An almost full bus departed from Maastricht on Monday evening with its final destination Kiev.
The bus came from Brussels and stops at a number of German cities en route to Warsaw transfer.
‘I can’t abandon my cats’
Most of the 61 travelers on the bus had destinations in Germany or Poland. Ukrainian Oksana Radionova (31) got on the bus in Maastricht. She said she is going back to her home in Kiev because she has not been able to find a shelter for her three cats. They still have enough food and drink, she said. Her father was supposed to take care of the animals, but he also fled west a week after her. “I don’t have a choice,” Oksana said. “I’m terrified. Bombs fall on the city at night, but I can’t abandon my cats.”
The Netherlands
She ended up in the Netherlands through all kinds of wanderings. “First with that train through hell, from Kiev to Lviv, where frightened people fight for every place to flee. Then via Slovakia to Germany, but everything there was full and so I ended up in Utrecht and Maastricht.”
She hopes she can stay in Kiev. “But if the bombs fall close, I have to go again. I’ll take my cats with me.”
Not to Russia
Also a man from Belarus took this bus. He told in broken English that he was staying in Brussels but had to leave the country, back to his homeland. “Not to Russia,” he swore.
More and more people are returning to their homeland
According to transport company FlixBus, the number of people leaving Ukraine remains stable, but more and more people are traveling back to their homeland. The situation is safe enough for FlixBus to drive to western Ukrainian destinations. According to Oksana, there are only a few people who return from the Netherlands. “Most of those who fled Kiev have already returned home,” she said.
Traveling to Warsaw
The first bus left on Monday evening from Maastricht towards Warsaw, where the tour group is expected on Tuesday evening around 6.20 pm. There, passengers have almost five hours to catch their breath or transfer to other destinations. For example, there are also trips to Lviv from Warsaw.
At around 11.15 pm the journey continues to Kiev, where the bus is expected at 3.40 pm on Wednesday afternoon. According to the bus company, travelers take a total of about forty hours to reach Kiev from Maastricht.