 Kyiv Beaches and the "Ukrainian Mentality" By Serhiy KHARCHENKO |
So where shall we go? Of course, to the beach! To Hydropark! I often go there. Sun burnt trunks of swimmers dive into water like mini-torpedoes. White-skinned Kyiv residents hobble to the water. Having bathed they fall on their towels as if they have just come from heaven.
There are about 20 beaches and about 30 resort zones in the Kyiv water area. However, there are two more oasis's of naked bodies. These are Kyiv resort complexes: "Puscha Voditsa" in the north suburb of the city and "Koncha Zaspa" in the south. Still, these are less populated and expensive regions.
I was pressed for time and chose the nearest and most popular beach paradise situated in the so-called Hydropark, bank of the Dnieper River pierced by the metro line. One of the advantages of Hydropark is that there are enough places for parking there.
The central alley ends near the bridge across the so-called "Venetian Channel". This bridge has demonstrated the peculiarities of the "Ukrainian mentality" for many years. I remember in the spring of 1986 a few foreigners who managed to come to Kyiv and by a miracle looked at Kyiv residents lying on the Dnieper bank in great bewilderment.
Today young women and men stand on this bridge. Many of them were born 16 years ago, in the year when the nuclear accident took place. My old buddy, sailor-rescuer was sitting in his boat near the bridge. This time he does not joke into his megaphone. His information makes me sad. Since the beginning of the season he has witnessed 15 tragedies on the Dnieper: 8 swimmers became handicapped and 7 people died. He attempts to persuade people not to swim while in a state of intoxication.
Drunken Kyiv residents do not pay attention to his words and go swimming. I look as a young man dives from the bridge risking his life. This is the "Ukrainian mentality" in action.
I passed by the so-called "rest zone" with a thick layer of silt at the bottom and grayish sand "decorated" with cigarette butts and wrappers. I prefer one of two beaches in Hydropark. "SunCity" beach is a kingdom of beach coziness: sifted sand, shower cubicle and toilettes. I decided to afford to feel a rich man. I paid two hryvnia for the entrance fee and rented a chaise lounge for five hryvnia
As for the elite part of the paid beach, the so-called VIP-sector, most people cannot afford to pay for it. Here you can see swimming pools, water bicycles, bars, exotic shows and even a nightclub. Entrance to this beach costs 40 hryvnia. It is likely that the owners of the beach do not intend to extend the area where they can render their services. They aim to make a profit on the rented piece of land.
Thousands of Kyiv residents pass by this stunningly expensive beach and go to the free of charge beaches. They lie on the sandbanks and stone slopes of the Dnieper dams. They bring children with them and they bring bags with food and soft drinks. These people do not enjoy beach services here simply because they are not rendered here.
Why are the services rendered on Kyiv "folk" beaches so poor? I'll try to explain. According to the newspapers, the public utility company that manages all Kyiv beaches prepared for the summer season in time. They brought in sand, bought new diving equipment, repaired rescue boards and conducted sanitary cleansing of the water area on a huge territory.
However, money is always not enough for all the changes and innovations. The "Ukrainian mentality" prompted a good and "reliable" way out of the situation: cut expenses for beach inventory. Toilette cubicles have undergone the worst discrimination. There are only a few of them on the beach. Still, I did not observe mass dissatisfaction by the absence of such necessary beach elements. It is likely that people are guided by the same "Ukrainian mentality". The problem with toilettes can be solved stunningly easily: the Dnieper is near. Officials that have access to the medical data do not pay attention of citizens "hygienic group problems" saying that water in the Dnieper is not stagnant and thus is self-purifying.
Shall I tell you a secret as to why there are swimming pools in the VIP-sector? They are filled in with the water from the Dnieper but when the river is "resting" and self-purifying that is at 3 a.m.
When shall I fill my bathroom where I want to wash myself thoroughly after bathing in the beach? Shall I do it at 3 a.m.? It is not funny.
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More in the section:
The Cradle of The A-bomb
A Trip to Siberia
Investigating Terra Incognita: Bashkiria
Read also previous issue' articles:
THE EAR: Time to Stop Traffic Terror
The USSR: What was it?
Socialist Realism From One Collector's Viewpoint
Weak Laws Make Ukraine Europe's Dumping Ground
Social Entrepreneurship Expands in Ukraine
Lenin and Ukraine
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