Chaykivka Village,Vovchansky Raion, Kharkov Oblast
I have written before that my permanent address in Ukraine is located near the border of Russia, I have been there before once. It's a beautiful small village located near the border with less population and facilities. I often wondered how people live their life near the border area especially where the problems arise in every step. But I haven't thought much about it and almost forgot about the topic until now.
This weekend we had an event in a village called Chaykivka, a small village with 45 people in Vovchansky Raion, a 50-minute drive from Kharkiv city. It was a sudden plan and we went there to meet someone, a couple who has been living there for a long time. They got their home from their ancestors and from generation to generation they have been holding their home there. I have heard that many people left the village behind and migrated into the big cities because of border problems and risky lifestyles like DONBAS. I also have heard that there is a hiking trail but unfortunately, I haven't found it.
The village is located near the Vovcha riverbank, this river is the left tribute of Seversky Donets which is the main river of Kharkiv and the longest river of Ukraine. Russia is only 4 km away from the village.
Most of the land of this village is uninhabited and bare, people hardly do agriculture here, only vegetation lands and some private properties are occupied and inhabited. There is a large swamp field in the center of the village, the lands are fertile but empty. As I have said people don't live here so there are no large agricultural fields.
Those who live here mostly grow their own crops and vegetables and have domestic animals like cows, geese, pigs, and chickens. Their main food is mostly broth with meat and vegetables.
As an example, you can check out the photos where I tried to show the land condition of the village. The fertile land with fertilizers you are seeing is private property and has been prepared for next spring and summer season. Also, you can see the swampy area with enormous willows in the pictures. The river is narrow now, the water level has decreased a lot but during spring and summer, the water level will rise. Winter is coming and there will be real cold snowy weather, from December to march, these lands will stay covered in the snow. The river will be turned into ice.
The day we chose to travel and explore the village was a bad idea, the weather was cloudy, rainy and cold. But it would be more difficult to travel to such a village after a few weeks so we didn't have many choices. Besides, it would have been difficult for us to travel the village in snowy winter.
My curiosity level has increased a lot after seeing the muddy roads. It was so difficult to drive and I only have seen a few homes in the village. Here the neighborhood means 3-4 homes with 7-8 people that's it.
Life is very difficult here during the winter, people have to stay at home most of the day during harsh weather. Roads are temporary but village people clean the snow of their own to drive to the raion. I barely saw any shops nearby, if people need something they have to go to nearest suburban area or raion. I also noticed many abandoned homes, old houses and people left these homes during wartime and never came back.
As I have mentioned before that we travelled to the village to meet a couple. They have been living here for years, I asked them about their winter lifestyle and they informed me that when the weather is so bad, harsh, they go to the city for a while to live there.
We started our journey early in the morning and stayed in the village for around 5-6 hours, basically throughout the whole day.
Another reason for visiting this bare village was "Chantella", a beautiful four months old girl fox who has been living with this couple from childhood. This couple is not a fox breeder but they own three beautiful foxes. Among them, one helps them to catch wild chickens. The other two is small and growing. We went there to see Chantelle.
I have seen foxes before, wild foxes and I had no idea about pet, domestic foxes. It really surprised me to see foxes and humans can live under one roof. After talking to the owner, I came to know that Chantelle is very naive and young. Her favourite food is chicken and for now, she is eating boiled meat. The adult one they keep separate and mostly stay in the case because he is a hunter. On the other hand, Chantella is calm and very attached to her owner. She looked so devoted and loyal though she stays on her leash outside. But at home, she stays without a leash.
Chantella is a well-groomed orange-brownish fox, the owner found her near the swamp when she was a baby. Her characteristics had made me so curious and because of the curiosity, I started asking a lot of questions about her. Chantella doesn't like to create bonding with strangers and she doesn't like to be touched easily. She feels comfortable and secured on her owner's lap and the owner carries her most of the time.
Her eyes clearly expressed that she doesn't like many people and it makes her feel unsafe. But it's not impossible to create bonding and connection with her, she doesn't hurt people, if someone goes near her for the first time, she just runs away. If someone tries to connect with her patiently, she creates a bond with them, that is what the owner has said to us.
Spending time with Chantella in a swamp area was an incredible experience. Not only I was able to see the beautiful small village but also came to know a lot about her and her nature. Observing her every step was exciting, how she runs, how she moves and how she reacts to situations. Her eyes were full of curiosity when she saw a lot of people. When I asked her owner to pet her and carry her for a while she allowed me. I took Chantella on my lap but only for a few minutes. She jumped and went to her owner.
She is a very young fox and also not habituated with strangers. Her eyes were bold and kind of reminds me of cunningness. I must admit she is very clever no matter how much I try to chase her. After spending some time with us, she seemed to get comfortable with us and started staying around us maintaining a distance. But after spending a few hours with her, she allowed us to pet her finally... Hahaha...
There was no greenery around us at all, all dead willows and emptiness around us but still, we have found the beauty within the bareness.
There was nothing at all as far my eyes could see. People use cars and buses mostly to travel to the city. I have asked about transportation and utilities because my curiosity was stabbing me inside. The owner of Chantella told us that they mostly store foods for winter especially dry meats and frozen vegetables. But they have cows and chickens so somehow they manage always. Another fact is woods, I barely saw any trees so asked her about woods. She said during summer, they store woods for winter. The owner was very friendly and her name was Olga. They are known as the Oleg Family in the village.
My final question was why they hadn't left their home behind and moved to the city for a better life yet? When I asked this question to Olga; she gave me a smile nicely. She said, my ancestors left this home for me and I should protect and passed it to our next generation. She also said that this is our home, here we find peace, and we are satisfied here. We don't want chaotic modern life, we are happy with what we have. Her answers delighted me so much and reminded me why people fight for their home and country. That's how we transfer our tradition, culture, and lifestyle from generation to generation.
We have returned to the city in the evening. I must say this trip was not only a remarkable trip but also gave me so much knowledge and realizations about life. I honesty felt grateful that I was part of such an excursion.
It was one of the memorable days of my life...
Watch my video :
That's all for today, folks...
Until next time... Have a nice day everyone...
Thanks for reading my blog...
Love
Priyan
Explore Life with Priyan...
"I am 
Find me on youtube...
Don't forget to subscribe to my channel...
You can find me on Twitter...
Original post written by
All the pictures used are captured by the author...
If you want this kind of GIF for yourself, Let me know...