Austin (LPD 4) - Naval Cruise Book

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Austin sailors on tour listening to Anna speak about the history of Odessa. USS Austin 25

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Chiefs Simandira and Dent haggle with street vendors ■■ i4 - J A beautiful Eastern Orthodox Church basks in the lal afternoon sui ( i These women will sell you a nesting doll and give you a free Ukrainian history lesson SH2 Graham and a marine sergeant insure the AUSTIN ' S crew is safe while on shore patrol 24 USS Austin

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Constanta, Romania 05 -06 Nov, 10-11 Nov 1998 in sol Constanta (pronounced Constantsa) is located in the southeastern region o Dobruja. about 1 70 miles to the east of the capital city of Bucharest. It is Romania ' s principal seaport and Black Sea resort area. Constanta had the look and feel of a former .Soviet eastern bloc country and was not as cosmopolitan as Odessa. The area was initially inhabited by the Dacians nearly 2. ' ()0 years ago. The Greeks founded the colonies of Hitia. Callatis. and Tomis on the Black Sea in the 6th century BC. The ruins of the ancient town of Tomis form the foundations of contemporary Constanta. We were told to be careful in town due to the high rate of street crimes such as bag snatching, pick pocketing and robbery. One Austin sailor had his wallet stolen during the first hour of liberty. Gypsies were abundant in Constanta and were easy to spot because of the outrageously colorful clothes they wore. Alas, due to the operatie)nal commitments of Rescue Eagle, the AUSTIN was only in port for two days. Also many of the bars and restaurants located in the resort areas were closed for the season. Tours were not an option either because of the lack of time. Despite these obstacles the intrepid marines and sailors made do and squeezed as much fun out of this port as they could by sampling the food and culture of Constanta. This monument greeted the Austin as she steamed into Constanta harbor on a cold November day.