ukraine: kyiv for another khreshchennya

Winter this year in Moscow hasn't been very wintery. It still feels like late fall, the ugly part of the season. The weather has been the same in Kyiv, much to my disappointment. Despite this, I decided to return to Kyiv for another year to take park in khreshchennya, the 12^th day of Christmas, when Jesus was baptised in the River Jordan. This takes place each year on 19 January in countries that have Orthodox Christianity.

Since you can no longer fly directly from Moscow to Kyiv (thanks to the ongoing political mess between the two countries,) I went for the next best option: the train. It is easy enough, but it involves waking up twice in the middle of the night for border controls. 

Thankfully, this year I wasn't pulled for a random interview, just a few questions while the officer was looking at my passport.

My train arrived on time in Kyiv, back to one of my all time favourite train stations. It's grand and traditional, and I love it. After arriving I went to a fast food restaurant across the street to charge my phone and use wifi. After hanging out there for an hour I walked to the accomodation I'd booked.

There was no sign on any door of the building where my hostel was located, but I noticed that there was a wifi signal with the same name, so I climbed the stairs, hoping eventually a door would have a label. Thankfully, it worked out well.

After getting myself sorted for another hour, I started walking again. Since I lived in Kyiv for six years I have seen a lot of the city, so I wasn't aiming for anything in particular, I just wanted to relax in a place that still feels comfortable, like home.

The first place I saw was St Volodymyr's Cathedral. It's a giant yellow church across the street from metro Universitet. Last year during our visit we walked past the church, this time I walked inside. Since this was the day before the holiday, there were plenty of people in the church. Even though I was there in the middle of the day, it was quite dark, as there isn't a whole lot of lighting inside.

The inside of the church is covered in frescoes, it's lovely. I watched people and absorbed the atmosphere for a few minutes.

From there I walked down the hill, passing the pedestal on which the statue of Lenin used to stand. The bottom of the pedestal is now painted blue and yellow, (Ukrainian national colours,) and there is currently a contemporary art piece in front of it.

I arrived at one end of Khreshchatyk Street, one of the main streets of the city. It was rebuilt after the war, by the Soviets. Because of this it is a wide boulevard, perfect for tanks and military marching parades.

I stepped into the Roshen chocolate/candy store (owned by the former president Poroshenko,) and found my favourite toffees, yum. It's not amazing, but it's good :)

At the other end of Khreshchatyk is Maidan Nezalezhnosti, or Independence Square. It has been turned into a sort of living museum, with signs and information in both English and Ukrainian, descibing what happened in the winter of 2013 and 2014. The emotional reaction I had back then always comes back to me, and I always take a few moments to honour those who died for their country.

As I was walking through the area I noticed that the trade building has been fully rebuilt, it looks stronger than I remember it being during my first couple years in Kyiv.

I walked up the alley of the heavenly hundred heroes (I'm not exactly sure on the translation of the Ukrainian name,) with all of it's memorials, ribbons, and flags, thinking again about everything that happened during that time.

I decided to go see a building I hadn't seen since my very first year in Kyiv, the House with Chimeras. I'm not sure why the building was built, or what it was for, but it is eye catching no matter what. It is across the street from the official office of the president, so it was completely blocked off for several years during and after the revolution.

As I got there I saw that a small seasonal ice skating rink had been set up, and people were queued up to take their turn. Very nice, and there was music being played somewhere.

After taking photos of the carvings on the building, I turned around and walked back north. I'm not sure how I got there, but my next stop ended up being a random cafe, this one with a menu of croissant sandwiches. Yum.

From there I kept walking and ended up next to the Rada, or parliament building. The photo I've always wanted to take means standing in the middle of the street, so I've never taken it. (I don't trust Ukrainian drivers, just like I don't trust Russian drivers.) I don't know how often politicians are in the building, or how much power regular Ukrainians have in making changes to their country's laws.

Behind the Rada is a palace that has never been open since I first arrived in Kyiv. It is always mentioned in the guidebook and travel apps as a sight, but that's not accurate. You can see the outside of the building, and it's gardens, but only from a locked gate in front. The gardens seemed more cleaned up than in previous years, so who knows, maybe there is a plan to eventually open the land and building to visitors. I hope so.

That brought me to Mariinsky Park, which follows the river for a bit. The weather was dark and cloudy, I couldn't see the other side of the river, booo. I followed the paths through the park, all the way until the big platz with the Friendship Arch. 

I think it was given by the Russians to the Ukrainians in the days of the USSR, I'm pretty sure it wouldn't be given now.

Side note, the arch was painted in a rainbow during the weeks Ukraine co-hosted the Euro cup with Poland, in 2012, in an effort to show how tolerant the country is. I love Ukraine, but tolerant it is not.

By that point the sun had gone down, so I was able to see some of the city lights, those that weren't covered by clouds. It's always a nice spot.

From there I slowly made my way back to my hostel, stopping at a supermarket along the way to pick up dinner: ramen noodles. 

Despite the noisy roommates in the dorm room, I still got a lot of sleep, it felt good.

The next morning I packed up and checked out, then met Oresta on the platform of one of the nearby metro stations. Oresta was a colleague when I worked in Kyiv, we've kept in touch ever since I left the city.

We rode the metro a few stops, getting off at Obolon station. There we met one of her friends, Genia. (In this case the nickname is the short version of Evgeniy.) He drove us out the north side of the city to an area I've wanted to visit for a long time: the Kyiv Sea.

The weather was the same as the day before, meaning everything was gray. Gray water, gray clouds, etc... Even though there was no colour to be found, I could see why Oresta likes the area so much.

Some locals had chosen to go in the water for their 'baptism' in this area, there was a platform specifically set up for this. We arrived around 1115, so it wasn't yet too busy. By the time we got back to the car it was a lot busier, many more people hanging out near the platform.

We followed the path along the water for a while, it was nice. Quiet, and nice. Eventually we got to a man made beach area, with cute little huts that are probably great picnic spots in summer. Needless to say, it wasn't so lovely on this particular day, oh well.

We walked a little further so Oresta could show me something she'd found a few years previously: an abandoned bobsleigh track!! AWESOME!! There is a gate in front of the track, but there are huge holes in the gate, and a footpath has been worn around one side of the gate. 

Clearly it is regularly visited.

I decided to climb up onto part of the track, using the metal support under the track itself. I wanted to walk further along the track, but that would've meant trusting the wood that still remained, and I wasn't that confident. Plus, I was a bit worried about some of the nails sticking out in random places. Anywho, so fun!

We walked back to the car, and Genia drove us back to one of the metro stations in the city. When I lived in Kyiv it was called Petrovka. Sometime in the last three years it has been renamed, to Pochaina. Apparently the name Petrovka was too Russian. Sigh.

We took the metro to Hidropark, where I've always taken part in Khreshchatyk. As I knew it would be, the metro station was packed. It is probably busier that day than any other day in the year, even when people come to the park in summer. Ukrainians make the religious event into a giant party.

Since there was no snow or ice this year I decided to go in the water on the busier side of the river. Even without the snow and ice, it was still plenty cold, but I'm still glad I did it. Does taking part mean I'm fresh and clean for the coming year?

After drying off and getting dressed again, we went back to the metro station. Oresta went home and I went back to the city center. It was great to spend a few hours with her, catching up on anything and everything. I treasure my friendships.

Instead of trying to see more places in the city I decided to check out a new cafe, the Blue Coffee Cup. I discovered it had a good menu, good prices, good portion sizes, nice decoration and atmosphere, and good service. I might have overeaten, but I regret nothing :) I ended up staying in the cafe for several hours, just because I could.

After dark I finally got moving again, and started walking back toward the train station. I've done that walk so many times that I don't need to use my phone to figure out where to go. Getting back to Moscow was just as easy and smooth (though no one loves the two border control wakeups in the middle of the night) and coming west. 

I'll always be happy to go back to Kyiv. (And hopefully more of Ukraine at some point.)

ukraine: kyiv again

I lived in Kyiv for six years. When I first moved there I never would've dreamed I would end up staying for six years. During those six years I had all kinds of experiences and adventures, including a national political revolution. One of those experiences is called Khreshchennya, or Baptism.

Khreshchennya takes place on Epiphany, the 12^th day of Christmas. In the western world, this is the 6^th of January. For those who follow the Orthodox calendar, this is 19 January. When I've been in countries or cities in the western world where this is a celebrated holiday, I've seen festivals and markets and such. In the Orthodox Christian world, there is an aspect that is a party, but it is a much more religious celebration.

Orthodox Christians imitate baptism by going into bodies of water (pond, river, lake, etc...) and go under the water. Typically they go under the water three times, crossing themselves each time.

I did this three or four of the six years I was in Kyiv, and always loved the experience. My first year in Moscow, I found a place to do it, but didn't like it nearly as much. The experience in Moscow didn't feel as real, as raw. I don't know quite how to explain it. I was super excited when I looked at a calendar and realized 19 January would be on a Saturday, which meant I could take the train to Kyiv and participate there.

The girls thought I was crazy, but chose to come with me, and I convinced them to participate too. 

The train ride from Moscow to Kyiv isn't super long, but it feels that way because you're woken up twice, in the middle of the night, for border control with each country.

On the way to Kyiv, I got pulled for a random interview with a border control officer, which was a bit scary. He asked where I'm from, why I was going to Ukraine, why I live in Russia, etc... I was able to answer the questions, but I don't think he liked all my answers. (For instance, when I said that I liked Khreshchennya better in Ukraine than in Russia.) Since the questions were mostly in Russian, and my Russian isn't very good, plus this was a legal situation, I was more than a little nervous. 

Thankfully I passed the interview and was stamped out of the country. It was a lot easier to enter Ukraine than to leave Russia, wierdly enough. That being said, the border officers of both countries were surprised to have three foreigners riding this particular train, in platzcar, or 3^rd class. Usually foreigners spend a bit more money and go for 2^nd class at the very least.

Arriving in Kyiv felt like coming home for me. I was excited to show the girls the train station, because it is what I expect for all train stations in Ukraine and Russia, but haven't had nearly as often in Russia. The main hall is giant, with a beautifully decorated ceiling.

We ate breakfast at a fast food joint across the street, then started walking. Almost immediately I remembered how hilly Kyiv is, especially in comparison to Moscow. Kyiv is built on seven hills, and walking around the city often feels like you're going up or down.

We walked near Shevchenko Park, and I figured the girls ought to at least see the front of the main university building across the street from the park. Taras Shevchenko is a Ukrainian hero, a writer and political figure. He is given general credit for inventing the Ukrainian language.

Kyiv National University is named for him, the main building is painted cherry red. 

I think it's ugly, but the exterior facade isn't what matters when it comes to a university. We were able to take our first team photo in front of that building.

More walking brought us to Khreshchatyk Street, the main street in the city center. It was built after WW2, and was built in a way to accomodate large parades of soldiers and tanks. It's wide, and mostly straight. This street has changed a lot since I moved to Kyiv in 2011. The stores in the buildings on either side change regularly, as do the coffee stalls and such on the pavements.

One store that hasn't changed is Roshen, a chocolate store. Roshen is a candy company owned by Poroshenko, the Ukrainian president. I don't know why I remember this, but the first time I ever had Roshen candy, I was in the middle of nowhere, in Mongolia. Weird. We stopped in the store, buying more than we needed, but it was worth it.

We wound through a couple more streets, before finding the office for the accomodation we'd booked, a flat in the city center. It was a challenge to find cash for the deposit, as we hadn't known we'd need that. 

(The guy said this was normal, but I've stayed all over Ukraine and this was the first time I'd ever needed such a thing.) Anywho, the flat was good and the location was good, so we were happy.

After a little while relaxing, we walked out of the flat and continued exploring the city. There are a couple UNESCO sights in the city, and I wanted the girls to see them both.

We visited St Sophia's Cathedral first, because it was super close. The foundations of the cathedral were laid in the 11^th century, but it took another 20 years to finish. (I always wonder what local citizens thought of the neverending project while it was going on. And on and on and on.) 

The layout of the building looks really similar to the Hagia Sophia in Istanbul.

The interior of the cathedral is impressive. One of the parts I like best is the chance to climb stairs and see everything from the second level. It's a view you don't often get in Orthodox churches. It is easy to see where renovations have been done, and where things remain as they were a long long time ago.

As of right now, no particular religious branch has the right to have services in the church. It was an active church until the 1930s, when Soviet authorities wanted to get rid of religion.

They took religious art and treasure out of the church, but didn't destroy the church. It was then made into a history museum.

Near the end of the 1980s authorities told locals they would be giving the church back to religious authorities, but it was never decided exactly who would be in charge. Wikipedia tells me various religious groups have laid claim to it, so there are no active services.

We also climbed the bell tower, because there are great views of the city from up there. It's also super windy, but oh well.

After leaving the grounds of the cathedral, we made our way to Khreshchatyk metro station. We love metro system in Moscow, and I wanted the girls to experience the system in Kyiv. It isn't as extensive, or as nice, but it is still a great system, and relatively cheaper.

Our arrival station was Hidropark, so we could all take park in Khreshchennya. Ever since my first experience with this holiday, I've figured this must be the busiest day in Hidropark all year long. Getting through the turnstiles isn't easy, as there are so many people, going both ways. The ticket office normally has a queue, but this time it was just a mass of people. 

I led the girls over the bridge in the middle of the park, and we stopped to watch everything for a while. I'd tried to explain the whole thing to them ahead of time, but there is nothing like seeing it in real life. There are heaps of people all over the beaches, with a couple rowboats in the water. Random people dash into the water, go under three times, then dash back out. When they get back out they are usually greeted by family or friends, and wrapped in a towel or clothes or a robe.

We crossed the bridge, and I led the girls to a section of beach that is less busy. I wanted each of us to be able to have a photo or video with just us, not a huge mass of people.

Then we did it! I went first, then the girls. I loved it, and while I'm not sure they loved it, they were glad they did it. We finished just at sunset, and the moment the sun went below the horizon we could feel the colder temperatures.

From there we went straight to dinner. One of the gazillion sushi places has a happy hour between 1500 and 1800, buy one get one free. Obviously, we ate too much :)

The next morning Angela and I got up a little earlier, as I wanted to visit a bakery that had cinnamon rolls I loved. Sadly, when we got there, we discovered no cinnamon rolls, and very little else. I'm not sure if it was because we were there just after it opened, or if the cafe has changed quite a bit, but I was totally disappointed.

While on this walk I pointed out a couple huge building murals to Angela, I loved the murals. There is even an app that is supposed to map all the murals in the city. I don't know how accurate it is, but it's still pretty neat.

We packed up and checked out, and were able to leave our packs in the front office.

From there we walked up the hill to St Michael's, another Orthodox church that isn't far from St Sophia. This one is more photogenic, but is also a lot newer. The original St Michael's was quite old, then the Soviets blew it up in the 1930s, in their effort to get rid of religion. It was rebuilt in the early 2000s, if I remember correctly. 

When we went inside the church there was a service taking place, so we didn't wander around as much as I would've liked.

More walking brought us to the top of Andreivsky Descent, a well known street in the city. At the top of the whole thing is St Andrew's, but it was under renovation, and not open. You are allowed to go to the pavement around the church, but doing so now costs 20 griven (about 85 US cents,) even though it was free when I lived there. Argh. We didn't go up the stairs.

I convinced the girls to follow me part way down the street, to another big building mural. When we got there, I was disappointed. 

I remembered it as being brightly coloured, but it didn't feel this way anymore. Argh. Maybe I"m used to see photos on social media, where the colours have increased saturation.

We went the rest of the way down the hill, to an area called kontraktova ploshcha. (Kontrakt square, would be the English translation I think?) There is now a ferris wheel there, which strikes me as somewhat out of place, but seems to be permanent. There are regularly seasonal markets in the area, so there were still Christmas stalls set up.

We found the nearest metro station, and rode to Arsenalna. (Side note, Arsenalna is one of the deepest (if not the deepest) metro stations in the world. Getting up and back out takes a while on the fast escalators.

Our walk first brought us to the biggest WW2 memorial. Near this memorial is a viewpoint showing two memorable structures: the Holodomor memorial and the Lavra. There is also an amazing view over the river, and left bank of the city.

The Holodomor is a man made famine that took place in the winter of 1932-1933. Exact numbers have never been stated, but millions of people died. The Soviet government said it was due to the weather of the year, but there were other factors, including forced communilization. The borders were closed, so people weren't able to leave to get help, or to tell the outside world what was happening.

The memorial is a small museum, the girls and I went in to look around. There are books listing many of those who died, as well as photos and items from that time.

Next up was the other UNESCO sight in the city: the Pechersk Lavra. When we entered the grounds of the Lavra we were joined by Josh, who is someone I worked with in Kyiv. It was fun to take a team photo, since we teach at four different branches of our school.

We wandered through two of the main churches in the Lavra. One of them didn't used to be open except for service times, I guess this has changed. (Probably due to tourist interest?) The other church has one of my favourite ceilings. One side of the property has a beautiful view over the rest of the property and the river.

At that point the girls were tired and cold. Josh left us, so the three of us went back to the city center by metro. We went back to Roshen to buy more chocolate, then back to the same restaurant for more sushi. This time we took the second portions to go, but we ate the second desssert portions.

The train going back to Moscow was a lot easier, though we still had the two middle of the night wake ups for border controls. It seems easier to get into Russia than to leave!