Around the World in 18 Sleuths
Traveling in my armchair through detective fiction, songs, movies, food, and crafts
Ukraine Armchair Travel Diary
Ukrainian cuisine is often most famous for Chicken Kyiv, Borscht, and Kyiv Cake. But I’m a messy cook, so naturally I’m drawn to recipes that require a hands-on approach that involves the entire kitchen countertop. I felt right at home sifting through Ukrainian recipes of halušky, chebureki, and varenyky. However, I knew I only had…
Most of you are probably familiar by now with the unusual career of Ukraine’s current president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy. Many streaming services and TV channels recently took on his immensely popular satirical comedy series “Servant of the People” (“Sluha Narodu” / “Sluga Naroda”). It feels like more than just a funny relic from his past, it…
With open ears I’m listening through all kinds of music from Ukraine and exploring its musical history. In doing so, I curate a Spotify playlist with my favorite discoveries. This playlist follows only two rules: I include artists from or strongly connected with Ukraine and I include a maximum of two songs by the same…
Vytynanky (Витина́нки) is the Ukrainian art of papercutting. I fell in love with the breathtaking creations of Daria Alyoshkina (@vytynankaalyoshkina) and wanted to try a simple design myself. You’ve already seen one in the last photo with Kurkov’s novel. I have immense respect for this kind of traditional decorative art and can only imagine the…
“Death and the Penguin” revolves around an aspiring writer, specializing in short stories, who seems to hit it big as a sought-after writer of obituaries. As he navigates the bleak reality of post-Soviet Kyiv, he is accompanied by his pet penguin, Misha, who is depressed and has a heart condition. Organized crime, friendship, corruption, death,…