Я повертаюся додому! (I return home!)

I'm on a train journey back to Kharkiv, which started in Keighley in northern England, where I stayed with a friend. Of course, there was a ferry crossing - from Hull to the Netherlands, where I stayed with another good friend, and also a great supporter of Ukraine.


It was a wonderful, relaxing time, with also lots of exploration, walking and cycling, and some previously untried experiences - riding on the back of a bicycle, 'side saddle,' and operating a hand-pulled ferry!

The journey home has already involved several train and bus rides, as rail services in the Netherlands and Germany were disrupted on the day I left. Now I'm on my way to Lviv and a final overnight sleeper train to Kharkhiv. It has to be my favourite way of getting to sleep, being rocked (not always gently!) by the train.
Some of the trains are very old-fashioned, with not a piece of plastic in sight...

The situation continues to be difficult in Kharkiv and region. I still get the air raid alerts whilst I'm away and they're constant. Sometimes there's an alert of increased danger to the city, such as now, as I write. 

Two people were killed and five injured in Kharkiv yesterday afternoon, after Russian glide bombs struck an apartment building. It was the second attack on the city in a day; in the earlier attack, more than 20 people were reported injured.
These are just two among many attacks on Kharkiv and, of course, the rest of Ukraine, which have continued in my absence. Most don't make international headlines, I believe.

But, as far as it can, life goes on in Kharkhiv. This is a nice article about all the efforts to keep the artistic scene alive, including literature, sculpture, painting, food and street art. Hamlet, the street artist I mentioned in my last blog, is wrongly spelled, I believe.

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/oct/05/there-is-a-sense-of-safety-here-the-artists-keeping-culture-alive-in-kharkiv-ukraine

Franklin, Hell's Kitchen volunteer coordinator (amongst many other things!), continues to use donations for aid to military and medical units. In the photo below, he is fulfilling a request for energy drinks for the troops. The aid drivers are heading out to drop off all kinds of aid, including the drinks...

To donate:  buymeacoffee.com/franklinat9  or PayPal  bearstateteacher1@yahoo.com

Adults for Children continues it's support of families in frontline areas and those who are living as refugees in the city. I'm sending regular donations, many of which are used to buy medication that is often unaffordable, especially for families who are bombed out of their homes and have to start again.

I've now left the village of Trawden that has given aid to Ukraine, through donations, since the beginning of the full invasion. People in Trawden and the surrounding area have opened their homes to Ukrainian refugees through the UK sponsorship scheme.
Whilst I was packing all my things, I touched base with friends in the village, including Jo who (with others) organises craft events and an ongoing stall in the community library, to raise money for Ukraine...

...and Mary, who knits tiny teddies, also to sell in support of Ukraine. She said that they seem to have gone 'viral' so she knits at a rate of 3 teddies per night! She gave this bag to me to take back to Kharkiv.

I will keep my much-valued relationship with Trawden alive because I really appreciate the support.

And now, I'm very much looking forward to getting back to Kharkiv and resuming my baking duties in Hell's Kitchen.

Donations, however small, to PayPal: sunflower_house@hotmail.co.uk

Comments

  1. Mike WrightOctober 9, 2024 at 2:47 PM

    Thank you for the update, Fiona, much appreciated. Stay safe xx

    ReplyDelete
  2. AnonymousOctober 15, 2024 at 9:38 PM

    Hi Fionna, I'm Steve Johnson, an old school friend of Helen Carlton Smith. I arrived in Kharkiv to work as a volunteer on Monday 14th Oct. Helen kindly shared this link of yours and I would very much like to meet up you in the coming days. I am staying at the Asotel Hotel near the city centre and my Ukrainian phone number is +380 95 869 53 39. If you have time, please give me a call today or anytime. It would be great and a huge benefit to have a fellow Brit to have a chat with regarding volunteering options. Thanks Fiona. Steve.

    ReplyDelete
  3. AnonymousOctober 23, 2024 at 1:20 AM

    Would it be a good idea to ask Wiltshire WI to help knit tiny teddies? I am a trustee and could promote it

    ReplyDelete

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