Lisle Kauffman: My Fulbright Scholarship at EUNU-Luhansk, Ukraine: Kyiv: Days 4 and 5

During our fourth day together, Amy and I took a walk to St. Andrews and then visited the National History Museum, which is nearby. Construction on St. Andrew's began in 1749 and was completed in 1754. St. Andrew's is currently closed, as the foundation is unstable and in danger of collapse. While we were there, it appeared worked had begun on stabilizing the structure.

Monday, we walked over to St. Michael's Golden-Domed Cathedral, which is next to our hotel. St. Michael's is actually a recreation of a church that was built in the same location in the 12th century. The original St. Michael's was a very beautiful and carefully preserved church that was torn down by the Soviets to make room for a wing of the government building that ultimately was never built. Historians attempted to remove and save the 12th century mosaics and art inside St. Michael's, but were unable to finish their work before demolition began. One historian, Mykola Makarenko, who protested the demolition of the church died in a Soviet prison. Demolition of St. Michaels began in 1934 and was completed in 1936. The current building was built from 1997 to 1999 and is a fairly close replication of the original church, but there is some question regarding the quality of materials used.

After visiting, St. Michael's we walked down to Independence Square. Independence Square, which Kyivites simply refer to as "Майдан" (the Maidan - meaning square), is a very historic and significant place in Kyiv. The Maidan is usually where most political protests and demonstrations begin. It is also the site of the Orange Revolution which began at the end of 2004. I thought Amy should see this part of Kyiv.

Underneath the Maidan is a large upscale shopping mall. There are also a couple of pedestrian underpasses that allow people to walk below the busy streets to cross safely to the other side. There are numerous shops and venders in these underpasses. Amy and I bought Belgian waffles at one of the underground kiosks. Yum! If you've never had a real Belgian waffle, you don't know what you're missing. I was thrilled to see these sold in Kyiv, as I had not enjoyed a genuine Belgian waffle since I was a college student in Leuven, Belgium. They are sold at kiosks in the streets of Brussels, Leuven, and other cities. Incidentally, Belgian waffles in the U.S. are not the real thing, not even close, and I think it is scandalous that American restaurants call their sad, pathetic imitations “Belgian” waffles.