Chernobyl Tour, Ukraine

Chernobyl, Чорнобиль, is about 104 km (65 miles) north of Kyiv.  It was founded in 1193 and gained city status in 1941.  Chernobyl is most known for the world's worst nuclear accident which occurred on 26 April 1986 in what was the Soviet Union.

Here's a video I found on YouTube that does a very good job of simplifying the science behind what went wrong.

©Radio Free Europe

And here's an RT video about some of the delays in evacuating people following the accident.

©RT News

First Responders Memorial

Prior to the accident, Chernobyl was home to about 14,000 people.  Today the population is about 690.  Chernobyl falls within the 30 km (18.5 miles) exclusion zone.  It's pretty much a ghost town and many of the people there work two-week shifts there and then leave for two weeks.

In 2015, Ukraine passed legislation for decommunisation.  Street names and public places with communist-related themes received new names while communist symbols were removed.  But there's still a statue of Lenin standing in Chernobyl.

There were about 160 villages that fell within the exclusion zone and were evacuated.




Zalissya, Залісся, was home to 2,849 people.  Nature has taken over the village and it really looks like something out a zombie apocalypse movie.

Within the exclusion zone is the once top-secret Duga radar station. It was an over-the-horizon radar system that functioned as an anti-ballistic missile early-warning system.  The system used to produce powerful shortwave radio bursts that produced a repetitive tapping sound so it became known as the Russian Woodpecker.

The station  was in service from July 1976 until December 1989.

The other two stations that made up the system have since been destroyed.  However, this site can't be demolished because of the radioactive particles that would be released in to the air.

Kopachi, Копачі, is another village that has been evacuated since 1986.  All of the houses were torn down and buried but at the time the government hadn't realised that this further contaminated the soil and water.

There's a WW2 monument and just a kindergarten and another brick building still standing.  Going in to the kindergarten is hauntingly surreal.



The Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant is 14,5 km (9 miles) from Chernobyl and 16 km (10 miles) from the border with Belarus.

It used to be called the Lenin Nuclear Power Station and in Soviet times it produced 10% of the electricity in Ukraine.

Reactor #4 was the one that exploded.  Even still, the other three reactors remained in service.

It is now covered with the new sarcophagus which was the world's largest movable structure.

Here's a video about the new sarcophagus.

©NBC News

Pripyat, Припять, is 1.5 km (1 mile) from power plant and it was built for the workers.  It was founded in 1970 and declared a city in 1979.  It had been home to 49,360 people before everyone was eventually evacuated in the afternoon on 27 April 1986.

It was once a model Soviet city but today it is a full on ghost town.

The city's amusement park never actually opened.  It was scheduled to open on 1 May in time for the annual May Day festivities.

There are strict rules to be followed while on the Chernobyl tour.  As a safety precaution, we were scanned three different times throughout the day.

Visiting Chernobyl and Pripyat is another item I get to cross off of my bucket list.  I've been on many tours before but I must say that this was by far the best one I've ever been on.  It's a long day but definitely a must do.

Brest & Belovezhskaya Pushcha National Park Tour, Belarus

Going to Brest was my main reason for coming to Belarus. Брэст sits just across the Polish border but of course it's not as simple as just catching a train from Poland because I needed that tourist visa.  So today's adventure was a 16 hour, Russian language road trip (800 km / 500 mile) from Minsk to Brest and the Belovezhskaya Pushcha National Park.

In medieval times, Brest was part of the Kingdom of Poland before becoming part of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania followed by the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, until it was incorporated by the Russian Empire in 1795.  After WWI the city as again part of Poland until it was taken by the Soviet Union.  Today, Brest is firmly a part of Belarus and is home to over 310,000 people.

On 22 June 1941, the German Wehrmacht attacked the Soviet Union in Operation Barbarossa.  The 19th-century Brest-Litovsk Fortress was home to one of the first battles.  The Germans expected to take it in a few hours.

The Soviet army managed to hold out for over a week before it was taken.  It became a symbol of Soviet resistance and in 1965 the fortress received the title of Hero Fortress.






In 2004, it was placed on the tentative list for consideration as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.  


In 1971 the memorial complex was opened.  The museum tells the story of the defence and is very interesting.

St. Nicholas Orthodox Church

Aside from the monuments and museum, you can walk around to see the barracks, bunkers and forts.  There is also the St. Nicholas Orthodox church.

"Thirst"

The Russian film Брестская крепость, Fortress of War, released in 2010 is about the battle as narrated from the perspective of a 15-year old boy.  Here's the English language movie trailer that I found out on YouTube.

Here's a RT broadcast about the battle as part of their series on the 70th anniversary of the end of WWII.  In former Soviet republics it is known as The Great Patriotic War.

©Russia Today

After touring the fortress we went to the city and had lunch.  Then it was off to Belavezhskaya Pushcha National Park.  The park is 70 km (43 miles) north of Brest.  It is a biosphere reserve with a museum and a small zoo.

European bison

The park was established in 1932.  It is 1500 km² (579 square miles) and is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.  The forest is home to Wisent, the European bison which is the continent's heaviest land animal.    

The tour at the park was supposed to include a visit to see the residence of Ded Moroz.  Grandfather Frost is the Eastern version of Santa Claus.  I wasn't able to understand the reason why we didn't go but I was fine skipping it as it had already been a very long day.  Plus I was mentally drained having to do the entire day in Russian which now is pretty much rubbish.  Fortunately most of the museum exhibits did include English titles and/or descriptions.

Kyrgyz Republic

The Kyrgyz Republic is more commonly known as Kyrgyzstan.  This mostly mountainous, landlocked country is located in Central Asia and borders China, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan.  Kyrgyzstan is a little smaller than South Dakota and is home to about 5.7 million people.  The capital is Bishkek.

Kyrgyzstan has a proud nomadic tradition.  Most of the land was annexed by the Russian Empire in 1876.  In 1916 there was a major revolt and roughly 16% of the population was killed.  In 1936 it became a Soviet republic.  The country became independent in 1991 when the USSR broke apart.

Kyrgyzstan is a poor country that depends mostly on agriculture and minerals extraction.  Tobacco and cotton are its chief products.  But the country is rich is scenery.  The  Tien Shan mountains and abundant valleys are popular with hikers.

Kyrgyz alphabet

The official languages are Kyrgyz and Russian.  About 75% of the population is Muslim while roughly 20% are Russian Orthodox.

In 2010 there were violent protests which overthrew the government that had been in power since independence.

Until 2014 Kyrgyzstan was the only country in the world to host both U.S. and Russian military bases at the same time.  After more than 12 years, the U.S. left Manas Air Base which handled cargo in and out of Afghanistan.

The Som is the official currency.  One Som is about 1.5¢.

In May 2015 the country will officially join the Eurasian Economic Union.

I found a video out on YouTube that covers a serious problem in the country.  Apparently about half of all Kyrgyz marriages are a result of bride kidnapping.  Although it is illegal it is a common way to get a bride.

© Russia Today

Baltics

The Baltics are the three north European countries of Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania.  All three had been part of the Russian Empire from the 18th century but became independent following WWI.  In 1918, all three declared independence and fought against Germans and Russian Bolsheviks.  In 1920, independent Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania were recognized.

In 1939, the Soviet Union forced the three counties to join mutual assistance pacts which permitted the Red Army to establish military bases on Baltic territory.  Then in 1940, all three countries were invaded, had rigged elections held and were annexed as new Soviet Republics.  Mass deportations to Siberia began in 1941.  

©Nomedia Productions

When the Nazis invaded, many Estonians, Latvians, and Lithuanians saw the Germans as liberators from Soviet rule.  Under the Nazis the deportations and mass killings continued.  The Red Army reoccupied the Baltics in 1944-45.  Following the war, the Baltic republics were colonized as Stalin moved in large number of Russian speakers.

There was massive civil resistance against the Soviet Union during the late 1980s.  In 1989, two million people formed a human chain, called the Baltic Way, that stretched 600 km (373 miles) from Tallinn to Vilnius. 

©NDT.TV

In 1991, the Soviet Union recognized the independence of the three Baltic countries.  The last Soviet troops left in 1998.

As of 2004, Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania have joined the EU, Schengen and NATO.  Estonia and Latvia have also joined the Eurozone.

The Baltic countries currently have language and/or citizenship issues with the Russian populations.  Estonian, Latvian, and Lithuanian are the respective official languages.  After independence Lithuania granted citizenship to everyone automatically.  

In Estonia and Latvia, however, citizenship was only granted if one could prove family ties prior to WWII.  Otherwise, naturalized citizenship was offered provided successful completion of a language test.

©Russia Today

Those ethnic Russians who do not posses citizenship have non-citizen passports which don't entitle them to the same travel freedom as other EU citizens.  They also have limited voting rights.

©Russia Today

Scotland

At the end of the week I'm off to Scotland for three days.  I'm going to stay in Edinburgh which is the capital and the second-largest city.  I've got two all-day tours planned to see the Highlands, Loch Lomond, Loch Ness, some castles and a few other sites.

Scotland is part of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.  The mainland takes up the northern third of Great Britain and shares a border with England.  Scottish territory also includes over 790 islands.  Scotland is about the same size as the Czech Republic; just a wee bit smaller than South Carolina.  Its population is +5.2 million people.  Roughly about the same as Atlanta. 

The flag was first raised in 1512 and is one of the oldest flags in the world that is still in use.  There has been a long history of fighting between Scotland and England.  Although not historically accurate...think of the movie Braveheart.  In 1707, Scotland became a part of the Kingdom of Great Britain when it entered in to a political union with England.

Scotland does have some autonomy.  Its legal and education systems are different from that of England, Wales and Northern Ireland.  It has its own parliament and has some amount of control over income taxes.  Internationally, the UK prime minister is in charge but internally Scotland is led by the 1st minister.  Queen Elizabeth II, as the current UK monarch, is the head of state.

English and Scottish £5 notes

Scotland even has its own money.  Well, sort of.  Natalie lived in Edinburgh for five years and filled me in on this part.  The Bank of England is the UK's central bank and issues banknotes in pound (£) sterling.  However, three Scottish clearing banks issue their own banknotes.  The banknotes differ depending on which bank printed them.  Officially, the Scottish banknotes are valid currency but not legal tender.  They are valid everywhere in Scotland and are more or less accepted in other parts of the UK.  Banks and post offices will exchange Scottish pounds for British pounds.  The coins are the same throughout the United Kingdom.

There are three official languages in Scotland: English, Gaelic and Scots.  Scottish accents can be tough to understand.  I've been on many a conference call with colleagues from Scotland and it can be quite the challenge at times to figure out what is being said.

There is wide debate in Scotland right now about the possibility of declaring full independence.  The SNP (Scottish National Party) holds a majority of seats in parliament right now and plans to hold a referendum in 2014.  If Scotland does become an independent country then it will need to decide if it will join the EU.  But EU membership requires that all new nations must eventually adopt the Euro which is a touchy subject right now in most of Europe.  Here's a video I found on YouTube about the upcoming referendum.

©Russia Today

Update 2025:  Here's a short video I found out about the Union of England and Scotland.

©History Matters

Katyń Memorial

In 1939, Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union invaded Poland. Germany controlled the west and the Soviets occupied the east.
Polish officers and soldiers, as well as civilian doctors, lawyers, priests and factory owners, captured by the Red Army were later executed by the NKVD (Stalin's secret police that later became the KGB).
The numbers vary but over 22,000 Poles were assassinated and buried in mass graves in 1940. Katyń Forest refers to one of the main execution sites near Smolensk in Russia. Though this was not the only site.
In 1943, the Germans discovered what had happened and told the world about the Soviet atrocities. Later the Soviets maintained that the Nazis were responsible for the killings. And so it went on for decades without any closure for the victim's families.
In 1990, Mikhail Gorbachev admitted that Stalin ordered the executions by the NKVD and confirmed two other burial sites. In 2010, the Russian State Duma approved a declaration officially blaming Stalin and other Soviet officials for ordering the massacre.
Last year the Polish president and other high government officials were on their way to commemorate the 70th anniversary of the massacre when the plane they were traveling in crashed near Smolensk. This just makes Katyń an ever bigger tragedy for Poland.
Many cities in Poland have Katyń memorials. In Wrocław, the memorial is in a park east of the city center. The "Matron of the Homeland" despairs over a dead solider while the angel of death looms over. Like the real victims at Katyń, the sculpture shows the soldier's hands tied behind his back and bullet hole in the back of his head.
Here's a clip I found on YouTube of Russia Today talking about the Katyń Massacre.

©RT