Appetite comes with eating.
Ukrainian proverb.
Ukrainian cuisine is varied and rich in taste and nutritional value. Its development was influenced by the same factors as the development of material culture: geography and climatic conditions, plant cultivation and animal domestication, technological change, cultural influences, and economic relations with other countries.
Since ancient times Ukrainians have practiced a settled form of life based on farming. Archeological evidence shows that wheat, barley, and millet were grown in Ukraine 3,000 years ago. Rye was introduced, about 2,000 years ago, and then buckwheat was imported from Asia in the 11th century AD. Already at that time cattle, sheep, hogs and poultry were raised.
As a result of Ukraine's trade relations with other countries, the cultivation of new plants, particularly from eastern and central Asia (e.g. melons and eggplants), was introduced into Ukraine. The potato reached Ukraine from America through Europe in the 17th century, followed by corn, tomatoes, pumpkins, beans, cayenne, peppers, cocoa, and other plants. The introduction of these new products greatly enriched the variety of Ukrainian foods.
Since ancient times bread has held a special, primary position in the cuisine of the Ukrainian people. In general sour rye bread is the common type of bread produced in Ukraine, except in the southern and southeastern regions, where white-wheat bread is more common. Besides ordinary bread Ukrainians bake various ritual breads from special doughs. Ukrainian bread with its many variations has become quite famous.
Cooked cereal—whether wheat, barley, buckwheat, millet, oat, or corn grits—is an ancient Ukrainian food. The most commonly eaten cereals are buckwheat (kasha), millet, and, in the Hutsul and Transcarpathian regions, cornmeal (mamalyga or kulesha).
The favorite dishes made of flour are dumplings (halushky) and filled dumplings (varenyky) with various types of filling: cheese, potato and cheese, cabbage, meat, fish, buckwheat.
The potato is most widely used vegetable in Ukrainian cooking. It is a necessary ingredient in all soups, particularly borsch and cabbage soup. Boiled or baked potatoes are served alone or with meat, fish, cheese, cabbage, mushrooms and so on. Another important element in Ukrainian cooking is cabbage. Cabbage leaves are used in making cabbage rolls (holubtsi), which are filled with buckwheat or millet grits, rice or meat. Other vegetables such as onions, garlic, carrots, turnips, radishes, and cucumbers are frequently eaten raw.
In the Ukrainian tradition a soup or borsch must be served with dinner. Various soups—made with meat, fish, vegetables, fruit, or milk—are popular, but borsch remains the favorite. It is made of vegetables, among which beets and cabbage are predominant, and meat or fish.
Meat is usually eaten on feast days, Sundays, or at family celebrations. The most popular meat is pork and its products, such as ham, sausage, blood sausage, smoked bacon and salt pork.
Foods prepared with milk, dairy products and eggs have long been a part of Ukrainian cooking. Soured milk is a favorite drink throughout Ukraine. Cottage cheese is eaten mixed with sour cream. A salty cheese from sheep's milk (brynza) is made in the Hutsul region and Bukovyna.
Bread kvas, fruit or cucumber broth, and birch sap are popular folk beverages in Ukraine. Tea is the most widely consumed hot beverage, followed by coffee and cocoa. Alcoholic beverages such as mead, wine, fruit liqueurs (nalyvka), alcohol with pepper and beer have been popular for many centuries.
There are significant regional variations in Ukrainian cuisine that resulted from the availability of different agricultural products, foreign influences, or even the conservatism of the common people in regard to change.
HOLIDAYS
Like most European nations Ukraine sees the New Year on December 31. You can hardly find a person who doesn't hope that the Old Year with all its troubles will leave forever and the New Year will bring health, prosperity and happiness. On New Year's Eve most people decorate a New Year tree with garlands, toys and sweets, prepare presents for their near and dear and enjoy the all-night New Year parties. January 1 is an official day off, but nowadays many businesses close for several days till January 8 or 10 to give their employees New Year and Christmas holidays.
New Year celebrations gradually glide into one of the most important religious holidays — Christmas. For many years this holiday was observed only by religious people, but now it is an official state holiday and a day off. It is favourite with children who like to go from door to door, sing carols and get sweets from the hosts. Mothers of the family cook a traditional Ukrainian Christmas dish "kutya" which all the family eat together. Many people now like to go to church to listen to Christmas sermons.
Not long ago young people and lovers of all ages started to follow the English tradition of celebrating St. Valentine's Day on February 14 by sending special postcards and giving lovely gifts to their sweethearts. It is especially popular with schoolchildren who have little wish to study on this day.
The next official holiday in Ukrainian calendar is Women's Day. Very few people remember now how it originated, but it is an important signpost in the women's feminist movement in the world, because it commemorates the beginning of women's struggle for their economic, political and social rights. Today, it is the day to show love and respect to women of all ages, when most Ukrainian fathers, husbands and sons clean and cook and give wonderful presents and flowers to their beautiful wives, mothers and daughters. Many women regret that this day comes only once a year.
April Fools' Day is not an official holiday in Ukraine but it is very popular in this country. It was borrowed from Britain long ago and since then has been enjoyed by the young and the old. It is one of the most favourite holidays with school children, students and humourists who turned it into the "National Day of Humour".
By Orthodox canons Easter, the day of Christ's Resurrection, is celebrated in Ukraine later than in other European countries. Only several years ago it was proclaimed an official state holiday and many people celebrate it by attending the all-night service in church and having a tasty meal at home on Red Sunday. Children enjoy painting Easter eggs and eating raster bread.
May holidays begin on the first day of this month as a holiday of spring and peace. For many years in the former Soviet Union it was celebrated as an official state holiday— Labour Day. Now it has lost its political significance and people just enjoy additional days off either having a rest in the open air or working in their gardens.
Victory Day, which is annually marked on May 9, commemorates the victory of Soviet people over Nazi Germany in 1945. So many people died or were killed in that war that there is hardly a family in Ukraine that didn't suffer a loss. On this day many people go to military cemeteries and memorials to take flowers to the monuments and show their respect and appreciation to those who defended their Motherland by the cost of their lives.
The new Constitution of Ukraine as an independent, sovereign, democratic, social and legal state was adopted by the Verkhovna Rada on June 28,1996 as the Fundamental Law of the country. The day of its adoption is a state holiday—the Day of the Constitution of Ukraine.
August 24 is a new national state holiday-the Day of Independence of Ukraine, which was proclaimed in 1991 on the decision of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine after the military coup in Moscow. This day is marked with parades and fireworks.
A traditional holiday on November 7 commemorates an important historic event — the Great October Socialist Revolution that took place in 1917 and influenced the life of people not only in our country but in most countries of the world. This state holiday used to be marked with military parades and peaceful demonstrations, but now most people regard it as a good chance to have a rest and a family get-together.
Most Ukrainian people enjoy holidays both old and new because they are good breaks in everyday work, an opportunity to see their friends and relatives and just to have a good time.
SPORT LIFE
Both professional and amateur sports are very popular in Ukraine. Physical training is a compulsory subject at all school levels and besides thousands of boys and girls train in hundreds of sport clubs under the guidance of highly qualified coaches. So it is no wonder that Ukrainian sportsmen show good and excellent results at national, international and world championships.
The name of Kyiv's famous football team "Dynamo" works like a visiting card for many Ukrainians who travel abroad, helping to find friends among football fans and supporters. This team was the European Cup Holder twice, in 1975 and 1985, and their players Oleg Blokhin and Ihor Bielanov were named among the best football players of Europe. Now Andrey Shevchenko and Sergiy Rebrov have proved that they are the worthy followers of the best "Dynamo" traditions. "Dynamo" fans are sure that their favourite team is capable of leading Ukrainian football players to future victories.
The "Spartak" handball team from Kyiv, headed by senior coach Ihor Turchyn won 13 European Champion's Cups, and its players Zinaida Turchyna and Larysa Karlova were named best players in European and World Championships several times.
The Ukrainian school of gymnastics is famous all over the world. Its representatives — Iryna Deriuhina, Oleksandra Tymoshenko, Oksana Skaldina and some others — have won World and European Championships many times. The famous Ukrainian gymnast Larysa Latynina has the longest history of Olympic records: 9 gold, 5 silver and 3 bronze medals.
Track-and-field events fans will always remember the victories of Ukrainian sprinter Valeriy Borzov, who won 2 gold, 1 silver and 2 bronze medals at the 20th and 21st Olympic Games. He is now the Minister of Sports and Youth Affairs of Ukraine
The legendary veteran of Ukrainian sport, 8 times World and Olympic champion in the pole vault Serhiy Bubka holds 35 world records. He has an honorary title of the "World's Best Athlete". Recently he has returned to the sporting ground after a trauma of his knee and his fans are looking forward to his new records.
In the 1992 Olympic games, Ukrainian figure skater Oksana Baiul won the first gold medal for independent Ukraine which sent its national team to the Olympics for the first time.
At the 26th Olympic Games in Atlanta the harvest of prizes was much greater: 9 gold and many silver and bronze medals. The winners at that Olympics were: gymnast Lilia Podkopaieva, free-style gymnast Katya Serebrianska, Greco-Roman wrestler Viacheslav Oliynyk, weight-lifter Tymur Taimazov, boxer Volodymyr Klichko, yachtsmen Yevhen Braslavets and Ihor Matvienko, a track-and-field athlete Inesa Kravets and others.
Recently the young swimmer Yana Klochkova has the title of the World and European Champion in complex swimming. She also won 2 gold and 1 silver medals in the Olympic Games in Sidney. Oleksander Bagach is the World and European Champion in putting the shot. Olena Zubrilova became a prize winner in the World Cup in biathlon. These and many other victories of Ukrainian sportsmen give hope to their fans for future records and Olympic medals.
WELCOME TO UKRAINE!
Ukraine is abundant in all tourist attractions for travelers eager to learn more about the surrounding world, peoples inhabiting it, their history and folkways.
Boundless steppes, thick forests, serene groves, towering mountains, warm and caressing seas, wide rivers, whimsical cave labyrinths — put together, this cannot but attract tourists. Add to these numerous nature preserves, dendrological parks, exotically rich museum collections, historical and cultural landmarks, unique creations of artisans and the picture becomes truly unforgettable.
A modern tourist industry has a wide network of hotels, camping grounds, resorts, tourist lodges. At present, Ukraine's tourist facilities can accommodate 10,000,000 visitors.
Ukrainians are a hospitable nation. One of the oldest traditions is to meet guests with bread and salt, saying "Welcome!"
The best place to rest and to enjoy yourself the year round is the Crimea. Here you will find comfortable hotels, restaurants, cozy bars and cafes, tennis courts, gyms with exercisers, saunas, movie and concert halls, casinos and variety shows, and a beautiful beach. You can go on exciting tours of Yalta and trips across the peninsula. You can travel by bus, by pleasure slips, by delta planes and helicopters.
ECOLOGY
Pollution became evident in Ukraine withindustrialdevelopment in the 19th century. Ukraine contains some of the most polluted landscapes in Eastern Europe.
Air pollution is especially severe in the heavily industrialized cities of Kharkiv, Luhans'k, Donets'k, Dnipropetrovs'k and Zaporizhzhia. Coal-using industries are major sources of high levels of uncontrolled emissions of harmful substances.
Other Ukrainian cities with major chronic air pollution problems include Kyiv, Komunars'k, Makiivka and Odesa.
Over one-third of the emissions into the atmosphere originate fromautomobile transport. It is aggravate by the use of leaded gasoline and inefficientengines as well as a lack of catalyticconverters.
Almost all surface waters of Ukraine belong to the Black Sea and the Sea of Azov basins.
The Dniester and the Danube are the most polluted bodies of water. Hundreds of small rivers supply water for villages and cities of Ukraine. Those water arteries are so polluted as to pose fatal health risk the people who depend on them. About half of the chemical fertilizers applied in the fields are washed into the river.
One of the areas suffering most from chronic coastal water pollution is theSea of Azov. The sea salinity has increased by 40 percent since the 1950's. It has resulted in a dramaticdrop in fish catches t 60-90 percent.
On April 26,1986 a horrible accident occurred at theChornobyl' nuclear station. There was a nuclear reactor explosion, which had far reaching consequences. Contamination by variousradioactive isotopes has affected the air, land and water of Ukraine. About 100,000 people were exposed to deadly levels of radiation before being evacuated. Recorded but unreported radiation levels in Kyiv the maximum levels by hundredfold. Numbers of death and children leukemia have occurred in the affected areas.
Since 1991 the Environmental ProtectionLaw has been in force. Environmental safeguards of conservation bodies have become more stringent. Ecologicalmonitoring has covered Ukraine's whole area. The GovernmentalCommission on the Problems of the Dnieper and Drinking Water has been set up.
Ukraine has joinedinternational cooperation in the field of environmental protection. Agreements have been signed with conservation bodies of the USA. Poland, Czechia, Slovakia, Germany and Latvia. The Ukrainian delegation took part in the UNO Conference on the Problems of Environment.
COMPREHENSION
Answer the questions:
1. What influenced on the development of Ukrainian?
2. What are the favorite dishes of Ukrainians?
3. What is traditional Christmas meal of Ukrainians?
4. How do our people celebrate Easter?
5. When do we celebrate the Day of the Constitution of Ukraine?
6. What is a compulsory subject at all schools?
7. Who is the “World’s Best Athlete”?
8. What attracts tourists to Ukraine?
9. What is a problem of the heavily industrialized cities?
10. What are the most polluted rivers of Ukraine?
Do you know that …
… in 1976 the Olympic fire was transferred to Montreal via the earth satellite.
… boxing was officially banned in Sweden.
… Pythagoras was an Olympic champion in boxing.
… the first man who lifted the weight exceeding 200 kg was Yurii Vlasov.
… Ukrainian sportsmen won 10 gold medals at the 15th Olympics.