Blogs from Zoloti Vorota, Kyiv, Ukraine, Europe

There is much to enjoy about early mornings in Kyiv: the cool air and peaceful blue tint in the sky (or whimsical snow in winter); the purposeful stomp of expensive shoes on the street as its businesspeople make their way to work; the unflustered rhythms of the metro before it becomes crowded; the melodious whirr of the coffee machine in the kitchen in my office, churning out triple espressos to be sipped before the working day starts. Unfortunately - due to my body’s own unflustered rhythms - ninety-nine times out of a hundred while all this is going on I am still in bed, jabbing weakly at the snooze button on my alarm clock. Five times a week (or four most weeks in spring, thanks to public holidays dished out by the Red Army and Russian ... read more