I flew back to Kyiv from Lviv. A short flight; less than one hour. And I was back in Kyiv. Back at the Dream Hostel. I has already done nearly everything that I wanted to do in Kyiv, with two exceptions: I wanted to visit the Kyiv Pechersk Lavra and I needed to get a Covid test to return home.
The Pechersk Lavra
The Lavra is a monastery complex that sprung up around the original cave monastery founded in about 1000. It is filled with stunning churches and sacred caves. Judging by the number of bearded and black robed priests wandering about with staffs or chalices, it is an operating religious site and not just a series of photo opportunities (though it is great for the latter as well).
To get them you take the metro to the Arselana station, which is often proclaimed to be the deepest subway station in the world, although I have read that there is one deeper in Pyongyang. Even if it was not the closest stop to the Lavra, I would have made a point of going there to the [second] deepest metro station in the world.
From the metro, it is a nice, easy walk to the Lavra, past various cafes, past one of the coolest Soviet hotels I have ever seen, and through a lovely park, with statues, a Holocaust memorial site, and excellent views of the city.
The Lavra, as I mentioned, is churches. Several of them, most of them open to the public, and all but one, which was purely historical, are full of worshippers. Mostly women it seemed, in colourful headscarves, lighting candles and standing in silent prayer.
There are also a few shops, a giant silver egg, like a Ukrainian disco ball, and a bell tower that regularly proclaims itself with peals of extended chimes.
Most unique to the site were the monastery caves. They are a labyrinth containing small churches and altars, and narrow corridors, lit by candles. In addition to the shrines and rows of mummified monks, covered in ornate blankets and lying in glass coffins. There were a lot of people visiting when I was there. We queued up and descended single file into the bowels of this church, descending down in a corridor that was very narrow (no room for passing or changing your mind and turning around) and barely tall enough to to stand in. I am not claustrophobic, but moments like that is it possible to not be suddenly and keenly aware of the lack of space and means of escape? And to make things worse, everyone but me was carrying a thin, lit, candle. Ok, maybe I was being too safety conscious, but all I could think was how each person was inches from the next, with scarves and hair flowing, and…open flame? This seemed like a situation with an inevitable, macabre ending.
People gathered – no, tightly clustered – in a small chapel room, and then filed down the coffin-lined corridors. No photos were allowed. I was happy to be there, to see this sight, but I also wanted to get out before I suffocated, burned to death, or was trampled. So I did the loop without much stopping, and emerged into the light.
After the Lavra, i walked to the park and viewpoints around the Ukrainian State Museum of the Great Patriotic War, which was moderately worthwhile. I stopped for a falafel on the way and to view a collection of Ukrainian tanks on display. I popped into a craft market, and finally went to the Kyiv food market, which is like a gourmet food court with live string music.
I also spent a good part of my final day trying in vain to repair, and then replacing with sneakers a very cool and very new pair of Kat Von D boots that fell apart completely shortly after purchase. On the plus side, I now know how to ask for duct tape in Russian.
A few more pictures from my final day in Kyiv…
PCR Test
The covid test was not so easily sorted on line. I reading about how there were many clinics in Kyiv offering the PCR test, but could not determine which ones there were or which test they did, or how to secure an appointment. Through word of mouth though I did find a clinic (Synevo. All around the city and, at the time of writing, drop in PCR tests were done and were very cheap) and I walked there to make the inquiry. I returned the next day for the test and had my results (negative) within 12 hours.
Other than walking to and from clinics, I spent my final two days in Kyiv, walking and eating and not much else. I had done what I came to do and more.
I thought Ukraine was great. It was a good European holiday but at Mexico prices and without a big list of ‘must sees’ it was more about easy discovery, which meant that everything was delightful and nothing disappointing.
Return and Quarantine
Upon return from Ukraine, due to the Canadian laws at the time, I was required to spend 3 days in a government approved hotel as a quarantine facility and then 11 days at home, during which time I could not leave – not even to take out the trash. I had expected the quarantine to be torturous, but it was surprisingly fine. The hotel portion was very expensive ($1900 for 3 days, including food) but it was such a fabulous hotel that I did not want to leave. It even had a 9th floor patio on which I could smoke cigars while looking out at the ocean.
The home quarantine was inconvenient, but passed quickly. It is an experience I hope not to repeat, but for my first international trip in a year, it was well worth it.
