Exploring cultures and communities – the slow way

A nineteenth-century nature reserve on the dry steppes of southern Ukraine was a pioneering example of early nature conservation in Europe. The feathery grasses still dance to the local winds at Askania-Nova.

article summary —

It will be another few weeks before the steppes change to silvery grey. Late summer slipping into autumn shapes the rainbow shades of the dry grasslands of southern Ukraine. Featherlike, the grasses wave in the September sunshine, the flatlands drifting into infinity. Horizons without end. From Chaplynka to Chkalove, from Sofiivka to Serhiivka, there is poetry in the wind as it sweeps over the steppes.

Dry country, parched and thirsty in the summer heat. The roads that lead to Askania-Nova are breathless and dusty. A region that is not quite Black Sea, not quite Crimea, not quite anywhere.


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About the authors

hidden europe

and manage hidden europe, a Berlin-based editorial bureau that supplies text and images to media across Europe. Together they edit hidden europe magazine. Nicky and Susanne are dedicated slow travellers. They delight in discovering the exotic in the everyday.

This article was published in hidden europe 28.