Ukraine
Ukraine - the breadbasket of Europe
Ukraine is located in central Europe, with the Black Sea and Sea of
Azov to the south. Covering an area of 603,700 square kilometers, it
has a population of 47.1 million, with a total of 110 ethnicities,
mainly Ukrainians. Others include Russians, Belarussians, Jews, and
Crimean Tatars. Ukrainian's primary religions are Orthodox and
Catholicism. The currency is the hryvnias. Kiev (Kyjv) is the
capital. 
National Flag
The flag consists of a blue rectangle on top, with an equal-sized
yellow rectangle below.
History
From 1237 to 1241 AD, the Mongolian Golden Horde (Batu Khan)
occupied Kiev, and the city was destroyed. In 1654, the Cossack
leader Khmelnitski signed the "Pereiaslav Peace Treaty" with the
Russian tsar. Ukraine and Russia were formally joined. Since then,
though, Ukraine has had its own government and has played a
substantive role. In 1922, Ukraine joined the Soviet Union (Western
Ukraine joined in 1959). On August 24, 1991, Ukraine declared
independence.
Economic and Cultural Customs
Ukraine is an industrial power, and agriculture is very developed.
It is a world leader in metallurgy, energy, chemicals, military
industry, machinery manufacturing, electronics and other industries,
as well as in scientific and technical fields. Ukraine Donets River
and Dnieper River are centers of mining, metallurgy, heavy machinery
manufacturing, electric power industry, and so on. The strength of
the machinery industry is extremely famous. Kharkov and Odessa Zeyi
are the centers of production for agricultural machinery as well as
for the main shipbuilding industry.
Ukraine's fertile land and mild climate mean that agriculture and
animal husbandry are well-developed. The country is known as "the
breadbasket of Europe." Main crops include wheat, corn, sugar beet,
sunflower, grapes, and long fiber linen.
Ukrainian women's shirts are embroidered with all kinds of
patterns. Girls wear festive flowers and branches woven into a
crown.
Ukrainian people are very attentive to decoration, with rooms
covered with painted murals both inside and out. Flower embroidery
on hand towels and long thick carpet weaving decorate room
thresholds.
Black Pearl - Yalta
Located on the southern Crimean peninsula, surrounded by mountains,
the southern Black Sea, is said to be the "Crimean Pearl,"
surrounded by forest and flowers in the spring. Here there is a
Gothic castle, the oriental Jiqijinnai Palace, the former residence
of the great writer Anton Chekhov, as well as the Turkey Castle
"Swallow's nest." There is the Aytodor lighthouse on the headland,
not far from Tsar Nicholas II's summer palace in Yalta. In February
1945, the United States, Britain and Russian leaders signed the
famous "Yalta Agreement" here.
Nikita Botanic Garden
Built in 1812, Nikita is a Crimean town. The Botanical Garden covers
an area of 96 hectares, said to be the "green treasure house of
Crimea." Currently, the park has more than 18,000 kinds of plants,
including tropical, alpine, and arid desert plants. A tall Mexican
Yu Knutsson, up to 140 meters tall, is the "God of the world." The
gardens also have American firs, century-old palm trees,
500-year-old olive trees, the Millennium Babylonian weeping cherry
trees and rhubarb, and a 500-year-old, yew with a crown diameter of
more than 150 meters. There are various forms of cactus, agave, line
orchids, flowers, and herbs. The Park is divided into central,
coastal, and grassland areas according to their different soil, with
each area collecting different kinds of trees.
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