely visit the church of Ivan Suchavskyi, an architectural monument of national importance.

The church is located on the southern outskirts of the village by the road. Suburban buses regularly run to Vyzhenka from Vyzhnytsia, which is conveniently reached by suburban electric trains from Chernivtsi or by regular buses from the regional center.

Opening hours: available for visiting during Sunday and holiday services.

Thevillage of Vyzhenka is one of the main tourist settlements of the Vyzhnytsia district and the center of green tourism in Bukovyna. Population (according to the last census): 1380 people. Distance to the city of Chernivtsi: 80 km. The community is proud of the Burkut spring - sulfate-iron-aluminum water.

It has been known since the XVIII century as Verkhnia Vyzhnytsia. The village is on the way to the Nimchych (Turkish Vershad) Pass (586.3 m).

From 1859 until the First World War Vyzhenka was an Austro-Hungarian resort. Around 1860, after the division of the family's inheritance, Mieczysław Rey became the owner of an estate in Vyzhenka (also Vyzhnytsia, Babnia, Chornohuzy, Rivne) in Bukovyna. The village's pride is the single-domed wooden church of Ivan Suchavskyi (1792) in the Hutsul style, the chapel in honor of the abolition of serfdom in Bukovyna in 1848 (located next to the church of St. Nicholas), and St. Nicholas Church (1920s, wooden, covered with tin).

In the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, Vyzhenka was visited by prominent cultural figures: Yuri Fedkovych, Olena Kobylianska, Lesia Ukrainka, Ivan Franko, Vasyl Stefanyk, and Marko Cheremshyna. In 1902, Opanas Shevchukevych, a famous Ukrainian sculptor, doctor, and writer, was born here.

The poetic beauty of the Prykarpattia region, the availability of high-quality raw materials, and the natural abilities of the craftsmen contributed to the development of folk art in Vyzhenka. Traditional folk crafts include wood carving, woodworking, Easter egg making, and embroidery.

St. Nicholas Church in the village of Vyzhenka, Chernivtsi region, near the town of Vyzhnytsia, was built in 1921-1925 according to the canons of the Hutsul school of folk architecture characteristic of this area and is located in the southern part of the village on a hill, near a steep bend in the road. The church of St. Paraskeva in the village of Ust-Putyla is similar.

The wooden church of St. Nicholas is cruciform in plan, three-story, with almost identical octagonal tops over all three parts of the building. The nave has large extensions on both sides, crowned with cupolas, which creates the illusion of a five-story Galician church. Today, the church is almost completely covered with tin (except for the lowest part of the log cabins, which is painted green). The church is surrounded by a large open space, so it can be viewed from different angles. Only on the northeastern side, from the road, are there a few trees. On the north and west sides, a cemetery stretches at some distance.

Not far away is a stone bell tower, which is somewhat similar to the bell tower of the neighboring church of St. John of Suceava in the same village. The bell tower is of the wall type and consists of five columns. By the road, near St. Nicholas Church, there is a stone chapel covered with a shingle roof. According to historians, it was built in 1848 in honor of the abolition of serfdom in the Austrian Empire. Numerous inscriptions on the chapel testify to the wanderings of the peasants on the serfdom, to the heavy obligatory duties, illnesses, and all the hardships of the locals that fell to their lot in the nineteenth century. These inscriptions are popular with travelers and travelers, because the village of Vyzhenka is one of the centers of green tourism in Bukovyna.