Eastern and western influences

I can’t believe we are in Ukraine! After visiting Kiev, we are now in Sevastopol. Matthias convinced us with his charms to visit this city. He’s one of a kind you know.

First, I want to tell some facts about Ukrainian culture. Local customs are highly influenced by Christianity, the dominant religion in this country. Over the years, its eastern and western neighbors have influenced the culture of Ukraine. It’s reflected in its architecture, music and art. Today, this country is culturally divided with the western regions bearing a stronger European influence and the eastern regions showing a strong Russian influence.

Communism had a strong effect on the art and writing. In 1980, Ukrainian writers and artist had the freedom again to express themselves, as they wanted.

Well, as Mathhias already said, Sevastopol is the second largest city in Ukraine. This city has a unique geographic location and very good navigation conditions. It makes this city an important and strategic naval point. Sevastopol is also a popular tourist destination. That’s why we decided to visit this amazing city. We wanted to see sites from the Crimean war and learn their culture.

By a mini-bus, a marshrutka, we went to an amazing museum. Called a Panorama. It was very impressive. After learning about the Crimean war, we wanted to eat a local dish. Luckily, people were very friendly and suggested to eat Baklava. It's thin unleavened fried flour bread covered in honey. Delicious! We also ordered varenyky, a typical dish with mushrooms, potatoes and cheese. In Ukraine, they drink a lot of milk and juices together with their main course. We ordered just some water.

I must say Ukrainian food is very tasty. For the sweethearts, a lot of supermarkets sell Baklava.

Thanks for reading my blog and feel free to leave a comment!

Isabella

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ukraine#Culture

http://www.ukraine.com/