There are several types of Belarusian exiles. Many are political dissidents who left after the 2020 protests against President Aleksandr Lukashenko’s authoritarian regime. Some are economic immigrants. Some are “just in case” immigrants. I’m one of those, because in Belarus you never know at what point your presence might become a problem. There are more than 850 political prisoners in my country.
I moved to Poland four years ago. By the Vistula river in Warsaw, I found myself on the bank of the Svislach, the river dividing Minsk. My friend didn’t see it, but I was certain my favorite bar was behind me. Pavel Antipov, a Belarusian writer, named these experiences “portals.” Tatsiana Zamirovskaya, another writer, described a concert hall in Boston that looked like one in Minsk.
Friends shared similar stories. Ivan Rymsha wrote from Rome about feeling back in Minsk with the Colosseum behind him. Yuliya Matuzava found a district in Málaga, Spain, reminding her of her student years in Minsk. Masha Kalesnikava, a journalist who left in 2021, said wild grasses open a portal to Polesie, where her mother lives. For me, wild grass leads to my grandmother’s courtyard. Tatsiana Lukashevich is transported by the smell of poplar bark.
Portals don’t lead you to “where” — they lead you to “when.”
Source: New York Times Top Stories · Summarized by HeadlinesBriefing