They didn’t know each other, the escape put them together and now they live together. Kyjevanky describes the journey to Prague
They worked together in Kiev’s military hospital, but they barely knew each other. In a few months, they exchanged only a few words. But the Russian invasion of Ukraine brought Maria and Olga closer. They fled their homeland together, and although they each headed to a different country, they eventually lived together in one apartment in Prague, where she now tells the Aktuálně.cz reporter about her escape from her homeland.
after a month from the start of the invasion, the women can finally rest. Maria and Olga talk about travel experiences in a spacious apartment near the center of Prague. They arranged accommodation for a month for free, they received an offer from a friend of Maria’s daughter.
They are staying in the Czech Republic for the fourth day. Even though the 43-year-old dentist and the 39-year-old laboratory assistant are already safe, just look at the hands that reveal nervousness about the memories of escaping from Kiev. They are constantly shaking. The soothing herbal tea they drink together for dinner doesn’t help either.
They are not proud to be in Prague now. For this reason, they do not want the Aktuálně.cz reporter to photograph them and give their full names. “We consider refugee status a shame,” both women explain. But they are willing to talk about their journey away from Ukraine.
Less than a month ago, you lived an everyday life in Kiev, now you are on a painful journey in Prague. Did you realize just before the Russian invasion of Ukraine that you would eventually have to flee your homeland for fear of your life?
Maria: When I watched the news on the situation on the Ukrainian border during February, I did not believe that war could really break out in Eastern Europe. I lived the same life as before: I went to work, called my daughter living in Prague, walked with my husband downtown. Still, sometimes I couldn’t sleep. I wondered what if it happened. But I kept my worries to myself, I didn’t want to scare anyone.
Olga: I’ve always been a long way from politics. I learned about all the news mainly from my older son. He said in early February that there was something wrong with the world. That’s when my son’s words were ridiculous. A week later, I asked my friend if she came to be surrounded by panickers or if everything was really wrong. At work, everyone else talked about the rescue case and also about the fact that in case of emergency we have to go to the southwest of Ukraine.
The invasion finally took place on February 24. Do you remember this day’s event?
Olga: From early in the morning, my cell phone was constantly beeping, I received messages from friends from more remote parts of Kiev. “Do you hear the explosions?” they wrote to me. Yes, I heard a few, the windows were shaking. Nevertheless, at seven in the morning, as usual, I headed for service at the military hospital.
There was confusion at work. Nobody knew what to do next. But we drank a few cups of coffee and returned to work. An alarm was sounded during working hours, and we hid in hiding twice. The hospital management told everyone that we were continuing according to plan and would go to work the next day.
Shot of war damage in Kiev, which is being intensively bombed by the Russian invading army. 15. 3. 2022 | Photo: Martin Kuba / HN
Maria: I remember it like it happened yesterday. At around six in the morning, I was awakened by a call from my brother, who said in a low voice, “The invasion has begun. We must get the sick parents away. Will you go with them?”
And you went?
Maria: I turned down my brother ‘s job offer. I had service that day as if it were a normal weekday. After work, I returned home to my husband. He was waiting for me dressed in the hall. I didn’t understand where he was going. A second later, I saw a fighter jet out the window. “We have to get to the shelter as soon as possible,” said the husband. I didn’t even know where the nearest one was. Although he was a five-minute walk from the secondary school, at that moment even this relatively short distance seemed endless to me.
What did it look like at school?
Maria: About sixty people gathered in the main hall, but more people still came with animals, food, and children. A few hours later, when the explosions stopped, her husband went to look at the apartment. He didn’t come back for an hour. At five in the morning, I went to see if he was still alive. Thank God he really was.
However, according to the increasingly frequent explosions, we have learned that the occupiers are approaching. My husband and I sat quietly. It occurred to me to write to Olga, with whom we had never written before and exchanged only a few sentences the whole time. “How are you? What do you think about that?” I wrote to her. She soon answered me. “It’s going to get worse. We have to go southwest,” she said.
How did it go after you joined?
Olga: The next morning, the explosions were so strong and close that I told my husband we had to get out. Just to the southwest. I only took two bottles of water, a passport and two jackets with me. I took my two cats to an acquaintance. My husband, younger son and Maria left the apartment very quickly. The occupiers approached the street.
Maria: During the first day of the invasion, I thought it would all take a while. But the next day it was clear that trying to get away was risky, but in a few days it would be more risky to stay. My husband gave me the courage to leave.
Why didn’t you take the first opportunity to leave?
Maria: Because it all seemed completely surreal to me, like I found myself in a bad sci-fi movie. It’s hard to leave a home where you have everything and everything behind you. Especially when the whole family stays there, so he can die at any moment. At that time, the Russian army had already damaged the airport and other strategic locations with its missiles. Going abroad was more risky than staying under fire.
What was the way away from Ukraine?
Olga: We stood in a traffic jam for two hours. Several cars collided in front of us, but no one seemed to notice. Everyone continued on their way. It was impossible to refuel at any of the pumps. We drove to the White Church, a city not far from Kiev, for four hours.
Shortly after we managed to find a gas station and refuel, my older son called me and told us to go away quickly, that rockets were flying to the White Church. We turned the car around quickly. As soon as we crossed the bridge connecting the pump with the rest of the road, a rocket hit him. The roads came under fire. We had to change routes four times.
Consequences of the rocket attack near the metro station Lukianivska. Shot of war damage in Kiev, which is being intensively bombed by the Russian invading army. 15. 3. 2022 | Photo: Martin Kuba / HN
Maria: I was afraid the fighter would shoot us down. When it got dark and we didn’t have accommodation, I froze in fear. What if we stay in the dark in the middle of a meadow? After a while, the ban began to come out. We wanted to go to the small town of Chmilnyk in the Vinnytsia region. But when we got to the city, the locals told us that Russian troops were attacking the nearby airport. We had to go somewhere else.
So where did you sleep in the end?
Olga: At three o’clock in the morning we arrived in Černovice, where we were accommodated by friends. When I went shopping in the morning, I received a message from Marie that she was going to the Ukrainian-Romanian border.
Maria: In Černovice, I was constantly thinking about my old and sick parents, whom I had sent by bus to Romania the day before with my brother. However, they crossed the Ukrainian-Romanian border on foot. I fainted during the trip, it also got worse. That’s why I decided to go after them to make them at least a little relieved.
What did it look like on the Ukrainian-Romanian border?
Maria: My parents warned me that there was a pressure waiting for me at the border crossing and that I would spend at least three hours in a narrow corridor fenced with barbed wire. At worst, eight. When I looked around the border, I saw a lot of women with small children. When the car door opened, they drove people away like cattle.
I begged the driver to take me to the car. I’m stud. But everyone said they had no place. After a series of unsuccessful attempts, I saw a car with a Kiev brand, in which a woman with a fifteen-year-old son and a cat was driving. I asked her for help and made sure I had nothing illegal or a weapon. She took me. Border checks were rapid, very superficial, perhaps purely formal.
How did it feel to get out of Ukraine?
Maria: We couldn’t believe our eyes. Volunteers and doctors stood everywhere. They gave people water, milk, fruit and blankets. Only then did we realize that we had not eaten for three days. She cried when the driver of the car received milk from Romanian volunteers. They offered us not only food, but also accommodation and transportation. Fortunately, I already had a ride to Bucharest, where my parents were waiting for me, furnished.
Olga, you and Maria split up in Černovice. While she was heading straight to the border, you remained in the country for another day. why?
Olga: I was expecting good news from the negotiations between Ukraine and Russia. It was only after the second meeting that it became clear to me that there was no hope of a positive resolution of the conflict. At least not now. Kharkov, Hostomel and Irpin came under fire, Russia did not give the civilian population a chance to use the green corridor and cities. It was time to go abroad.
Where did you want to escape?
Olga: I decided between Poland and the Czech Republic. My husband took me and my son to a small village near the Slovak border. We crossed it with my son on foot. On the other hand, the Red Cross took care of us. We got refreshments, tea and were offered a pick-up.
the whole demolished trolleybus from the temporary roadblock in front of the house. Shot of war damage in Kiev, which is being intensively bombed by the Russian invading army. 15. 3. 2022 | Photo: Martin Kuba / HN
We were headed to Krakow. However, the number of newly arrived Ukrainians was so large that they did not accommodate newly arrived Ukrainians in or around Kraków. I was faced with the choice of where to go next. In the end, I decided for Prague.
How did you even get to Prague, Mario?
Maria: I spent five days with my parents in Bucharest. They would not be able to transport them to Tallinn, where they are accommodated by friends. We couldn’t catch cheap flights, the price kept climbing. After some time, we finally bought tickets to Estonia with a transfer at Paris Airport. We arrived at our destination shortly after midnight. I accommodated my parents and immediately went to buy a ticket to Prague, where my daughter was waiting for me. The only reason I ran away was she. It’s the meaning of my life.
And thanks to that, Olga also got to Prague.
Olga: Yes, Maria’s daughter has already arranged accommodation for a month in a large apartment, where there was room for us as well. So Prague was a clear choice when I had a roof over my head.
How did you get to Prague?
Olga: Tickets for Ukrainians are free at the Krakow train station, but direct connections to Prague were no longer available. So I drove through Chaloupky on a half-empty express train. We had about a minute to change to the train, which was heading to Prague.
It was a big difference from the previous express. Most people stood here because there was no room left. Young children lay on the cold floor. After a long night, we reached the main station shortly after seven, from where Maria picked us up. We are no longer alone and we can do it together.