Out and about in Lvov on “The Second Day of Easter”

Tuesday 17 April

In view of our lack of sleep the previous night, I sleep in the 4 foot bed and Reg sleeps in the bottom bunk in the dormitory next door. We both have a really good night. Reg is still dead to the world when I wake at 7 am. I decide to go downstairs and make a cuppa. I switch on the kitchen light and wake up Ola who is, unbeknown to me, asleep on the kitchen couch. Surely with all these empty hostel beds (remembering the large room off the kitchen which also has several bunk beds) Ola could have slept in a bed? Poor Ola.

I need to do some studying for my course back home. I do an hour and am pleased with myself, so read a bit more of The Sealed Letter on my kindle.

Finally Reg wakes up and we go for breakfast to a cafe we noticed yesterday. Like all the restaurants and cafes we've been to in Lvov, it's spotlessly clean. I order warm croissants with butter and jam and Reg asks for an egg and bacon sandwich. This comes as a bacon salad sandwich with two fried eggs on top. We both have tea with lemon, which I'm getting quite used to. The young waiter speaks a little English and is very friendly. He tells us its the 2^nd day of Easter.

Out of the cafe window I have a good view of the huge crucifix in the centre of the square.   Several older people stop in front of the crucifix and do the sign of cross and appear to murmer a few words. A man of about 40 on his mobile hesitates and hastily does the sign of the cross as he passes the statue, without stopping. Younger people walk by the statue without even looking at it. Is Christianity lost to the young in this country with its entrenched religious practices and customs? I decide probably not, when we later go into St Andrew's church and find it is packed with people praying and some sort of a religious ceremony is happening, though not a service, as people are still wondering about and coming and going as they please. There's lots more kissing the icon and wiping away with the white cloth. A man comes in with his 2 sons, in their early twenties, and several women have young children with them.

We come across the Lvov art gallery/museum, which apparently has the finest collection of 17^th and 18^th century Ukrainian art in the whole of the Ukraine and possibly in the world. Reg gets talking to the young commissionaire/security guard who is wearing a very smart Army style uniform with classic peaked hat. He speaks a little English, and tells Reg he works a 24 hour shift twice a week. We wonder why he would need to work 24 hours, but perhaps it's because the paintings are so valuable, someone needs to be there overnight.

There are many religious paintings which were originally housed in churches, depicting various biblical events, such as the passion of Christ, and Judgment Day. There are also oil paintings of everyday Ukrainian life in the 17^th and 18^th centuries. The quality of the art is superb.

Lunch is in a little cafe where one of the young assistants behind the self-service counter speaks good English with a USA accent. She's been to the USA, but can't get a visa to visit the UK. We pick out a cheese& ham salad baguette (me) which also turns out to have mushrooms in it, and a salmon salad baguette (Reg), and order tea. Our lunch comes in a few minutes. We find that the baguettes and fillings are served warm, like paninis.

After lunch we go to have a look at a local park. On the way we pass a huge building – “The Ministry of Internal Affairs of Ukraine”. I ask Reg why there are loundspeakers all around the outside of the building. He explains patiently that that's the air conditioning.

I take photos of a very prestigious building, the University of Lvov. We are in the park now, lots of trees, paths, a children's play area, and scrubby lawns, half mud and half grass. About a dozen older men, senior citizens, are gathered around a couple of park benches, playing cards. Reg asks if he can take a photo – they don't seem to mind.

We spot a trolley bus, and Reg wants a photo. It drives by too quickly. So we wait for 15 minutes in the cold (it's 5 degrees c) for another trolley bus to come by.

We're quite tired now and chilly, so we return to the hostel, where Reg tries to explain to Ola that we need a taxi for 5.30 am tomorrow morning. She doesn't understand. She phones the hostel owner, who speaks to Reg in English. The hostel owner explains the taxi request to Ola, who then orders the taxi. Simple really.

Reg sleeps and I write my blog. For dinner we return to the restaurant where we had lunch yesterday, as it was so good. It's different this evening – very busy and paper not cloth serviettes. |We sit down in the no smoking area. Near us are 4 Ukranian men who are just finishing their meal. There are empty beer and vodka glasses on the table and they've obviously had a good time, as they are finding it difficult to get up from the table, and one of them remains seated, dropping his head on his forearms.

There's an English couple sitting at the table next to us – our first encounter with English fellow-travellers since leaving the UK. They've just arrived for a couple of days in Lvov, having been staying in Kiev (where we're going tomorrow) with their daughter, who's a lawyer married to a British diplomat, who has a 3 year posting in Kiev. They recommend that we visit the underground monastery in Kiev, and say we'll need a guided tour.

The English couple have left, and the non-smoking part of the restaurant is now empty apart from us. While waiting for our coffee we phone George and Marianne. Phone calls are cheap with the Ukrainian sim card.

Back at the hostel we pack up our belongings, ready to leave at 5.30 am, to catch the 6.35am fast train to Kiev. The train is due to arrive in Kiev about 1.00pm.