Fiona4Ukraine

Today, Tuesday 19 November, marks 1000 days since Russia's full-scale invasion, which has led to the deaths of thousands of Ukrainian citizens, more than 6 million living abroad as refugees and Ukraine's population falling by a quarter. Finally, the US, hopefully followed by the UK and other European countries, has allowed limited strikes by long-range missiles into Kursk region, to strike barracks, fuel and logistics hubs inside Russia. One of the Hell's Kitchen's volunteer drivers took a series of photos in the hospitals we help. This was the message from the kitchen's founder: "I thought that it is important not only to display them on the page, but also to share them with you. Because this is what we do every day. These are the people we support: children, mothers, and those who gave their health, risked their lives for our safety and peace... ...We a...

It can be tempting to always highlight the bad news and overlook the good. Because Kharkiv continues to suffer daily bombing attacks. Trump has won the US election, the consequences of which are uncertain but likely to be difficult...although the Ukrainians I've spoken to just shrug and say that they can't do anything about it and have to carry on, with life and work. So this will be a good news blog! On Wednesday morning I took the Metro underground train to the north of the city, to my Yoga class. Being able to attend a live class in Kharkiv is a pleasure, although the challenging exercises not so much! Then I travelled by Metro to the end of the line in the south of the city: a district with a sprawling mass of apartment blocks, some not in very good condition, probably dating from Soviet times. But at some point a decision was taken to paint huge murals with exotic wildlife themes on some of the apartment sides. You can sit in a nice cafe and drink a good cup of coffee, in ...