Two Ukrainian families displaced by war reflect on their second year away from home. They discuss the challenges of being separated from loved ones and finding comfort through cooking. Topics include escape journeys, settling in new countries, the emotional significance of ceramic mugs, a Ukrainian psychologist's rewarding work, adjusting to new homes, celebrating Ukrainian heritage, and New Year wishes and promotions from the BBC World Service.
Cooking at home can provide solace and comfort for Ukrainian households forced to flee their homes due to the war with Russia.
Food has become a way to connect, communicate, and forge new bonds of friendship between Ukrainian refugees and their British hosts.
Deep dives
Finding solace in cooking amidst the war in Ukraine
In this episode, the podcast explores how cooking at home can provide solace and comfort for Ukrainian households forced to flee their homes due to the war with Russia. Natalia Lmanosova and her daughter Dasha reflect on their escape from Kiev and settling in Berlin, with Dasha finding comfort in cooking nostalgic meals that remind her of home. The podcast delves into the emotional significance of food and how it can help ease the sense of dislocation experienced by those forced to leave their country.
Supporting Ukrainian refugees in Blackburn
This segment features Maria Demetrienko, who found shelter with Brian and Julie Lauer in Blackburn, England, along with her children Christina and Artem. Their hosts warmly welcome them and appreciate Maria's cooking, resulting in a cultural exchange of Ukrainian and British dishes. The podcast highlights how food has become a way to connect, communicate, and forge new bonds of friendship between the Ukrainian refugees and their British hosts.
Hope for the future
As the podcast revisits the families a year later, it explores their hopes and aspirations for the coming year. While uncertainty lingers, Maria and her family find solace in the support and safety they have found in Blackburn. The Lauers express their desire for the Ukrainian family to remain with them and the significant emotional and practical support they have provided. Despite the challenges, the families remain resilient and hopeful for better days ahead.
Ruth Alexander talks to two families displaced by the war in Ukraine, as they reflect on their second year away from home.
They discuss the difficulties of being away from loved ones and the solace home cooking can provide.
Ruth speaks to Natalia Lomonosova, who’d had to flee her home in Kyiv with her teenage daughter and has set up a new life in Berlin, Germany; and she visits Mariya Dmytrenko and her family, who are living with their hosts Brian and Julie Lamb, in Blackburn, England.
If you’d like to contact the programme, please email thefoodchain@bbc.co.uk.
Producer: Beatrice Pickup
(Image: Mariya Dmytrenko and family with their hosts Brian and Julie Lamb. Credit: BBC)
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