Kyiv was a host city for the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) Euro 2012, along with three other cities in Ukraine and four cities in Poland. (Note: European "football" is the same as American "soccer"). Ever since we arrived here in mid-January, the grocery stores and other vendors have had Euro 2012 souvenirs for sale and advertisements like crazy. Magnets, t-shirts, bandanas, stickers, Ukrainian flags, hats, flip-flops, you name it...the souvenir stock kept growing and growing! One store, "Epicenter," which is kind of like a Home Depot, even had Euro 2012 oscillating fans, tool boxes, hack saws, screwdriver sets, and tents (among many other random souvenirs)! Now that the games are over, the 50% off sales have begun! :)
Hosting the games was a big deal for the country of Ukraine. It is truly a high-point in their history to be able to host such an event, and the government was very hopeful that the influx of tourism would boost the economy. Much of Kyiv was under construction in preparation for the games to catch the eye of the football fan tourists. (Actually, some projects didn't get finished, so there is still a lot of construction)! Elaborate flower beds were planted along the main roads to and from the airport, in high-traffic tourist areas, and near the stadium. Never before has the city of Kyiv seen so many flower beds!
The main street in Kyiv, Khreshchatik, was closed off for car traffic and was turned in to a "Fan Zone" for the games. They put up large screens along the street for fans to watch live broadcasts of the games. Activity centers and souvenir shops were set up. We couldn't resist being a part of history in the making, so we decided to be "tourists" on three different occasions and go to the "Fan Zone."
Our first Euro experience...
Our first visit wasn't well-planned...we unknowingly went during the Ukraine vs. France game (played in Donetsk, Ukraine), so there were literally thousands of people downtown to watch the game. We've never been in a place that was so crowded! We could barely walk through the crowd. The Friday night Ukraine vs. France game was rain delayed, and the rain made its way to Kyiv. Although it was just a drizzle in Kyiv, much of the crowd decided they wanted get out of the rain...leaving those of us who didn't mind the rain being swept up by a literal sea of people. At one point, Cassie was even squished in so tight between so many people that she was moving but her feet weren't touching the ground! Here are some pictures of our first Euro 2012 experience.
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| A very crowded street! |
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| Fans gathering around the large screen before the game. |
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| Shevchenko jersey--Ukraine's favorite player! |
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| It must have been impossible to hear anyone on the phone! |
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| There were thousands of people! This was just one section of the street! |
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| You can see the sheet of rain coming down in Donetsk on the screen. |
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| Lightning! Game play suspended... |
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| Still dry...just before the rain started in Kyiv. |
Second trip...
Since we couldn't really see much of what was going on downtown amidst the crowd, we decided to go back the following Monday afternoon. We figured it wouldn't be very crowded, and we were right! There were no games going on at the time, and Ukraine was not scheduled to play that evening. A much better opportunity to get some photos of the festivities!
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| Sixteen flags representing sixteen teams in the tournament. |
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| Andy sporting his new Ukraine jersey. |
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| Ukraine's team motto--"We believe." |
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| This guy was making "Ukrainian souvenir coins." Anything to make some money from tourists... |
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| Kyiv Welcomes You! |
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| Standing in the same place where we were last time. BIG difference! |
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| The screens are HUGE!!! |
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| Entrance to the "Fan Zone." You had to go through security. |
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| A different view of the end of the main street. The large stage is on the right (looking at it from behind), and there are several little booths around selling beverages and souvenirs. |
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| This functional clock has been here for a while. It is planted in to the side of a hill just off the main street downtown. They have spruced up the colors on the clock (all flowers) and have recently added the Poland and Ukraine football players (also in all flowers). The two players are a symbol of Euro 2012 and are on a lot of the souvenirs and advertisements. REALLY NEAT LANDSCAPING! |
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| Poland player |
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| Ukraine player |
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| Another neat landscaping shot. Hard to see, but it says "UEFA Euro 2012" on the top in the blue banner. The red and white on the left represent Poland, and the blue and yellow represents Ukraine. The Ukrainian coat of arms is in the middle, but it is also hard to see. This is all flowers!! |
Third time is a charm...
Our third and final trip to the "Fan Zone" was to enjoy a free concert--Elton John and Queen! We, along with thousands of others, went downtown the night before the final game to listen to some tunes!
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| Again, an incredibly crowded event! |
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| It's Elton John!! We couldn't get close to the actual stage, so we watched it on the screen...with some trees in the way. We actually found a spot that had a little breathing room, so we were happy with that! |
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| The crowd continuing behind us. Somewhere in there is the line for the restrooms! |
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| Enjoying the concert! |
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| "Queen" on the big screens! |
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| Entrance to the Fan Zone. The lights lining the street are cool, too! |
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