Kyiv: one year later

January has felt like the calm before the storm.

In less than a month, Kyiv will have lived under the steel wing of war a whole year. At such a time, the city is filled with some anxiety and much anticipation. The hardest winter in Ukraine’s modern history is almost behind it. We’re waiting for spring to come carrying new hope in its flowery backpack. But the arrival of spring would also mean a new round of struggle is about to begin — for Ukraine at large and for Kyiv specifically.

The crumbling Empire will strike back with all the might it has left.

While the prospect of a full-scale attack on Kyiv from Belarus remains highly unlikely, we expect some kind of escalation from Russia with Kyiv being one of the key targets. Whatever happens, it can’t get worse than it has already been, right? At least, it’s a gut feeling that I have today— on these last days of January — while I walk the lively streets of Kyiv and climb its breathtaking hills (which literary make your breathing stop as some of them are quite steep).

So, what is it like — to live in the capital that survived a whole year of war?

Everything works

Despite Russia’s numerous attempts to destroy Kyiv’s civil infrastructure and make the city unliveable for millions of Ukrainians and guests, Kyiv preserved and today is as liveable as ever. Water flows through its venous pipes. Warmth grows in its hearty heaters. Electricity breaks through its sunny…