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February 2025
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38 Days, revisited.

At my new home, this piece of art no longer hangs directly in view from my working position – so it is no longer something I stare at continuously.

I previously featured 38 Days in my blogpost Whatchamacallit 152.

Now I see it whenever I leave my bedroom.

It still resonates, as a testimony to […]

Whatchamacallit 25: оберег (obereg)

When I moved into my apartment, back in August 2010, my first guest was a Ukrainian friend – who presented me this pair of shoes that were to be hung by my front door.

And so it was, directly inside the front door, one of the first things you see upon opening the door.

[…]

Kiev III: Cossacks

My last full day in Kiev, Katya took me to the Mamajeva Sloboda – a recreation of a 17th century Cossack village located west of the city center. As an idea, it’s great, reminding me of Colonial Williamsburg in concept. In execution, well… it’s a bit more problematic.

The Mamajeva Sloboda, with a few […]

Kiev, Part 1: День Перемоги

My time in Kiev was meant to be relaxing – insofar as visiting a place with a language that I can neither read nor speak can be relaxing. I might not speak Swedish, but at least I can read the signs and understand if I am going the right direction in a quick glance.

The […]

Спасибо

Me!

Originally uploaded by elmada.

So, since leaving Kyiv, I’ve not really given an overall impression of the city, nor have I completely thanked Katya’s family for hosting me.

Without further ado, I will address the second point:

Dear Katya’s Family:

Thank you ever so much for hosting me over New Year’s Eve. […]

Atheist at the Church

Kyiv Pechersk Lavra

Originally uploaded by elmada.

The first time I ever felt like an atheist at the church was when I first visited the Indianapolis Speedway—home of the Indy 500, the Brickyard 400, and (maybe) the US Formula 1 Grand Prix.

I still remember the trip quite clearly: I was searching for […]

Chornobyl and Great Patriotic War Museums

My time in Kyiv was severely impacted by the New Year’s Eve holiday, which extended into New Year’s Day. I spent much of New Year’s Day sleeping off the effects of vodka and staying up until 4am.

Accordingly, my visits to Kyiv’s museums were limited to only the ones that I was most interested in […]

Free Market Transportation

Marshrutka

Originally uploaded by elmada.

The most impressive thing about Kyiv was it’s free market.

Katya was a master of this—for example, we had taken the subway out from the center of the city to the stop nearest her house, where we were to take bus number 487 to her house. The bus […]

Driving in the Ukraine

Ukrainian Pride

Originally uploaded by elmada.

Every so often I have had pause to consider the driving in any of the places I have visited. Mind you that in most of the 21 nations I have visited I have either only taken public transportation, or I have only ridden in cars driven by […]

The Ukraine

My sister is constantly irritated that whenever I go and visit places, I don’t bother to learn the local language (notable exceptions: the United Kingdom, Ireland, and most of Canada). However, not knowing the local language has not usually been a problem, since although I don’t speak the local language, I am able to read […]