Kiev: Andriyivsky Uzviz

Posted June 5, 2018 by Jan
Ukraine

Andriyivsky Uzviz*

Kiev - Kyiv

Ukraine

June 5, 2018

 

Once again, I climb the hill behind the Gintama Hotel towards Sophia Plaza and this time I wander down another steep cobbled street-  *“Andrew’s Descent” - towards the Podil district.

Modern sculptures and murals adorn the quaint buildings. 

St. Andrew’s Church (1754) is one of the highlights on this excursion.  This stunning gold and blue traditional five-domed church was built by Italian architect Bartolomeo Rastrelli who also designed the Winter Palace in St. Petersburg. 

Kiev: Two (Incorrect) Assumptions

Posted June 2, 2018 by Jan
Ukraine

Kiev or Kyiv

Київ - Ukrainian

Киев - Russian

pop 2,900,000

Ukraine - Україна

June 2, 2018

 

Kiev is a big city.  Come stroll with me.  Hike, actually.

On my first day, from the Gallery Gintama Hotel, I climb up the steep hill towards the enormous, gold-domed, blue St. Michael’s Monastery.

In St. Sophia Square I spot a monument to Princess Olga, a demure wife and mother who became a vicious and vengeful ruler.  Nearby, a monument to Bohdan Khmelinytsky dominates the square - a hero to many and a prejudiced and bloody villian to others. 

In the square, I chance upon a large demonstration.  Many children are in attendance along with their parents, grandparents and clergy.   What is the occasion?

The Jews of Suriname

Posted May 14, 2018 by Jan
Suriname
Paramaribo
Suriname
February 5, 2018
 
Jews arrived in Suriname in large numbers in the late Seventeenth Century.  They became successful plantation owners out in the savanna.   The area is called "Jodensavanne."   They built a substancial brick synagogue they named Beracha v' Shalom (Blessing and Peace).
 
Because of disruptions in the sugar trade, they eventually moved to the capital Paramaribo.  They built the magnificent wooden synagogue Neve Shalom,1837 (Oasis of Peace)  that is still in use by the diminished community.  The smaller Zedek v' Shalom Synagogue (Justice and Peace) built in 1735 is currently rented to a computer company.

Bauxite

Posted May 13, 2018 by Jan
Suriname

Paramaribo

Suriname

February 4, 2018

 

Why did the United States and her allies defeat Germany and her allies in World War Two?  Was it superior leadership or manpower or strategy or materiel?  Or all of the above?

Certainly, the country of Suriname does not come to mind as a significant factor in the War.

And yet, the mineral resources of Suriname, a small country in South America, played an important role in the eventual victory of the Allies.

Bauxite was a key to success.

In Suriname I visited the closed bauxite processing plant.  You can learn a lot of history from “skeletons.”

Lucy on the "Wild Coast"

Posted May 11, 2018 by Jan
Suriname

Paramaribo

Suriname

February 2, 2018

 

I met Lucy on my flight from Georgetown, Guyana to Paramaribo.

I invited her to join me on my Dolphin Tour.

We did see a few dolphins and several elegant birds that nest along the shore or in the waters in the bay.

The Atlantic Coast here is “wild.”

And tell me, who can resist a photo shoot with a young Brazilian woman in her “bee-kee-nee”?

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