Current:Home > ScamsHiding beneath normality, daily life in Kyiv conceals the burdens of war -WealthConverge Strategies
Hiding beneath normality, daily life in Kyiv conceals the burdens of war
View
Date:2025-04-12 13:05:29
KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Life in the capital of a war-torn country seems normal on the surface. In the mornings, people rush to their work holding cups of coffee. Streets are filled with cars, and in the evenings restaurants are packed. But the details tell another story.
Numerous buildings across Kyiv bear the scars of Russian bombardment. Sandbags are stacked around monuments, museums and office buildings to protect from possible attack. At nights, streets are empty after the midnight curfew comes into force.
In restaurants, diners chat about life, friends and jobs and discuss whether they liked the Barbie or Oppenheimer movie better, or which concert they might attend. But such conversations can suddenly turn to stories about burying loved ones, or how they hid during the most recent missile attack or how they adjusted their schedule to balance sleepless nights and the need to be productive at work.
“Death has become a very routine part of our life,” said Aliona Vyshnytska, 29, who works as a project coordinator.
Vyshnytska lives in downtown Kyiv. She tries to create comfort in her rented apartment by buying small trinkets and cultivating indoor plants. She has grown accustomed to objects being shaken off the windowsills by the vibrations of explosive waves. After each night filled with loud explosions, she develops migraines. But like millions of others in the capital, she continues to work and “celebrate life in breaks from the war.”
She fears the Russian aggression on Ukraine, which first started in 2014, “will last forever or for a very long time, incongruent with human life.”
“And it’s this sort of background feeling that your life is simply being taken away from you, a life that should look completely different,” she said.
In the second year of Russia’s full-fledged invasion of Ukraine, Kyiv has suffered less physical devastation than the first months. Ukraine’s bolstered air-defense units have become adept at intercepting Russian drones and missiles fired at the capital, mostly at night or in the early hours of the morning.
Walking around the streets of Kyiv this summer, signs of normality can be seen everywhere: A couple cuddling on a bench. Children playing in parks. Bungee jumpers hanging over the Dnieper River. A newlywed couple dancing to music playing in the street.
But people’s faces often show the signs of sleepless nights under attack, fatigue from the churn of tragic news and, above all, grief.
Olesia Kotubei, another Kyiv resident, says her loved one is serving on the front lines, and her best friend has also joined the military.
This keeps her from ever forgetting about the ongoing war. She recounts her birthday this year on June 7, when she turned 26. She and a friend visited a café in the heart of Kyiv. Seated in an inner courtyard adorned with abundant flowers and lush greenery, they savored their coffee with a direct view of St. Sophia’s Cathedral. Yet, even in this picturesque scene, she couldn’t shake off a feeling of unease.
It was the first days of the Ukrainian counteroffensive, in which her loved one was participating in an assault unit.
“At this moment, you can’t influence anything; you have to wait and maintain your mental health, somehow not lose your mind,” she said. On the back side of her phone a picture of her boyfriend is tucked beneath the cover. Olesia says her image occupies the same spot on her boyfriend’s phone.
As she spoke, the sound of sirens began to blare. She noticed this with a tired exhale. Shortly after, numerous powerful and loud explosions shook the capital.
“These missile attacks, happening in parallel with my attempts to live a normal life, affect me deeply,” she said.
veryGood! (831)
Related
- Tom Holland's New Venture Revealed
- Sen. Bob Menendez pleads not guilty in federal court to bribery and extortion
- Menendez will address Senate colleagues about his bribery charges as calls for his resignation grow
- Ringo Starr on ‘Rewind Forward,’ writing country music, the AI-assisted final Beatles track and more
- Taylor Swift makes surprise visit to Kansas City children’s hospital
- Russia accuses US of promoting ties between Israel and Arabs before Israeli-Palestinian peace deal
- Chinese immigrant workers sue over forced labor at illegal marijuana operation on Navajo land
- Brooke Hogan says she's distanced herself from family after missing Hulk Hogan's third wedding
- Woman dies after Singapore family of 3 gets into accident in Taiwan
- Cheese lovers rejoice: The CurderBurger is coming back to Culver's menu for a limited time
Ranking
- Will the 'Yellowstone' finale be the last episode? What we know about Season 6, spinoffs
- Thousands of Las Vegas hospitality workers vote to authorize strike
- Thousands of Las Vegas hospitality workers vote to authorize strike
- 4 environmental, human rights activists awarded ‘Alternative Nobel’ prizes
- Who are the most valuable sports franchises? Forbes releases new list of top 50 teams
- South Carolina mechanics discover giant boa constrictor in car engine and are working to find it a home
- 2 bodies were found in a search for a pilot instructor and a student in a downed plane
- Chinese ambassador says Australian lawmakers who visit Taiwan are being utilized by separatists
Recommendation
California DMV apologizes for license plate that some say mocks Oct. 7 attack on Israel
New York AG plans to call Trump and his adult sons as witnesses in upcoming trial
Shelters for migrants are filling up across Germany as attitudes toward the newcomers harden
200 people have died from gun violence in DC this year: Police
EU countries double down on a halt to Syrian asylum claims but will not yet send people back
Iraq’s prime minister visits wedding fire victims as 2 more people die from their injuries
Mexican army sends troops, helicopters, convoys in to towns cut off by drug cartels
Famous 'Sycamore Gap tree' found cut down overnight; teen arrested