City tours inevitably stop near this portly art nouveau house with two atlantes holding a sphere dotted with stars, a depiction of the universe as if seen from the outside. Built by Odesa's most celebrated architect, Lev Wlodek, the house belonged to baron Friedrich von Falz-Fein. He was the eccentric German aristocrat who bred zebras and wildebeest at his steppe estate of Askaniya Nova, where he was born in 1863.
Or maybe he was only eccentric by the standards of his time, since these days he is remembered as a pioneer of environmental protection, cage-less zoos and, indeed, safari parks.
This is a residential house, so it's not possible to enter unless you befriend someone who lives there.
