‘So young a child,’
said the gentleman
sitting opposite to her
(he was dressed in white paper),
‘ought to know
which way she’s going,
even if she doesn’t know
her own name!’
A Goat, that was sitting
next to the gentleman in white,
shut his eyes and
said in a loud voice,
‘She ought to know
her way to the ticket-office,
even if she doesn’t know
her alphabet!’
Amid the shelling.
Which ‘orcs’ intensified.
On 27 August.
On 27 August.
Ukrzaliznytsia reported.
Widespread train delays.
The head of Ukrzaliznytsia.
Wrote that there had been.
Damage to railway infrastructure.
In the Kyiv region.
Which was being repaired.
Which was being repaired.
As a matter of urgency.
To restore services.
As a matter of urgency.
To restore services.
There was a Beetle
sitting next the Goat
(it was a very queer carriage-full
of passengers altogether),
and, as the rule seemed to be that
they should all speak in turn,
he went on with ‘She’ll have to
go back from here as luggage!’
As a result.
Dozens of trains were delayed.
Some by as much as.
10–15 hours.
At the time.
Images went viral online.
Showing Kyiv railway station.
Packed with passengers.
Waiting for trains.
On the platforms.
Waiting for trains.
Inside the station building.
Waiting for trains.
In the underground passageway.
And waiting for trains.
Even on the station forecourt.
Alice couldn’t see
who was sitting beyond the Beetle,
but a hoarse voice
spoke next.
‘Change engines –’ it said,
and there it choked
and was obliged
to leave off.
Delays are further exacerbated.
By forced train stoppages.
And evacuations due to.
The threat of shelling:
As ‘elves’ Railways explains.
This creates.
A knock-on effect.
A knock-on effect.
– a delay to.
One train causes.
The next one to.
Be delayed as well.
“It sounds like a horse,”
Alice thought to herself.
And an extremely small voice,
close to her ear, said,
“You might make a joke
on that – something about
‘horse’ and ‘hoarse’, you know.”
“You might make a joke
Meanwhile.
Free waiting rooms.
Have been opened.
At stations.
And passengers.
On delayed trains.
Are being provided.
With food.
Then a very gentle voice
in the distance said,
“She must be labelled
‘Lass, with care’, you know-”
And after that
other voices went on
(“What a number of people there are
in the carriage!” thought Alice),
The Minister for.
Infrastructure and Transport.
Stated on Sunday that.
Work is currently under way.
To organize.
Round-the-clock operations.
At railway stations spread out.
Trains and passengers.
Prevent simultaneous arrivals.
On adjacent platforms.
And reduce the time taken for.
Passengers to board and alight.
saying, “She must go by post,
as she’s got a head on her –”
“She must be sent as a message
by the telegraph –”
“She must draw the train herself
the rest of the way –”,
and so on.
and so on.
Getting around the city.
Has become a particular problem.
For Kyiv residents.
For Kyiv residents.
Against the backdrop.
Of constant air raid alerts.
Against the backdrop.
Of constant air raid alerts.
During an air raid alert.
The Kyiv metro does not run.
Across bridges or.
On above-ground sections:
But the gentleman dressed
in white paper
leaned forwards and
whispered in her ear,
“Never mind what
they all say, my dear,
but take a return-ticket
every time the train stops.”
As a result.
On the one hand.
It is impossible to reach.
The other bank of the Dnipro.
By metro.
Whilst on the other.
An entire metro line.
On the left bank is paralysed.
Although alternative buses are.
Available on some routes.
Kyiv residents complain that.
There are not enough of them.
“Indeed I shan’t!”
Alice said rather impatiently.
“I don’t belong to this
railway journey at all
– I was in a wood just now –
and I wish I could get there!”
– I was in a wood just now –
and I wish I could get there!”
The Department of.
Transport Infrastructure of.
The Kyiv City State Administration.
Has announced that.
The city authorities are.
Exploring the possibility.
Of launching temporary bus routes.
That will follow.
The route of the metro’s.
Above-ground sections.
During prolonged.
Air raid alerts.
According to.
The department’s deputy director.
There may be a need.
To increase.
The number of buses.
On routes.
From the left bank.
To the right bank.
“You might make a joke on that,”
said the little voice close to her ear:
“something about ‘you would
if you could’, you know.”
“Don’t tease so,” said Alice,
looking about in vain
to see where
the voice came from;
As Kyiv Mayor stated.
This evening.
The Kyiv City Defence Council.
Has adopted an appeal.
To the government.
Regarding changes to.
The security protocols.
In force in the capital.
These rules relate.
In particular.
To the organisation of.
Traffic on Kyiv’s bridges.
During air raid alerts.
And the easing of.
The curfew in the capital.
The curfew in the capital.
“if you’re so anxious
to have a joke made,
why don’t you make
one yourself?”
The little voice sighed deeply:
it was very unhappy, evidently,
and Alice would have said
something pitying to comfort it,
Subject to the adoption.
Of new safety protocols.
Kyiv is proposing to.
Make certain changes.
To the metro service.
The aim is to ensure that.
The Syretsko-Pecherska line.
(The green line).
Continues to operate.
Continues to operate.
Without restrictions.
During an air-raid alert.
Whilst maintaining.
Train services and.
Passenger transport.
Across the Pivdennyi Bridge.
From the left bank.
To the right bank.
And from the right bank.
To the left bank.
“if it would only sigh
like other people!”
like other people!”
she thought.
But this was such
a wonderfully small sigh,
that she wouldn’t have heard
it at all,
The Kyiv Defence Council.
Has instructed the Defence Forces.
And the relevant departments of.
The Kyiv City State Administration.
To immediately put forward.
To immediately put forward.
The best possible proposals.
The best possible proposals.
For lifting traffic restrictions.
On bridges where.
Such restrictions are.
In place during alerts.
if it hadn’t come
quite close to her ear.
The consequence of this was
that it tickled her ear very much,
and quite took off
her thoughts from
the unhappiness of
the poor little creature.
The capital is also proposing.
To relax the city-wide curfew.
To ensure the smooth running.
Of logistics.
(By allowing.
Transit freight vehicles.
To operate.
During curfew hours).
This is so that people can.
Get from railway stations.
This is so that people can.
Get from railway stations.
(As trains and other intercity.
And international transport.
Have recently been running late.
And arriving during curfew hours).
‘I know you are a friend,
the little voice went on;
‘a dear friend,
and an old friend.
And you won’t hurt me,
though I am an insect.’
‘What kind of insect?’
Alice inquired a little anxiously.
What she really
wanted to know was,
whether it could
sting or not,
but she thought
this wouldn’t be
quite a civil question
to ask.
*Because I read “Менша комендантська, більше метро і школа онлайн? Як Київ адаптується до безперервної повітряної тривоги(Less curfew, more metro and online school? How Kyiv adapts to continuous air alert) ” on 31 Aug 2026 on the BBC news Ukraine, and also “Why are Ukrainians calling Russians ‘orcs’?” by James FitzGerald on 30 Apr 2022, on the BBC news.
So, I wrote this poem, led by ‘THROUGH the LOOKING-GLASS’ written by Lewis Carroll, you know.
Please read the original story on the BBC news Ukraine:
