206 days after the start of the war, Ukrainian refugees leave the March to return home. Lviv, Kiev and the cities further west of the country are the main destinations, destination and emblem of a return to normal life. And many have also returned to the most risky areas, where the alarm sirens still sound: “We are still going back under the bombs, but we are finally home”.
It is estimated that in the months of July, August and September over a quarter of the more than 3,500 Ukrainians present in Treviso and its province left for their country. It is difficult to establish an exact number, since hospitality has mostly materialized in the form of widespread hospitality in private homes and, therefore, not always formalized.
Today the will to return home prevails to hug the loved ones left to fight and return to work. They leave at night, organized in small groups, six or seven members maximum. They get on mini buses headed to the Polish border and then finally to Ukraine and on average the journey takes between 30 and 36 hours due to the queues for mandatory checks. As the kilometers go by, the landscape changes and gives way to barricades and roadside rubble. “We are grateful to the many Treviso people who have helped us, but we have chosen to go home”.
Anastasiaalong with her husband Boris and her baby Egos he had left Novi Petrivtsi, their city on the Dnieper River, on February 24, soon after hearing the first explosion. After months in Treviso, they returned home.
«We were missing our life and wanted to be alongside our fellow citizens to work together for the victory. Here, however, the war is not over. The bomb sirens sound every day and explosions continue to be heard. Thanks to an App we can monitor the place of departure and the trajectory of the missiles, so we can calculate the fall times and take refuge in the bunker »describes the woman.
Daria Kostenko she is 22 and has been dancing since she was little. A month ago she left Cessalto, where she had found refuge with other women, and returned to Kiev. Today you work in the most important theater in the country, the National Opera of Ukraine ».
«He has received a lot of warmth from Italy, but« every refugee from Ukraine, even if he has found non-transferable aid abroad, wants to go home, speak his language and work in a place where he can be useful. We artists have returned to support our culture, we continue to live, create, restore, defend ».
Marco Trevisson instead he is from Treviso. He had to say hello At the e Yarik, Svitlana’s daughter-in-law and 10-year-old grandson, his wife. In March she opened the doors of her house and started a coexistence that brought joy and love to her apartment in the Fiera district of Treviso.
«Alla has always worked in smart working for her company in Ukraine, but for some months they have requested her presence. So they left ». The greatest happiness for the little boy was to be able to meet friends and companions, just like last year.
«They have found their home intact, but the mood is that of a country at war, but for Yarik all that matters is to take the road to his school every morning» concludes Marco.
Not only refugees are leaving, but also the many Ukrainian women who work in the city as carers or as domestic helpers: “I haven’t seen my children and grandchildren for over a year, – she says. Inna Maladycaarrived in Ternopil- “I have dreamed of this moment since the beginning of the war, I was so worried about them that I spent months not sleeping.”
«Here, even if the situation seems calm, the bomb alarm has resumed, when it happens we run to the bathroom which is the safest room in the house and the walls are thick. It’s terrible, but I stay here, close to them ».