Applying for a visa during an aerial bombardment...

After a relatively quiet couple of weeks in Kharkiv city (NOT in Kharkiv region, which is bombarded daily), there was a wave of missile attacks today: six altogether, between about 5 am and 6 pm. The first explosion I heard was whilst waiting in a queue inside the immigration office, with another volunteer and a translator, to continue the process of applying for a temporary volunteer visa. It may seem like dark humour, but it would have been ironic to have been hit by a bomb whilst doing this! After the explosion everyone was herded into a dark corridor, for relative safety, and our paperwork was checked by an official by torchlight. However, although the paperwork was correct, the visa couldn't be issued without the government computer system being in operation, which it never is during an air raid alert - and Kharkiv is under an almost continuous alert! (The longest, so far, on 21 July, was 1 day, 14 hours and 16 minutes.) After 3 hours of waiting, we were advised to return in the morning, in the hope that there will not be an air alert. I may take sandwiches!

These vicious aerial attacks have, as usual, injured a number of civilians (fatalities have not yet been determined) in the city and caused widespread damage, including to the office of The Swiss Foundation for Mine Action, an international humanitarian organisation engaged in demining the Kharkiv region.

Observant readers will note that I have a new blogsite, thanks to a huge amount of help from my good friend, Jos (also a Hell's Kitchen Volunteer). This seems like an obvious step in moving on from the end of a personal and working relationship with Bob, which will also result in a move away from the lovely village of Trawden and its supportive community. Thank you, everyone, for your continued support and donations, which have continued, even though Ukraine has dropped from the news headlines. With a recent donation, the local Kharkiv charity, Adults For Children, was able to buy a significant quantity of pain relieving medication for terminally ill children. 

These medicines are expensive for people on low incomes here and they are often hard to find. £50 will go a long way, and I can't think of many things more worthwhile than easing the pain and suffering of ill children. (I also have a new PayPal address for donations.)

Adults For Children, in general, supports internally displaced people, which has become an ever-increasing task since the Russian army began an offensive in the north of the region two months ago. There has been an influx of at least 10,000 refugees into the city.

In Kharkiv we have been sweltering in record-breaking heat for weeks - the large thermometer in the city centre broke when it hit 40 degrees!! This was the temperature after 8pm one evening....

There has been practically no rain for weeks so, when we did have a short shower one day, we left the kitchen to stand out in the rain and cool down!

In Hell's Kitchen, we've been fortunate in having a large influx of international volunteers over the summer months. This has kept me busy in my role of coordination, which includes making sure we have enough volunteers for the various tasks in the kitchen, meeting new volunteers at the station and helping them to settle in. I've also done a tour of the various hostels and inexpensive hotels that volunteers can stay in. I'm really enjoying the variety of the role.

We have had volunteers from many places, including Belgium, France, Italy, Scotland, England and the USA. Recently, we've had American volunteers who have bakery businesses at home so we've had lots of tips on bread-making, as well as donations of a new freezer and bread mixer. 

I'm still finding time for my much-loved riverside walks...

 I'm constantly amazed by the number of swallows, which have been around for weeks. They are so loud in the sky outside my apartment that they drown out the noise of traffic!

To make a donation, please:

Open PayPal and, when asked for email, enter sunflower_house@hotmail.com