Please keep Ukraine and the Ukrainian people in your thoughts. Just before the pandemic, Therese had the chance to stroll the now-embattled streets of Kyiv prior to spending several days photographing Chernobyl (currently occupied by invading Russian soldiers). We are horrified by the unprovoked Russian invasion of Ukraine and the daily crimes against humanity being committed by Russia on a sovereign nation so proud of its independence. We stand with Ukraine and pray that soon we will be able to travel there again and meet up with the friends Therese made.
Little did I know that a last-minute trip to Kyiv and Ukraine in early 2020 would be followed by a pandemic and then a horrific war, effectively closing the borders of the country I hoped to return to. View photos of this beautiful Ukrainian city – Kyiv before the war.
What does apocalypse look like? In 1986, a nuclear explosion in today’s Ukraine spewed 400 times more radiation into the atmosphere than Hiroshima, devastating the lives of so many. This is what Chernobyl looked like when I visited and spent four days in the abandoned nuclear zone in 2020.
Traveling to tour the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone is on a lot of travel bucket lists these days. That’s where the nuclear plant exploded in 1986. I had the chance to visit Kyiv and the Chernobyl area in Ukraine on a winter photography trip.
Whether served hot in the winter or cold in summer, this Ukrainian-style ginger tea recipe with lemon, mint and cloves is sure to make you smile. Subscriber Club members can download the ginger tea recipe for free.
Ostannya Barykada restaurant, also known as the Last Barricade restaurant, is a hidden secret worth discovering in Kyiv. It is not just a restaurant with historic décor and astounding, creative, all-Ukrainian food and drink. Think of Ostannya Barykada as a gastronomic space in a museum that gives a huge bear hug to the essence of Ukraine.
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