Re: [Cz-L] Travel to Czernowitz

As interest in and suggestions for Travel to Czernowitz resumed this
past week, I am reposting here the "Recommendation for a
Driver/Guide/Interpreter for travel in Bukovina and Czernowitz" by the
name of Serhiy Bilichenko (email: serhiybilichenko_at_hotmail.com) that
I posted in mid-January on the List. I hope you will find my own
experiences on two trips last year helpful even if you do not decide
to make use of Serhiy's services. I highly recommend this journey --
which may seem daunting for some -- as one of the most meaningful
possible for those who like me have ancestors from Czernowitz and
Bukovina. I am certain that you will be glad that you made the
effort. Mark

"Dear List members -

To all of you who are interested in travel to Czernowitz and Bukovina,
but may hesitate because of the difficulty of logistics and language,
I am writing this to introduce you to Serhiy Bilichenko (see cc email
address) , who played a critical role in realizing my family's project
to organize the Vashkivtsi cemetery cleanup this past October, which
he mentions in the email below in response to a list inquiry this past
week.

Last May Eric Jankel and I finally made a trip to Bukovina, a journey
we had talked about making for the last 10 years. Eric's father was
born in Czernowitz and emigrated to America, where he was a musician
and teacher; his grandfather was a schoolteacher who lived and died in
Czernowitz. My father and his three brothers were born in Waschkoutz
am Cheremosh (Vashkivtsi) and left in the 20's and 30's, settling in
Curacao and Panama. We knew little about our fathers' early
experiences and saw this trip as one of discovery of and appreciation
for our heritage.

In organizing this trip I contacted LvivEcotour, which was listed in a
popular travel guide series. The former owner emigrated to Canada, but
referred me to his cousin Serhiy. Serhiy lives in Lviv, where he
graduated from the university majoring in English. We were among his
first Jewish visitors, and he demonstrated from the start exceptional
initiative and organizational skills that, along with his linguistic
skills assured the success of our visit. Consequently, I was confident
that with his help I could undertake a major project this past
October, traveling with 7 relatives to clear the overgrown Jewish
cemetery of Vashkivtsi. Over our two visits, Serhiy has developed a
base of expertise in the Jewish history and landmarks of Bukovina and
Galicia, in large part because of his intellectual curiosity and
emotional connection through his experience with us. Among his
achievements:

-- Managed all of our hotel reservations for our stay at the Leopolis
in Lviv for our Ukraine arrival and departure (this is the most
expensive hotel in the city, but as good as just about any Western
hotel) and in Czernowitz, where I opted for the Magnat Lux hotel that
is highest-rated on tripadvisor.com. In each case, Serhiy negotiated a
small discount from the cheapest advertised rates.

-- Drove us in his vehicle to and from Czernowtiz, with meaningful
stops at Jewish landmarks along the way. In October, he also arranged
for a second van and English speaking driver to accommodate our group
of 8 with luggage.

-- Made preliminary contact with the federal archives in Czernovitz to
find birth and death records for our relatives, traveling on his own
initiative to the city (four hours each way) two weeks before our
arrival. With his help, we found many old records for Eric's family
members and the death report for my granfather, who is buried in
Czernovitz. Unfortunately, there are only records for Vascauti from
1918-28, so I was unable to document my grandmother's death in 1914.

-- Translated menus at almost every meal and discussions with locals
at each location. If you do not speak Ukrainian or Russian, or read
Cyrillic you will be most frustrated in modern Bukovina. I speak four
languages fluently, but none of them was of any use except in a very
rare occasions. Even the hotel front desk receptionist in Czernivtsi
could not communicate in English.

-- Provided sequential (not simultaneous) interpretation in
conversations with people ranging from peasants to the town mayor.
His English-Ukrainian interpretation skills were as good as most of
the professional interpreters I knew during my diplomatic career.

-- Ordered the commemorative plaque we erected in the Vashkivtsi
cemetery, and organized all the necessary preparations for our project
in contacts with local authorities and the Jewish representative in
the Vyznitsia (Wiznitz) rayon.

Please do not try to negotiate a cheaper rate for Serhiy's services.
He is paid per day, plus gas, hotel and meals, which may seem high in
comparison with Ukrainian salaries, but his work is seasonal and
intermittent. He is a consummate professional who earns every cent he
is paid, and will try in every way to ensure you have a pleasant
visit,

--------------------------------------------------

Text of his answer to a previous list inquiry

"Serhiy Bilichenko" <serhiybilichenko_at_hotmail.com

> wrote:

    Hello -----------,

    My name is Serhiy (Bill) Bilichenko, I live in Lviv (Lwow,
Lemberg), Ukraine. Last summer I was the person who organized, drove
around, and interpreted for a group of relatives of Mark Wiznitzer
(USA) who undertook restoration of an old Jewish cemetery in
Waschkoutz, some 30 km from Czernowitz, where their grandmother is
buried. (Grandfather is buried in Czernowitz.) Mark was the person who
told me about your project.

    I am not Jewish myself, but I am one of the few non-Jewish
Ukrainians who understand the huge role the Jews had played in the
life of this country up untill WWII, and I am willing to help with
whatever little resources I have to revive and preserve the Jewish
history of Ukraine. So if this interests you, I can drive you around
Bukovina, book hotels etc, take you to Sadagora (different spellings
exist), organize meetings with the local Rabbis, a person who runs a
Museum of Bucovina Jews, the archives, interpret for you (I speak
English and Polish apart from Ukrainian and Russian) and, generally,
do whatever is needed to assist a group of people who try to do some
work in a foreign country.

    Please let me know what you think.
    All the best,
    Serhiy (Bill)."

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Received on 2011-02-22 18:25:01