Plus tri

Čudan je osećaj kada vas u vreme doručka u svečanoj sali hotela Dnipro u Kijevu dočeka pijanista. Sve je nekako u kontrastima. Iako je napolju ispod deset stepeni, u hotelu je hladnjikavo, jer još ne greju kako treba. Ljudi su prilično sumorni od recepcije do sobarice. Možda je to iznenađenje za mnoge strance, vidim da negoduju. A u meni sve to budi neke zaboravljene slike iz vremena raspada Jugoslavije. Slično je bilo u Beogradu. Bila je stalna inflacija. Mnoge namirnice nisu mogle da se kupe. Ljudi su bili umorni od svega i mnogi su radili sve da bi preživeli. Kelnerica mi je rekla da je ime pijaniste Nikolaj Vitkovski, da je bio profesor na akademiji, ali da od kada je u penziji svira uveče u restoranu Kijev, a u vreme doručka u hotelu Dnipro.  I dok profesor svira Geršvina, Elu Fitdžerald, Sačma, ljudi pričaju. Najglasniji su neki gosti sa dalekog istoka. Oni sada predstavljaju nove biznismene, koji nažalost još nisu spoznali džez. Prilazim profesoru da se upoznam. Pričamo na ukrajinsko srpskom. Kaže da je rođen 1 juna 1943 i da je prilično umoran. Iako se to po njemu ne vidi, mogu da zamislim, jer  večernja svirka nastavlja jutarnjom. Možda ga muzika održava. Pada mi napamet da je rođen svega dva meseca pre Mika Džegera, koji sutra svira u Solni u Švedskoj.

Nakon doručka idem do manastira Arhanđela Mihajla. Na spoljnjem zidu manastira ima preko 3000 fotografija vojnika koji su poginuli u bratoubilačkom ratu od 2014 do 2016. Ako je nešto drugačije nego u ratno vreme u Beogradu, onda su to slike tih ljudi, jer u Srbiji nikad niko nije popisao sve ubijene. To nam je valjda nasleđe, sve brzo zaboravljamo. I mesto da imamo svoj Jad Vašem, duše miliona ubijenih Srba od balkanskih ratova do ovog poslednjeg lutaju univerzumom. Ulazim u manastir i palim sveće za sve poznate i nepoznate ljude, jer se o njima sada brine Arhanđel Mihajlo.

♥

It’s a strange feeling when a pianist playing to you at the breakfast time in the ballroom of the Dnipro hotel in Kiev. Everything is kind of in contrast. Although it is below 10 degrees outdoors, the hotel is cold, because they still do not heat properly. People are pretty melancholy from the reception to the room maid. Perhaps this is a surprise for many foreigners, I see that they are shocked. And in me all of this bears some forgotten images from the time of the breakup of Yugoslavia. It was similar in Belgrade. It was constant inflation. Many foods could not be bought. People were tired and many were doing everything to survive. Waitress told me that the name of the pianist is Nikolai Vitkovsky, that he was a professor at the Academy, but that since retiring he plays at night in the restaurant Kiev, and at breakfast time at the Dnipro Hotel. And while the professor plays Gershwin, Ela Fitzgerald, Satchmo, people are talking. The loudest are the guests from the Far East. They now represent new business people, who, unfortunately, have not yet come to know jazz. I approach the professor to get to know each other. We are speaking on Ukrainian Serbian. He says he was born on June 1, 1943 and is quite tired. Although this is not seen by him, I can imagine, because the evening gig continues in the morning. Perhaps music is maintained him. It comes to my mind that he was born just two months before Mike Jager, who plays in Solna in Sweden tomorrow on a World Tour.

After breakfast I go to the monastery of Archangel Michael. On the outer wall of the monastery there are over 3000 photographs of soldiers who died in the brotherhood war between 2014 and 2016. If it is somewhat different than in wartime in Belgrade, then these are images of these people, because in Serbia nobody ever recorded all those killed. This is our legacy, we all forget quickly. Instead to have our Yad Vashem, souls of millions of killed Serbs from the Balkan wars to this last one wandering in the universe. I go into the monastery and burn candles to all known and unknown people, because now Archangel Michael is taking care of them.