followed the words printed on my passport cover, then he handed it back, saying “Ameriky Britannia?” I just nodded and slipped past him onto the train.

Ah, Lviv. I’m tired of hearing the mantra that it’s the new Prague, just another selfie backdrop with cheap beer.

Formerly known as Lemberg, the city was part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire until the end of the First World War, then it became Polish Lwów during the interwar period. The city endured a tug-of-war status between Germans and Soviets in WW2, before the Soviets took control and it became part of the USSR. This all ended in 1991 when Ukraine became independent.

Lviv Opera House

Lviv architecture

A fading Central European grandeur is slowly being rejuvenated as workers, hidden behind scaffolded screens, tap away at decades ofof exhibit alongside a newsreel of distraught citizens looking for relatives among the dissidents slaughtered by the departing Soviets in 1941. Less so when I realised that vyshyvanka, with their ancient designs that represent natural elements, are today worn by the entire population as a symbol of Ukrainian identity and patriotic unity.

Needing some lightness after that, we spent an afternoon walking around the wooden houses, stave churches and wells at the outdoor Museum of folk Architecture and Rural Life. A highlight was when one of the custodial staff picked up his guitar and sang us a couple of folk songs, unaware that his ginger kitten had sneaked off to nibble at his unfinished plate of meaty chunks and soft cheese.

Train 8: Lviv to Ivano-Frankivsk

Tickets for the eighth stage