A Semester in Lviv

By Maria Kachmar

In 2001, the author embarked on an exciting journey to discover her roots in Lviv, Ukraine. Though raised with the Ukrainian language and culture, restrictions under the Iron Curtain had prevented her from knowing what day-to-day life in her ancestral homeland was really like. Armed with a journal, her curiousity and a sense of adventure, the author aimed to immerse herself into student life in order to later share her observations with others. Her travel diary documents many of her interesting and unique cultural experiences. Originally published in Ukrainian in 2003, this is the first English language edition.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Maria Kachmar
• Release date: Mar 31, 2016
• ISBN: 9781310111365

Maria Kachmar

Maria Kachmar is a Ukrainian-Canadian educator and linguist. She has lived and taught in Canada, Ukraine, Germany, Poland, Qatar and Austria and appreciates the insights that can be gained from living internationally. Some of her interests include child development, Ukrainian arts, yoga, healthy cooking and environmentalism. She enjoys spending time outdoors with her family.

Book preview

Introduction

In 2001, I embarked on a semester abroad to my father’s birth city, Lviv, Ukraine. I decided to record my experiences in a diary, with the hope of publishing it, so that other students of Ukrainian origin could learn about life in modern-day Ukraine. I wrote the original diary in Ukrainian so that it could also be used as a language learning resource. Recognizing the value of sharing my experiences to a wider public, particularly at a time when Ukraine has been receiving much coverage in the media, this translation of the original was made in 2016.

I am happy to have recorded these experiences, since, looking back, I see how much I learned during my semester in Lviv and how it shaped my own identity and my understanding of the Ukrainian reality in all subsequent trips to Ukraine. This was perhaps easier to do as a student, who was able to integrate into the system.

Please keep in mind that my observations are no longer an accurate reflection of life in Ukraine, as Lviv has seen many changes in the last 15 years and has become somewhat of a tourist haven. But I am very glad to have captured the Lviv of 2001 and to have experienced this early period of transformation from a former Soviet ruled state. I hope you also enjoy getting a glimpse into the Lviv of that time. For more updated information on life in Lviv and Kyiv, please refer to my latest book Ukraine: Europe’s Best-Kept Secret.

It is immensely gratifying to have witnessed growth and change in Ukraine. Due to the revolutions of 2004 and 2014, Ukrainians on the whole seem to have become much more proactive and patriotic, and society has much fewer Soviet influences than at the time of original publishing.

I hope you enjoy reading about my experiences, and that you too will be inspired to embark on your own journey to Ukraine.

August 26, 2001

Fatherland?

I’m finally on the plane. In just a few hours, I’ll be in Lviv, Ukraine – the birthplace of my father and home to many relatives.

Why Lviv? Several reasons. First and foremost, I’m looking for answers to questions I’ve had over the years, and because I want to finally see with my own eyes this so-called Fatherland I have heard, read, sung, and dreamt about ever since I can remember. For a very long time, up until 1991 when Ukraine gained it’s independence, you couldn’t get in or out of Ukraine very easily, and because of Soviet propaganda and censorship, it was very hard for ethnic Ukrainians living outside of Ukraine (in the Diaspora) to find out what was really going on behind the Iron Curtain.

My father and his parents were part of a wave of political emigrants, forced to flee their native land due it being occupied by the Soviet army. They were at risk coming from families of Ukrainian Catholic priests who had been active in promoting ideas of an independent Ukrainian state. Also, my grandfather had spent time abroad, obtaining a degree in medicine from an Italian university. But they hadn’t really wanted to leave, and they kept Ukraine in their hearts and minds, hoping and praying that it would one day be free. Many dreamt of the day they would return to Ukraine, but 50 years of communist rule proved too long a wait for most. Still, most of the children and grandchildren of these Ukrainian emigrants were brought up to be Ukrainian-speaking patriots, even if, as in my case, only one parent was Ukrainian, and we were fully integrated into the life of our new country.

Being brought up biculturally clearly has many advantages, and I am grateful to have grown up in Canada, with its mentality of open-mindedness, respect for others, beautiful natural surroundings, and for all the opportunities experienced in my childhood and youth. The national policies of multiculturalism allowed me to feel I was both a Canadian and a Ukrainian. But now I sometimes can’t help questioning my identity and wondering how I can consider myself Ukrainian if I’ve never even set foot in the country.

In Ukrainian school we learned the history and geography of Ukraine, read Ukrainian literature, sang traditional folk songs and participated in a variety of cultural activities, fully clad in our embroidered costumes. But I don’t remember learning all that much about day-to-day life in present day Ukraine. When I think of my ancestral Fatherland, images of endless steppes, fertile, black soil, and babas (grannies) in headscarves come to mind. In Edmonton, where I grew up, young ethnic Ukrainians often learn to paint Easter eggs and make perogies (potato dumplings). Many go to zabavas (Ukrainian hall parties), where they dance the polka and truly enjoy it. Do these elements of Ukrainian folk culture really reflect the modern Ukrainian identity? I wonder if young Ukrainians learn traditional Ukrainian dances, like many of my friends. In the past few years, news articles from Ukraine have featured corruption, unkempt cities and poverty. But what does my Fatherland really look like?

Besides answering those questions, I am eager for the opportunity to immerse myself in the Ukrainian language, to improve my fluency and grammar, since I’d like to eventually become a Ukrainian teacher or translator. Having spent a year in France after graduating from high school, I learned that immersion was the most effective way of honing my language skills. Besides the family connections, I chose Lviv instead of Kyiv because Lviv is a Ukrainian-speaking city, whereas in Kyiv there is a lot of Russian spoken.

I’ll be studying at the Lviv National University of