Walking. Gossip. Travel.

Category: Ukraine

  • Poltava – Poltava Battle History Museum

    The Battle of Poltava is an important battle for the people of Russia as it was when Peter the Great defeated the Swedish army. If the battle, which took place on 27 June 1709, had gone the other way then it isn’t likely that we’d refer to Peter as Great and it’s not likely that the Russian Empire would have been as substantial as it is. But we might have had a lot more people speaking Swedish.

    To make the whole thing even more complex, the Ukrainians like Ivan Mazepa, because he sided with the Swedes against the Russians. It was the beginning of the end for the Swedish Empire and they lost around 7,000 men, compared to the Russians who lost around 1,500 men.

    The museum is located a bus ride away, which is another story, from the city centre and it is situated in what was once a hospital for veterans of the Russian-Turkish wars. It’s well laid out and is larger than I thought, with the admission price costing under £1, even with the photographic permit that I felt the need to buy.

    A diorama of the battle scene. There was also a film showing on one of the TV screens in the museum which was the most graphic representation of war that I’ve ever seen. There were more stabbings, explosions and heads falling off than you could shake a stick at, although there were shaking lances in the film as well.

    I’m slightly sceptical, but this is the clothing which allegedly belonged to Peter I, his caftan (tunic) and camisole (undercoat).

    The death mask of Peter I.

    And a painting of Peter 1.

    These are the coats of arms for towns in the area, from top to bottom (and left to right), (i) Poltava, (ii) Hadyach, (iii) Lubny, (iv) Pryluky, (v) Pereyaslav and (vi) Myrgorod.

    A cannon thing.

    A map of the battlefield.

    All in all, a well presented museum which had some interesting artefacts. I wasn’t entirely sure exactly where the battlefields were in relation to the modern geography, but they seemed to cover a bit of an area and the memorials we walked by to get to the museum suggested the approximate location.

    The whole site was a scene of great pride for the Russians over the centuries, although it’s a more challenging site for the Ukrainians. It was though fascinating to see this area, as it’s one of those wars which changed the landscape of European politics and ultimately led to the expansion of the Russian empire at the cost of the Swedish empire.

  • Poltava – Prince Ihor’s Stone

    This stone marked the life of Prince Ihor, the Grand Prince of an early Slavic country, who reigned from 912 until 945. He is seen as being the leader of the forerunner of Ukraine although I can’t see any other obvious link between him and the city of Poltava.

  • Poltava – Ivan Mazepa Statue

    Ivan Mazepa is one of the more controversial people in Ukrainian history, having been shunned by the Russians and quite recently he has been fêted by the Ukrainians. The Russians don’t like him because he changed sides before the Battle of Poltava, supporting the Swedes instead of the Russians. The Russian Orthodox Church excommunicated him in 1708, and they still haven’t relented. That’s a proper grudge.

    Anyway, Mazepa is now becoming a bit of a national hero and he’s appeared on the back of a 10-hryvnia banknote, which is something to write home about. Or it would be if Mazepa hadn’t died in 1709.

    However, even this statue has been a bit of a problem for the authorities, as it was halted before being given the go-ahead. It was unveiled on 6 May 2016 by Petro Poroshenko, the current President of Ukraine.

  • Poltava – Sign

    A nod towards tourism, the Poltava sign in front of the Assumption Cathedral.

  • Poltava – White Rotunda of Friendship

    This site, with extensive views over the nearby hills, was once the site of the Poltava’s bastion where lookouts could keep an eye on any threats to the city. In 1909 the local authorities thought that it’d be a good idea to construct something to mark 200 years since the Battle of Poltava which had taken place in 1709. They decided upon a White Rotunda and this was duly constructed and an event held to mark the anniversary.

    The 200th anniversary was certainly a big event for the city, the Tsar of Russia came along and there were numerous services held to remember those who had died at the Battle. The Tsar also went to have a little look at the battlefield itself, although I imagine he didn’t have to faff about waiting for the number 5 bus like we did…. But that story is for elsewhere.

    Unfortunately, the Germans decided that they thought it’d be a good idea to destroy the White Rotunda and they demolished it during the Second World War.  However, in 1954 plans were put forwards to reconstruct the arch and this is what is currently at the site.

    The views over the surrounding area.

    And me. How lovely.

  • Poltava – Poltava Dumplings Monument

    This is meant to be one of the most photographed locations in the city, but it is marginally less appealing in the snow. It represents the local cuisine of dumplings, with what are 12 dumplings in a bowl with a giant spoon in front of them.

    The work was unveiled on 1 April 2006 and the choice of date was deliberate, and the dumplings aren’t meant to be taken seriously. Although it seems some locals don’t like the whole arrangement and the city authorities had to move them to their current location from elsewhere in Poltava due to complaints.

    I thought that it was a rather fun artwork and it has some meaning, so I’m sure it’ll remain a popular place for photos to be taken.

  • Poltava – Beer House

    My first impressions of this pub weren’t that positive from the exterior, as it looks a little generic. However, it was well reviewed by others and my second impressions were much better after we entered it.

    It wasn’t particularly busy inside, although given that it was 3pm on a Saturday, that wasn’t entirely unsurprising. The whole environment was clean and comfortable and the welcome seemed genuinely friendly.

    They had a dark beer, which was decent although it didn’t have a particularly strong aftertaste or notes of particular ingredients. However, it tasted fine and was at the appropriate temperature.

    I’m not sure that there are that many English visitors to Poltava, so it wasn’t surprising that they didn’t have an English menu. However, the waiter got someone else over to help and they were able to speak excellent English. I was struggling with the pizza section of the menu a little, particularly as I’ve forgotten the Cyrillic alphabet which might have helped. However, I could work out the BBQ pizza, so I went with that.

    My expectations were a little low as I realised that it might just mean a pizza with BBQ sauce, but it was much better than that with pieces of BBQ meat. It looked like it was wood fired and it had a crispiness to it with a range of tastes of textures. It could have been a little hotter in terms of temperature, but it still exceeded what I expected. Very nice.

    And the seed things which came with the beer, salty and very moreish.

    The bar had a set-up which meant that they needed to take a card at a nearby location, so it seemed easier to just pay with cash. I didn’t work out what the nearby location was, but it was perhaps a fixed card machine they couldn’t easily move. Either way, the prices were very reasonable and a pizza and beer cost around £3.

  • Lviv – Night Train to Poltava

    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.

  • Lviv – Lion Bars

    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.

  • Lviv – Territory of Terror Museum

    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.