Win 2019 by Bulbanew

W e h a ve o n l y fre s h a n d s a vo ry n e w s!

Winter 2018-2019 | № 172

More news and photos at www.tarasbulba.ru ofﬁce99@mail.ru Project manager – Yuri Beloyvan

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Traditional Festivities and Feasts: The Winter Holidays at Korchma

CULINARY:

It Will Bring You to Tears: The Health Benefits of Onion and Garlic

PEOPLE AND ART: Paper that Has a Soul

THE GLOBE IN YOUR POCKET: A Ghost Town: Wandering through Venice’s Labyrinths WI-FI IN ALL RESTAURANTS

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TRADITIONAL FESTIVITIES AND FEASTS: THE WINTER HOLIDAYS AT KORCHMA Winter in Rus was considered a harsh season, but at the same time beloved, because it was a time to relax from field work and celebrate folk festivals and holidays. Among them are revered dates of the Christian calendar, funny secular celebrations, as well rituals associated with ancient pagan traditions and beliefs. Holidays are an important part of human cultural life. They are not only a time to rest, but also an opportunity to feel a different state of soul and mind. The alternation between everyday life and holidays has long been an integral part of our lives. Slavs celebrated holidays with grand feasts with lots of delicious dishes and drinks, soulful conversations, jokes, songs and dances. In Ancient Rus a meal in the circle of friends and relatives was perceived as a symbol of prosperity. To feed guests was considered an honor for the host. The good tradition of gathering at the table on holidays to congratulate each other, enjoy delicious food and drinks, have meaningful conversations and a grand time, has survived to this day. Korchma Taras Bulba honors traditions and makes sure that every holiday is unforgettable. Guests are offered a specially designed banquet menu designed for corporate parties and other celebrations. The harmonious organization of space in the restaurants allows you to celebrate important events in large companies. The cozy atmosphere and attentive staff help you stay entertained and savor delicious food. The New Year and Christmas are just around the corner – all the favorite holidays, which are celebrated with colleagues, friends, and family. This is a great opportunity to put your worries aside and find time for pleasure and joy. After all, the New

Year is not just a holiday date. It’s a whole world of traditions, symbols, expectations and emotions that you want to share with others. A merry corporate party with a delicious banquet will help you to rest from the work week and bring the team together. In Korchma Taras Bulba a corporate party is more like a homemade feast and will leave you with the warmest and most enjoyable memories. And you can already start planning a celebrating by ordering tables and coming up with a New Year’s menu. Fun children’s Christmas Tree events and verteps in Korchma Taras Bulba’s restaurants will help guests of all ages to celebrate the New Year and Christmas. At New Year’s Christmas Tree parties, children can expect fun performances, contests, activities, and fairy-tale heroes who will capture and cheer up even the shiest little guys. Children will also receive gifts from Grandfather Frost and Snow Maiden. A traditional Christmas vertep in Korchma is an improvised play that tells the story of the birth of Jesus Christ, complete with songs and dances. The Christian plot appears in vivid images, the setting creates an uplifting mood and a sense of what miracles are occurring. This event

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be remembered by both children and adults. Well, of course, along with entertainment, guests can taste traditional New Year’s Eve food, which can be enjoyed at the restaurants of the chain. And those who decide to celebrate at home can order delivery of delicious homemade dishes from Korchma. The real symbols of New Year and Christmas in our country are champagne, mandarins, Olivier salad, herring with beets and potatoes, vinaigrette, as well as mushrooms, aspic, red caviar, baked duck, goose, turkey, or chicken. These childhood favorites never get old! In Korchma you can order lovely New Year’s salads, snacks, and hot dishes. This is Olivier with sausage or chicken, with cucumbers or pickles, sour cream or mayonnaise – your choice. And also herring under a “fur coat” of baked (and so preserving their vitamins) vegetables, seasoned with mayonnaise. This hearty and tasty appetizer has not lost its popularity for decades. Interestingly, it consists of ingredients found in traditional Ukrainian borshch: potatoes, beets, carrots, onions. These same ingredients are found in another popular New Year’s salad - Vinaigrette. It looks very bright on the table: a combination of orange car-

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rots, burgundy beetroot, white potatoes, sauerkraut, beans, and juicy green herbs looks very festive. And herring, which is also present in both dishes, provides the body with protein and omega-3 fatty acids. The wise inhabitants of northern Europe highly value this fish. In Sweden they say: «Herring on the table keeps the doctor away.» At Korchma lovers of the healthy and colorful Russian salad can order an original vinaigrette, served with herring on black bread croutons and pepper chips. A variety of snacks will help whet the appetite and add some spice to the feast: pickled vegetable, mushrooms, baked pork, aspic – which Korchma prepares according to traditional recipes. Sorochynsky Fair assorted pickled vegetables consist of tomatoes, pickles, sauerkraut, and cabbage in the form of petals with beets, bitter pepper, garlic, and wild garlic. Lovers of spicy and salty will love it! The assortment of mushrooms in Korchma will please connoisseurs of traditional snacks. These include marinated mushrooms, chanterelles, white mushrooms, lobster mushrooms, seasoned with scented oil, garlic, herbs, and onions.

Pork baked according to a family recipe is a real delicacy served with mustard or horseradish. And what is a feast without real homemade aspic? In Korchma aspic is cooked with beef and chicken with parsley and celery root, as well as cloves. It is served with horseradish or mustard. The main dish of New Year’s and Christmas parties is traditionally considered to be bird roasted with apples and other ingredients. Because of its win-win combination of ingredients, nutritional value and heartiness, this dish has many fans. Korchma cherishes traditions and offers many variations of this dish, and complements it with original ingredients. The ornament of the holiday program is a juicy village goose roasted with apples. It is complemented with lollo rosso lettuce, greens, fresh tomatoes, cucumbers, oranges. Powdered sugar makes this dish unlike any other. Homemade turkey roasted with apples comes out very tender. It is served with lollo rosso lettuce, fresh tomatoes, cucumbers, oranges, herbs, and powdered sugar.

We invite children!

A large roasted chicken, stuffed with smoked breast and potatoes, and served with onions, garlic, lollo rosso lettuce, tomatoes, cucumbers, and herbs amazes with its combination of flavors and fills you up. A roasted duck with apples and buckwheat, cooked in the best traditions, will decorate the festive table and create a sense of comfort. The New Year and Christmas add a little magic to our lives. And our favorite dishes decorate the festive table and help create a warm cozy atmosphere. The winter holidays are a great occasion to spend time with your children, to go with them to a Christmas celebration, as well as to meet friends, relatives, and colleagues in a pleasant setting, try home-cooked food and delicious drinks, carelessly talk and have fun, immersed in the atmosphere of ancient traditions. Korchma Taras Bulba invites you to celebrate these holidays together and will provide delicious food and a fun and comfortable atmosphere. Text by Olga SINYUGINA

QUALITY DELIVERY OF YOUR DESIRES

january 2-7 fairy celebrations Christmas Tree at Korchma ROUND THE CLOCK

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IT WILL BRING YOU TO TEARS: THE HEALTH BENEFITS OF ONION AND GARLIC Not all love the winter, because it brings cold weather and colds. But even in this frosty season you can find pleasure. What do you need for that? In the first place, take steps to avoid getting sick. Start by having a proper diet, which will help strengthen the immune system and fight off viruses and bacteria. Indispensable in winter are onions and garlic. They are included in most Russian and Ukrainian dishes: soups, borscht, salads, snacks, meat, fish, and vegetable dishes. And the famous salty pork fat with garlic both warms you up and supports your immune system. These vegetables with a kick are famous for their antiviral and antiseptic properties and help maintain your health in the cold season. Due to their content of phytoncides, onions and garlic are called natural antibiotics. Interestingly, the ancient healing system Ayurveda recommends eating more bitter products, which include garlic and onion, because they stimulate the work of the heart, blood vessels, and intestines. And these valuable properties are due to the rich vitamin and mineral composition of onions and garlic. Onion contains organic acids, essential oils with phytoncides (natural antibiotics), vitamins of group B, PP, E, a lot of vitamin C, as well as fluorine, phosphorus, potassium, calcium, magnesium, iron, sulfur (it gives a sharp smell), flavonoids and plant hormone glucine (which lowers blood sugar levels). Phytoncides in onion not only kill dangerous viruses and bacteria, but also strengthen the upper respiratory tract. For the prevention of colds and flu, it is recommended to place a sliced onion

in one’s room or at least sniff it several times a day. The high content of vitamin C gives an immunity boost. Flavonoid quercetin, contained in the onion, fights against cancerous diseases. It reduces the release of cortisol (a hormone of stress) during exercise, and the body gets less tired. Scientists say that by eating 150 grams of onion per day (about one large bulb), we get half the daily recommended dose of vitamins A and C and one fifth of the daily recommended dose of potassium and calcium, which improve the functioning of the heart and which act as building material for the organism’s bone system. Onions can serve as a pain reliever: against headaches (it’s enough to smell it), otitis (with a compress), insect bites, rheumatism (by rubbing the area with onion juice). Moreover, the useful properties of onions were already known to our distant ancestors. Thus, in ancient Egypt, the onion was a symbol of energy and immortality, it was called the plant of the gods, and it was believed that the entire earthly world was arranged as a multilayered bulb. An-

cient Greeks considered the onion as medicine, but rarely added it to food because of the intense smell. But Roman warriors ate a lot of onions, believing that it would make them fearless. Since ancient times in Rus, it was consumed as food and as medicine. It was believed that onions and garlic are the best remedies for diseases transmitted “by the wind.” Onion’s “brother” garlic has similar properties and is also known strengthening immunity and fighting against colds as well as cardiovascular and other diseases. From garlic, the human body receives alicin, which has antibacterial and antifungal properties. This substance also reduces the level of cholesterol in the blood, preventing the formation of atherosclerotic plaques. Garlic also includes protein that promotes the production of antibodies that protect the body from the effects of viruses and bacteria. The phytoncides in garlic fight different microbes and prevent the reproduction of bacteria (staphylococci, diphtheria sticks, pathogen dysentery) and yeast infections. Garlic has health benefits for people with high blood pressure for it expands blood vessels, and blood pressure decreases. For this it is enough to eat one garlic clove per day for several months. From garlic, the biologically active substance ajoene enters the human body, which reduces the viscosity of the blood and prevents platelet activation, reducing the likelihood of blood clots. That, in turn, reduces the risk of heart attack and stroke.

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Just like onions, garlic helps prevent cancer. And according to some studies, even the growth of tumors is inhibited. Alicine, obtained by organism from garlic, is a strong antioxidant. It neutralizes free radicals in the blood, which provoke the development of cancer cells. It is worth noting that all the beneficial properties of onions and garlic are fully manifested when consumed raw. However, with overconsumption, there may be unpleasant consequences. People suffering from pancreatitis, ulcers of the stomach and intestines, increased excitability of the nervous system, or pathology of the kidneys and liver should not consume too many raw onions and garlic so as not to exacerbate these diseases. But a healthy person may be turned off from consuming onions and garlic because of the quite unpleasant smell. But this problem can be solved. There are a few simple ways to get rid of the smell of onion and garlic from your breath. Immediately after eating, rinse your mouth with warm water and eat a couple of leaves of parsley. Parsley not only masks the aroma of onion or garlic, but also kills the bacteria contained in the oral cavity, protects the teeth and gums, thus preventing the appearance of an unpleasant odor. If possible, brush your teeth and tongue after eating it. The spicy sulfuric smell disappears after a few minutes. The odor of onion or garlic from the mouth can be neutralized with nuts such as walnuts, pine nuts, or almonds. Grated nutmeg also works well. You can drink a glass of milk, but even better is to eat garlic or onion about 20 minutes before the main course. Citrus zest, especially lemon is a good way to kill the sharp smell. One of the most effective ways is to chew on fresh cardamom seeds which have a strong taste and smell and which kill bacteria. Onions and garlic will not only enrich the taste of your favorite dishes, but also help you survive the winter without getting sick. Therefore, you should not be afraid of the odor and tears that they can cause during cooking or tasting. Text by Olga SINYUGINA

Dear friend

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Celebrate the New Year with Korchma Taras Bulba And you will be happy in 2019

composition

mineralization 1-2 g/l chemical composition of water Sodium+potassium (Na+ K+) Chlorides (Cl) Sulphates Hydrogen carbonates Calcium Magnesium

WWW.TARASBULBA.RU

mg/l 4.5 3.5 4.6 95 77.2 20.67

6 | NEWS FROM KORCHMA

December December 1 – Gogol’s Day December 8 – Birthday of Korchma Taras Bulba at 6 Brovarske Highway. We invite you to visit! December 15– International Tea Day. We do not get bored with tea – we drink seven cups! December 19 – St. Nicholas the Miracle Worker Day December 21 – Cossack’s Day. Come in a Cossack costume and get a 50% discount December 22 – Birthday of Korchma Taras Bulba at 13/14 Sadovaya-Samotechnaya December 23 – Long-Range Aviation Day of the Russian Air Force December 28 – International Cinema Day. «Camera, Action!» and a miracle will happen December 31st Happy New Year!

January January 6 – Christmas Eve January 7 – Christmas January 14 – Old New Year January 19 – Baptism of the Lord January 25 – Tatyana’s Day

FOR WINE AND EXPERTISE: KORCHMA EMPLOYEES TOURED ONE OF THE LARGEST VINEYARDS IN SPAIN

February February 14 – Happy Valentine’s Day! February 15 – The Feast of the Presentation of Our Lord Jesus February 23 – Defender of the Fatherland Day

THE KORCHMA’S CORPORATE HOLIDAYS Celebrate with us every month 1st day of the month – Gogol’s Day. 5th day of the month – Cheese Day. 8th day of the month – Women’s Day. 9th day of the month – Victory Day. 10th day of the month – Borscht Day. 12th day of the month – Photography Day. 13th day of the month – Day of Kindness 14th day of the month – Varenyky Day. 21st day of the month – Pancake Day 22nd day of the month – Water Day. 23rd day of the month – Men’s Day. 29th day of the month – Salo Day. Friends’ Day (every second Tuesday). Cossack’s Day (every third Friday). Come in a Cossack costume and receive a 50% discount. Mother’s Day (every fourth Saturday) President’s Day (the last Monday of the month) Charity Day (the last Sunday of the month)

This drink accompanies us on holidays and on weekdays. Heats us up in the cold and refreshes us in the heat. And the very ability to understand wine shows that you have a sophisticated taste and a certain aristocratic air. Taking this into consideration, in all restaurants of the Korchma Taras Bulba chain, guests will not only be offered wine, but also will be helped to understand its varieties and to choose the right one to go with their meal. In our establishment’s assortment, the wine of the already legendary Spanish brands Borsao, Faustino and Portia take a worthy place. For example, Bodegas Faustino is a family-owned winery that was founded in 1861.Today the business is run by the fourth generation of the family who owns more than 700 hectares of land. Good climate and favorable soils not only ensure an abundant crop but also the best wines. This is confirmed by the fact that this vineyard is valued

not only in Spain, but also in many countries of the world, and in particular Russia. To see where exactly and in what conditions the wine brands are born, Beluga Group organized an educational trip to Spain for our employees. Over the course of a few days, they visited Borsao and Alto Moncayo (Borsao brand), Faustino (Faustino brand) and Portia (Bodegas Portia brand). So now all the expertise gained by our staff will be used in their work back in the restaurants. We will help guests make a great choice so that their romantic evening, birthday, or any other celebration will be enhanced with a glass of a good, wellbalanced, and fragrant wine. We remind you that in our menu, among the presented varieties of wines, you can always choose the legendary Spanish brands: Faustino VII Viura, Faustino VII Tempranillo and Borsao Rosado.

NEWS FROM KORCHMA | 7

HISTORY WITH FLAVOR: TULA GINGERBREAD

THE MOST INTERESTING FACTS ABOUT WINE The first corkscrew appeared only in 1795. Prior to this, it was not necessary because wine was stored in barrels, and at the table was served in special jugs. In ancient times wine was almost always considered a universal international currency. For example, the Greeks exchanged it for gold and silver, and the Romans for slaves. Do you want to live to a very old age and never know the name of your cardiologist? The method is simple: eat 100 grams of chocolate daily (preferably bitter) and drink 150 ml of red wine. The wine glass can only be held by the stem, otherwise the warmth of the hand heats the wine and changes its taste characteristics. The tradition of clinking glasses and saying toasts came to us from ancient Rome, where this method was used to make sure that no one was trying to poison you (by spilling a drink from one glass to another) California is the fourth biggest producer of wine. The American state is beaten only by Spain, Italy, and France. The Bible mentions wine 450 times.

Every inhabitant of Russia at least once in his or her life has enjoyed the taste of the famous Tula gingerbread. Over the centuries, this treat has not only managed to gain great popularity, but also became a true symbol of the city of gunsmiths. Apparently, that’s why the locals still proudly joke that their gingerbread is the eighth wonder of the world. It is no wonder as baking such sweets in the city began long before its inhabitants became famous for the manufacture of weapons, samovars, or accordions. This craft has existed for more than three hundred years! The first written mention of the Tula gingerbread dates back to 1685, but without a doubt, gingerbread was prepared in Tula long before that. The fact is that people at that time lived in poverty, so to earn money they had to take up various crafts and trades, including cooking. Competition was great, so everyone tried to make their gingerbread the most beautiful and the most delicious. Honey, butter, jam, and various spices were generously added to the dough. Wine was also often added to it. And the completed product was always decorated with a crimson, white, or golden glaze. There were many masters who possessed the subtleties of this trade. Each of them had his own unique recipe that was kept secret and passed along the male line. Moreover, no one wrote down the recipe, so when mixing various ingredients, special stones were used to measure the weight of an ingredient. Only a few people had access to this knowledge. Each year the confectioners demonstrated their gingerbread at various exhibitions, not only in Russia, but also far beyond its borders. No matter how diverse the Tula gingerbreads were, they had one common feature – all without exception were printed. This means that their shape and design were printed from wood – birch or pear. The board used for printing first had to age from five to twenty years. After it was completely dried, a picture or a pattern was applied to it. Subsequently, the dough was placed in the form and then it was baked. As a result, some text or images were always present on Tula gingerbread: images of flowers, animals, birds, ships, soldiers, etc. Because of this, they have long been considered true works of art! In 1996 a museum of the Tula gingerbread was opened in the city, which is incredibly popular! The exposition, consisting of documents, photographs, collections of gingerbread boards, and personal belongings of famous Tula masters, attracts more and more tourists to the city. The main highlight of the museum, of course, is tea with fresh gingerbread. No less delicious is the gingerbread baked with love and inspiration by the confectioners in our restaurant chain. Not only is it prepared using the best recipes, but it is also made exclusively of natural ingredients and will be just as good as the homemade sweets you ate as a child. In addition, depending on the season or the holiday, the gingerbread will have a thematic design. For example, for the New Year, our bakers will make the gingerbread in the shape of Father Frost or the Snow Maiden, and on Valentine’s Day, they will bake the sweets in the shape of a heart. This edible gift is not only delicious, but also very original!

8 | TRAVELLING

A GHOST TOWN: WANDERING THROUGH VENICE’S LABYRINTHS

For this city, rain is like rubbing salt in a wound. Sooner or later water will destroy it. Every year it rises higher and higher, centimeter by centimeter. The stone crumbles, the foundations erode, and doors and bridges rot. It is said that Venice has little time left – some twenty or thirty years. And then the ghost town, like an old ship, will sink to the bottom. We do not know which building will disappear first. But we know the tower on St. Mark’s Square will survive the longest. It will still be visible while only waves crash all around it. Maybe it will not be alone. For the Giacomo bell tower will remain. It will ring its bell to the very end, scaring the fish and octopuses. But we are not afraid of rain. We go out into the city in the morning and slowly amble down the narrow streets. They are virtually empty, because tourists hide in the coffee shops, and even gondoliers have escaped from their boats, leaving the oars like crosses on Calvary. We don’t like to carry umbrellas, but here one has no choice. We buy one for two and go to the center.

When we were planning to go to this eternal ghost republic, we were told that it often floods in autumn, and that it would be just a waste of time and money. We only smiled in response, because we knew that we would go through water if we had to kneel in prayer over the relics of the Evangelist and see the oldest fish in the world that still lives somewhere between Murano and Burano, but which no longer swallows gondoliers and vaporetto, as it once swallowed up Jonah, but only scares drunkards along the pier and Hollywood stars who sail in their long shining yachts to the biennale. And so no longer do rowers take the dead at night through the gloom and darkness to the Island of the Dead in black cloaks with hoods, no longer are there corpses from the plague or typhoid fever, and only occasionally do they bury Nobel laureates and famous composers like Brodsky or Stravinsky. It would be strange if there were no room for the island cemetery in this island empire. Secured by a high fence around the perimeter, it stands squarely among other built-up pieces of land around. The strict planning and precise geometric design resembles the Habsburg designs of Vienna rather than the fantasies of the Italian masters. But death does not love free forms... While we were sailing to the cemetery, we thought that it was somehow very antiquated – to dramati-

cally separate the world of the dead from the living. The dead there must be incredibly sad and lonely among the mass of water, high walls, and dull fish. Similarly to how lonely Persephone must have felt when was she was imprisoned in the kingdom of Aida. But when you enter, you plunge into such a blissful silence and calmness and you immediately understand why Brodsky once exclaimed: “I could be here forever!” So we drink coffee and wash it down with a glass of good young wine so as not to freeze, and we float vigorously through the canals. The rain starts to let up, and people reappear on the streets. On the way we get held up a lit-

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tle – we notice a group of children playing soccer on the square in front of an old cathedral. We have never been athletes, but we put down our things and ask them if we can join. The little Italians rejoice and even laugh. We run with them around the field until a beautiful woman appears at the window of the neighboring house and starts loudly screaming: “Antonio, Antonio ...”. We don’t understand anything, because we have not yet learned Italian, but intuitively we feel that she calls her son home, because he spits on the wall and angrily goes away. We also understand that we need to move on. We shake hands with the little footballers and continue on. By the first half of the day we are able to visit all the best landmarks in Venice: the Doge Palace, St. Mark’s Cathedral and Tower. Due to the fear of catching a cold from the Adriatic winds, we decide to drink some grappa and eat fish and grilled squid. We go to the boat and sail farther. Rain starts again, waves hit, and seagulls and albatrosses fly overhead. They shrill. As if somewhere in the sky a small child is weeping.

In general, Venice does not seem to be the old courtesan, which for more than 1500 years has lured all the money of the world into its womb (originally trading routes, then golden church mosaics and Crusades, and now tourist attractions), but an unstable and awkward little child, which in an instant blesses the traveler with a golden bunny from a stained glass or wine glass, and in the next showers thousands of splashes from an unexpected wave at the pier or simply grabs the umbrella from one’s hands and throws it in the nearest canal. It’s as if it is playing, provoking us to start an incredible quest in the crazy maze of bridges and canals. And we go by the unknown strings of Ariadne (because Google maps do not work here), we get lost, get drenched in the rain, slip into churches and osterias, we lose hope for a happy ending, but as in a good old romantic movie, at dawn we sail to the main station and we understand that the essence of any trip is to leave the house... Text and Photos: Stepan HRYTSIUK, Andriy MELNYK

10 | CULINARY

A Delicious Start: New Year’s Culinary Traditions of Different Countries There are national holidays in different countries of the world, and every nation honors and celebrates them. But there is one solemn day, which once a year unites the people of the entire planet. Of course, this is the New Year! However, the traditions (including culinary ones) of celebrating this night in each country are different. We invite you to a fascinating culinary trip around the world.

WELCOME TO ENGLAND! No traditional New Year’s Eve in England is without plum pudding, which consists of pork or mutton fat, bread crumbs, flour, raisins, eggs and spices. Before serving, rum is poured on the cake and it is set on fire to make the holiday even brighter. Traditionally, stuffed turkey with vegetables with a gooseberry sauce is served. Turkey with vegetables is considered a traditional dish and it always pleases guests. AUSTRIA: STRUDEL AND FISH SALAD In Austria, however, it is unacceptable to serve bird on the New Year’s table – locals believe that like a bird, happiness can fly out of the house. Instead, Austrians prepare a traditional fish salad. Also, there is always strudel on the festive table – refined in its simplicity and very appetizing. ITALY: A CAKE IN THE SHAPE OF A LOG On this fabulous night, Italians will traditionally treat their guests with homemade pasta, pizza, and baked beans, as well as a chocolate cake in the shape of a log and national sweets. The mistress will also not forget to serve lentil soup – a symbol of health, longevity, and well-being. Worried of how your stomach will react to beans? Don’t worry: the stomach and intestines will be

simply delighted by such treats. Pureed soup helps prevent gastritis, colitis, cholecystitis, and constipation. This first dish restores the balance of the fluid in the body, which promotes the rapid removal of end-product of metabolism and a normal level of blood pressure.

dishes. On New Year it is tradition to serve sweet pastries and fruits. A traditional festive dish is a bread called challah, which is dipped in honey and then eaten. The favorite New Year’s fruits in Israel are pomegranates, dates, and apples. According to the Israelis, they will sweeten the coming year. However, it should be noted that non-salty dishes are not taboo – cabbage, beets, and boiled fish can also be served.

ISRAEL: HUMANS AND FRUITS In Israel, the New Year is celebrated in September, and the differences do not end there – on the festive table you will not see bitter, salty, or sour WONDERFUL GRAPES OF SPAIN Spaniards can make food cult not only December 31, but also year-round. Classic Spanish tortilla omelette, smoked ham, gazpacho, paella – from just mentioning these classic dishes of Spanish cuisine makes one drool. They will surely decorate the festive table. But there is a special New Year’s tradition in Spain – at every tick of the clock one must eat a grape and make a wish. By the way, grapes (which have carbohydrate glucose) work as a great tonic, which provides an influx of energy to organs and tissues. If you direct it in the right direction then you will have a happy holiday.

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JAPAN: DIFFERENT COLORS FOR GOOD LUCK Rice cakes are added to fish bouillon. The rice cakes should be round, so that your luck goes around and always returns to you. You must also eat a very long noodle, which symbolizes a long life. For the Japanese not only the taste of New Year’s food, but also its color is very important. For financial prosperity you need to eat something red and white, in order to bring happiness to the house you need to eat something pink (for example, shrimp). It is necessary to share food with friends, neighbors, and those less fortunate than you. It will bring good luck. FRANCE AND ITS “BIRD OF HAPPINESS” The French, as true connoisseurs and admirers of gourmet cuisine as well as true patriots, often prepare dishes from different provinces of their country for New Year’s. The most important dish, however, is a roasted bird – chicken, turkey, or duck. The French believe the bird symbolizes happiness, which on New Year’s Eve will fly into every house and bring luck and well-being on its wings. TIBET: PIES TO SHARE In Tibet there is a sweet tradition: on the eve of the New Year the mistress bakes a huge amount of pies with all kinds of fillings and hands them out to strangers. It is believed that the more pies you give, the richer you will be in the new year. Text by Maria KRASNA

POLAND: MUSHROOM SOUP AND FISH According to Polish traditions, twelve dishes are served on the New Year’s table. What’s remarkable, among them you will not find any meat. The dishes include mushroom soup, fish as a symbol of happiness and wellbeing, barley porridge with prunes and dumplings. For dessert, Poles serve a chocolate cake. BULGARIA, AUSTRALIA AND ROMANIA: CAKES WITH SURPRISES All these different countries are united by one tradition – a holiday cake with a surprise. Baking fragrant cakes to the New Year’s table, the mistress adds a secret ingredient, which promises one of the guests good luck. It may be a coin, nut, or pepper. The one who gets the special piece will start a family in the coming year.

12 | ART

PAPER THAT HAS A SOUL

She learned how to turn ordinary paper into true works of art. She is reviving the ancient Slavic craft of vytynanky (papercutting) and believes that the time will come when her artwork will be recognized not only in Ukraine but also far beyond its borders. In today’s issue of the newspaper, we are talking about Daria Aloshkina, a sculptor by training who replaced stone with paper and brought true creative magic into her life. FROM A CHILD’S HOBBY TO ART I mastered the art of vytynanky ten years ago. I studied to become a sculptor, and always worked with a stone. When I became pregnant with my first child, I realized it would be impossible to combine sculpture and maternity, because working with stone is always accompanied by not very pleasant things - dust, cold, etc. But on the other hand, I understood that I could not do without creativity. So I decided to look for something that I could do at home. I remembered a childhood hobby, which my parents taught me. So I turned to vytynanky. ON THE FEAR OF PAPER Since I am a monumental sculptor, I decided to do big-format vytynanky. I use the traditional technique, but always add elements from my creative imagination. This art went so well for me that now I do not know if I would have achieved such success from working with stone. I understand that this craft is gradu-

ally dying, so I set myself a certain mission – to preserve and restore it. Therefore, by all sorts of methods I draw attention to it. I want vytynanky to become fashionable, to become popular so that people are not afraid of paper. Perhaps it is not as durable as a sculpture or painting, but believe me, it is worth buying it and investing money in this art. NOT A BANAL ART The primary function of vytynanky was to decorate the home. With time, this tradition lost its popularity, but recently I see that people again want to decorate their home with such artwork. They buy very small works that are used as paintings. Some take larger ones that decorate the walls or windows of offices, apartments, and the like. Sometimes my vytynanky are

used as curtains. It is very stylish and beautiful. I am making my latest series for France. The customer wants to feel some Ukrainian spirit. It is important that the art that represents our country is not banal. PRE-CHRISTMAS EXCITEMENT The holiday season is always a busy time because the white lace-like artwork help create a festive mood. It’s nice to decorate your apartment with one of these works for New Year’s or Christmas. So it happens that I work around the clock. If there are many orders, then I only sleep for only several hours a night. But the effort is not in vain. After long and painstaking work, the end result is always pleasing. ART AS MEDITATION Papercutting is interesting because you see the desired result very quickly. This is not a painting or sculpture, which may take prolong periods to complete. True, it is very easy to make a mistake and spoil the work here, because it is quite miniature – a mistake of a few millimeters can ruin the whole piece. Therefore, I always work on sketches and try to do everything very carefully and slowly. For me it

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is a certain magic, meditation. I always feel like a sorcerer. I release my creative energy through vytynanky. I would feel bad without it. THINGS THAT HAVE A SOUL I often travel abroad with my work because there is an interest in such art in other countries. I was in Korea, Paris, Germany. I have an order from Belgium and from Austria. This year I had a solo exhibition in America. I think that this art will become more and more popular. It must happen, because it is disheartening to see Chinese consumer goods fill up our lives. Things have to have a soul.

FROM TRYPILLYA TO TODAY I cut vytynanky exclusively with a knife, although some people use scissors. Few people know, but there is such a technique as “tearing out” when the desired ornament is simply torn out. This art is very ancient and comes from a time when women believed that there are certain days when they cannot take a knife into their hands. Scientific sources indicate that vytynanky was widespread even in Trypillian culture. Of course, now it’s difficult to check, because such objects cannot be stored for very long.

ON DURABILITY AND SOVIET REMNANTS The kind of paper is very important. Most masters work with thin paper, because it’s easier to handle it. I always take a thicker one. This is due to the fact that it is more stable and more durable. This is especially true if you often travel for exhibitions. But in general, you do not need to be afraid of vytynanky. You must get used to the idea that sooner or later it will get a bit ruffled and you will need to buy a new decoration. It’s like clothes – we cannot wear the same thing your entire life. Instead, our people have a certain philosophy – to buy something and enjoy it for at least a hundred years. It should be solid and durable. This is not entirely correct, I consider such an approach a remnant of the Soviet mentality... Text: Stepan HRYTSIUK Photos: Yuriy HELYTOVYCH

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