The bread basket of Europe

Valsala R takes you on an armchair trip across Ukraine.

So, here’s a question for all you newspaper readers: Which country has been almost constantly in the news over the past few years? Please don’t say the USA, which is almost always in the news! If you said Ukraine, then you’re absolutely correct. But is the only thing you know about Ukraine the fact that there’s an ongoing war there with Russia over the past 3 years? Let’s look closer at this nation.

After Russia, Ukraine is the next largest country in Europe. In the 6th century Ukraine was one among the Roman and Byzantine colonies on the shores of the Black Sea. In the 9th century the Scandinavian Prince Oleg conquered Kyiv and made it the capital of Rus.

It became the largest and most powerful state in Europe during the 10th and 11th centuries. In the 13th century the Mongols invaded and destroyed Kyiv — not the first time or the last time that’s happened, as history knows! T

he newly formed state of Galicia-Volhynia that includes Ukraine, was partitioned in the 14th century between the Kingdom of Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. Ukraine became a province of the Russian Empire in the 18th century. The nobles and the clergy were expected to swear allegiance to Russia.

Soon enough, a Ukranian national movement demanding greater autonomy and focusing on Ukranian culture and language began. By the end of the 19th century, Ukraine had begun to be industrialised and its economy had grown but it continued to be a Russian dominion. Famine came and so did WW1. In 1922, the USSR was formed and Ukraine was absorbed into it. 

You must have watched many Hollywood movies where the Russians are the ‘bad guys’ and there’s a lot of mention of the ‘Cold War’. The USSR and the US were vying with each other to be the better nation — in political systems, in nuclear power, in culture and in international influence. Until, in 1985, along came a Soviet leader called Mikhail Gorbachev. His policies opened up the USSR to the outside world. The winds of change swept in. Ukraine held the first free elections since World War Two in 1989 and in 1991, Ukraine declared independence from the Soviet Union. By 1992, the USSR had become 15 separate and distinct nations.

After such a tumultuous history, independent Ukraine faced several economic challenges. However, fertile land and good weather made it known as the bread basket of Europe. It is a major producer of the world’s wheat and also of sunflowers and sunflower products such as oil. Imagine fields upon fields of yellow!

Perhaps you’ve heard of the Chernobyl disaster where a nuclear power reactor burst in 1986 contaminating the surrounding area with the fallout? Ukraine does have nuclear reactors at 4 sites. However, Ukraine is a signatory to the Non-proliferation Treaty since 1994.

Ukraine’s national dish is borscht, a red soup made from beetroot and beef. But also popular are dumplings or pancakes filled with meat, potatoes and cheese, and cabbage rolls stuffed with meat and rice.

Did you know that Easter eggs originated in Ukraine? They were originally coloured, and patterns were put on them using wax and dye.

Ukrainians speak Ukranian (duh). But most of them speak Russian too owing to the long connection with that country. Ukraine’s chequered history also ensures that several other languages are spoken, from Hungarian to Polish to Greek and several more.

There are 7 world heritage sites to be explored in Ukraine (once the war is over!). One of these is the Saint-Sophia Cathedral in the capital city of Kyiv. This is a beautiful show piece of architecture and art dating from the 11th century. It has the biggest collection of mosaics and frescoes of that period.

And if romance is your thing, then there’s the unique tourist attraction called the ‘Tunnel of Love’ — a section of spectacular greenery where couples go for walks. Or there’s the traditional Ivan Kupala Day in June, where couples join hands and leap over a fire. People believe that if a couple can skip over a fire without letting go of each other’s hands then their love will last a lifetime.

The port city of Odesa is famous in books and films especially for the unique Potemkin stairs — a wide ‘road’ connecting the harbour to the city centre which is actually one long staircase. The Odesa catacombs are around 3,000 kilometres in length and are a sight for the more adventurous to explore. 

Like all nations, Ukraine has its own folklore. One of the most famous is the story of ‘The Mitten’ — A mitten was once lost in a forest. As winter had come, small animals began to take shelter in the warm wool. Time went by and more and more animals came for the warmth, each one bigger than the last. Finally, the mitten could hold no more and it burst, spilling out all the animals into the cold. Hm… methinks there’s a moral there somewhere. 

Back home: Could it be that when something’s freely available we strain the resource more than we should, until finally, it’s not available to anyone? Water in Bengaluru?