4 Days in Ukraine

4 Days in 2025 Ukraine

A few quick notes:

Ukraine is in Eastern Europe, and Ukraine’s border town Uzhhorod is in the region known as Zakarpattia or Carpathian Ruthenia. Just to get it out of the way, this area is in and near the Carpathian mountains, where this guy was supposed to be from:

No, he did not exist.  I had to explain this point to my gracious (and patient) host, who had not seen Ghostbusters II, or at least had not remembered it.  I have no idea how it might have been translated back in the 80s, if it had been shown at all.

Setting the record straight in another area: Ukraine is also not a depressing post-Soviet landscape of brutal cement buildings and ugly apartment towers built for workers.  Sure, some of that exists in each city, but the countryside in this region is dotted with centuries-old castles, and its towns sport ornate churches and walkable “old towns” filled with outdoor cafes, cute little shops, and the occasional riverwalk.  The war’s front line is in the eastern part of Ukraine, where much of the destruction and fighting has taken place.  Uzhhorod and Lviv, where I visited, are relatively peaceful and have served as a sanctuary for those displaced or recuperating from more war-torn areas of Ukraine.  But the war is ever present, and there is no illusion that the area is immune from attack.  In fact, just 2 weeks after my trip, Russia attacked Lviv with drones and missiles fired from ships and fighter jets.  It was the worst attack since the start of the 2022 Russian invasion, and killed 5 people and caused a massive blackout, since it targeted residential buildings and civilian and energy infrastructure.

And the most obvious question you might be asking: why visit a war-torn country for vacation?  Frankly, it was not my intention at first.   I have been volunteering with a nonprofit called ENGin, which pairs American and other English-speakers with Ukrainian English learners for language practice and cultural exchange.  When I told my Ukrainian student/buddy that I was going to travel to Vienna, Austria, she proposed a side trip to Uzhhorod, Ukraine, her hometown.  I balked at first, but came around as I learned more about the region and level of risk, and I had wanted to visit Ukraine for years and could not pass up the opportunity to visit and report back on what I experienced.  It was also an excellent chance for my buddy to practice English with me intensively, since we would be spending at least 20 hours in a car just getting to and from Ukraine (starting from Austria), and then touring around the region. 

So, my journey started when my buddy picked me up from the airport in Vienna, and the next day we took the scenic route to Ukraine, through Budapest, Hungary, and the rolling countryside of Slovakia.  After the 7+ hour trip and jet lag, I was too exhausted to do much more than get settled into my hotel.  

Day 1 Uzhhorod:

On my first full day in Ukraine I was momentarily alarmed in the morning by a man’s voice coming through my hotel skylight over a neighborhood loudspeaker, making an official-sounding announcement I could not understand, followed by a series of beeps that seemed to go on forever, followed by another announcement, and then singing. I thought at first it was an air raid, but learned later it was a moment of silence for the fallen and the national anthem that is broadcast every morning at 9 a.m. It is a daily reminder of the fact this is a war zone, no matter how peaceful it seems in daily life.

The morning’s activity started with a visit to the military cemetery with my buddy and her mother. My buddy’s brother was buried there - he had joined the forces in his 50s with no military experience, but a fierce desire to protect his country from the Russian invaders. My buddy’s mom visits her son’s grave as often as she can, lighting candles and tidying his final resting place. Farther up the hill, I visited the grave of a young man who died in the Anti-Terrorist Operation (ATO) in 2018, which began in April 2014 as a short-term military response to Russia-backed separatist takeovers in the Donbas region of Ukraine. He was brilliant and had served in the mechanized division, teaching other soldiers how to navigate complex new technologies in tanks. His grave, being in the older section, was elevated and encased in stone, with a marble tombstone engraved with his image. The newer graves down the hill were simpler, with soldiers’ photographs, flags of their divisions, and the national flag with their image superimposed on it. Each grave was decorated with blue and yellow flowers, votive candles, and mementos and messages from loved ones and brothers in arms. A few of the older ones in that section had the beginnings of their more permanent memorials, as the local leadership was working through the process of constructing them.

 

At the cemetery, I was reminded that the current war didn’t start with the 2022 Russian invasion in eastern Ukraine, but rather the Russian annexation of Crimea in 2014.  Tragically, in both towns I visited on this trip, there were monuments to the fallen soldiers of the Crimea conflict that have had to be expanded or otherwise altered to include those who have died since the second 2022 Russian invasion. 

In Uzhhorod, the military cemetery also had to be altered. Soldiers from the Crimean conflict were interred in the older part of the cemetery, under an assumption the war was over after a peace accord was reached.  Since 2022’s invasion, however, the newer gravesites have had to encroach on a grassy area farther down the hill, since so many more soldiers have died.  In the four days I spent in Uzhhorod, three new graves were dug, three more funeral processions wound through the town, with folks stopping their cars and getting out to stand in respect or get down on their knees to pray. Of course, this is only one small town.  The toll is much higher across the country, especially in larger cities.  

Uzhhorod Castle

There are a handful of people in Uzhhorod who own five passports, even though they never moved from their home.   This is thanks to the border moving, encompassing Uzhhorod in one empire or another, and Ukraine gaining its independence twice in the past 100 years. Uzhhorod castle, which was founded in the 13^th century, has an exhibit on the history of the area, including a map on the wall showing how the border moved just in the early 1900s.  I circled Uzhhorod in red in the picture, showing how at the time it was ruled by Austria-Hungary.

Another floor of the castle had an exhibit of the Czechoslovak period, when Carpatho-Ukraine declared independence in 1939, and then later when Ukraine was encompassed by the Soviet Union.  Not surprisingly, independence and dignity are highly valued among Ukrainians and, as my buddy reiterated, they just want to be left alone, not part of any other empire. 

Our final stop in the castle was the dungeon, with a spooked-up “torture chamber” from the “inquisition” (according to a docent who emerged from the gloom), replete with mannequins of both interrogators and victims in various stages of distress.  This was the first of two such chambers in the castles I visited, no doubt intended to thrill tourists, although with questionable provenance of equipment and placement within the castle walls.  Uzhhorod castle’s chamber also included a small passage in the wall, high up, with a dwarf mannequin dressed as a courtier, representing “walls have ears,” a fuzzy stuffed rat at his feet.

Museum of Folk Architecture and Rural Life

Just outside the Uzhhorod castle in Ukraine, there is an open-air cultural heritage living history museum (minus the costumed role players on this visit).  I got a glimpse of how people lived in Uzhorod’s countryside over the past few centuries, including St Michael the Archangel, a wooden Greek Catholic church that is still in use. 

My buddy pointed out how the designs of the clothes hanging up in the cottages dotting the museum site had patterns distinct to the region, and typically Ukrainian.  

At the last building we visited, the docent was an elderly woman selling hand-embroidered souvenirs, including a patch typically worn by soldiers, but which I bought anyway to frame since it had the Ukrainian blue and yellow with the distinct trident national emblem.  It turned out she was trying to support herself with her embroidery because she was internally displaced from eastern Ukraine, where the fighting along the front lines had driven her from her home to the relative safety of Uzhhorod.

Day 2 Uzhhorod

On my second full day in Uzhhorod, an economics scholar -- and avid local historian -- from the University of Uzhhorod gave me a tour of the administrative area in Uzhhorod, where Czech, Hungarian, and Soviet architecture reflects the various times borders have shifted across the region.   My favorite building was of Czech design, with interior courtyards and high ceilings allowing for light and air during the workday, and the façade and interior spaces both had Art Deco motifs and elegant grillwork.  This contrasted with the Soviet-era university, which had an entryway mosaic of stylized and rigid workers in an almost Egyptian hieroglyph style.  In the far corners on either side of the mosaic were figures representing traditional rural Ukrainians, which seemed to be as much as they were going to allow in the way of Ukrainian identity.

Upstairs from the entryway we visited the university archeology department, where the faculty and staff were kind enough to answer my questions and show me around their one-room museum.  The exhibits spanned over 10,000 years, with artifacts from mammoth teeth to centuries old stirrups and pottery.  Even here, though, the war encroached: the archaeology department recently had a human skull that needed to be analyzed to determine its identity and medical history, but this is a rare skill, and only one person in the university had the necessary expertise.  However, he had joined the army to fight the invasion, and so the team had to carefully box up the skull and send it to the front lines so he could conduct his assessment.

My final full day in Uzhhorod, Ukraine ended with a beautiful evening spent walking around downtown. Sadly, we witnessed another military funeral procession wending its way through the center of the town. We also happened upon a memorial to Uzhhorod’s fallen, with large photos of the soldiers with votive candles left by family, friends, and supporters. The first panel in the memorial was a graphic of a soldier angel, his wings blue and yellow, and the words "They Died for Ukraine!" in Cyrillic alphabet below the image.

Translation: They Died for Ukraine!

We rounded out the day hunting for little sculptures dotting railings all along the riverwalk.  My favorite one was a cherubic Statue of Liberty perched on a corner railing at one end of the bridge, with little plaques on the ground below indicating the direction and distance of cities around the world.  My host told me there have been contests in past years where people would hunt for the sculptures, which are all over the town, with prizes for those who find them all.  

Day 3 Uzhhorod -> Lviv

I was jolted awake by an air raid siren at 5:30 on my third day in Uzhhorod.  The only thing that kept me from panicking was that my host had assured me no attacks had yet occurred in Uzhhorod, and I heard no doors opening or steps on the stairs to indicate people were seeking shelter.  I simply stayed in bed listening for the all-clear signal, which I finally heard around 6 a.m.  

The better part of the day was spent on the 4-hour trip north to Lviv.  Originally, I was reluctant to spend the night there because there have been some occasional air assaults on the city and drones had recently flown over the Lviv region into Poland airspace.  However, my host and her contacts in Lviv were confident the trip would be uneventful.  Our route took us through fields of corn and sunflowers, with the occasional castle visible in the distance, and then over the Carpathian mountains shrouded in clouds.  We descended into Lviv, just 43 miles from the border with Poland, which is reflected in the architecture of the city.

We made our way our hotel, which was a short walk to the central square.  After getting settled in, we strolled into a plaza where we happened upon a rally for Ukraine and other countries and regions that have been invaded or occupied by Russia.  Most attendees held or wrapped themselves in the Ukrainian flag emblazoned with a photo of fallen soldier from their family. Young women held aloft flares releasing blue, yellow, green, or black smoke, representing the flags of the regions affected.  

We left the square and explored the cafes and landmarks of Lviv, circling back to one of the main squares, where I finally visited the mothership of the coolest (in my opinion) Ukrainian clothing brand: Aviatsiya Halychyny.  This company was founded 10 years ago, inspired by the Ukrainian Army, and a percentage of much of their merchandise goes to support the armed forces of Ukraine.  But really, I just love their graphics and the fact that proceeds from my Banksy-inspired “swarm of revenge” t-shirt will actually go towards supporting Ukraine’s drone program.   I am impressed to the point of obsession over Ukraine’s drone industry, which is cutting edge and mostly self-sufficient out of necessity, mobilizing regular folks with crossover skills to build them (nail technicians and jewelers are apparently well suited for this work)

After a dinner of traditional borsht, bread, and salted fatback, we returned to the big plaza where the day’s rally had been held, only now musical groups were entertaining crowds.  One was an informal brass band encircled by onlookers, some of whom were dancing.  The other was a five-person group of entertainers dressed in military fatigues, performing songs to boost spirits and raise money for the war effort.   Many were upbeat and making fun of Russia, but one particularly poignant one titled “Mama” was about a young man leaving home to go to war and apologizing to his mother that he had to go fight for his country.  Even the youngest audience members were riveted.

Day 4 Lviv to Uzhhorod

My one night in Lviv was uneventful, but in the morning I noticed that a large corner of the hotel breakfast room had a bookcase and beanbag chairs: the bomb shelter.  On the second floor they had also stationed cots that could be brought down quickly in case of an air raid.  The reminders of war are ever present, even in places where Ukrainians are doing their best trying to carry on with normal life, with rallies and banners alongside elegant cafes, historic buildings, cute shops, musicians, and sidewalk singalong choruses. 

On our way back to Uzhhorod, we swung  by Mukachevo Castle, also known as Palanok Castle, a much-renovated medieval fortress that I was intrigued to visit because at one point in the late 1600s it was ruled by a brave princess, Ilona Zrinyi.  She alone led the castle during a siege by the Hapsburg Empire lasting nearly 3 years, ending with her surrender as ruler of Transvlania.  Another exhibit at the castle dedicated to the stories and writings of political prisoners in the 1700s, including the codes the prisoners would use to communicate between cells, and horrifying descriptions of the conditions they lived -- and died -- under.

Incongruously, just a few rooms away from the exhibit for Ilona Zrinyi, the castle had three rooms dedicated to the current war with Russia, including modern photographs and mannequins sporting camouflage and captured Russian drones.

The current war exhibit was just upstairs from another touristy castle “torture dungeon”, replete with inquisitors and body parts in gruesome gadgets. The mix of historic, modern, and silly in this and other castles is reflection of the different groups providing support for the upkeep of historic spaces, not all of whom can be fully funded by the national or local government.

Day 5 – Uzhhorod -> Vienna

After an uneventful night in Uzhhorod we had a border crossing and another 7-hour car ride back to Vienna.   I am posting a final shot of the Transcarpathian mountains, taken from the road.

Since leaving Ukraine, I have been absorbing what I experienced in Uzhhorod and Liviv.   I increasingly see Ukraine’s story, both the current war and its long history of fighting for independence, as part of a larger struggle globally for freedom and self-determination.  It was a true honor to have been able to tour around western Ukraine, and I have deep gratitude to my ENGin buddy for graciously hosting me, driving me for hours on end, and persevering with such an extended and intense time practicing her English skills.  

Slava Ukraini!!