Entering Ukraine via the East from Russia, my first stop was Kharkov.Kharkov is known as a student city rather than a tourist hotspot.Unlike most tourists coming to the Ukraine, I chose to spend 3 days exploring this quiet and quaint city.
Friends
Visiting Friends was the main reason for coming to Kharkov.I met 2 Ukrainian girls Zhenya & Nadia while working at a summer camp in Ohio during my 2007 summer vacation and promised that I would visit them one day.
Victory Day
Victory Day was celebrated on the 9th of May , not just in Russia but also in the former USSR countries.(ie.Ukraine !)Every city will hold huge celebrations on the 9th of May.And since it was the 65th year , massive efforts were made to ensure that a grand parade and concert was put up with a grand display of fireworks at night.
The Host
My couchsurfing host Daria was an absolute angel.I was introduced to her entrepreneurial family ( they sell second hand books ) who welcomed me with a picnic with shaslik (russian kebab ) .A cheerful and bright Ukrainian girl,Daria not only speaks Russian,Ukrainian but also speaks English and Arabic fluently .She holds a degree in audit and accounting , but pursued her interest and set up her own little book shop !Well travelled not just in Ukraine , she has also hopped around the Middle east,Egypt and Turkey on her own and pursued her passion for salsa dancing.It is so inspiring meeting people like that!
Checking out the city
Daria's boyfriend Sergey met me at the train station to take my luggage back to Daria's place.I was suppose to meet Zhenya at the bus station as well but she was no where to be seen until Sergey and I decided to start walking from the train station.Then , there she was.Screaming , it was absolutely amazing to see a familiar face and a friend.Zhenya joined me in my trip to Saint Petersburg, Russia in 2009.And it was incredible that i was meeting her again the next year!Although Zhenya was rushing to complete her university thesis ,she took 2 days off to show me her city and introduce me to her friends.It was amazing to catch up on everything and how unexpectedly different our lifes have evolved since a year ago.Ticking off one tourist attraction after another , we had a pleasent walk around the city.
Nadia met up with me on the last day after arriving back from a conference in Kievence.She introduced me to a group of her friends who brought me to a forest in Kharkov for a picnic.A group of high flyers who excel in their studies.This group met through a program called Tiens http://www.tiens.com/tiens/group/en/Global_TIENS/europe_region.htm
( something like a combination of superteen camp,,AIESEC ,health product ).I even had an experience of walking on hot coal not once but 3 times.
The Vietnamnese population
What surprised me was the huge number of international students in Kharkov.The vietnamese population is huge and well off .And a huge buddhist temple is constructed here in Kharkov by the Viets living here.
Daria suggested to me the Buddhist temple as a possible place to check out during my stay here.
Hidden behind high walls , security was tight and my Ukrianian friends knew that their only chance to get inside to check out the temple was through me , since i am from South East Asia.
Initially ,the ukrainian security guard refused to let me , Daria and Sergey in ,insisting that "Only people from China and Vietnam " can enter.{Since when did buddhism discriminate against people who are not from China and Vietnam?} Lucky for us, a few Vietnamese women were about to leave the temple when they found out that a Singaporean was here and was keen on visiting the temple.They invited all 3 of us in.And it was a jaw dropping experience not just for me ,but especially so for Daria and Sergey who were shocked to find such a huge and grand temple with many statues in a sprawling estate in their own city.They are perhaps one of the very few Ukrainians who have visited the temple.
We later found out why they restricted the entry of the temple.Many people misunderstood the buddhist practices ,constantly taking photos inside and were creating noise outside the temple.Fearing being misunderstood , the Vietnamese closed the temple off to the public.
At the train station , waiting for my train ride to Kharkov , Zhenya , Nadia , Daria & Sergey stood there waving.I left Kharkov with an even wider network of friends.
Love Travel , Love Life , Love Friends.Love.
Friends
Visiting Friends was the main reason for coming to Kharkov.I met 2 Ukrainian girls Zhenya & Nadia while working at a summer camp in Ohio during my 2007 summer vacation and promised that I would visit them one day.
Victory Day
Victory Day was celebrated on the 9th of May , not just in Russia but also in the former USSR countries.(ie.Ukraine !)Every city will hold huge celebrations on the 9th of May.And since it was the 65th year , massive efforts were made to ensure that a grand parade and concert was put up with a grand display of fireworks at night.
The Host
My couchsurfing host Daria was an absolute angel.I was introduced to her entrepreneurial family ( they sell second hand books ) who welcomed me with a picnic with shaslik (russian kebab ) .A cheerful and bright Ukrainian girl,Daria not only speaks Russian,Ukrainian but also speaks English and Arabic fluently .She holds a degree in audit and accounting , but pursued her interest and set up her own little book shop !Well travelled not just in Ukraine , she has also hopped around the Middle east,Egypt and Turkey on her own and pursued her passion for salsa dancing.It is so inspiring meeting people like that!
Checking out the city
Daria's boyfriend Sergey met me at the train station to take my luggage back to Daria's place.I was suppose to meet Zhenya at the bus station as well but she was no where to be seen until Sergey and I decided to start walking from the train station.Then , there she was.Screaming , it was absolutely amazing to see a familiar face and a friend.Zhenya joined me in my trip to Saint Petersburg, Russia in 2009.And it was incredible that i was meeting her again the next year!Although Zhenya was rushing to complete her university thesis ,she took 2 days off to show me her city and introduce me to her friends.It was amazing to catch up on everything and how unexpectedly different our lifes have evolved since a year ago.Ticking off one tourist attraction after another , we had a pleasent walk around the city.
Nadia met up with me on the last day after arriving back from a conference in Kievence.She introduced me to a group of her friends who brought me to a forest in Kharkov for a picnic.A group of high flyers who excel in their studies.This group met through a program called Tiens http://www.tiens.com/tiens/group/en/Global_TIENS/europe_region.htm
( something like a combination of superteen camp,,AIESEC ,health product ).I even had an experience of walking on hot coal not once but 3 times.
The Vietnamnese population
What surprised me was the huge number of international students in Kharkov.The vietnamese population is huge and well off .And a huge buddhist temple is constructed here in Kharkov by the Viets living here.
Daria suggested to me the Buddhist temple as a possible place to check out during my stay here.
Hidden behind high walls , security was tight and my Ukrianian friends knew that their only chance to get inside to check out the temple was through me , since i am from South East Asia.
Initially ,the ukrainian security guard refused to let me , Daria and Sergey in ,insisting that "Only people from China and Vietnam " can enter.{Since when did buddhism discriminate against people who are not from China and Vietnam?} Lucky for us, a few Vietnamese women were about to leave the temple when they found out that a Singaporean was here and was keen on visiting the temple.They invited all 3 of us in.And it was a jaw dropping experience not just for me ,but especially so for Daria and Sergey who were shocked to find such a huge and grand temple with many statues in a sprawling estate in their own city.They are perhaps one of the very few Ukrainians who have visited the temple.
We later found out why they restricted the entry of the temple.Many people misunderstood the buddhist practices ,constantly taking photos inside and were creating noise outside the temple.Fearing being misunderstood , the Vietnamese closed the temple off to the public.
At the train station , waiting for my train ride to Kharkov , Zhenya , Nadia , Daria & Sergey stood there waving.I left Kharkov with an even wider network of friends.
Love Travel , Love Life , Love Friends.Love.
One's destination is never a place, but a new way of seeing things. Cheap Flights to Auckland
ReplyDelete