Blogs from Ukraine, Europe - page 42

The winter was extremly cold, dozens died not only in Ukraine. When I walked by this place in the early morning, I saw a man covered with that paperboard, some people standing next to him. He had died the night before. Winter was almost over. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 53 Die of Cold in Ukraine (Article by Agence France-Presse 25jan2006) Kiev — Fifty-three people have died in Ukraine during the past 24 hours as a result of extreme cold, the health ministry said on Wednesday, bringing to at least 130 the number of deaths since temperatures plunged last week. At least 538 people have been hospitalised as a result of the cold, most of them suffering from frostbite and various stages of hypothermia, said the ministry. It was the largest number of people who had died during a single ... read more

Had a great time in Kiev - even Lenin shared Vodka with us. I'll tell you why some time...... read more

I got up early, packed my things and said goodbye to Ana's mum and one babushka. Then myself and Ana went on a final minubus trip across the Ukrainian steppe, an hour to Artemovsk where the train from Donetsk to Moscow stopped. As far as I could see out of the window there was a flat expanse of frosty fields. Saying goodbye was as bad as I expected, especially because I don't know when I will see her again. Yulia Savicheva's 'Esli v serdtse zhivet lyubov' didn't help me hide my sadness from Ana. I have said a lot of goodbyes in the last fortnight, each one is becoming harder than the previous one. I didn't feel much like a conversation once the train left, so I shunned the three people in my carriage and slept ... read more

I didn't do much this morning apart from eat. Coffee was prohibited because of my chest pains the night before but there was meat pel'meni and Ana's favourite chocolates, to go with my tea. We decided to look for a change of surroundings in the afternoon. By the time we had got a taxi into the centre of the village and a first minibus to Pervomaisk we were too late for the last one to Lugansk. So we made our way back. It wasn't an entirely wasted journey; I saw a bit more of the eerie grey blocks of flats and frost covered dark fields, and listened to the 'in-bus' entertainment of Ukrainian radio with all the latest hits. I was about as un-amused by Tom Jones' 'Sex Bomb' as the 15 babushki with us. Being ... read more

I slept very well, but was shooed out of the living room at 11 because the family were expecting Mr. Kovalchuk's friend and his and family for lunch. When they met me they didn't know I wasn't Ukrainian, so my accent brought about a bit of surprise. A foreigner, in Luganskaya oblast'? We sat down to another meal in the sitting room, leftovers from last night's party and some new dishes that Mrs. Kovalchuk had been up since very early preparing. At one point I had glasses of Yalta wine, cognac and fizzy orange lined up beside me. There was another variety show on television, this time a comedy set with a very funny man dressed up as a babushka. The parts that I understood were parodies of the way elderly ladies behave; it is a ... read more