WAR, PEACE, AND COFFEE
A place in Kyiv where quiet lives
In a cafe at the foot of Andriyivsʹka Tserkva
Andriyivsʹka Tserkva is the third most attractive sight in Kyiv.
The triumphant crown rests on the head of a Ukrainian fast-food chain Puzata Hata. There, you can try the famous chicken Kyiv for just 3 euros and polish it in your gut with another local nobility — Kyiv cake. Yummy. You won’t find either of those two things in the church — a drawback on the church’s marketing strategy. But she still is an attractive attraction, one of the top three.
Speaking of tops, Andriyivsʹka Tserkva stands at the top of Andriivskyi Uzviz — an old road made of paving stones that unites the upper and lower parts of old Kyiv. She isn’t just at the top — she’s at the very very top. She’s one of the toppest spots in Kyiv. Being at the top means that everyone at the bottom looks at you, admires you and wants to reach out to you. It’s also an unequal dynamic. It’s not the church’s fault. We made her this way.
Right now, I’m very, very close to her. I can feel how her gorgeousness is hovering over me with an unbearable weight of supervision. She looks at me and says don’t sin too much today, Anton. I’ll try, Your Highness. Churches can make us humans feel small. Andriyivsʹka Tserkva is just like…
