KieVVision

Ukrainian Letter of the Day        Р = R А = A Р = R Т = T М = M А = A Р = R К = K Е = E Т = T АРТ МАРКЕТ = ART MARKET

Occidentali Karma  (2017)  Italian place of contemplation in the East  EUROVISION COUNTRY:  Italy KYIV DESTINATION:  St Andrew's Church, Andreivskiy Spusk Francesco Bartolomeo Rastrelli was the son of a Florentine sculptor who had worked for a number of Russian Tsars, including Peter the Great. Born in Paris he travelled to St Petersburg with his father. At the age of 30 he was appointed court architect by Empress Elizabeth who loved his ornate late Baroque style. In 1748 he started a 19 year project to build St Andrew's church in Kyiv. Another of his buildings is the Maryinsky Palace, currently sadly closed and in need of repair. Both buildings may look like the Hermitage museum in St Petersburg, as he was also the architect for that and other royal palaces in the Russian empire's capital. He fell out of favour with Catherine the Great, who referred the architectural style as "whipped cream". St Andrew is of special relevance because of a

Ukrainian Letter of the Day        Ф = F К = K А = A Ф = F Е = E КАФЕ = KAFE (Cafe)

Heroes (2015)  Brutalist Park KYIV DESTINATION: The Memorial Park to the Second World War Day by day the number of memorials to the USSR are being removed and destroyed in Ukraine.  One complex of the era's brutalist sculpture remains at the base of the Motherland statue on the Pechersk Hills. The complex starts a few hundred metres away from the Pechersk Lavra monastery. Entrance is free and it stretches for about a kilometre. It was opened in 1981 by USSR President Brezhnev.  The scale of the park is as impressive as the scale of the monument. For people who are less keen on concrete the park also has spectacular views of the river Dnipro. The park has been relegated to the back pages of most English-language guidebooks, which reflects Ukraine's desire to for get the Soviet past and develop something more fitting to remember the Great Patriotic War. But it is an architectural complex of global significance. You will therefore have most of the park to yourself

Ukrainian Letter of the Day         R=Р  К=K E=Е Р=R А=A М=M I=I К=K А=A КЕРАМIКА = Keramika (Ceramics)

Take me to your Heaven (1989)  Pagan Kyiv  KYIV DESTINATION: Bald Hill  Andriyvskiy Spusk is the main tourist drag in Kyiv, a pleasant cobbled road winding down a hill drenched in souvenir stalls and a Saturday art market. But if you want some great views of the city and something a bit more edgy then this is also the starting place for a mini adventure into paganism old grave yards and Ukrainian literature. The road is squeezed between two hills and there are stairs and viewing platforms leading off both sides of the road. If you are walking down Andriyivsky Spusk you will pass a yellow and white cassalated gothic building  called Richard the Lion Heart's castle. Shortly afterwards are some wooden stairs on the left. This steep climb will take you up to a large viewing platform with views of the river and the south of the city. Carry on a for about 50 meters down Andriyvskiy Spusk and on the right side of the road are some more stairs (see below), which take you

Ukrainian Letter of the Day         С = S К = K I = I О = O С = S К = K КIОСК = KIOSK

Quand Je Te Rêve (1990)  Living in Luxembourg- in Kyiv  EUROVISION COUNTRY:  Luxembourg  KYIV DESTINATION:  Any large housing development!  Kyiv is abound with new property developments. This one is called Luxembourg, but others are inspired by other European architectural styles. You can live in the French Quarter, or Old London, or an Italian village. While the left bank has lots of high rises - you will not fail to notice them on your way in from the airport - the old city on the right bank has fewer. That is because there are zones where construction is limited to eight stories. This old Soviet regulation is still in use because many of the hills are made of silt and river deposits and are extremely sandy.  This does not prevent some less scrupulous developers from trying to get around the laws.  You can build an eight storey development - put a roof on it - then damage the roof and "rebuild" it. This allows you to put in a mansard or attic room. One

Fly on the Wings of Love (2000)  KYIV DESTINATION: The Kyiv Aviation Museum Ukriane builds the world's largest airplane, so it's fitting that the Aviation Museum in Kyiv is also one of the six biggest in the world. It is located next to the Zhuliany airport, so is also a good place to see planes take off and land. For the first time tourist it is best reached by taxi, although a bus service outside the entrance does go to a nearby metro station.  The museum is a collection of mainly planes and jets from the Soviet era. So if you like MiGs, Antonovs and Tupolevs, then this is the place for you. The museum is slowly expanding with a new factuality that just displays engines. It is run by the National Aviation University in Kyiv. The entrance fee is quite low, but there are additional tickets to buy if you want to go inside some of the planes. Each costs about 30 cents additionally. One shown above includes pilots clothing from the 1920s to present day. There is