15 April 2015 - Kiev, Ukraine - Part 5

With one last day to spend in Kiev, I went after a few more sights that I had not found on the previous days. The friendship arch was an interesting find. It was built in 1982 to celebrate the 60th anniversary of the USSR and the 1500th anniversary of the city. It is 50 meters in diameter and made of titanium.

Next, I went looking for some sort of market for some souvenirs. Sadly the rain started to fall so my day was cut short. I did find a weird little bottle of honey + chili vodka? Tasted horrible.

With the rain getting worse, I returned to my hotel. There I had a traditional dish of Ukrainian Red Borscht soup (beets). It was really sour and tasty.

13 April 2015 - Chernobyl, Ukraine - Part 4

Today is the big day! I am heading for The Zone. The Ukrainian government has permitted entry into the surrounding areas of Chernobyl, but with strict conditions. To enter the 30km exclusion zone, you need a day pass to enter- which can be obtained from several tour operators that have been established. I applied for my permit months in advance. I found the instructions provided easy to follow including the passport requirement and dress code.

I met my tour company (Solo East) guide close to Independence Square. Igor, our driver/trip manager got us to the exclusion zone safely (2hr drive on rough roads).

Our Zone representative, Helen, met us at the 30k checkpoint and provided history and commentary throughout our time there. There were a number of monuments and abandoned buildings.

I rented a dosimeter for 10$ ... It was added a whole new dynamic to the trip. Any measurement over 2.5 mSv would cause the device to alarm. Radiation occurs naturally everywhere. Annually, 100mSv is the limit to avoid cancer. A CT Scan, for example, is 12-15mSv. An airline flight at 30,000ft gives you a 4.5mSv dose. It was fascinating to take measurements throughout the tour. Plants, water, and moss seemed to have the highest readings.

The trip included a stop at the Druga2 radar array aka "woodpecker". It was quite a large structure and provided a humbling experience walking around it.

There was also good photo stops in some of the towns, including a really creepy schoolhouse. The power plant and Pripyat visits completely exceeded my expectations. I got some amazing photos and memories that have made my day, month, and year. I am really happy I did this trip.

The structure that encloses the reactor is called the Sarcophagus. A new one was being built to cover the whole thing so robots could be used to remove the remaining radioactive parts (yes nearly 30 years later it is still burning). This new superstructure is built on rails and will be slid over the old building soon.

Next, we headed to the nearby town of Pripyat. I was very excited to observe this location. It was built by the Soviets as a utopian home for the powerplant workers and their families. The disaster emptied the town. Now, nearly 3 decades later, it has been taken back by mother nature. Here are some of my favorite photos, including the fairgrounds and pool. Remember, it was not my first time here...the STALKER game had based many of its locations off of this place. I was geeking out hard!

As the day ended we made our way back out of the zone. Before we could leave, we had to stop and get scanned for radiation at 2 checkpoints. The armed guards really made the point at how serious this place was. I'll treasure this experience for the rest of my life.

13 April 2015 - Exploring Kiev (Kiyv), Ukraine - Part 3

I continued my walkabout (love making that AUS reference) past St. Andrews church down the Andriivs'kiy descent, a winding street full of interesting shops and cafes. My next stop was the Square of Contracts (Kontraktova ploshcha).

I was on my way to the Chernobyl Museum. My goal was to learn as much as I could before my tour the next day. Honestly, my fascination with the disaster is a bit morbid, but I strongly believe those that don't learn from history are doomed to repeat it. The curated display did not disappoint.

After finishing at the museum, I found one of the local metro stations and made my way to Hydropark, a large recreation area located on the Venetian island in the center of the Dneiper River. It was built as a place for residents to enjoy hiking, beaches, and other outdoor activities.

13 April 2015 - Exploring Kiev (Kiyv), Ukraine - Part 2

Still fresh with some jet lag, I was determined to go exploring. With the help of the hotel front desk, I had a map and a few Ukrainian phrases at my disposal. Today's goal is to get to Olympic rail station and visit a few landmarks. My first stop was a nearby cathedral. I love this kind of architecture.

Next, I continued on until I found the underground station. It used these weird little green plastic tokens.

Next stop, Maidan Nezalezhnosti, a.k.a. Independence Square, where just over a year ago there was a violent revolution. Some of my more globally informed coworkers and friends actually questioned my sanity for taking this trip based on last year's event. It is safe for now and, in spite of its history, a rather beautiful place. 

I continued walking until I found St. Michael's Gold Domed Monastery. Then I walked to the overlook of Volodymyrska Hill with a great view of the Dnieper river. 

Shortly thereafter, I continued on to St. Andrew's Church. This church is a wonderful 18th-century baroque church sitting on a hill overlooking one of Kiev's oldest neighborhoods.

12 April 2015 - Kyiv, Ukraine - Part 1

It has been a bucket-list item of mine for about 10 years to pay a visit to Chernobyl. Furthermore, I wanted to visit the site of the 1986 nuclear disaster. Honestly, I had felt both excited to finally get the opportunity to visit and nervous because I had never traveled past the western side of Europe. I was a child of the 80s and 90s so I got to see the effects of the end of the Cold War and the collapse of the Soviet Union. But, having never been there, I only had the American side of the story.

In 2007 I had the pleasure of playing a PC Game called S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: The Shadow of Chernobyl, a first-person shooter based on a fictional representation of the Zone, an area surrounding the original power plant. Here is a trailer to get a feeling for it.

This trip came about because I had another journey to the UK and simply piggy-backed this one. Using Delta airlines I had to fly to Amsterdam, then I switched to Ukrainian airlines.

I was strangely reminded of my first trip to Japan. In this new country, I did not know the language and would also be illiterate to the Cyrillic characters used. Kyiv was my first destination. Upon arrival, I took a taxi to my hotel. I am pretty sure I paid too much for the fare but was thankful to make it safely. The city was my first view of the building style of the previous communist government (called Krushchyovka) clashing with a buildup of more modern buildings. 

Tomorrow, I will go exploring near my hotel to get a feel for the main part of the city and to learn the mass transit system. In a few days, I will take a tour of Chernobyl, 134km to the north. To be continued...