48 Hours in Lviv, Ukraine

This trip report is part 4 of a 5 part series of my time in Ukraine. Stories previously posted include my U.S. State Department sponsored service trip, travels through the Ukrainian countryside, and a visit to the Carpathian Mountains. Please use the search function to find out more about these other trips.

In May of 2012, I had the fortune of being selected as a member of a U.S. delegation to help teach Ukrainian government officials about U.S. style local government. Our delegation consisted of me, from Illinois, Dave and Paul from Washington State, and Marcia from Washington DC. We all worked in varying capacities for local or regional governments or not-for-profit organizations. We were accompanied by Slava and Natalie, two Ukrainians who had earlier visited the U.S. as part of a U.S. Department of State reciprocal program.

Our service trip wasn’t all business and no pleasure. We had a lot of time “off of the clock” while in the big cities or while in transit between them. MK joined us midway during our time in this fabulous country. The cultural exchange and learning experience to us as delegates was, I’m certain, just as valuable as the governance experience the Ukrainians were learning from us.

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Our apartment was on the third floor of a very old building right in the middle of Lviv's old city center. Our apartment had three bedrooms and one sleeping area in the living room. Poor Paul, he got the living room area, but he didn't seem to mind at all. The rest of us got our own bedrooms. The five of us would be sharing the one bathroom with its small shower, tub, and toilet. This would be our home for the next three nights.

We would see a lot more of the city the following day with a guide who we have yet to meet. For now, we would only see a small portion of it as we traveled up the street from our apartment to a grocery store. We supplied the apartment with bottled water, toilet paper, coffee, and other essentials while the rest went to a coffee house to get the Internet access they desperately yearned for to contact loved ones back home.

Natalie met us at our apartment around noon the following day and walked with us to the city center to meet our guide for the day. Solamia was a beautiful girl with a wonderful smile and long auburn hair that reached down to the middle of her back. She was studying English literature at the local university and, as a result, her English skills were excellent. She led us around the historic part of the city center showing us the sights and telling us facts that one would never know nor learn about if instead you were to take a self guided tour or a tour from a commercial guide service.

Solamia, our guide for the day

Downtown Lviv is part of a UNESCO world heritage site. It is very European in its layout and architecture. Unlike Kiev and Kharkiv, which clearly have a Russian and Soviet influence and emphasis on their architecture and style, Lviv is quaint and more human scale with narrow streets made of cobblestone, buildings up close to the sidewalk, and squares and greens on every block.

Lviv's famous opera house

A blend of European and Russian architecture

If memory serves, this was one of Lviv's oldest buildings

One of the only known statues of Jesus sitting

Statuary on the opera house. There is a reason I took
this photo, but can't remember why....

Some of interesting facts and sights Solamia shared with us included: a river was rerouted to make room for the famous opera house; an adjacent opera house was built by a rich baron so that his wife could sing, not being good enough for the bigger and more famous opera house next door; a guy named Masoch, from which masochism  is named after, has a restaurant and museum named in his honor, his statue out in front with a pocket in his trousers for the women to stick their hand into; another, more secret restaurant, where the front door opens to a very small and non-descript apartment, with a stooped-over man sitting at a small cluttered desk, asking if the ladies are married, and for those that are not, inviting them into his bedroom, the door of which opens into a restaurant dining room; yet another restaurant where the front door is guarded by a man dressed as a World War II partisan, with access given only to those that know the secret password ("free Ukraine!"), and led into a deep dungeon where the dining rooms are all decorated with pictures and relics from the time of Soviet and Nazi oppression; and various churches and statues, all depicting certain historical periods or commemorating famous people from the past.

Natalie and Vasil enjoy a mid day beverage with us 

MK cops a feel. Doesn't look like Mr. Masoch is smiling

OK guys, take a seat

Girls, your turn

Solamia's recounting of the history of the city and the region makes me question some of my true heritage. Boundaries between Poland, Ukraine, Russia, Germany and Austria changed many times over the centuries. In the late 1700s, the region was taken over from the Poles by the Austrian-Hapsburg Empire, and things stayed that way until around 1915 to 1920, when the Poles briefly reclaimed the area. So, that means that much of my grandmother's early years (she was born in 1900 and left to come to the United States in 1919/20) were during this Austrian rule, not Polish rule. This also means that for two centuries prior, my ancestors likewise lived in a region that was not Polish, but Austrian. I know for a fact that my grandmother and kin all spoke Polish, but now I have more questions than answers.

Slava had since arrived in Lviv and met us back at the apartment. MK and I discussed with him the chances of us making it to Schumsk, the town were my grandmother was born (Lviv, Schumsk, and other nearby regions were at one time on the Poland side of the border). After discussing options and looking at maps indicating it was nearly 200 kilometers and three hours away by car, we decided that we could not fit it into our schedule. My first obligation on this trip was to be at the meetings and events that have been scheduled as part of the American Council’s program.

Slava and his fiance, Iryna, discuss finances over drinks

To go to Shumsk would mean that I would miss one, if not two, of the meetings scheduled in the coming days. I don’t think I will regret being this close and not seeing part of my heritage. We did see enough of the countryside while on the train coming to this area to get a flavor of what the small villages look like. I’m sure Schumsk is very similar.

We spent the majority of the next day on our own and away from the others. MK and I toured the old part of the city and did some people watching along the main promenade. You know what they say about Ukrainian women being amongst the most beautiful in the world? Well, they are right. Wow! And they are everywhere.

See what I mean?

Yowza!

Gives new meaning to the term "thigh gap"

Hey, how did that get in here!?

OK, back to business

Are those painted on?

They are particularly fond a very high spiked high heels and wedge type shoes. We found it astounding that these women could successfully walk on the many cobblestone streets and sidewalks while wearing these shoes. Some of them bordered on the ridiculous.

Ouch!

Won't this cause problems down the road?

Podiatrists in town must make a killing

What the...?

This esteemed panel of judges agree

She seems to agree as well

Being very thirsty from all of this gawking, I bought myself a bottle of soda. We just sat down on a park bench and took a sip when an old man, perhaps homeless, spotted us from across the way. He pointed at me, said something in Ukrainian, got up off of his bench and walked over to us. His stained and tattered pants barely stayed up as he walked. As he neared, he pointed at my soda. When he got close to me, he reached for the bottle, grabbed it, and took a long gulp. He handed it back to me.

"Szank you veddee mooch," he said and walked away.

MK and I both stared at each other in disbelief. Was this one of those prank TV shows and we were being filmed? Of course I wasn't going to finish the soda, so I ran after him and handed him the bottle once I reached him.

"Szank you veddee mooch," he said again, this time taking my now half-empty bottle before walking off and into the crowd.

I didn't dare buy another drink until we were at dinner at an indoor restaurant.

The following morning, Natalie's husband, Vasil, accompanied us to the train station. He helped us with our train tickets and showed us how and where to successfully board the train. He arranged pictures of our group and pointed out the bullets marks on the station’s supporting columns, leftovers from the time enemy planes strafed the station during World War II.

MK and Vasil discuss train travel

Every trip needs a group picture.
(l to r) Me, MK, Paul, Marcia, Vasil, and Dave

While we would see Natalie again later in the week, this would be the last time we would see Vasil. Both he and his wife have been the friendliest and most hospitable hosts one could ever ask for. We sadly waved goodbye to him from the train windows and we pulled away for the start of our overnight trip to Kiev.

Saying goodbye to Vasil from the train window

In one of the four bed compartments were Dave, Paul, and Marcia. The fourth bed was used to store our numerous pieces of luggage. In the other compartment were MK and I, which we shared with Michael and Natalia, a young couple from Kiev. She was able to speak better English than he. We had a pleasant conversation with them. She said she enjoyed having an opportunity to practice her English.

Michael and Natalia share our train's compartment

The ride was very uncomfortable. I slept poorly due to the heat and stuffiness of the train. MK got up and threw up one last time. She had experienced some nagging nausea over the past couple of days. She was good and empty now.