Ukraine's Independence Day

Today's session of the Gabfest Club Club (at Window on America center Dnipropetrovsk, Ukraine) was dedicated to the topic “Independence Day of Ukraine”. 
The group highly appreciated that some of the club ladies were dressed in national outfits (embroidered blouses) or in national colors. We were particularly thankful to our American guest Mr. Josh who also wore a Ukrainian shirt for the occasion. Besides Mr. Josh invited his friend Michael to join the club.
The presence of the American guests gave a wonderful opportunity to talk about the Ukraine’s independence in English. The session started with watching the video in which the US Ambassador in Ukraine and the Embassy staff congratulated the Ukrainians with the Independence Day. They have performed the Ukrainian anthem in 17 different languages. The task for the group was to guess why those 17 language were selected. The rest of the session was dedicated to the explanation of the symbolism of the Ukrainian national symbols - the flag, the coat of arms, the anthem, the currency, etc.
 
The group was asked to tell the American guests any interesting legends about the Independence of Ukraine. They were offered a Ukrainian video and a book trailer as a tip. Two club members recognized the legend about the Hetman’s gold. In 1723, Hetman Pavlo Polubotok was recalled to St. Petersburg by Tsar Peter I of Russia. The story holds that suspecting his imminent arrest, Polubotok secretly deposited 200,000 gold coins (presumably the treasures of the Cossack’s Sich) in the Bank of England, under 7.5% annual interest. The amount, the bank, and the interest vary in different versions: some sources cite two barrels of gold, or 2.5% annual interest, or the Bank of the British East India Company. In his will, Polubotok allegedly bequeathed 80% of the gold to the future independent Ukrainian state, and the rest to his successors.
To wrap up the conversation we told our American guests about the Ukrainian brands that globally market Ukraine and our region – the Cossack heritage and Petrykivka painting. The session was educational both for the Ukrainian and the American Club members.
Number of participants – 22 persons.

Have a look at more pictures, please