I was going to mention my layover in Kiev in my previous
blog, as it was on the way home from Germany, but after recent events this past
week I decided to make it a separate post, as there is far too much information
to include. Thanks to my friend Suze, who lived in Ukraine last year, I’ve
learned the basics of the most recent Ukrainian conflict, starting last
November, but I realized how much I still had to learn while spending an
evening there about two and a half weeks ago. Flashback to Wednesday, January 9th,
2014:
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| Kiev |
Chelsea
drove me to the airport that next morning and we said goodbye. I was on my own
again, and had four classes to teach the next day. However, my adventure wasn’t
quite over yet. That afternoon I had a short flight to Kiev, Ukraine, where I
would be spending the night, then flying back to Moscow in the morning. I had
also had a long layover in Kiev on my flight to Germany, but I didn’t get out
to explore like I had planned because of bad weather. Instead, I stayed at the
airport and made friends with the girl working at the 24 hour café, who very
sweetly gave me a free apple at the end of her shift to solidify our
friendship. But this time was my last chance to see a little of Kiev until who
knows when. My plan was to land, take the airport bus to the central train
station, then walk around to see Independence Square, St. Michael’s Monastery,
and then St. Sophia’s Cathedral. All were within walking distance and
manageable to see within an hour or two.
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| Central Train Station, Kiev |
Though
today Ukraine is an independent country, with its own traditions and language,
(however, it should be noted that a good portion of Ukraine is Russian
speaking) if you really want to get to the heart of Russian history you have to
go back to Ukraine. Founded around the 6th century, Kiev was the
first capital city of ‘Rus,’ and experienced a Golden Age of great prosperity
in the 10th-12th centuries, while Russia proper was still
made up of bands of tribesmen living in the forest. In 988, a missionary from
Constantinople converted the Kievan Slavs to Christianity, thus founding the
Russian Orthodox Church. By the 13th century the Mongols began their
invasions, and after decades of Mongol rule, Kiev lost its power and the head
of the church was relocated to Moscow. Beginning with the Mongols, a series of
wars and battles caused Kiev to be bounced around from principality to
principality such as Lithuania and Poland for a few centuries, before finally
being returned to Russia in the 17th century. By then, Ukraine had
started to develop its own national identity, which the Russian tsars tried to
discourage by implementing a policy of ‘Russification.’ This policy backfired,
as the national identity grew even stronger throughout the succeeding years of
Romanov rule. Ukraine achieved autonomy in 1917, but of course, it became a
part of the Soviet Union shortly after. In 1991, Ukraine finally became an
independent nation, but as we can see from recent events, it has some problems.
It is still a very new nation, and there are many facets of division within.
I
apologize if you weren’t in the mood for a history lesson, but I promise there
was a purpose in teaching you. For the past two months there have been nonviolent
protests in Independence Square as a result of President Viktor Yanukovych
withdrawing his attendance from a meeting to discuss Ukraine’s potential
involvement with the European Union. Instead, he began talks and ended up
striking an economic deal with Russia’s President Putin. This move outraged a
great deal of the Ukrainain population, as more are in favor of looking towards
the West for the future instead of becoming involved with Russia and the East
again. Shortly after this decision to avoid the EU meeting, rallies and
peaceful protests broke out in Independence Square, with the citizens building
barricades and arming themselves in case of a clash. They wanted their voices
to be heard. For two months these people were held at bay, with protesters and
demonstrations every day, but no violence. Just this past week, (beginning January
19th) violence has finally ensued, with at least five casualties to
date and more fights within other Ukranian cities.
Fortunately,
the night I was in Ukraine things were calm. I landed from Frankfurt, hopped on
the airport bus, got out at the central train station…and found myself standing
in the pouring rain with my backpack. Great. I was tempted to just go back to
the airport and hang out at the coffee shop, but I told myself this was my
chance. What if I never get back to Ukraine again – was I really going to waste
this opportunity? Of course not. After I slapped some sense into myself I went
into the train station and did the only thing to do: I bought an umbrella, and
began walking. Well, first I took the metro to the Independence Square stop. Then
I started walking.
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| Independence Square |
As I approached the Maidan, the
oval shaped center in front of the Square, I could hear…singing. I walked
closer and was shocked to see people standing in the rain, listening to some
women singing on a stage while holding the Ukranian flag. There were spectators
and policemen alike roaming around, so I could only assume they were singing
protest or nationalist songs. Either way, it was beautiful to observe, but it
was also cold and wet, and I was on a mission. After furtively taking some
pictures, I located the street I was supposed to walk down to see St. Michael’s
Monastery and I took off, using the Maidan as a shortcut route. As I began my
walk, I was shocked to find myself right in the middle of homemade barriers and
defense structures. I had no idea things were still so tense nor that the
barriers from November still existed (or had been built upon.) It was like a
scene straight out of Les Miserables.
I wasn’t scared, and I didn’t see any people under the tarps, but I knew I
shouldn’t linger and take pictures for very long as there were probably people
watching me, and I had a bright blue backpack strapped to my waist. I quickly
exited and walked up my street, past some policemen, and left the protest site.
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| St. Sophia's Cathedral |
There
were still plenty of people walking around in the rain with their umbrellas, so
I felt safe, but even as I reached the monastery I noticed other barriers in
smaller areas around the city. There were makeshift tents with fire to keep
warm were set up in corners, and I saw a few people walking back and forth from
these areas with what looked like food. I was delighted to see the monastery,
but it was difficult to make out all of it. I learned later that the churches
had turned off the lights on some of Kiev’s most famous sights in order to help
hide some of the activists. I stood under a bus stop to get out of the rain for
a while, feeling sorry for the book that didn’t fit anywhere except the outside
pocket of my backpack, and was likely getting wetter by the minute. By then, I
was a straight shot from St. Sophia’s, so I oriented myself and made my way to
the beautiful cathedral complex, originally dating back to the 11th
century. Again, it was difficult to fully see in the dark, but it was still
stunning.
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| St. Michael's Monastery |
I was
closer to a different metro station than my original one, so I decided to make
a full loop, as the rain was tapering off by then. I walked past another part
of the city center, passing the beautiful Theater, some government buildings,
and ended my walk at the Golden Gate, the original southern entrance to the
medieval city of Kiev. I decided to quit while I was ahead, and went back
inside to take the metro. I had one last bit of fun though, as I skipped over
the train station stop and went a couple more stops beyond, so that I could
ride up and down the deepest metro station in the world, at 105.5 meters below
ground. It took 4 and a half minutes to ride up, then I got yelled at for not
properly exiting and buying a new ticket, since I just hopped over and took the
opposite escalator down. But hey, I got away with it. I made my way back to the
train station, found the airport bus, bought some street food, and I was back
at the airport by midnight.
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| Golden Gates of Kiev |
The remaining six hours until
boarding were spent reading, walking around, having coffee, and finally getting
a few hours of sleep before heading back to Moscow for a full day of teaching.
Was I tired? Yes. Did I barely make it through my four classes before passing
out in my bed? Yes. But was it worth it to have my night in Kiev? Yes. I was
grateful for the opportunity to see for my own eyes not only the protests
sites, but also the former glory of Kiev. Both deepened my understanding of the
past and the present. Ukraine’s historical ties to Russia will always
complicate things when trying to deal with Western Europe, as it is caught in
the middle. Ukraine sees the appeal of the mostly prosperous European Union,
yet it feels the tugging and pulling from Mother Russia. After this past week,
all we can hope for is that the violence will stop as quickly as possible, and
that it will serve as an eye opener to the Ukrainian government to listen more
to the Ukrainian people.
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