During the past weeks, around 4.000 refugees have come to Luxembourg fleeing the war in Ukraine. While some are still searching for housing, others managed to set up kind of a life here sending their children to school and working; they try to help their relatives and friends who remained in Ukraine as well as their fellow refugees in Luxembourg. Thanks to many volunteers and the solidarity of Ukrainians and non-Ukrainians in Luxembourg, advices, help and support is easy to find. A new very vivid community has emerged. Many host families organize meetings in the neighboorhood, they exchange furniture, children’s books and useful advice, connecting via facebook or via the NGO LUkraine. The speed in which problems are solved and connections are built is impressive. Many activities are based on common interests or only the need for company, for distraction and support.

On Tuesday evening, we visited a new dancing club that is on the verge of being launched. Renat and Inna Korobka are professional dancers, they’ve competed on an international level and led a dancing club in their hometown Charkiw before the invasion started. Two weeks ago, they started teaching ballroom dance as well in Luxembourg. Every Tuesday and Thursday, Ukrainians and non-Ukrainians are invited to the premises in Rollingergrund where the Asbl LUkraine offers a dancing room. The first class starts at 6pm for kids, the second one, for adults, one hour later. Renat and Inna say: “We understand how difficult it is to leave everything you had and to move to another country. So, we decided to help and set up a dance club which will help them to distract a little bit.”

Ballroom dance is very popular in Ukraine. Parents send their kids to dance schools and want them to be successful, to become professional dancers. For many, it is important to continue the training but in there are little opportunities to train ballroom dance in Luxembourg. With the influence of the Ukrainian dancers, this might soon change.