<I>Spas</I> Cossack boat returns to Kyiv
After a voyage by sea from Ukraine to Georgia, a Zaporozhian Cossack boat, known as a chaika, returned to Kyiv. On June 12, the intrepid mariners were welcomed at Trukhaniv Island on the Dnipro River.
Three hundred years ago a Cossack flotilla of chaikas was a match for the fleets of Europe’s greatest powers. The Cossacks sailed their light chaikas up and down the Dnipro, reaching the Black Sea, attacking big, clumsy ships, and carrying out bold landing missions. The members of the Kish Society decided to revive this glorious Cossack tradition about 16 years ago, when they used old drawings to design a boat that they named Presviata Pokrova (Holy Protection). Kish members used the boat to sail across several seas, visiting almost every coastal country in Europe. Spas (Redeemer) is the name of another chaika built by the members of the society. This time Cossack daredevils sailed it all the way to Batumi to take part in Georgia’s national holiday. After the Spas cast anchor in Batumi, their hosts told the Ukrainian mariners that some time in the 16th century the town was captured by the Turks, when suddenly a troop of stalwart Cossacks left their small ship (probably a chaika). They attacked the Turkish garrison and overwhelmed it, cutting down officers and soldiers, and drove the rest from the town, whereupon they gathered at the fortress and threw a big party to celebrate their victory. Now, in the 21st century, the crew of a Cossack chaika was visiting Georgia again.
After the celebrations, and loaded with 10 vats of Georgian wine, a gift from their hosts, our Cossacks set sail and returned home after enduring a force 5 storm.
On June 12 people started gathering on Trukhaniv Island at 5 p.m. A number of young visitors wore hand-embroidered shirts and blouses, an increasingly common sight at youth events in Ukraine. Awaiting the arrival of the chaika, the young people huddled at the foot of the stage to listen to the tales of Sashko the Lyre-Player. As usual, the crowd loved his tales. During the performance Sashko picked boys and girls from the audience, inviting them on stage to enact scenes from his tales.
Meanwhile, on the banks of the Dnipro some Cossacks started a fire under a huge cauldron and began cooking a thick gruel called kulish, with two Cossacks walking among the spectators, offering each a shot of samohon (moonshine) from a 25-liter glass container. Before long a Georgian pop group called Georgia arrived, together with a support group, who quickly set about grilling shashlik (barbecued meat on skewers). Suddenly there was the sound of cannon fire, and everyone moved toward the water, photo cameras clicking furiously as the chaika proudly sailed up to the island and cast anchor. The Cossack sailors jumped off and plodded toward the spectators, exchanging traditional greetings. They were led by Borys Skoropadsky, the grandson of the glorious Hetman Pavlo Skoropadsky.
Some journalists were allowed to board the chaika and take pictures. A large number of photographers laughed and joked while training their cameras on the people who were struggling to board the chaika; not everyone managed to climb up the slippery ladder, let alone climb on board from the water. In a word, the celebration was a success. Everyone enjoyed the Cossack kulish, Georgian shashlik, Georgian wine, songs by Ukrainian performers Katia Chili, Serhii Fomenko (Foma and the Mandry Group), Oleh Skrypka, and the groups DakhaBrakha and Perkalaba.
The Georgian group performed fiery dances and songs, including “Argo,” a popular song in Soviet times, which seemed to compare our Cossacks to the fearless Argonauts of old. Finally, there was a cannon salvo and a fireworks display. A number of seafaring states follow a fine tradition: naval college students (cadets) practice their skills aboard sailboats, like the Soviet (now Russian Federation) boat Krusenstern. It would be good if Ukrainian cadets did their training on Cossack chaikas.
