Although it’s not the cleanest train that I’ve ever seen, this former Soviet workhorse still looked impressive as it pulled in. It was to take us on a 16-hour journey to Poltava, in the east of the country.

Passengers starting to board.

The embarkation process was a little complex as some of the carriages didn’t have a number on them. However, after asking two staff members who got us closer each time to where we wanted to be, we found the correct carriage.

This is a first class compartment, with the journey costing around £27 each. The difficulty for the rail network is that the falling cost of air fares is making it harder for them to compete, but there is still the tourist market and it’s much easier to catch a train than go through the hassle of catching a flight.

Most elements of the carriage still looked as though they were from the 1970s, but there was a much more modern control panel which had been inserted into every compartment. This controlled the lighting, informed passengers when the toilets were in use and it also allowed me to charge my phone. The latter was absolutely essential of course.

There was a member of uniformed staff on board in what was a grand uniform, reminiscent of long gone days in the UK. He was ultra-efficient and seemed to have an awareness of when I was in the corridor area, so my first attempt at the above photo had him at the end of it looking surprised. I took another photo to avoid him being in it…..

The main problem for me with the journey was that it was just too hot in the carriage, and there was no way of opening the windows. There was a window in the toilets, but it was locked shut so that passengers didn’t throw things out of it. Combined with the heating in the carriage, it was a little more uncomfortable than I would have liked.

At one end of the carriage there was a samovar, effectively a boiler, which provided constant hot water and this was convenient for the arrangement of noodles that I had purchased for the journey. There were a limited number of things which could be bought on board, but there was nothing like a Greggs buffet compartment and that would have been nice.

There were though bottles of water provided at the beginning of the journey, and the facility to have tea and coffee brought in sachets, although they didn’t bring a cup to put them in.

I say that the main problem for me was the temperature, but that’s really a lie, as the main problem was that I didn’t have any wi-fi. I was able to connect briefly at a station very early on in the route, but then not again until the end of the journey. That meant 15 hours of not being connected to the outside world, which is the longest period that I can recall in years. Certainly not ideal when trying to follow the escapades of the British Prime Minister and her attempts to deliver Brexit.

For much of the journey the outside was dark, which is perhaps inevitable with a night train, but the Ukrainian countryside isn’t really the most beautiful in the world. I didn’t see anything of particular interest other than the towns and cities which the train went through, and most of those were under the cover of darkness. I think that I saw a hill in the distance at one point and there were a few dogs visible, but that was the highlight of watching the world go by from the window.

However, the train arrived on time in Poltava and shortly before arrival the conductor came in to tell us that we needed to depart at the next railway station. Everything was reasonably clean and comfortable on board, although the train didn’t feel particularly busy. At times the train made noises which suggested that it had left the track and was ploughing on along the road, but since we arrived in one piece I’m assuming that it was just a bumpy section of rail.

Certainly an interesting experience and very pleased that I tried it. There are numerous trains which run throughout the night, which means that they are convenient for passengers who might want to arrive into a city early, or indeed a little later. Flights often don’t have that flexibility, and at least the night trains give passengers a chance to sleep.

Another random post about food that I just happened to buy in Lviv, although these chocolate bars are made in Ukraine (and also exported elsewhere). I have nothing to add beyond the images of the chocolate bars, but they were very lovely.

The new Territory of Terror museum has opened in Lviv, on the site of the former entrance to the city’s ghetto. There seems to be much work still to be done before the museum is complete, but there are some interesting information boards in front of the site entrance. The museum is free of charge to enter and it’s around a ten-minute walk from the city centre.

A carriage, I assume signifying the transportation of Jews to Lviv and then on to the concentration camps, which is situated outside of the museum. Above this on the elevated bank is the mainline rail line which enters the city.

A watchtower which isn’t currently accessible to the public, although it appears that there are plans to develop this section of the site.

There are tens of these blank marble frontages, which I again assume will have the names of victims etched upon them.

The entrance to the museum, which currently consists of just one room of exhibits. The displays are though thought provoking and interesting, with English translations presented for many of the exhibits.

A map of the city’s ghetto.

There were several of these biographies at the museum, some focusing on Jews who had either died during the Holocaust or had managed, against the odds, to survive. The other biographies were of the perpetrators of the Holocaust and those involved in the Second World War.

The above biography is of Baron Otto Gustav von Wächter, a complex and interesting Nazi officer that I’d read about before because of his involvement in the Krakow Ghetto. He certainly seems to have been an articulate and clever administrator and politician, who might in peace-time been able to have been a leader of some ability. However, his involvement in the Holocaust is undeniable and he personally signed off the killing of thousands of Jews. There have been efforts made to suggest that he was a good man, but it’s IMO hard to come to that conclusion given on what happened under his jurisdiction.

Alois Hudal, a so-called Bishop in the Catholic Church, but instead a Nazi who was heavily involved in running the ratlines after the Second World War to help former officers, also helped von Wächter. But von Wächter was to die at the age of 48 for medical reasons, so he was never brought to trial for what he had done.

I’m glad that this museum is here though, as the monument to the Lviv Ghetto which is situated over the road has very little information as to what happened in this area. The museum has now corrected that, and I hope to return when the museum has been able to complete more of the work at its site.

OK, this isn’t really anything particularly to do with Lviv other than I bought them here. But crab flavoured crisps from Lay’s (Walkers) are delicious, and should definitely make an appearance in the UK….. Wikipedia, which may or may not be the authoritative source on these matters, says that this flavour of crisps are only usually available in Russia and Ukraine.

Located opposite the new Territory of Terror Museum is this memorial to those who died in the Lviv Ghetto during the Second World War. It’s located at the site which was once the entrance to the ghetto (known as the Gates of Death), situated near to the still existing main railway line.

The scale of the tragedy here is enormous, as in 1941 there were 220,000 Jews in the city, many who had fled from western parts of Poland. By the time the Soviets liberated the city in 1944 there were only around 750 Jews left.

I didn’t think that the site was in the greatest of condition, there was grass between stones, litter at the memorial and some of the plaques were unreadable.

The monument itself, designed by Luisa Sternstein, which was installed in 1992. The sculpture is of a man in a state of despair, a powerful image.

A large menorah at the entrance to the memorial site. I was slightly surprised that there’s no information in English at the site explaining its relevance, but perhaps this will be changed now that the new museum opposite has started its operations.

St. George’s Cathedral is located on the top of a hill, which was noticeable given that due to some slightly poor planning on my behalf we had to walk up it. There has been a religious building on the site since the thirteenth century, with the current cathedral being constructed between 1744 and 1760.

A pretty little cat at the entrance.

Before the Second World War this cathedral was the mother church of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church, but it was suppressed by the Soviets in the 1940s. It remained part of the Russian Orthodox Church until 1990 when it was, after a period of occupation, restored to the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church.

The cathedral’s altar. The design of the interior is mostly baroque, although there are also elements of rococo and classicism, which all come together well.

The bright and open nave. There is also apparently access available to the crypts where some of the bishops are buried, although I didn’t see this during the visit.

There’s a copy of the Turin shroud on display in the cathedral.

There’s a high nave and a central dome.

Looking back across the nave area towards the main entrance to the cathedral.

It’s not in the centre of the city, but it’s not a long walk from the Old Town area of Lviv. The cathedral had a courtyard to the front which gave it additional character, and there were decent views across the city from the elevated location. There were some toilets to the right-hand side of the entrance which cost 2UAH, although the level of interest in their cleanliness did seem rather limited.

I wasn’t quite sure what to expect from this bar, but the frontage was certainly rather impressive. There was also a friendly vibe from the customers hanging around outside and inside the entrance, so it felt a safe environment.

The whole impression of the bar was no less impressive once we’d entered. On the ground floor is a shop selling bottled beer and other related items, with drinkers welcome in a large bar area.

We went up to the first floor where there is a dining area which looks down onto the shop on the ground floor. The band is visible playing in the background.

I was slightly disappointed that given the size of the operation that the bar didn’t have any of their darker beers. However, they had the Red Eyes, which I’d had the previous day at another bar, and the taste of this was fine. It was served at the appropriate slightly chilled temperature and had a pleasant citrus taste.

Some of the internal advertising of the beer, some of which is quite brave to say the least.

I went for the half chicken and the fish balls, which were both served as bigger portions than I had expected. I had intended for the fish balls to come as a starter, but it didn’t make much difference to the whole proceedings.

The fish balls had a tender flavour with a crispy exterior, and the tartare sauce also tasted home-made. The chicken was excellent, the crispy onion added texture and the potato wedges had some flavour on the coating. The chicken was tender and moist, with some spice on the coating of the skin. The food was well presented and I felt represented really good value for money, coming to around £5 in total.

A view down onto the shop area. There was live music which started playing at 19:00 and we had an excellent view of that. I must admit that for my personal preferences I didn’t like the volume of the music, but the quality of the music was decent. I understand though that there’s a quieter part of the restaurant available for anyone who wants to eat away from the music.

All in all, I thought that there was real theatre to the whole location, which is rather what is promised in the bar’s name. The service was friendly, attentive and helpful, with the staff member speaking excellent English. The bar accepted both cash and card and I felt that the pricing was competitive given the quality of the experience.

We couldn’t initially find this craft beer bar as we had just assumed it was at street level, but it’s actually down some steps in an atmospheric basement location. It’s clearly signed when looking down towards the steps, with the opening hours chalked up on the board.

The beer selection which had some interesting dark beer options, with the staff member also willing to give further information about them. The service was excellent, it was always attentive, friendly and helpful.

There’s also a printed beer list.

Contemplating something…..

The interior, all clean and comfortable. There’s a reasonable amount of seating inside, and there are also some seats by the bar.

We didn’t order food on this visit, but I noticed that the food being served looked rather appetising.

I tried a few beers, this is the milk stout, which cost around £1.30. Rich in flavour, at the appropriate slightly chilled temperature and it had a pleasant aftertaste. I also finished the visit with the Cherry Twins fruit beer which was a sour and had an enjoyable flavour.

The bar accepts both cash and card and the staff member spoke excellent English. The prices are reasonable and I liked that the selection of beer was extensive and clearly well thought through.

I’m slightly sceptical of this story in the Lonely Planet Guide, but only because I can’t find any other source which repeats the same information. Anyway, Lonely Planet say that this now childrens’ playground on vul Chornomorska was once a row of houses. The houses collapsed from the vibrations of the tanks which were sent urgently to Hungary in 1956 to try and resist the Hungarian Revolution which was taking place.

There were some limitations on taking photos at this church, so the above one isn’t mine (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Lviv-Armenian.jpg).

And nor is this one of the rather glorious interior (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Church_tonemapped.jpg).

The information board to the front of the church, which is a little tucked away in a courtyard. The church dates to the late fourteenth century although was much modernised in the early twentieth century. It’s a relatively small church internally, although the cloistered area and attached buildings still survive. The building does feel much more of a church than a cathedral, and I’m assuming it only has the latter designation because it’s where the local bishop sat.

Between the seventeenth century and 1945 the church was part of the Armenian Catholic archdiocese. However, when the Soviets took over after the Second World War, they suppressed the church locally and its ministers were arrested and some transported to gulags. The church building was used to hold stolen artworks during the Soviet era, but it was returned to the church in the 1990s.

Since then it has been shared between the Armenian Apostolic and Armenian Catholics, with the building having undergone a major restoration. This process is still ongoing, with the interior of the church now bright with vibrant colours. The murals on the wall are mostly modern and some of them have some quite disturbing scenes on, I wasn’t at all sure about the ghostly ones.

Some parts of the stonework removed during the recent restoration of the church and older gravestones.