Unforgettable Ukraine

 The Big Exodus It all started innocently enough. O n Saturday night, w e were hosting a little birthday party at our apartment for some of our senior couples. I had made a cherry cheesecake and a big apple pie. The Merkley's brought ice cream, the Southwick's brought drinks and the Blau's brought extra chairs. When we are living so far away from home and family, we tend to look for any opportunity to make life a little easier.  As I was saying, it all started innocently enough. Halfway through the pie and ice cream, the Southwick's received a call. Then the call went to the Blau's. The grim look and apparent shock was followed by the announcement that we must evacuate. This new directive from church headquarters signaled the evacuation of both the Kyiv/Moldova and the Dnipro missions by Wednesday. The topic of casual party conversations changed rather abruptly. The question on everyone's mind was, "Where will we go?" The party soon ended as all involv...

  The National Museum of Folk Architecture and Life of Ukraine This national museum is a collection of the various architectural forms found in every region of Ukraine. The oldest exhibit dates back to the 16th century. There are farm houses, barns, wells, beehives, windmills as well as portrayals of home life with traditional clothing and furniture. This is very much like the Open Air Museum in Tallinn, Estonia, but much larger. I will let the pictures speak for themselves. Log farm house with thatched roof The main room of the house where all household projects are started as well as preparing and eating food. This is a typical wood stove used for heating and cooking. That looks like a baby cradle hanging from the ceiling. Many floors have straw as a covering. There are quite a few tasks that are done in this room Tool room. Notice the holdfast in the center to secure wood while shaping and carving. Making do with whatever was on hand - a beautiful woven fence made with green tre...