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Exploring Ukraine |
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 Posted: Alex Detig |
Monday, 11 July 2011 16:03 |
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The sky gleams an iridescent blue and the cornfields glow bright yellow – in the summer, the national colours of the Ukraine can be found right across the country. But this vast land with the biggest surface area in Europe still presents an enigma to most in the West. Chernobyl and all its negative associations continues to be the name everyone’s heard of. It has become the unfortunate flag-bearer for the country. But this is a land that has far more to offer, way beyond Chernobyl, the Orange Revolution, international boxing champions and the European football championships in 2012.
Despite its isolated Soviet past, the Ukraine is a country with a surprisingly young and modern culture. Western prejudices are quickly dispersed on meeting its people: they are driven, well-educated, interested and friendly. They are a bridging point between people who consider themselves very much European and those in the East, who still have strong historical ties with Russia. This is a nation that may appear divided and disparate, yet it is bound by a common pride in their country.
The documentary series ‘Exploring Ukraine’ paints a portrait of this land and its people, suspended between tradition and modernity, brought to life by the direct and intimate access of the Ukrainian-born journalist Tatjana Ivanova. She meets this extraordinary country’s people in their element, such as the traders on Central Europe’s biggest outside bazaar, the monks in the biggest cave monastery in the world, the new Yuppie class in Kiev, and demonstrators going to some lengths to get their points across. And she samples traditional culinary delights, which round of the infectious atmosphere of her Ukrainian journey.
This series is about the contrast between the Ukraine’s different peoples and places. We meet everyone from Tartars to Cossacks and their age-old traditions, which may soon become a thing of the past, and contrast it with the super-modern computer whizzkids in Odessa. The differences and colourful collection of opposites are breathtaking. But this is also a journey across the stunning and untouched expanses of the Ukraine’s landscapes, setting the scene for a unique insight into a little-known country.
It is a journey full of undiscovered secrets, fascinating people, dramatic landscapes and imposing history. It is a portrait of a land that is gradually opening up, offering a rich addition to modern Europe that is far more than just the host nation of the next European football championships.