No More ‘Have a Nice Day’: Lviv Learns to Live With WarUkraine’s cultural capital, the western city of Lviv, is trying to adjust to being on the fringes of war and at the center of massive displacement.
When war came to Ukraine in February, Helen Polishchuk made some adjustments in the six-story bar she manages in central Lviv.
“When guests leave the restaurant we normally say, ‘Have a nice day,’” she said. Instead she told them they [the staff] could say something else, like
“Glory to Ukraine,” or “We wish you blue skies.”
“Because to say ‘have a nice day’ in this period is stupid,” said Ms. Polishchuk, 33.
“We don’t want to pretend that nothing has happened, we understand that it’s a war,” Ms. Polishchuk said. “But we want to create an atmosphere of somewhere safe.”On the menu, borscht, the beet soup that had few takers before the war, is now the biggest seller. Ms. Polishchuk said it was patriotism and stress. “We understand that people want comfort foods,” she said.
Mauricio Lima
Story: The NYT
