Chernigov Fountains (HDR)

Fountains on the Alley of Heroes.

A beautiful late summer day. The church in the distance is St. Catherine's.

St. Panteleimon (HDR)

The Cathedral of St. Panteleimon is a large Orthodox cathedral in the Kievan neighborhood of Feofania.

This is a 3 exposure HDR.

Dormition Cathedral, Rear View

The Dormition Cathedral is on the grounds of Kiev Pechersk Lavra, in Kiev, Ukraine.

Kiev Pechersk Lavra (Ukrainian: Києво-Печерська лавра, Kyievo-Pechers’ka lavra), also known as the Kiev Monastery of the Caves, is a historic Orthodox Christian monastery in Kiev, Ukraine. Since its foundation as the cave monastery in 1015 the Lavra has been a preeminent center of the Eastern Orthodox Christianity in Eastern Europe. Together with the Saint-Sophia Cathedral, it is inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. It was named one of the Seven Wonders of Ukraine on August 21, 2007, based on voting by experts and the internet community.

Currently, the jurisdiction over the site is divided between the state museum, National Kiev-Pechersk Historic-Cultural Preserve, and the Ukrainian Orthodox Church as the site of the chief monastery of that Church and the residence of its leader, Metropolitan Volodymyr.

Kiev Pechersk Lavra

This is an HDR processed photo.

Residences near St. Andrews.

Pantusha, Revisited

A different view of the Memorial to Pantusha the Cat, first seen here... Pantusha Memorial!

Autumn in Vermont

That time of year is slowly sneaking up on us again. Autumn.

A superb fall day;
Soon it will be cold, yet the
colors warm your soul

Wrought Iron Grapes, Uzhgorod

At the Museum of Folk Architecture in Uzhgorod, Ukraine.

Rodina Mat (HDR)

Mother Motherland (Ukrainian: Мати-Батьківщина) is a monumental statue of the "Mother Motherland" in Kiev, Ukraine. The sculpture is a part of Museum of the Great Patriotic War, Kiev. Built by Yevgeny Vuchetich, the titanium statue stands 62 meters tall upon the museum building with the overall structure measuring 102 m and weighing 530 tons. The sword in the statue's right hand is 16 m long weighing 9 tons, with the left hand holding up a 13 m by 8 m shield with the Coat of arms of the Soviet Union. The Memorial hall of the Museum displays marble plaques with carved names of more than 11,600 soldiers and over 200 workers of the home-front honored during the war with the title of the Hero of the Soviet Union and the Hero of Socialist Labor.

Rodina Mat (Mother Motherland)

Church in Chernigov

Chernigov has been on my places to visit list for three years(!), although it is only 144 km/89 miles for Kiev. But I finally got there two weeks ago, two days after a month-long heat wave broke. And it did not disappoint. I knew about the churches, but the center of the city itself is laid out in a very pleasant and livable manner. And it moves at a much slower pace than Kiev.

Chernigov (Chernihiv)

Chernihiv was first mentioned in the Rus'-Byzantine Treaty (907) (as Черниговъ), but real time of establishment is not known and according to the uncovered by archaeological excavations of a settlement which included the artifacts from the Khazar Khaganate, it have existed at least in the 9th century. Towards the end of the 10th century, the city probably had its own rulers. It was there that the Black Grave, one of the largest and earliest royal mounds in Eastern Europe, was excavated back in the 19th century.

In the southern portion of the Kievan Rus' the city was the second by importance and wealth. From the early 11th century it was the seat of powerful Grand Principality of Chernigov, whose rulers at times vied for power with Kievan Grand Princes, and often overthrew them and took the primary seat in Kiev for themselves. The grand principality was the largest in Kievan Rus and included not only the Severian towns but even such remote regions as Murom, Ryazan and Tmutarakan. The golden age of Chernihiv, when the city population peaked at 25,000, lasted until 1239 when the city was sacked by the hordes of Batu Khan, which started a long period of relative obscurity.

Chernigov, from Wikipedia

About Wikipedia excerpts: Wikipedia entries about Ukraine are often written by people whose native language is not English.

Into the Woods.

This started out as a photo, but through the wonders of modern technology, it magically became a painting! 

St. Panteleimon From Park Feofania

Feofaniya (Ukrainian: Феофанія), Theophania is a historical neighborhood on the southern outskirts of Kiev, the capital of Ukraine. The neighborhood is located in the administrative Holosiivskyi Raion (district) amidst the neighborhoods of Holosiiv, Teremky, Pyrohiv and Khotiv. The park's total area is about 1.5 km2 (0.58 sq mi). In Feofania was built the first Soviet computer MESM by Lebedev team.

About Feofania

The Cathedral of St. Pantaleon or St. Panteleimon is a large Orthodox cathedral in the Kievan neighbourhood of Feofania. It shares similarities with the Alexander Nevsky Cathedral, Tallinn and is considered a high point in Russian Revival ecclesiastical architecture.

About St. Panteleimon

Wall Mural, Kiev

Soviet Era mural? Nyet.

Soviet Inspired? Uhh…nyet.

Religious? Nyet again.

Although there does seem to be some disagreement here. My wife thinks probably none of the above, but one of my Flickr contacts thinks this IS Soviet era Realistic Art.

This is a mural on the wall of a brick and tile outlet in Kiev. Presumably, they're just showing off what they can do.

Although, if you ask me, it does have a bit of a religious theme going.

Windmill at Pirogovo Museum

Old windmill at the Pirogovo Museum, south of Kiev.  The winter was more harsh than usual this year, and many of the windmills suffered damage.  This one was no exception.