Exhibition Rap en RoeR 2025/2026
Exhibition Rap en RoeR 2025/2026
In these photos, you see the beginning of our journey.
At the start of the war, we thought we would never flee. Our home, our city, and our life were there. We could not imagine leaving everything behind.
But on March 14, 2022, that moment changed. We saw a rocket fly through the air that landed close to our home. At that moment, we realized that staying was no longer an option and that we had to seek safety.
Through a classmate, we heard that the Netherlands takes in refugees and that there could be a safe place there. That was an unexpected direction for us, but also a hopeful one.
The journey was long and uncertain. We sat in the corridors of trains for three days, on our way from Ukraine to Warsaw, then to Berlin, and finally to Amsterdam. We had little space, little sleep, and did not know exactly what awaited us.
Yet there was also something that made this journey heartwarming: we were together. In a situation full of the unknown and uncertainty, our bond gave us strength. On March 16, we arrived in Hilversum. There, we became the first residents of the crisis shelter. It was the beginning of a new chapter in our lives — a chapter we had never planned, but which ultimately brought us to safety.
In this photo, you can see our first place to live in the Netherlands.
In the beginning, we shared the room with just one other person. But that soon changed. Within a few days, the 8-bed room was completely filled with newcomers — people of different ages, backgrounds, and situations. That was super fun! Suddenly, our world became so big and interesting; we met many new people. We became good friends with some of them.
In the photo, you can see what our first bed looked like. It was actually a camp bed with a sleeping bag, right next to people we had never met before.
And there was also a cat. It was the cat of one of the residents, who walked curiously among the new people and explored his new surroundings.
These photos show our mother city, Kherson, after the war brought devastation there.
When the war began, we were far from home. We were studying in Kyiv and could not immediately return to Kherson, the city where we grew up.
In one of the photos, you see the view from the window of our house. The photo was taken by our mother. Instead of the familiar streets, we see smoke from an explosion that took place nearby. In another image, we see our parents' workplace. It is a place where they worked and built their entire lives. Due to the war, this place has been severely damaged.
It was painful to see this only through photos. We were far away and could do nothing. The images brought sadness, but also the realization that a part of our childhood memories was suddenly fragile.
These photos are not just about war, but about our bond as sisters.
We have always been together. From our childhood in Kherson to our student days, we have shared many moments: ordinary days, dreams about the future, and plans for our lives.
When the war began, everything around us changed. But one thing did not change: we stayed together. During the journey, in the uncertainty, and in a new country, we were each other's support.
In difficult moments, sometimes we didn't have to say anything. Just knowing that the other was there gave us the strength to carry on.
The war destroyed much, but not our bond. On the contrary — it has only grown stronger.
We have stayed together. And whatever happens, that will not change.