A group of 12 Ukrainians from Mariupol, a city devastated by war, is preparing to return home with skills in the culinary field, acquired during training with a chef from the two Michelin-starred restaurant Thierry Marx in Toulouse, in the southwest of France. "The cuisine is a unique serious way of connecting through bonds, and the strength of social ties is important, especially in a country that is in a state of war," says Thierry Marx in the kitchen of one of ten educational institutions established in France under the name "Kitchen. Cooking Instructions" in order to serve "those who have suffered in life."
The tasks assigned by the culinary school under the guidance of culinary trainer Kloda Rezimon, 24-year-old Vitaliy Akhiev is preparing a cocktail in two months of training. This Ukrainian, who spent six years in the army and two years at war, is known as a rebel from "Mariska Battalion" - captured in the native Mariupol, in the southeast of Ukraine - with two tattooed arms and a wide smile under his white hat, joking with other interns, concentrated on preparing tartare from beef.
A former soldier says: "These two months spent in Toulouse really helped me, it was almost like a vacation, although we did work. We opened up a different culture for ourselves, a French cuisine with its strange combination of ingredients, and, in the end, it was very tasty."
After 10 months of captivity in Russia, receiving serious injuries from being hit by bullets in the abdomen and leg, he was recently demobilized, and he is planning to change his professional trajectory. Another group member, 38-year-old Yuliya Kornalyeva, works at a restaurant in Ivano-Frankivsk, in western Ukraine, after the Russian bombings forced her to leave the port of Mariupol.
Remembering classic recipes, Yuliya discovered a passion for baking éclairs and macaroons, and she says: "Culinary is important, it brings joy."