Trukhaniv Island

This morning I ran about six miles to and from Труханів острів (Trukhaniv Island). I first ran a couple of "Baptizer Laps" up in the area of St. Michaels and the Volydymrska Hill Park, then ran down the hill past the Catholic Church and the Museum of Art, through the underground tunnel at the end of Kreshchatik, and down the hill towards the Poshtova Ploshcha. (Are you with me so far?). From there I ran along the path adjacent to the railroad tracks towards the foot bridge leading across the Dnipro River to Trukhaniv Island. I found this, and ran for a mile or two on the island, then returned.

The views from the footbridge are glorious--the attached pictures really don't capture the vividness and excitement of the river with church domes, boats and the sky reflected in the still icy waters. I enclose one picture looking back toward Volodymyr's Hill, showing St. Michael's on one side and the grim statue of the Baptizer in the center.

It was snowing lightly when I began, but amazingly the clouds completely vanished and the blue sky appeared in all its glory as I reascended the hill towards my apartment. I enclose a shot of St. Michaels in all the effulgence of a snowy morning!

The Funicular in Action

Its Fun, Funny, even Funky. The Funicular is a unique nineteenth century trolley system that runs from the Poshtovo Ploscha Metro Station (which is almost at elevation of the Dnipro River) up the steep wooded hillside to the top of the Volodymyrska Hill Park. It is one of my favorite attractions in Kyiv, as it evokes the period of late Tsarist Rule of the late nineteenth and early twentieth century. There are two cars, each suspended from a huge steel cable, like counterweights on a grandfather's clock. Thus when one car ascends from the riverside station, the companion car at the top of the hill begins a smooth descent. The cars are both custom constructed at a nunique angle so that the passengers in each of the compartments are always sitting or standing upright. The ride is very smooth and very quiet, hardly disturbing the birds sitting on the boughs of the surrounding trees. In fact, one has this surreal sense of detachment, leaving the crowded Metro and the busy Kyiv sreet and then boarding the Funicular as if entering a separate peaceful world. So far I have ridden the Funicular six times, as it is a very convenient way for me to get either to the Volodymrska Hill Park, to the Monument to Prince Volodymyr the Great (the "Baptizer"), to St. Michael's of the Golden Domes, or to the Andriysky Spusk.

My Snowy Pilgrimage to Volodymyrs'ka Hill Park

This morning I left the apartment early, wanting to see the monument to Prince Volodymyr the Great on the wooded hill overlooking the Dnipro River. Among all the places that I had wanted visit in Kyiv, this was perhaps first on my list. I was initially discouraged as stepped outside, because of a bitterly cold wind and a steady snowfall, but decided to proceed. I took the Metro from Lva Tolstovo Ploshcha to Posthtovo Ploshcha, rode the Funicular up the hill and found myself in a quiet dream world. There were several inches of new snow on the ground and the Volodymyrs'ka Hill Park at the summit was utterly deserted. I spent an hour or so wandering alone down the long tree-lined avenues in the snow. The snow continued to fall and there was a great calm. From the hill I had wonderful views of the icy Dnipro far below, of St. Michael's Monastery of the Golden Domes through the trees, and of the great Monument to Prince Volodymyr the Great. I stood for a time on the promontory near a little covered pavilion overlooking the river. I had a powerful feeling steal over me that this was a very sacred place. For reasons that I cannot explain, this special visit on a snowy morning must stand as the highlight of my time in Kyiv.