Priviet! (Hello in Russian)
We FINALLY made it to Ukraine! After delayed flights and hours in the Moscow airport, we arrived safely in Kiev! As soon as we arrived we started our journey with a six hour bus ride to Kharkov. We arrived around 7 am to the sight of Hotel Dynamo! We jumped off the bus and quickly began our day. We were surprised by all of our new Ukrainian friends at breakfast when they sang and presented us all with roses!
Once we all finished breakfast, we started with a tour of the city and got to see many different national monuments. We then went on a tour of the Hesed, a Jewish welfare center. We were delighted to be able to hand out over 20 packs of crayons to children participating at the Hesed. Their faces lit up when we handed each of them a pack of crayons! We were also able to spend time with the elderly clients of Hesed and were lucky enough to sing Shabbat Shalom with all of them! After the Hesed, we stopped by the only synagogue in Kharkov for a tour and then headed to a nearby restaurant for a kosher lunch! Once we finished lunch, we headed back to the hotel to prepare for Shabbat!
Shabbat at the JCC in Ukraine is such a wonderful experience. Instead of a traditional Shabbat in a synagogue or home, we all stood outside in a circle and recited the prayers! It was a great way to be able to see everyone that you were celebrating Shabbat with!
The next morning we walked to Synagogue to celebrate Shabbat. Since the only synagogue in Kharkov is Orthodox, all the girls and boys were separated for the service. It is a very beautiful synagogue with a lot of history.
After Shabbat we went on a walking tour of Kharkov and ended up in Gorky Park where we played games with our Ukrainian peers all afternoon. The parks in Ukraine are AMAZING. They have the most beautiful flowers everywhere you turn! Once we returned from the park, we ate dinner and then went bowling! It was so fun to be out on the town with all of our new Ukrainian friends!
The next morning we headed 6 hours to the city of Konotop. Once we arrived at the Konotop Hesed, we immediately ate lunch and began working! We began by picking potatoes and fruit and painting doors and fences. The Konotop Hesed grows as many fruits and vegetables as possible to be as self sufficient as they can. Once we finished the dirty work, we went inside to enjoy dinner and a show by the Shtetle Ensemble. We danced and sang all night and ended the evening with an art show where they allowed us to by original pieces of art made by the Hesed clients!
Once we finished at the Hesed, we headed to our campsite that we were spending the evening at. Girls being girls, we weren’t a fan of the camping conditions (the boys LOVED it). But all in all it was definately an experience!
We are having an AMAZING time in Ukraine so far and we still have more work to be done and friends to be made! We are all safe and will see you soon!
Xoxo,
Sarah
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