Convinced by our crazy friend, we were off on a twelve hour bus ride to Ukraine for the New Year. There was a group of about fifteen of us, headed to Lviv to celebrate and experience the New Year. Three of us were traveling there together- Megan, Aga, and I. Crossing the border from Poland into Ukraine took us a few hours. It was fairly heavily guarded and we had to go through customs for the first time in a few months since we were finally leaving the Schengen region. All was well once we got through the border, no hiccups. And just like crossing any border, it looks the same once on the other side. Well it did… at least for a short time. Once we were a few kilometers past the border ,the terrain began to change rapidly, and the reason why the bus trip was going to take twelve hours made complete sense. The roads were no longer paved. It looked like they had been at one point, but long in the past. Luckily our bus driver seemed as if he had made this trip a few times. He skillfully maneuvered back and forth across the road, dodging countless potholes, extremely carefully so he wouldn’t break an axle and extend this trip any further.

Deep Cut Tip 1 -don’t take the bus to Lviv if you get motion sickness. Also go to the bathroom before you leave because they stopped only twice…

The Ukrainian countryside felt like a world away from its neighboring country. We were greeted by a sheep herd crossing a dirt country road, and surrounded by small village after small village. I began wondering where Lviv truly was. I think the three of us, even being from different parts of the world, hadn’t ever seen anything quite like it. It was such a major divide from Poland to Ukraine. I had always thought borders were rather arbitrary but when you see things actually change like this you see that they really can matter. I know this sounds dreary, but the Ukrainian countryside at dusk was beautiful.

What should’ve taken us maybe an hour and a half ended up being around another four hours. As interesting as it was, all of us began wondering what our friend had talked us into. Especially considering he kept talking about going to a restaurant full of little people working there. Regardless, we had made it to Lviv. Stuck at the bus station without any service or wifi, we didn’t have a clue how we were going to get to our AirBnb because none of us spoke any Ukrainian. Luckily, Aga had the courage to ask a random cabby in Polish how much it’d cost us to get to the city center. He spoke a decent amount of Polish, which was relieving. Afraid of being ripped off because our friend told us not to take taxis, we bargained with him for about 100 UAH, slightly less than $4. Not too bad! After being maliciously ripped off we headed out to the old city center.

Deep Cut Tip 2 -Polish is a really useful language in Lviv, a lot of people speak at least a little bit!

It was a short ride to the center, which in turn was a short time for us to change our feelings about everything that had just occurred. I know what it sounds like- I’m bashing Ukraine. Truly, I’m not. These were the facts of our trip and it surprised us all. But once we got to old town Lviv, we left our worries behind at that same bus station. Lviv is a gorgeous old Medieval city, sprawling with colorful buildings left over from the beginning of the Renaissance. Being from the states, Ukraine isn’t a country I feel like many of us visit while in Europe. Not because of its reputation, but because we don’t know much about it. Discovering this place off the word of a crazy friend felt like finding a hidden gem in Europe.

Traveling in a group of fifteen is no short task, it’s hard to corral that many people and come up with a concise plan. But we were also incredibly blessed to have a Ukrainian friend with us who spoke the language and knew where to take us. On the first night, Yarek took us to Kryivka. It was definitely a touristy, but incredibly interesting restaurant. Once you get past the line at the door, you’re greeted by a man who demands a password and then gives you a shot before you can enter. After walking downstairs into the basement of the building, you come into a massive underground restaurant that feels like a bunker. The entire place is decked out with WW2 propaganda and history to give it a proper theme.

Deep Cut Tip 3 -the password was “Chwała Ukrainie!”and translates to something like “the glory of Ukraine”.

Yarek took charge of the evening. He pulled the server aside and ordered dinner for the entire group, family style. It was a kind gesture, trying to take care of his friends and show us Ukrainian hospitality and culture. We had a table full of homemade sausage, sauerkraut, bliny(which is like a Ukrainian mashed potato pancakes) with mushroom sauce, sour cucumbers(kind of like a sour pickle), sautéed potatoes, and bread. He also ordered us two towers of alcohol, one full of beer and the other with honey vodka. It was easy to see there were going to be a few casualties this evening. After dinner we continued to party a bit, talked about going to the strip clubs(Aga) for about an hour, but finally decided to head home for the evening after a few of us were good and drunk.

The next morning, we began to wander the city streets for the first time in the daylight. We walked over to the city square after getting a little lost, and randomly ran into our friends. They were already half-drunk after finishing a bottle of vodka at the top of local government building’s viewpoint. It was a sunny cloudless day, and they suggested we make the trip up ourselves. After doing a bit of window shopping at the local Christmas pop-up shops and stalls in the square, we took their advice. The trip up the old rickety spiral staircase was quite the workout and interesing because it was the only way up and down. It was obviously built to allow a single person to pass at at time. We made it to the top of the building after being too close to a few strangers butts and got to see Lviv from one of the higher points in the city center. The view was like taking a small trip backwards in time. From old rusted tin roofs, to a multicolored scene of Medieval buildings and churches, it felt like we were sitting in an old Eastern high cultural center.

Deep Cut Tip 4 – be careful, vodka is really cheap and you can drink it on the street. 😉

After the views and fresh air, we needed a little grub to settle the hangovers sitting in our stomachs. Baczewski, thank god we went to Baczewski. The hostess walked us downstairs into the basement of the building by the bar. It was a gorgeous interior that felt contemporary but also archaic. The basement walls were original uncovered brick that arched up into the ceilings and the stairs separated the basement with a pane of glass. The servers were dressed in old school professional serving attire, and very much played that part, but the place still managed to give off an air of casualty.

Deep Cut Tip 5-almost every restaurant looks small on the outside, but are actually big. Many of them have really cool underground basements. Definitely check them out.

For our first course we ordered kanapki, small open face sandwiches with smoked lard, herring, and homemade paté. They were an appetizing first course, full of traditional Eastern Slavic flavors. For soup, I ordered a red Polish borsch with uszka, small dumplings filled with mushrooms and Aga had a traditional mushroom soup-juszka grzybowa. And for our main courses, I had the smoked cod, and Aga had the veal with foie gras. Everything was incredible. It was fresh, fusion twist on the traditional fare. We were stuffed, but everything was so good we were tempted to order a slice kremówka cake for dessert. We wish we had more pictures but only managed to remember to take one of the dessert. The meal cost about $12 per person, and this was a really nice restaurant, so cheap! If you’re in Lviv, go to Baczewski. Trust us.

Deep Cut Tip 6- Baczewski also served amazing cheap breakfast. Remember to go there around 8am, anytime after that there’s a line. It’s worth it, just go!

Deep Cut Tip 7– exchanging money isn’t an issue and the rate is amazing! For the dollar it was about 28:1, so for $100 I had 2775 UAH. And prices aren’t really adjusted for that relative inflation, things are still really cheap! A crepe on the street cost 52 UAH. A little less than $2 for perspective.

After lunch we walked over to the Opera Hall and Christmas tree. The long walkway in front of the building was lined with more shops and stalls selling food, beer, and souvenirs. We checked out a few churches, lit a few offerings trying to cleanse ourselves of negative karma for the evening, then went home and got ready for the party. I’m sure it was a night to remember but truthfully, I don’t. We all partied together at our friends apartment, it was a pretty calm night. We did what most do, used the holiday as a giant excuse to get wasted. Aga had to fill me in on most of the memories for the night. I think Polish people are genetically predisposed for handling their alcohol. I lost my scarf, Megan lost her phone, and got separated from us while walking home and almost got kidnapped by some Georgian guy we had met. It all feels like one giant strange blur of confusion now, but I know we had fun. We stayed in Lviv a few days longer, but I don’t want to drag on. Just know it’s a city worth visiting, with plenty of sights to see, good food to eat, and an amazing exchange rate for Americans or anyone using the Euro.

Deep Cut Tip 8-in the Ukraine they celebrate Christmas on the 7th of January, so if you’re there for New Year have fun experiencing a second Christmas!

10 things you have to do while in Lviv:

1. Eat Ukrainian borsch, smoked lard, and salted salmon
2. Drink Ukrainian coffee with brandy/rum
3. Light a candle offering in St. George’s Cathedral
4. Visit a Ukrainian dessert cafe
5. Buy one cup of melted chocolate and share with friends
6. Try sweetened condensed milk (with crepes, waffles, sweets, coffee)
7. Visit one of the themed restaurants
8. Go to Bazar Halicki and get a souvenir
9. Visit a random sidestreet
10. Drink Ukrainian beer and eat a dried fish snack