What were you doing in the early morning on February 24th? I am pretty sure it is hard for many of you to even recall. But Ukrainians will remember that exact time forever. At 5 a.m. Kyiv time, the President of Russia, Vladimir Putin, announced a massive invasion of Ukraine from the Russian border, Crimea, and Belarus. That morning, many Ukrainians woke up to the sounds of explosions and screams. So did the heroes featured in this article, Nastya Novikova, 33, and her brother Nikita Novikov, 21. They are going to tell their stories about living in war, fleeing Ukraine, and new life in Europe.
āThere is an institution of foreign affairs; what war are you talking about?ā
It was hard for many people to even imagine that Russia was going to start a war. I personally did not believe in the USAās predictions about possible invasion dates. It seemed impossible that Putin was going to make such a huge mistake. Ukrainians also had hoped for a better situation. Many believed in diplomacy, āthere is an institution of foreign affairs; what war are you talking about?ā, frowned people. āWe thought that people are ruled by their fearsā, say Nastya and Nikita about those who turned out to be more realistic. The siblings are originally from Donetsk, a Ukrainian region where in 2014 the Kremlin stimulated a civil war between Ukraine and Russian separatists. Under flying bombs, the Novikov’s were forced to move from their hometown to Kyiv. Right before the war, Luhansk and Donetsk People’s Republic were proclaimed independent from Ukraine. For our heroes, āit hurt to tearsā. āThere has always been hope for returning things back as they wereā, admits Nikita.
According to the siblings, only the very minority of the republicās citizens are pro-Russia. āWe do not know anyone who supported Russian authoritiesā, emphasizes Nastya. Thus, it was hard for them to believe that history can repeat itself. While Nikita, luckily, was in Poland on the 24th of February, his parents and Nastya woke up to sounds of distant explosions in Kyiv. Instant flashbacks got into their minds. āThat bum is not like a firework, it is like a cold going through your whole bodyā, tells Nastya with shivers on her skin. That morning for every Ukrainian has become a nightmare that they still cannot wake up from. As usual for human nature, people started panicking under the threat of danger. Bomb shelters, metro stations in Kyiv, Kharkiv, and other big cities had been filled with people in a matter of hours. In the heat of it all, Nastya and her parents also began packing everything they might need for leaving their home for a long time but after a couple of hours, they came to their senses. Living right in the center of Kyiv near the authority’s area, relatively far from the war, allowed them to calm down. āWe had some kind of trustā, admits Nastya, so they did not go to a bomb shelter.
Ukrainians traveling in the Poltava-Lviv train. 12 March 2022. t.me/operativnoZSU
āIt is not an ignorance; it is just panicā
However, after a couple of days, it became clear that life in Ukraine is not going to be the same for a lot of time. Realizing that Russia has forever changed Ukraine, millions of Ukrainians decided to leave the country. Nastya was not an exception. Unfortunately, her parents had to stay. The father could not flee Ukraine because of martial law, and the mother, as a loyal wife, could not leave her husband alone. So, Nastya had to travel alone.
Having Nikita in Warsaw let her at least have a destination. The only thing left was to find a way to get there. Many Kyiv citizens decided to travel by car which created huge traffic on highways. So, Nastya chose a faster way, train. Waiting for it, she had to spend a night at a railway station. Yet, she did not manage to board on that Noah’s Ark. The train was full of women fighting for a place, pushing each other. āI realized that I had no chance of getting on that trainā, says Nastya with desperateness. Fortunately, on the 28th of February, she got a chance to get on an Intercity train that was going to Lviv. There she saw the same hustle. āIt is not ignorance; it is just panicā, explains Nastya, āonce you are in the trainās atmosphere, you see that everyone is helping each otherā. She was sharing space with some women traveling from Kharkiv, a city in the East that is now almost destroyed but still held by Ukrainians. They told how hard their way was, as the train was going slowly. āIt could have got under fire; there were three people on each bed, they took turns in order to sleepā, retells Nastya with some tears gathering in her eyes.
āIn this whole trip, I just lost sense of timeā
Through mental and physical pain on the 1st of March, our hero came to Lviv, a town in Western Ukraine that is relatively safe to be in nowadays. Lviv became a final frontier for many Ukrainians from the West and central regions, but even for a bigger number, it is a temporary stop on the way. From there buses and trains take people to borders with Poland and other countries. As Nastyaās destination was Warsaw, she needed to get on the train. She had to wait for 6 hours in line to access it. Her friends were less lucky and were waiting for about 10 hours in the cold with their kids. āTheir children could not even cry anymore; they were just wheezingā, utters Nastya with her voice trembling. Innocent babies became victims of the bloody war. Some of them are spending their carefree life in the metro, others were left without parents, and the rest, 191, were killed. But all of them are forever traumatized by the war, its sounds, and its scenery.
Nastyaās way from Lviv to the Polish border was the hardest difficulty she had to overcome. āIn the train, someone was standing, others were sitting; it was impossible to breathe; it felt like in a barrelā, she talks about the experience, āyour whole body is aching; youāre falling asleep while standing; youāre hungry; children are crying, screamingā. Nastya admits that in this terrible reality people just lose the sense of time.
āAll the people we meet on our way are angelsā
After this nightmare and 10 hours of waiting at the border, Nastya was in Poland. She became one of 4 million Ukrainians who were forced to flee their Motherland. Foreign land seemed like another world to Nastya. Thankfully, there are always big-hearted people like volunteers, or angels, as Nastya calls them, who try to help. āPeople were meeting us right on the platform; they provided food, care, clothes, toys for children, everything for oneās comfort, and helped to find a host familyā, utters Nastya with deep gratitude. āI have never seen so much care and loveā, she admits.
From the border, our Nastya took another 8-hour train to Warsaw to finally meet Nikita. āI was incredibly happyā, with a wide smile tells Nikita about their long-awaited reunion. Siblings call themselves a team who always work together. Their duo is iconic not only in personal life but also in career terms. Nastya and Nikita are DJs, musicians who were gaining popularity all over Ukraine. āWe have just recorded a new set, videos and were planning to post it on YouTubeā, says Nikita with disappointment. Their unusual techno, indie dance, and lounge sets are perfect for nightclubs and people who value high-quality music. āWe make our own music and pass it through ourselvesā, the Novikov’s explain. For them, it is not a job, it is art, a hobby. āMusic helps us to get through life difficultiesā, admit siblings. So, once Nastya recovered from her long and exhausting trip, they started thinking about career perspectives in the new reality.
āHere are your refugeesā
Since the German capital is famous for its techno lovers, from Warsaw Nastya and Nikita traveled to Berlin by train which is free for Ukrainians. Nowadays, many European countries provide refugees from Ukraine with free transportation inside and outside of their territory. At the railway station, the siblings were met by volunteers who connect refugees with Germans ready to accommodate them. āIn Berlin, our hostess, Marlin, was waiting for 5 hours in line to help someone withā, tells Nastya with astonishment. She received Nastya and Nikita with the words āhere are your refugeesā. Marlin used a small but cozy space in her house at the first opportunity to help victims of the war. Wondering about the generosity of people like Marlin, Nastya admits that she would not do the same. But after remembering everything she has been through, she changes her opinion and says, āyes, I would definitely doā. Such awareness made Nastya realize that her trip made her a better person, and more grown-up morally and spiritually.
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Nikita and Nastya in Barcelona. 11 March 2022.Ā Ā Ā Ā
After some days in Berlin, the siblings decided to move to Spain. āI admire Spainās food, climate, people, musicā, says Nastya who has already been to the Iberian Peninsula. Through Paris, Nastya and Nikita got to Barcelona on the 10th of March, where they enjoyed time by the seaside and then went to Madrid. First days in the Spanish capital they spent in the bustle of documents and other life issues. However, the siblings were lucky with their hosts again. After meeting so many amiable people on their way, Nastya acknowledged that kindness will save the world. Initially, they were accommodated by an old lady, Rosa who āis too pretty and energized to call her oldā. She asked them to call her mother and let them stay as long as they wanted. Once they received the refugeesā documents, the Novikovs started browsing websites with phone numbers of people who can accommodate refugees. On Prykhystok, a Ukrainian website with information about accommodation for refugees, they met a family consisting of a mother, a father, and two sons who happily agreed to help with housing. Now, Nastya and Nikita live in the familyās house, in their own room with their own bathroom. The family helps them with getting anything or going anywhere. But most importantly, the siblings finally got a feeling of home and familiarity that helps in a moral way.
āNot only has Putin put himself in a very complicated situation but also the whole Russiaā
Russian-Ukrainian relations have been complicated for many years. But on the 24th of February, they have come extinct. Two brother nations, Russians and Ukrainians, became rivals who will continue to resist each other for many decades. It will take several generations of Russians to restore friendship with Ukraine. Nowadays, speaking from my personal experience, being Russian feels weird. On one hand, I did not choose my nationality, and there was nothing I could do to stop Vladimir Putin. But on the other hand, I feel individual responsibility, shame, and fault for every killed Ukrainian and every bombed kilometer. It is hard for me to even look into a Ukrainianās eyes. I can never guess their reaction to my nationality. Fortunately, Nastya and Nikita understand my innocence in the whole situation. They call me an example of adequate Russians who see the real picture of the war. āI know many Russians who care about me, always ask how they can helpā, says Nastya who has been to Russia several times and enjoyed her time there. But the siblings do not understand those who stand for Putin and his intentions. It is obvious both for me and the Novikov’s that ānot only has Putin put himself in a very complicated situation but also the whole Russiaā. While one country is being destroyed physically, the other one is bearing defeat. āI think that those who support the war are unaware of their own actions, they live in the Matrixā, compares Nastya. Indeed, I personally know enough pro-war Russians to tell that they seem to wear propaganda-tinted glasses and try to deny the reality. I try to minimize my contact with these kinds of people since I am not sure if I will be able to hold my aggression. āYou can be apolitical, ignore news but there is a simple humanās perception that a war is badā, Nastya speaks my thoughts out loud. How can a person be so inhuman?
āEverything is just beginningā
Right now, when Ukrainian soldiers are still fighting for their land, Nastya and Nikita are proud of their country. āWe have always admired our nation, but we did not expect so much willpower from Ukrainiansā, they say with delighted smiles. While settling down in Madrid, the siblings keep in touch with their parents on a daily basis. The mother and the father still live in their apartment and leave it only to receive humanitarian help. Nastya and Nikita dream of taking them here, to Madrid. āWe are all afraid of a repetition of the Donetsk scenario, of a lingering warā, scarily utters Nastya. Truly, many experts predicted a short military conflict, but it has been almost two months and there is no sign of ending.
The Novikov siblings spend their days looking for a job in Madrid clubs. The Novikovs played their first DJ set on the Spanish soil at a charity event organized by Mir4Ukraine. It is a charity campaign founded by IE students that you still can help. Its group of volunteers has received supplies from kind people in Madrid and raised money. All donations have been handed to refugees on borders in Poland, Slovakia, and Hungary by some brave IE students. Mir4Ukraine has also collaborated with courageous initiatives that travel right to Ukraine. Students organize events and on one of them, the Novikov’s showed their professionalism and unique music taste. I personally recommend you invite Nastya and Nikita as DJs for any next occasion. You can listen to their sets here and here and get in contact through their Instagram pages (Nastya, Nikita). Nikita is also in search of a university where he can study Audio/Sound Engineering to make even more professional music. I believe that we all can help Nastya and Nikita in assimilating to Spain and looking for a job. Letās all turn on our networking skills and help people who sincerely need it.