UMAN ROSH HASHANA DURING WAR IN UKRAINE

hello from uman Ukraine we got in here very late last night after approximately 56 hours in transit Hello friends from Wayne County International Airport I'm pretty sure that's what it's called I'm in Detroit right now I wasn't supposed to be here but my other flight got canceled so I got re-rooted through Detroit I am heading on a plane to Paris and from there God willing to Romania and then from there to mdova and from there to Ukraine it's a long journey but with God's help I will be in uman for rashash Shana this is a little room in the airport um it's like kind of a lounge that give you your own little Suite there's a sort of a bed there and uh office chair and a little desk and a TV screen I guess and a garbage can and this is what you get if you're a member of priority pass today was one of the most stressful travel days of my entire life a lot of crazy things happen thank you Hashem we made it maybe I'll make a video talking about that someday as well but now we got to DAV M quickly afternoon/evening prayers and run to the gate where our plane will take us to Paris see you soon just landed in Paris I have a 10-hour stop over here going to go out into the City and explore a little bit hopefully I'll make a video about that it'll be available on this channel very soon hello from the ear France INF flight bathroom after a long day today in running around Paris we are finally on our second flight to Bucharest Romania about to take off got to go thank you byebye thank you border control in Romania and there's no one here so I guess we're just going through welcome to Romania no idea how we got in but so far no border guards at border control let's see if they catch up to us a little bit later that is a real Miracle my suitcase has arrived what a blessing okay so after three flights and well over 24 hours in transit we have arrived in Bucharest Romania and now we're going to our hotel I'm actually not even taking a taxi cuz it's about a 5minute walk from the hotel so I got my suitcase in hand and I'm just walking myself I've stayed here in the past when I came to visit refugees from Ukraine right when the war started I flew to Romania for one today and I stayed in this hotel as well and therefore I know how close it is and that I don't even need a taxi so hopefully uh we get in there soon and get some rest this is the hotel room two beds and the windows look out to a courtyard nothing exciting little desk with a workspace and this is the [Music] bathroom good morning from Bucharest Romania we got like 3 and 1/2 hours of sleep and now it's time to head out on the road for the long journey to uman Ukraine we're starting off here in Romania going to move on to mdova there I'm picking up a friend from the airport and then God willing we're going to get to Ukraine it's a long journey bear with me okay okay it's about 9:45 in the morning and we're getting into the car here we go good morning Valentine good morning sir how are you I'm fine thank you you have a great English uh I hope so no really really I'm very impressed I hope so [Music] okay we've been driving for like 5 hours or so and we're about to go through the border from Romania to mova we need a passport okay so we have safely thank God made it into mova without incident and uh I'm very fortunate today to have be able to say that because last time I was here the Border guards or the custom guards they were Crooks they were corrupt people and uh I'll tell you that story another time but I could not believe the blatant corruption that was going on here so anyway thank God today we got in without incident and it's a good thing now we still have a long way to go but we're heading now to kishinev the I think it's the capital city to go pick up my friend and then from there we're going to head on to Ukraine after many many hours of driving just arrived at the kabad house in kishen of [Music] mova big synagogue here it's actually the street is actually named kabad laab Street let's see if we can get in oh hello they're on camera welcome toova thank you what's your name tiffen you live here behind me is the kabad synagogue here in kishinev I'm told it was redone 2 years ago and here in the ladies section the balcony that overlooks the synagogue they have set up a little restaurant um for the people who are traveling to uman we're going to be passing through mova because all of Ukraine's airports are closed therefore many people who are going to uman and Ukraine have to fly into mova and then from there they drive to Ukraine we flew into Rania and we drove to mdova and we'll be going to Ukraine but a lot of people going to uman to Ukraine are passing through mdova so they set up a little restaurant here and uh we're going to get some food before we go and there he is Hello thank God how are you how's your flight got some schnitzel fried chicken and some kind of fries eating in kit of mova before we head out on the trip to uman so while we were sitting and eating Rabbi zusa abelski who is the ofad here in mova I was going to say Ukraine I don't know why the ofad in mova Rab zelki walked in while we were sitting and eating he's a very nice man and he's showing us around a little bit and we're going to go see the new Mikvah which is being built here and hopefully sometime in the future we're going to come back and do a proper mova trip and we'll see lots of interesting things with Jewish history let's go the M RAB come okay go ahead show me around this mik was uh we built it in 2008 donated by RAB right he gave the money for some of the mik today we have the four couples a lot of women coming in using the mik and we came to a point we we need a nice model mik to answer the needs of the community right was shocking us and many people but this is it so we'll have you two M for men and a woman so for those of you who don't know a Mikvah is a Jewish ritual bath it's mandatory for women sometimes and Men it's voluntary yes so this is here is the old mik okay this is the old one yeah we're putting here now a divid here will build a new M mik for woman okay and once this mik is done we'll disable this one and make a new meway here we were in the synagogue in Kisha for about an hour and a half spoke with the rabbi ate some food now we're heading back out on the roads hopefully to Ukraine and uh let's see if it's going to be easy or if it's going to be difficult so after about 10 hours on the road today we finally arrived to the movan Ukrainian border um there's a lot of people here waiting there are buses waiting to come through full of see them going to uman there are private cars going through we're going to be traveling by foot number one because our driver can't go into Ukraine so we hired a second driver to pick us up from the other side of the Ukrainian border but number two is because rumor has it that if you're traveling by foot then passage is the easiest to get through but if you're traveling with a car then it could take a couple hours so hopefully if we go by foot it'll be quick and we'll be able to get into Ukraine and on to uman yes of course so this is Valentine the best driver in the whole Romania took us all the way 10 hours from Bucharest to the movian Ukrainian border you want to come you want to come party with us in uman you want to come party with us in um big party big Festival you want to come yes you come next time okay next time I call me when you do you want to come back okay thank you thank you Valen have a nice day be well okay so this is uh the border crossing we're walking across look girl all these trucks and buses waiting to get into Ukraine okay so you probably can't see much but we just left mdova we're walking across a bridge that goes over a river which will take us to Ukraine and and we have arrived that's the Ukrainian border let's go okay after lots of runaround we're finally inside Ukraine the border is behind me and hopefully we go meet our driver now and go to uman there's still a 3-hour drive to uman finally we're getting to our van and with God's help we're going to uman for rashash Shan we are approximately 2 hours or maybe a little more than that into the journey we stopped at a gas station and we met some other Jewish people who are on the way to uman and their car broke down so they're going to be joining us in our van for the rest of the journey it's all about trying to help each other and you know at the end of the day we all want the same things we're going to rashash Shana in uman is the Jewish New Year we want to have a good year and how do you ensure that you have a good year by they're doing good for other people so Sam is the boss here and he invited them to come in guys are coming over now have you met them yes do they seem nice they're they're dead they're sleeping in the car I woke I woke them boy okay just arrived in uman after probably about 50 hours on the road oh my God go thank God thank God we're here thank God new thing here you have to pay a tourist tax in order to enter the town and here's the checkpoint to make sure everyone you paid it's 3:16 a.m. walking down push Street which is the main street here in the Jewish neighborhood of uman there is a curfew in Ukraine because of the war so you're not supposed to be outside between 12:00 a.m. and 4:00 a.m. but if you're arriving and you're walking with the suitcase the police will allow you to go to your hotel other than that you have to be indoors at all times from when I left my house in Texas until I got here to uman was 56 hours crazy Journey thank God we're here got a little bit of sleep it's approximately 12:00 p.m. and we got to head outside for a big event that's happening right [Music] now okay so there's a big prayer event about to happen people from all over the world tens of thousands of people are going to come together and pray together [Music] [Applause] [Music] spe [Music] so this is my my dear friend Meer who I know him for probably uh 15 years or so 10 years for sure long long time and the first time I came to uman when I was a lost 17-year-old he made all the arrangements for me he got me here took care of the place for me to stay and to eat and everything in the card to go to the Mikvah and since then for every year I come back to him and he helps me with anything I need if you're coming to uman you call this man the uman center he can take care of every single thing for you from your flight trying to um your hotel your food your M anything you need he gets it done thank you it's a pleasure working with you a long time at least I don't have to make when I see you that's right really they really have everything you need they're putting out shoe polish Forum candles whatever you need Hotel one has got it thank you raan thank you so we are in the streets of uman and CH vide thank you thank you thank you very much people are saying hi um we're here in the streets of uman it's very busy and we have to try to run some errands I need a bunch of things before yam I need a white yamaka I need to get a k a white robe which is customary for the breast of to wear on Rashana I have like 10 of them at home but I couldn't find any of them before I left to Ukraine so I'm going to have to buy one here on the street he this place is a m bad house super busy and super hot there's no AC but got the kle got the yamaka more or less ready so it's less than 2 hours before the holiday is starting and I just found out that I have a little bit of a crisis going on apparently my bus to Prague from where I'm going to be flying back to the United States was cancelled so now 2 hours before the holiday what do I have to figure out I have to make a new route to Prague but there are no buses from uman to Prague they've all been canceled so instead I have to take a bus to crack Poland and then I have to fly to Prague and then from there I can fly to the United States it's a big mess some kind of emergency always comes up right before the holiday starts but that's life thank God we're here thank you Hashem now let's go make the holiday happen just got out of the Mikvah which is the Jewish ritual spiritual bath hopefully I cleansed myself a little bit before Rashana and uh very soon we're starting the holiday so last minute preparations this is a bag that I ordered for Rashana from Prestige embroidery andr Heights says how fortunate are we that we were able to get close to our Rabbi who was buried here in um here it has my name and here it says said that anyone who is able to come to should be very very happy so thank you prestige embroidery my Talus will go inside and yeah so the holiday is about to start only in a few minutes from now rashash Shana of the Year 5784 will be upon us and it's a lot to think about Rashana is the New Year it's a happy day but it's also a day of Judgment day that we pray that God inscribe us into the book of life and give us a year filled with happiness and blessing and good things another thing to remember is that we're right now in Ukraine which is in the middle of a war this morning at 6:00 a.m. I was in bed and I woke up from the irid sirens therefore this year we will be praying for peace here in Ukraine and in Russia and all over the world we hope this going to be a nice peaceful year for the entire Jewish people and for the entire world at large as you can see behind me people are smoking their last cigarettes before the holiday starts they're texting their wives and their children their families who were not able to make it here it's also important to remember that a lot of families are not together the men have gone to uman the wives and children stay at home it's difficult for the families it's difficult for the men but we hope that being here in uman will bring us spiritual blessings anyway I got to go want to wish you all a happy healthy sweet New Year and we will see you on the other side wow wow wow rashash Shana 5784 was incredible incredible incredible so so much wonderful energy Positive Vibes so much prayer so much happiness so much hope so much Unity it was really incredible we have Jews from every stripe and every type we're here in uman together and we believe it's going to be an amazing year God willing super pump for this year good things are coming good things are going to happen I'm I'm here for it I'm here for it [Music] don't go too [Music] far that's my boy he was here with me this rashash Shana it was such an incredible thing to be able to share this with him for the first time in my life I've been involved in coming to uman for 13 years and now my son who's 3 years old is able to join me we passed her On to the Next Generation and he had an incredible time too it was really to be able to bond with him in this way we are now going to R's grave one last time for this trip in a way to say fear well to say goodbye until the next time that we're able to come let's do this [Music] GL [Applause] [Music] n [Music] this place right here is like the Time Square of uman it's the big intersection where people are coming and going in all directions the streets are packed many people are already leaving immediately after the holiday they got a run back many people have to leave already because there are buses and taxis taking them back to the neighboring countries of Ukraine from where they will depart by ear sh sh so people are departing to the neighboring countries of Ukraine and from there they will be flying out to the countries they live in so it's chaos here and in about half hour the curfew comes into effect so you're not supposed to be in the streets anymore in about 30 minutes from now the streets are going to close up the stores are going to close and only people who are leaving are allowed to be out everyone else has to go inside their buildings and stay in for the night we're at hotel one and the Russia sh [Music] party it's 4:00 in the morning the night after Russia Shana and there's irid Sirens Ukraine is getting bombed again um hopefully everyone's going to be safe no one's going to get hurt hopefully if Rockets or missiles do fall they should fall in open areas and not hurt anybody but this is what it's like uh you know during the war this is the real [Music] deal uman the morning after it's a little bit it's a little bit after 7:00 a.m. and I'm walking down the street here once again through Time Square to get to the bus station at the bottom of the hill near the lake where from there we will be heading on a 11 plus hour bus ride to CRA out Poland it's a very lengthy and uh difficult Journey but I'm so glad to be making this Journey the long journey home thank you Hashem thank you Hashem so we're getting on the buses very chaotic here but thank God we found the correct bus heading to KRA out Poland it's a long drive long drive ahead 10 hours of past we are currently at the Ukraine Poland border near LV there's big lines many many buses waiting to get through cars who knows how long this could take could be could be many hours I I hope it's not going to be like this but it's quite possible that we could be here a lot of the night all night who knows there's no way to know praying that it goes quickly it's just endless lines oh you have to have so much patience for this kind of travel thank God my son's behaving too cannot complain about that would be much more difficult if he wasn't a full hour as passed and basically nothing has changed we've Advanced maybe 20 or 30 ft further down the road but we're still stuck in this huge traffic jam honestly when I set out this morning I was thinking like you know I can deal with whatever comes my way but longer we're sitting here in this bus I'm just kind of getting like antsy and claustrophobic and I just want to get out of here already to make matters more complicated today is a fast day it's called Tom Galia the day after rashash is always a fast day and therefore I've been fasting all day it's not easy to not be eating or drinkinking especially when you're traveling so by now it's night um the sun has gone down and I am breaking my fast on a little chicken sandwich from hotel 1 in uman you would not believe the corruption that goes on in this country it's unbelievable we've been waiting here at the border for 3 plus hours absolutely nothing is moving we're trying to get into Poland nothing doing we're stuck finally the driver comes on to the bus he says guys if everyone pays $6 which for the whole bus together it would be about $150 we can go through right now everyone took out cash within 2 minutes we were across the border so after 6 hours and 45 minutes since we arrived at the Border in Ukraine we have just entered Poland and now we're on our way almost 7 hours spent at the border it's 3:00 in the morning morning we just got to kco airport 19 hours on this bus 7 hours of them waiting by the border just got to CCO airport my flight is tomorrow morning at 11:30 a.m. so I have to go to a hotel now take a taxi at the hotel so it's super late at night finally got to the hotel and I just realized that the trip on the bus took us 20 hours not 19 hours because Poland is 1 hour behind behind Ukraine so the time zone changed when we went into Poland and therefore we were on that bus for 20 hours it was honestly not easy but what don't we do for reab nakan and uman so we're getting on the plane now in Prague there is no jet way to take us into the aircraft so we're walking in the rain on the tarmac one of the other Jewish passengers on the flight was very kind and he gave my son a coat to wear over his head so that he doesn't get soaked in the rain I know you guys have heard me say this before but it's literally a miracle that I'm getting on the plane right now a miracle I woke up so late today there's no natural reason why I should be here just landed in Prague heading to the hotel now if you want to see the video from Prague it'll be on my YouTube channel soon so we just landed in Paris um we've been on the road for more than 48 hours and we're still not even close to home we're thousands of miles away we have to fly back to Texas now honestly the whole journey is is really starting to take a toll on me I even got the famous uman cold boing the final flights for this trip exhaust of yond we are back in Texas after what seems like the longest journey ever thank God we just landed here oops wrong way we still need to get home but at least we're in our home country and home state and home cityo finally we are home after 65 hours in transit we've made it back to Texas some little thoughts on this trip it was an incredibly difficult trip honestly much harder than I expected I'm used to traveling to uman it's easy you fly directly into Kev 3-hour drive to uman and that's it now we had cars and buses and trains and taxis and Border guard and bribes and who knows what it was not easy but I feel I think it was definitely worth it and I spiritually recharged ready to take on a new year God willing it's going to be a great one that's that um thank you all for watching see you in the next one God bless you all