Episode 4: Ulia Bodrug – Ukraine

Migration Patterns Podcast artwork for Ulia

Ulia came to Canada in her early 20’s and it has been both challenging and fulfilling in ways she couldn’t have predicted. She arrived in Vancouver and moved over to Edmonton after three months; partly looking for a familiar face and a more manageable cost of living.

Since moving here, Ulia has learnt a lot about herself and has pushed through hardships to reach her goals to live independently in Canada and launch a career in marketing.

In this episode, Ulia teaches me about the influence of Russia, cooruption in politics, and the hustle Ukrainians need to get by. We also touch on the food and drinking culture – a soft spot for Edmontonians (many of whom have Ukrainian heritage).

Ulia’s Picks

1) As I mostly listen to the electronic music nowadays, I’d like to introduce you to Onuka ([onooka]) which means “a granddaughter”. This band is absolutely amazing, I discovered it about 7 years ago, and it only gets discovered now. Please, watch this video for at least a minute, and I promise you’ll love it https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aw7yaXtkaHE

This is their official website https://g.co/kgs/qLW51u

2) My favorite Ukrainian artist is Maria Prymachenko, she worked in a very naive native style: it’s so alive and colorful! It perfectly represents real Ukrainian folk visual arts! https://g.co/kgs/XiqDT4

3) My favorite poet is kinda like Ukrainian Bukowski :), he was even published in the New Yorker, I REALLY WOULD LOVE IT IF YOU MENTION HIM

here’s one of the poems I really like (it also reminds me of Albertan winter, but it was probably written about the winter during the latest revolution, when people really had to get through winter. It also talk about the latest wave of the immigration, when the youngest had to leave or die):

REMEMBER HOW WINTER BEGAN IN YOUR TOWN
by Serhiy Zhadan

… remember how winter began in your town,
how everyone who dared to stay and live
lived, clinging to the snow and air,
lived, struggling to stay alive;
how all your friends
tried to turn the tides of time away from you
but the first wave swept over them,
scorching them on the inside, sending them reeling around the world,
how each had his back broken by the morning rays
wanting to do what he wanted,
but not knowing how yet.

To get over a difficult winter, climb out of a deep depression on long, railroad cars;
stories, you can’t unravel,
love, you can’t get used to;
in fleeting shadows, in tunnels, canals,
depots, oil tankers
what – tell me – what can I do without you
in this emptiness filled
with your absence, your unwritten letters,
our unspoken conversations, unseen heavens,
imperceptible warmth, non-existent god;
it turns out I don’t have my own habits,
all our habits were shared;
anyway, what kind of habits can you have in this snow,
which I can’t get used to.

How did this winter begin? —
there they lay in bed,
sleeping through classes,
losing the battle,
overhead only roof and sky,
no one knows which they need more now.

Barges bound for Yugoslavia float by,
angels repair the buoys.
And the trees stretch upwards,
to be closer to him, when he calls.

In the morning the vegetables are brought into town,
and the sand glows gold in the
sun, mixed with blood and vermouth
on the lips and shirts of the workers.

You’ll never be free of these criminals,
never get used to this country,
never forget about the inevitability of death,
never remember her explanations.

Here is the link on him on Wiki: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Serhiy_Zhadan#Poetry_in_English_translations

a few other artists I like too, are:
The Maneken (https://soundcloud.com/themaneken)

and Ivan Dorn (more of an electronic pop) https://youtu.be/8YjVyLqtVzc

Coincidentally, Ulia and I briefly met through mutual friends about a year ago. She found the photo and sent it over to me! You can also see Amy from Episode 1 in the photo.