Dekanka

After returning from Dnepropetrovsk (yes, I realize that this "vacation" series is getting long...it will end soon, no worries), I was able to tag along with a group going to visit a nearby town called Dekanka. This group of American volunteers was suffering from the same volcanic ash plight as I was; they were also stranded- only they were stranded NOT in their country of residence. Bless them.

Dekanka has a very colorful history, but it is most noted for its ties to the author Gogol. Nikolai Gogol is renowned for being a famous Russian author, but he was actually born and (so Ukrainian rumor has it) buried in what is now Ukraine (wikipedia disagrees, but I mean, who really knows?). Click here for a little Gogol history. One of his more famous works that, in my experience, a few more Americans have come across and read is Dead Souls, which is a satirical work about serfdom in Russia. Click here. Anyway, Gogol is important to Dekanka because he was born in the greater Dekanka area, and his mother named him after the patron saint of Dekanka, Nikolai.

Dekanka's history also includes World War II activity, repercussions from the great famine that swept the nation under Stalin's rule, and casualties from the conflict between Russia and Afghanistan. This town is so small, it's sort of amazing to me how many men were involved in the wars. The Russian writer, Alexander Pushkin, reportedly made friends with the daughter of the area's nobility, and gained a lot of material for his works from the fascinating stories she told him of her family's history. It was a neat little town, and I wish I could go back on a non-overcast day; they have a "forest" of lilac bushes that I'd love to see!

This arch was constructed for Catherine the Great to walk through. She liked to make a real entrance, so they tell me.

St. Nikolai Church; the one that Gogol was named for.

The bell tower. I thought this view was just so pretty.

This babushka was hauling water out of that well as if it was nothing. I was impressed.

I thought this was a cool windmill. Found out later that they used this in the production process of a local brew.

After posing with this engine, I found out that this, too, was involved in the aforementioned process. Oi.