Pyrohovo open-air ethnic museum with wooden huts and hay stacks claims large numbers of visitors on folk holidays.
Park Mamayiva Sloboda with a similar array of Ukrainian cottages opened in 2009 poses some competition. It’s located right in the capital, some 10 minute drive from the center.
On Aug. 23, revelers can participate in unfurling of Ukraine’s largest flag, which is 75 meters long, and launch of 7,000 yellow and blue balloons in Sloboda. Also, expect a Cossack show and folk dances in the evening. On Aug. 24, Sloboda’s workers will weave a huge didukh to mark the Independence Day and the end of the harvest season.
Didukh looks like an intricate hay sheaf, which symbolizes the ancestral spirits looking after the good harvest. There will be several seven-meter high didukhs made to resemble a Cossack.
Some people believe Cossack Mamay, whose name features in the park’s title, was a real person as he’s such a popular character in folk tales.
But it seems he’s no more of a legend glorifying cossack times. Check out other cossack attributes in churches, cottages, blacksmith’s shops and pubs. You can even order one of these houses for a private party
Park Mamayiva Sloboda (Mykhaila Dontsya, 2), open daily from 10 a.m. till midnight.
Tickets from Hr 40. Details: www.mamajeva-sloboda.ua
