I lived in Ukraine from 2017 to 2018. I posted on my blog about training with professional dance ensembles, the Ukrainian lifestyle, and places I visited. My one year in Ukraine has provided me with a lifetime of stories — and then some.
Since returning to Canada, I continue to post on my blog about my experience in Ukraine and about the Ukrainian diaspora in Canada. Feel free to sign up for my newsletter to get the posts straight to your inbox.
Lately, Ukraine has been in the headlines every day in the Western world, many of the stories focusing on Donald Trump’s impeachment hearings, and others reporting from the front lines in Ukraine. If you’re looking for a bit more insight into Ukraine, here are some podcasts to help get you started.
Read MoreThe Google rabbit hole is one of my favourite places.
A few months back, I was looking for information about the lizhnyk, a traditional wool blanket from the Hutsulshchyna region of Ukraine. In January 2018, I was in Yavoriv, Ivano-Frankivsk Oblast and visited the home of a craftswoman who makes these blankets, and though I took some notes, I still wanted more info (and also was probably procrastinating doing something).
So I searched around online a bit, and I came across an article with video and photos on a website called Ukraïner. After learning more about the lizhnyk, I dove deeper into Ukrainer’s site—I was hooked. And you will be too.
Read MoreLearning a second language is tough.
I've lived in Ukraine for seven months, taking language lessons two to three times per week. And my skills are nowhere near where I want them to be. I usually just resort to the friendly smile and nod, smile and nod.
I've met countless people in Ukraine who speak multiple languages — Ukrainian, Russian, Polish, German, and English are a few common ones. And each time I hear the number of languages they speak, I am amazed.
When we (attempt to) speak Ukrainian or when the Ukrainians speak English, sometimes there are funny mistranslations. In Kyiv, a friend once said she had a "raining" nose instead of a "runny" nose. And there have been many times we've mispronounced Ukrainian words, saying foul words instead of what we meant.
Read MoreI walk the walk but I don't talk the talk.
While walking the streets, ordering in restaurants, and buying groceries people have mistaken me and the other Canadians/Americans as locals. We just smile and shake our heads or offer a "Я не знаю" (I don't know) or "Я не розумію" (I don't understand).
I do my best to keep up at dance, and at times (very few times, that is) I even blend in with the other 40 dancers, if I do say so myself.
But the language, I'm not quite there yet.
Read MoreIt's Kyiv.
OK, maybe it's not that straightforward.
In Ukrainian, it's Київ, or Kyiv. In Russian, it's Киев, or Kiev.
So using Kyiv separates Ukraine from Russia, though some say Kiev isn't necessarily Russian, but rather the English/international spelling.
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