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Thursday, November 27, 2025

Church of Saints Olga and Elizabeth

Church of Saints Olga and Elizabeth in Lviv. This is a neo-Gothic church located near the city's main railway station. The church was built between 1904 and 1911 according to the design of architect Teodor Talowski.
Teodor Talowski (1857-1910). His works include apartment buildings, churches, chapels and public buildings in Kraków, Lviv and other cities throughout former Austrian Galicia. The building has high towers and pointed spires, making it one of the most prominent architectural monuments of Lviv. The church was consecrated on October 22, 1911 as the Church of Saint Elizabeth, in honor of Elisabeth Amalie Eugenie (24 December 1837 – 10 September 1898), nicknamed Sisi or Sissi, was Empress of Austria and Queen of Hungary from her marriage to Franz Joseph I on 24 April 1854 until her assassination in 1898.
Coronation portrait as Queen of Hungary, 1867

Wednesday, November 26, 2025

Lviv railway terminal

The government of the Austrian Empire approved a program to create railways in the Kingdom of Galicia and Volhynia in 1841. In 1858, the Galician Railways Society received a concession to build a railway station in Lemberg. The first train arrived in Lemberg in 1861 from the city of Przemyśl. Later, the railway management received permission for regular train traffic from Lemberg to Vienna and Krakow. Historically, the railway terminal in Lviv is the first railway station in the territory of modern Ukraine. In 1892, the railway became the property of the state. Therefore, in 1902, construction of a new building began on the site of the old station according to the designs of the Lwow architect Władysław Sadlowski. The construction work was carried out by the firms of Ivan Lewinsky, Alfred Zakharewicz and Józef Sosnowski. In 1903, a landing stage was built by Ludwik Wieżbitski. By the way, two roofs over the five platforms, designed for small Austrian cars, could not accommodate modern long trains, and in 2000 the glass covering was replaced with light and heat-resistant lyxan. The main railway station was opened on March 26, 1904, at that time it was one of the most modern terminals in Europe. Over time, the building underwent some destruction and changes. For example, in 1915 the station was set on fire by the retreating troops of the Russian Empire. After Lwow passed to Poland, the station began to be restored. Several compositions were installed on the facade and inside the building, and in 1930 the reconstruction of the station was completely completed. The terminal was damaged again during World War II as a result of bombardment. Later, the terminal was restored only in 1957, and a second floor was also added. In 2003, for the 100th anniversary of the construction, the station was restored, and in 2019 - 2020, a large-scale renovation of the space in front of the terminal was carried out. Some pictures more
The first Lemberg railway station in 1861
platform
1904
Railway terminal 1941 - 1944

Saturday, September 20, 2025

The Pensions in Ukraine

In Ukraine, a civil servant couple receives a pension of 48,000 hryvnias for both and complains that it is still not enough to live on because even this amount does not guarantee a peaceful old age. Is it possible to live normally on a pension of 48,000 hryvnias for a couple?
The average pension in the country is 6,400 hryvnias. Minimum - For working pensioners: 2,361 hryvnias. For non-working pensioners (general minimum): 3,038 hryvnias. Pensioners from 65 years of age with full service (30 years for women, 35 for men): 3,758 hryvnias. Pensioners up to 70 years of age with full service (30/35 years) and persons with disabilities: 3,323 hryvnias. Pensioners from 70 to 80 years of age with full service (30/35 years): 3,613 hryvnias. Pensioners from 75 to 80 years old with 20/25 years of experience (women/men): 3,613 UAH. Pensioners from 80 years old with 20/25 years of experience (women/men): 3,758 UAH. More than half (approximately 55%) of Ukrainian pensioners receive a pension of less than 4,000 UAH. Today: $1US = 41 hryvnias 1 Euro = 48 hryvnias

Friday, March 14, 2025

Football-2

The girls take lead in street football and play together with boys

Tuesday, March 11, 2025

Football

I like watching the boys at the neighboring 🏫 school play ⚽ football. But today I accidentally saw a girl playing with the boys. She was technical and was not a burden to the team. The boys called her Amazon. I liked her game. #football #footballseason #footballgames #footballplayer #footballskills

Friday, March 07, 2025

A Local Supermarket

Inside a local supermarket. The assortment is not as rich as it was before the war, but it is possible to buy everything that you need.

Wednesday, March 05, 2025

USAID

Our town's municipal service has a JCB backhoe loader from the American people. This is a very good and useful thing, but unfortunately the USAID program has now been discontinued. In the days when the Soviet Union was a closed country and we did not have the opportunity to visit different countries, almost everyone thought of the USA as a dreamland that was impossible to get to. Even the word "America" was synonymous with the word "good" in simple, colloquial language. In the early 90s, I had a chance to visit the USA and live among ordinary Americans in a small provincial town. I saw that ordinary Americans are very kind, hospitable and friendly people who always try to help you if you have any problems. Also I had friendly relations with Americans who worked here, in Ukraine and even now, we correspond and maintain contacts with each other sometimes. #usaid #usa #jcb #backhoeloader #americanpeople

Saturday, February 01, 2025

Tonight

Consequences of the Russian attack in Zaporizhia, February 1, 2025 Tonight russian forces launched a combined strike on Ukraine with 165 missiles of various types, Shahed strike UAVs and other types of simulator drones. This was reported by the Air Force of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. According to preliminary data, the Ukrainian military shot down 56 Shahed/simulator drones of various types, another 61 UAVs did not reach their targets (lost in location).

Wednesday, January 08, 2025

Zaporizhia

13 dead, 18 wounded. Guided air bombs dropped on the city.