Some basic facts & information about this large Eastern European Country.
Ukraine gained independence from USSR in 1991, shares borders with 7 countries- Belarus, Hungary, Moldova, Poland, Romania, Russia & Slovakia and has coastlines on two bodies of water-Black Sea and Sea of Azov. The distinct flag shows a broad, golden yellow band underneath an equally, azure blue band. It represents ‘Wheatfields below the blue sky’.
The world’s first constitution was drafted and introduced in 1710. Kiev boasts the ‘Hero City’ status which was conferred by the Soviet Union in honor of its fierce resistance to the Nazis in 1941. Battle of Kiev, an operation that resulted in a huge encirclement of Soviet troops and it considered the largest encirclement in the history of warfare.
Stalin, Churchill and Roosevelt met at the Yalta conference in 1945, to discuss the post war reorganization of Germany and Europe. The venue, Livadia Palace is now a museum. The Ukrainian diplomatic mission for NATO is located in Brussels. Incidentally it has one of the largest armies in Europe.
In the city of Lviv, you can see a statue of Jesus Christ who sits on a cross. It’s the only one in the world and it can be seen on top of Boim Chapel and it is an UNESCO World Heritage Site.
The Chernobyl nuclear disaster (1986) was a massive blow to the Russian nuclear program. This has led to unavailability of fresh water, air pollution and high cancer rates. The radiation caused is more than Hiroshima and Nagasaki combined.
Ukraine has been a popular choice of filmmakers. Some Indian films that were shot are RRR, Rajnikanth’s 2.0, Dev, 99 Songs & Winner.
Arsenaina on Kiev city metro line is the deepest metro station in the world: 105.5 meters deep. It is because it had to bypass Dniper river which raises above the Kiev city and surrounds it.
The McDonalds in Kiev is the 3rd most visited McDonald’s restaurant in the world. The Ukrainian name for Vodka is ‘horylka’, usually made with red pepper.
It stands 4th in the world in terms of most educated population. 99.4 % of the Ukrainians aged 15 and above can read and write. 70% have higher education. Even the heavyweight champions Vitali and Wladimir have doctorate degrees.
The popular Easter Egg tradition originated in Ukraine. Originally, the eggs were patterned using wax and dye. The wax was eventually removed leaving an impressive pattern with dashing colors.
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