Ukrainians are very friendly and easy going people.
Generally they are very close to the nature. Ukrainians are very social and generous. If they invite you to their house, expect at least a drink, most likely food also.
They are good hosts, feeding you until you are able to eat. Expect being offered alcohol, not accepting this offer is almost an insult. If you want to avoid drinking alcohol, as an excuse could work health reasons or religion.
Official language being Ukrainian, but Russian is also widely spoken in most areas, in Crimea you can find also Tartarian speaking people.
The best known Ukrainian painters are Repin and Ajvazovsky, their paintings are present in many international galleries. A famous form of traditional Ukrainian art are Icons, which are basically religious paintings on wood.
The predominant religion is Orthodox Eastern Christianity, which was suppressed during the Soviet Union era. Nowadays religion is a part of Ukrainian national pride. Orthodox Eastern Christianity is very interesting religion, important role is assigned to the Icons – religious paintings on wood, many times decorated with gold or silver. In the churches there is no seats, as they are finding sitting during the mess as inappropriate. A holy mess can take two or more hours and people are standing all time.
Dealing With People in Ukraine
During the Soviet Union era and the centrally planned economy, people got used to low level service and even nowadays you can come across this attitude at many places. Dealing with public servants, shop assistants, or waiters can be sometimes tiring. It helps when you have your request or documents (if any) prepared beforehand, so you can talk to them with confidence. Also queuing for public transport can be tricky, people are sometimes pushing each other and trying to skip the queue.
Ukrainians went through some very harsh times in their history and after the Soviet Union breakdown a very small group of people became extremely wealthy while masses are suffering. Criminality caused by poverty is nothing new in Ukraine, many times tourists are easy targets of pickpockets, specially at crowded markets or stations.