I am currently working on an article about the Ukrainian port city of Odessa, where I was staying in January 2020, until the Corona pandemic called me back home. Because the article will be as comprehensive as you already fear, I will need a few more days of writing.
Sifting through the photos, I had to choke when I came across this one: a map of the siege of Odessa in 1941, photographed at the “Museum of the Heroic Defense of Odessa at the site of the 411th Battery” – and suddenly of tragic topicality.
At Odessa’s main train station, the city still proudly displays the Order of Lenin and the title “Hero City”, awarded by Stalin in recognition of Odessa’s long perseverance during the siege by the German and Romanian armies. In light of this, it is all the more cynical to sell the current Russian invasion as a campaign of “denazification”.
But I will of course also talk about all the other sides of Odessa: art, culture, city history, the movie-famous staircase, cats and why you should not necessarily take the cheapest ship for your onward journey.
In the meantime, we can only hope that Odessa will not be reduced to rubble like other cities in Ukraine have. And if there is something you always wanted to know about Odessa: Just leave a comment.
Links:
- More reports from Ukraine.
- The more people who support this blog, the faster I can write, by the way.
The Happy Hermit 
Looking forward to revisiting vicariously. I do remember Ooohing and Ahhhhing over the beautiful buildings while you were there.
I wrote a bunch more but deleted it… You’re welcome.😂
Don’t censor yourself like that!
It was a political rant… there are enough of them out on the interwebs already😉 I promise not to censor my pointless ramblings, although you might prefer I did😂
Oh gosh. This is going to be heart-rendingly poignant judging by these photos alone.
Looking very forward to reading it.
Jackie x
Some amazing images there, makes me all the more sad to think about what is happening now. I wonder, will you be curious to return to the Ukraine when this conflict is resolved?
Oh yes, and even before!
The only thing stopping me right now is that in the cities that aren’t being bombed yet (especially in the west of Ukraine), there are millions of refugees. If I went there now, I would only take away a room or a bed from someone who needs it more.
But as soon as I think I won’t be in the way, I’ll walk down to the highway and hitchhike to Ukraine. (It’s really not that far from Bavaria.)