One of the main reasons to visit the Carpathians are traditional villages, that save their authentic atmosphere through centuries
At dawn, the valleys between the high ridges of the Carpathians seem to be covered with thick milky cream. There, the fog flows like a silver wave. Only somewhere you can see the peaks of the mountains covered with forests illuminated by a golden glow. As the sun rises above and its rays touch the fog, the white ghost begins to melt and small black spots begin to look out from under it, scattered on the slopes of the mountains here and there - the houses of the inhabitants of the mountain villages.
Villages in the Carpathians are really big, but not because of many people. Houses of "neighbours", could be more than 5 km away from each other.
People here are mainly engaged in grazing sheep and cows, making cheese and wool products. In villages that have not yet become popular tourist centres, you can see real old wooden houses in which people still live. Here you can hear authentic local speech and taste real local dishes from the hospitable hosts, and in big church holidays or during local weddings you can see traditional clothes, entertainment, and festivals that have been performed by locals for more than 150 years.
Due to the remoteness of the Carpathian Villages from the rest of the world, local residents always felt independent and highly valued their freedom. That is why any attempts to take control of the local population ended in armed uprisings and guerrilla warfare. The most famous of them are the Oprishki revolt under the wire of Oleksa Dovbush during the reign of Poland in western Ukraine and the partisan movement UPA (Ukrainian Insurgent Army) during World War II.