Christmas in Ukraine

Our Christmas Tree

 The Christmas Eve shift in Ukraine was punctuated by the usual regular booms of outgoing (and occasionally incoming) artillery, along with a procession of concussions and minor blast injuries.

Most people in Ukraine have shifted to celebrating Christmas Day on 25 December, instead of the Russian Orthodox tradition of 7 January. Thus, Christmas fell on our day off. We visited an old church, which was used as a sports hall during Soviet times, and has since been restored by donors. 

We had a fairly simple Christmas repast. However, for many Ukrainians, old traditions have become more popular, such as caroling, serving 12 traditional dishes, and setting out a "dedukh" (rye sheath that symbolizes ancestral spirits).