Here you can see the steamboat for daytime cruises and the statue of a pagan Slavic warrior with his pet bobcat. Wild cats were the symbol of Gomel and Belarus in general.
Here is a photo of the Post office at night time.
Sunday, February 8, 2015
Gomel - a riverfront gem of a city
You don't hear about Belarus in the news. It's a quiet landlocked republic in Central Europe, sandwiched between Russia and Poland vertically, and Ukraine and Lithuania horizontally. My last novel is set in my native Gomel, a green, squeaky clean, riverfront city not far from the Ukrainian border. The location of city made it an unfortunate target for the massive radiation fallout from the Chernobyl disaster. Here are some recent photos from Gomel. The layout hasn't changed much in the past 20+ years.
Here you can see the steamboat for daytime cruises and the statue of a pagan Slavic warrior with his pet bobcat. Wild cats were the symbol of Gomel and Belarus in general.
Here is a photo of the Post office at night time.
The magnificent Orthodox church that was restored during the 1990s.
Here you can see the steamboat for daytime cruises and the statue of a pagan Slavic warrior with his pet bobcat. Wild cats were the symbol of Gomel and Belarus in general.
Here is a photo of the Post office at night time.
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Adore, adore, adore the pics and the bit of background info. The closest I will get to the real deal. Thanks for sharing
ReplyDeleteOh, this is just a very tiny piece. I'll have more pictures. The church was closed for decades, serving as a historical landmark. But in the 1990s it was reopened.
ReplyDeleteI have seen much of the world, but have never been to Belarus; looks like i missed something special.
ReplyDeleteNo worries, Ken, I'll keep posting images of the wild life and architecture. I don't recommend going there without a protective suit. Some places are still quite high in radiation. It doesn't care if you're a native or an American tourist.
ReplyDeleteGlad to see this! We've been twice to Tarasova, about 20 kms from Minsk. Our small Presbyterian church where we once were had a "Twinning" relationship with the Orthodox church there, where construction was still ongoing. During WWII the church had been destroyed by the Communists, and just before the old priest there was shot, he called out, "The bells will once again ring at Tarasova!" On our second visit, we heard the bells.
ReplyDeleteThank you, Jean! It's so wonderful to see people rediscovering their spirituality. My dad actually helped raise funds to restore the church in the picture and coat the golden domes.
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