Christmas in Kyiv reflects 'split' reality of wartime

Festivities show how residents have to juggle ordinary life with the reality of war

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stood posing for her boyfriend at a stall offering mugs of steaming wine, as children rode horses on a brightly lit merry-go-round in front of a giant Christmas tree.

It could be a Hallmark-worthy December scene from any city in Europe. Except this is Kyiv, the Ukrainian capital under almost nightly air raid alerts, where Russian missiles and drones frequently slam into apartment buildings.

Christmas celebrations have nevertheless taken over the city, a festive showcase of how Kyiv's residents have been forced to juggle ordinary life with the reality of living in a country at war.

"People think we only get missiles and shelters. But we have holidays too. Taking photos, drinking mulled wine, eating tasty food. It's nice to switch," said Ms Ovchinnikova, 25 and with bleached blond hair.

The dizzying contrast between the war's devastation and the holiday cheer was not lost on her.

"It's a very strange feeling. You wake up and find out that somewhere someone died, that in Kyiv someone died. And you go to work and it's like your mind is split.

"We usually don't think about it but then suddenly we remember - damn, it really shouldn't be like this," she added.

The Winter Wonderland market at Kyiv's Expocenter welcomed over 330,000 people in the first three weeks of December.