From here we went on foot to explore the marvelous palace and gardens of Count Vorontsov. Alupka is a true miracle of art and nature! Imagine a colossal castle in a mixed Anglo-Moorish style, built from a greenish-gray local stone, diabase, which is as hard as granite. This castle is being built according to the plans of the famous English architect Edward Blore and is already nearing completion. Towers, battlements, domes, carved chimneys, eastern portals - all this takes the imagination to the era of the knights and caliphs of the Alhambra! On the southern side of the castle, a magnificent terrace descends to the sea, decorated with marble sleeping, awakening and roaring lions by the famous Italian sculptor Bonnani.
Alupka's garden is divided into two completely different parts: Upper and Lower parks. The upper garden is dotted with colossal fragments of wild rocks - the so-called Alupka Chaos. Huge blocks of diabase, heaped by nature on top of each other during an ancient revolution, are cut through by shady paths, entwined with ivy and wild grapes. Between them, abundant waters either gush out in springs and fountains, or dig out a modest channel for themselves. Here art begins to help nature: in one place it blocks the water and forms transparent lakes from it, in another it restricts it with invisible pipes, and the irritated elements shoot out tall fountains and refresh the air. Here the rock is broken, and the water flows into vast marble or granite pools, animated by trout stocked in them. The rocks were included in the general plan of the garden, planted with all kinds of beautiful trees and rare shrubs.
Nature is the same everywhere, but the views are constantly changing. Every point was taken advantage of by invisible art! From one place, Ai-Petri is terrifying with its enormity and savagery; from the other you can see the truly royal palace of Count Vorontsov; there you can see the sea in all its splendor! All this is amazing, charming, unique! I was told that Countess Elizaveta Ksaverievna Vorontsova lovingly tends this garden, and that although her skillful gardener, Mr. Karl Kebach, works tirelessly on it, he does not follow her will and orders. Having met the Countess later in Odessa, I clearly understood the secret of the charm of these truly Armidine gardens!
The other half of the garden is located near the sea on an inconspicuous slope. It is separated from the upper main road along which we arrived. Olive groves, magnolias, laurels, cypresses and almonds are collected here. In the village of Alupka itself, the Count built a large and beautiful mosque for the Tatars living there. It would take a long time to describe all the beauties of this charming place: I could not see everything in one walk; however, one cannot help but say that Alupka is a magnificent monument to the taste, wealth and creative genius of Count Vorontsov.
Beyond Alupka lies Simeiz, which belongs to Prince V.I. Meshchersky and I. altsov. Its location, gardens and vineyards are similar in beauty to neighboring dachas. Here the wild cliffs of Diva, Monk and the Panea rock rise into the sea. Mr. Maltsov has established an important maritime trade here: he brings by sea on his own ships various kinds of building materials, iron, glass from his own factories and all sorts of supplies necessary for winemaking, gardening and household items, which previously were extremely difficult and expensive for residents of the midday shore to obtain. In this way, he provides the residents of the midday shore with a huge and invaluable service.
We returned home after a walk that was enjoyable for all of us. I went to my room to write down everything I saw, and spent the rest of the day with the lovely housewives. But my situation became sad at the thought of an imminent separation. On May 3, one of my sister’s servants ran into the room and hastened to announce that the steamer from Odessa had already appeared on the horizon and was very visible from the terrace.
The next day I ordered a cart to be made... My heart was embarrassed, and I almost silently hugged my sister, said goodbye to the venerable Baroness Berkheim, Mrs. Sabanskaya, ran out of the house and galloped to Yalta. I could have stayed with them for another day, but my situation was becoming unbearable: it was much easier for me to grieve alone and no longer see people with whom it was hard to part. I didn’t even want to stop in Yalta: I boarded the ship “Peter the Great” directly, and before its departure I sat on it alone for a whole day. My sister and Mrs. Sabanskaya wrote farewell notes to me; I answered them, but it was as if from another part of the world.