Ukrainian police members Larisa, 31, and Roman, 30, get married in a wedding hall at an exhibition center in Kiev. Photo Lynsey Addario / The New York Times.
Kyiv, Ukraine – The wedding registry center in the heart of Kyiv has been a whirlwind of romance and celebration, a reflection of the provocative optimism shown in the Ukrainian capital these days.
Some people got married on Saturdays in the summer after the war delayed their plans.
People cross a street in Kiev, Ukraine on August 13, 2022. Determined and rebellious, Kiev tries to regain its summer rhythm. (Lynsey Addario / The New York Times)
Others, like Larisa, 31, and Roman, 30, have rushed to get married, knowing how quickly things can change.
“We have decided that regardless of the situation in the future, we will always be together,” said Larisa, who, like other respondents, did not provide her full name for security reasons.
“Our family is sure that love always wins and that Ukraine will surely win.”
In Kiev, a city where the future is far from clear but many yearn to find pleasure in the present, Ukrainians are trying to regain the rhythms and joys of everyday life in the midst of whims, uncertainties and war pains.
Ukrainians led by 64-year-old Valentina Shevchenko, right, are practicing along the river. (Lynsey Addario / The New York Times)
There may be no better place to feel kyiv’s pulse in summer than on the banks of the Dnieper River.
Before the war, people kayaked and wakeboarded, music blared at concerts and raves, and crowds sunbathed or played sports.
That rampant cacophony has yet to return.
But people are returning.
People on a pedestrian bridge in the center of Kiev, Ukraine on August 13, 2022. Determined and rebellious, Kiev tries to find the summer rhythm. (Lynsey Addario / The New York Times)
Olexandr Savchenko, a champion bodybuilder, swam with his trainer and girlfriend, Valeria Baildalia, 27, all visiting from Odessa on Saturday.
Alexander Savchenko, 29, right, and his coach, Mykhailo Pershin, 18, were photographed by Savchenko’s girlfriend Valeria Baildalia, 27, on the beach along the Dnipro River. (Lynsey Addario / The New York Times)
Baildalia’s house is located in Berdyansk, in the heart of the busy south.
He does not know when he will be able to return.
Valentina Shevchenko, 64, was conducting a course on valeology, the science of healthy living through proper exercise and diet.
He led half a dozen devotees to dance and twirl to the beat of a pop song.
Petro, 53, fishes along the Dnipro River in Kiev, Ukraine on August 13, 2022. Determined and defiant, Kiev tries to get back to its summer pace. (Lynsey Addario / The New York Times)
For several months in the spring they were unable to meet due to the war.
But now they have resumed their routine, with a change:
everyone is wearing clothes blue and goldthe colors of the Ukrainian flag.
Volodomyr, 79, said they end the lesson with the sentence:
“Glory to Ukraine, health to all its people and thanks to our Western allies”.
On an island in the middle of the river, Petro, a 53-year-old former soldier and retired lawyer, stood on the sandy beach dressed in high-waisted rubber boots, a jar of fly larvae in his pocket.
He had come to fish for perch and carp while seeking tranquility.
Six months ago, instead of a fishing rod, Petro carried a machine gun and prepared to defend his home as Russian forces descended on Kiev in the first weeks of their invasion.
More than four months after the Russians were forced to retreat from the outskirts of the city, Petro returned to his favorite fishing spot.
“All the tension of the war and all the negative thoughts are taken away from you,” he said, waiting for a bite.
“I just want to get distracted. And if I catch a fish, I thank God. “
c.2022 The New York Times Company
Marc Santora and Lynsey Addario
Source: Clarin
