The video follows Nate Ritter as he travels from Krakow, Poland, to Lviv, Ukraine, documenting the logistical steps of crossing the border, including passport checks and security procedures. While exploring Lviv, Nate and his companion Dan observe the everyday presence of the war—air sirens, military personnel, and checkpoints—yet note a surprising sense of normalcy among locals. Nate pauses the vlog to reflect on the ethical responsibility of showcasing a city under conflict, emphasizing that his tourist experience is far removed from the harsh realities faced by Ukrainian civilians, especially young professionals coping with loss and daily hardships. Interspersed throughout are family moments back home, where Tilly and the kids build a fort, snack, and watch a movie, providing a contrast between the travel narrative and home life. A brief historical aside mentions Lviv’s complex past under multiple empires. The overall tone is conversational, reflective, and empathetic, aiming to balance travel storytelling with respectful acknowledgment of the war’s impact.
Chapters
It's 3:30 in the morning. Today I'm going to Poland.
Good morning, sitting here with Everly. I woke up this morning and Nate is not here. He is meeting some business contacts up in Ukraine. That feels a little scary with everything that's going on with Russia right now. Lviv, maybe? I think that's the town he said. He has always wanted to just get a ticket and travel all by himself, and because traveling with the family is hard, he'll be gone for 5 days.
It's beautiful here. I had no idea what to expect. This hotel is amazing, but now we're hungry. All right, Dan, do you want to give like a brief like what we're doing? This is all new.
So we're starting with the baptism of fire.
Yeah. So we're in Krakow, we're making a quick stop off, and then we're gonna go to Lviv in the west of Ukraine first. So this is the second train of two. This one is going from Poland to Ukraine, and apparently— so we just got our passports checked to get into Ukraine, so we're good to go there. And looks like we'll do some security checks and other things on the way through. So, so far it's been not adventurous, which is probably good.
When the Turkish people, for example, were trying to conquer Europe, they would go through Ukraine and through here. In terms of European history, Ukraine was always this like guarding officer who was saving them from the Turkish Empire and from like Mongolian Tatars. We had a country, but it was like always changing. So, uh, Lviv, for example, was under 8 different countries through its existence. I got all 3 kids out of the house. We're all mostly dressed, and I have to speak. This is so relaxing. Once again, In here it's so relaxing that the effort to get out of the house sometimes is really overwhelming with a teenager and toddler. But life is so good, I really can't complain.
Pretty great.
Okay, so it has been amazing to be here. Wow, my voice is really scratchy. It's been pretty amazing to be here. In Lviv and just seeing how it truly is. Like, because I don't think in the West we really get much information about how it is right now. It was kind of funny the other day, I met up with Dan, we went out and walked around a little bit, and then I heard these air sirens go off, and he quickly texted me or messaged me and he said, you know, that's the air siren. We're out having a drink at a bar or something like that. And then he sent me a picture that showed his, one of his colleagues kind of relaxing in the sun with a drink in front of her, and no one's worried whatsoever. That was literally the only danger that I've really seen. And then other than the fact that there's military all over the place, and we went through one checkpoint, that's the only kind of like look and feel of war right now other than talking to people. And when you talk to people, you get this, I'll say, very colorful explanation. It was enlightening, to say the least.
Okay, hold on, wait a second. I need to address something here. Throughout this video, I've shown and talked about my experiences in Lviv. But let's not get confused though. I had a fantastic time in Lviv because of the people who welcomed me there. But there is a war going on. What I didn't put on camera out of respect is the toll that that war is taking on them. See, these are the young people of Ukraine. Most of them are fresh out of college and in their first jobs, and they're enduring more than most of us have ever seen. I mean, imagine scrolling through your Instagram feed and seeing a cute puppy and a funny meme and the demolition of the city that your mother lived in. And in the same instant, they'll get a notification of a raise and a notification that their fiancé just died. So after all of the expensive traveling and shooting and video editing and all of the things, I'm sitting here right now and I've been considering scrapping this video entirely. But I realized that dropping this video wouldn't be fair. It wouldn't be fair to them. Ukrainians are coping. They're carrying on. They're showing what the human mind and spirit can do in the face of tragedy. Destruction and war. And they're showing grit not only by fighting, but by trying to live the best possible life they can in the meantime and in the midst of it. And so I can't imagine what this does to a person. The stories they told were both heartbreaking and inspirational. My experience is not their experience. They have a war to win while I get to just sightsee, and they are gracious hosts to allow me to do that. In the midst of what they're going through. So just know what you're seeing and what I'm talking about in terms of my experience is not anywhere near what their reality is. Okay, I think that about sums it up. Let's get back to it.
Regardless of the war, the place is beautiful, the food is amazing, the people are fantastic. It's a lively city. It's gorgeous, and I can't wait to bring Tilly and the kids back here. To see it. And I think this is one of those cities where, uh, in Lviv specifically, that we'll come back to and see. If you ever get a chance, when it's the right time, come. Lviv is amazing. They were nice enough to book me a sleeper car at 9.
The sheriff took my passport down.
Seems to be going okay so far.
Unfortunately, one thing I did realize too late is I didn't get my myself breakfast. I'm starving. I've had pretzels and coffee all day long. That's the only thing I've had. So I have to find some—
my hotel and then food.
Here's what I find weird.
This is That's outside the gate, and that's inside the gate.
Why do people just jam up inside there? Why? Why? Why? Gonna stand? Gonna sit on their butts like over— why? I don't understand it. Can somebody please tell me why we do this?
Been having a boring day around the house. So we made a fort with snacks.
Yeah, and bunny chocolate candy, chocolate breads.
And then what are we gonna do?
Watch a movie.
Watch a movie.
Thank you very much.
What are you guys doing?
Mom's had a hard day and Dad just— and you just got back.
