After Russia we flew to Kiev, Ukraine. Kiev has a population of approx 2.5 million and is the capital of Ukraine. We did a couple of walking tours to check out the sights. There are many pretty domed churches and monumets along with some great architecture.
The People's Friendship Arch, was constructed in 1982 and is dedicated to the unification of Russia and Ukraine.
The Dnieper River. Runs from Russia and Belarus in the north down to Ukraine, passing quite close by to Chornobyl. It is possible to do tours of the Chernobyl site, however we gave this a miss, deciding that a visit to the Ukrainian National Chernobyl Museum might be a safer option. The museum has the potential to be a lot better, but currently contains an extensive collection of scale models, films and artifacts etc, designed to educate the public about many aspects of the Chernobyl Distaser. One of the nuclear power stations exploded on 26 April, 1986, however notification of the event was not made until increased radiation had been detected in neighbouring countries. The explosion resulted in at least 100 times more radiation being released than the atom bombs that were dropped on Nagasaki and Hiroshima. After the accident, traces of radioactive deposits were found in nearly every country in the northern hemisphere! It is a very sad, but interesting story, and a visit to the museum is highly recommended.
Maidan Nezalezhnosti (Independence Square) is the central square in Kiev.
Saint Andrew's Church
St. Michael's Golden-Domed Cathedral
Joel, Shannon, Sean and Emma, soaking up the sun on a walking tour, in front of St Sophia Cathedral.
A Gaudi like building The House of Chimaeras or Gorodetsky House, is accros the street from the President of Ukraine's office, has been used as a presidential residence for official and diplomatic ceremonies since 2005.
We caught a local bus for over an hour to Pyrohiv, originally a village south of Kiev, which is now home to The Museum of Folk Architecture and Life of Ukraine. The photo above is of a wooden church.
There are approximately 300 buildings a the site, including churches, houses and windmills.
The boys taking a break under on of the many windmills at the site.
Shots seemed like a good idea on our last night in Kiev.
Sean enjoying the local food, Borscht (Beetroot Soup). Overall the food and beer in Kiev was great. We tried a variety of both, including chicken kiev, perhaps not actually traditionally Ukrainina, as it seems to mainly only be sold to tourists in Kiev.
The People's Friendship Arch, was constructed in 1982 and is dedicated to the unification of Russia and Ukraine.
The Dnieper River. Runs from Russia and Belarus in the north down to Ukraine, passing quite close by to Chornobyl. It is possible to do tours of the Chernobyl site, however we gave this a miss, deciding that a visit to the Ukrainian National Chernobyl Museum might be a safer option. The museum has the potential to be a lot better, but currently contains an extensive collection of scale models, films and artifacts etc, designed to educate the public about many aspects of the Chernobyl Distaser. One of the nuclear power stations exploded on 26 April, 1986, however notification of the event was not made until increased radiation had been detected in neighbouring countries. The explosion resulted in at least 100 times more radiation being released than the atom bombs that were dropped on Nagasaki and Hiroshima. After the accident, traces of radioactive deposits were found in nearly every country in the northern hemisphere! It is a very sad, but interesting story, and a visit to the museum is highly recommended. 
Maidan Nezalezhnosti (Independence Square) is the central square in Kiev.
Saint Andrew's Church
St. Michael's Golden-Domed Cathedral
Joel, Shannon, Sean and Emma, soaking up the sun on a walking tour, in front of St Sophia Cathedral.
A Gaudi like building The House of Chimaeras or Gorodetsky House, is accros the street from the President of Ukraine's office, has been used as a presidential residence for official and diplomatic ceremonies since 2005.
We caught a local bus for over an hour to Pyrohiv, originally a village south of Kiev, which is now home to The Museum of Folk Architecture and Life of Ukraine. The photo above is of a wooden church.
There are approximately 300 buildings a the site, including churches, houses and windmills.
The boys taking a break under on of the many windmills at the site.
Shots seemed like a good idea on our last night in Kiev.
Sean enjoying the local food, Borscht (Beetroot Soup). Overall the food and beer in Kiev was great. We tried a variety of both, including chicken kiev, perhaps not actually traditionally Ukrainina, as it seems to mainly only be sold to tourists in Kiev.
