Ukrainian musician in Berlin
“Sometimes you want to pinch yourself and wake up”
04/30/2022, 09:43 am
Two weeks after the start of the war in Ukraine, Aleksey and his wife Oksana fled to Berlin with their three children. The family comes from the city of Dnipro in central Ukraine. “I miss my colleagues and friends,” says Aleksey. But his children couldn’t stand the war – and the musician can’t support his family in Ukraine.
ntv.de: Why did you decide to come to Germany?
There were various reasons. In Germany I saw more opportunities for myself as a musician than in Poland. I’m a saxophonist and I work mostly in the evenings in bars and restaurants, sometimes I’ve also been invited to the Dnipro Philharmonic. If it wasn’t for the war I would never have thought of going anywhere else, but the fighting made it impossible for musicians to make a living.
“There are so many people in Berlin who are willing to help that it moves you to tears,” says Aleksey.
(Photo: Maryna Bratchyk)
Do you want to stay in Germany or go home when the war is over?
Ukrainians are a special people, they are a particularly friendly nation. Anyone who has been there will understand what I mean. I miss my colleagues and friends, and so does my wife. But I’m visually impaired, so I can’t support my family in Ukraine at the moment. When people have a peaceful sky above their heads, something to eat and drink, then you need musicians. This is not the case in war.
Do you feel guilty for leaving Ukraine?
No, I have absolutely no feelings of betrayal. Firstly, I’m not fit for military service and secondly, as a father I also have a responsibility. In Dnipro there were air raids four to five times a day. When the sirens wailed, we had to leave the apartment and run to the air raid shelter. My two-year-old daughter used to get hysterical whenever we dressed her and took her down to the basement. She didn’t understand what that was supposed to mean. At some point we couldn’t stand it any longer and drove away. We then took the train from Dnipro to Lviv, by bus to Poland and from there by train to Berlin.
How did you fare in Berlin?
We wouldn’t have made it all the way to Berlin without help. We got groceries, diapers, toys for the children, and clothes too, because it’s getting warmer now and we only had things for winter temperatures with us. In Berlin we were given a hotel room and financial support. This help is really very touching.
Why did you stay in Berlin?
Firstly because we are musicians – my wife teaches singing. We also have a few friends and colleagues here who moved to Berlin some time ago. My sons play soccer, and my wife was able to sign them up for a club right away. And we thought that we would find a good school for her here. At the moment our children are still attending online classes at the Ukrainian school – because of the war, classes in Ukraine are currently taking place digitally.
Yesterday we received the residence permit for two years. The children will go to school or kindergarten here, we will look for work ourselves. Tomorrow we will register for German courses.
Germany is famous for its forms, who helped you fill them out?
A 77-year-old from the Ukraine who has been living in Germany for 30 years filled out a form for the social welfare office. There are so many people in Berlin who are willing to help that it moves you to tears.
How do you talk to your children about the war?
I know a lot of parents didn’t name things at first, but we told them the truth right away. Children have a clear idea of what is happening. My sons are six and eight years old, they know who attacked us but of course they don’t understand why. My wife often reads the news and when she cries, the children comfort her. Sometimes you just want to pinch yourself and wake up.
On the first day of the war we didn’t take the children to school. Then we showed them how to put a SIM card in the phone and how to charge it so we can always keep in touch. We have had our papers ready to hand in a folder since 2014. The instability was in the air. We didn’t want to think about it, but we were always ready.
With Aleksey voiced Maryna Bratchyk