Recently, one of the largest international online ride-sharing services, called “BlaBlaCar,” has become very popular among Ukrainian citizens and residents of our city. Like all brilliant ideas, it’s simple: drivers post their routes on the website, and potential passengers can choose a destination, splitting the fuel costs with the car owner.

For example, my classmate Volodymyr S., planning to travel from Kharkiv to Kyiv on September 15, posted the following ad:

“I’m driving from Kharkiv via Rogani, through Saltivka, Pushkinska, the city center, and Kholodna Hora—basically, all the way across town. Please let me know if you need a ride; I can pick you up along the way. In Kyiv, I’m also driving all the way across town: Boryspilskaya, Kharkivska, across the Pivdenny Bridge, Lybidska, and Teremky to Bila Tserkva.”

It also specifies that the ride will depart “right on time” and that the maximum number of passengers in the back seat is two. The “driver profile” feature on the website is essential. For example, by going to Vladimir S.’s profile, we can see his face and learn about his habits. After all, you’ll agree that it’s important to know who you’ll be riding with for hundreds of kilometers!
Vladimir, God’s servant, is 31 years old; he’s an experienced driver, and his car is a Citroën C5 Exclusive.
And here’s what the car owner himself writes about himself: “A little about me… Russian or Ukrainian—depending on the language of the person I’m talking to, I adapt without any problems. I love traveling, people, and learning new things. I’m educated and sociable. But I’m not pushy; I enjoy driving in silence just as much as I do chatting.”

Further down in this section, users can post their comments, which would be much more honest if they were phrased something like this:
“Not a maniac—I made it there alive.” “No signs of perversion were observed in the driver during the trip.”

However, there’s nothing new under the sun. Many of us would probably be surprised to learn that what we now call “BlaBlaCar” existed in our city at least 199 years ago.

From 1817 to 1823, the university printing house in Kharkiv published the weekly newspaper *Kharkiv News*.

In addition to articles about city life (events, theater, new book releases), it also carried ads. It should be noted, however, that 199 years ago, the cost of placing such ads was so high that very few people could afford to do so.

“Those wishing to place such advertisements in the Kharkiv News should submit them in the morning or afternoon to the University Printing Office. The publishers undertake to submit all such advertisements to the civil governor or the chief of police for their approval.”

Advertisements received after Tuesday will not be printed by the following Friday but will be held until the Friday after that. The fee for printing such advertisements is one ruble for up to 5 lines, two rubles for 5 to 10 lines, three rubles for 10 to 15 lines, and so on. These advertisements will be printed no more than three times.

And so, in the first issue of *Kharkiv News* from 1817, we find an advertisement quite typical of today’s “BlaBlaCar”: “A gentleman traveling to Moscow in his own carriage invites a companion at a reasonable price; further details may be obtained from the publishers of the Kharkiv News or from the agent of the University Printing House, Peter Fedorovich Lyubi.”

A similar announcement can also be found in Issue No. 15 from 1818: “A gentleman traveling to St. Petersburg in his own carriage is seeking a traveling companion. Inquiries may be made at the home of the burgher Pomazanov, located beyond Lopanya in the Blagoveshchensky parish.”

Much to my regret, I have been unable to determine whether advertisements of this kind were published in Kharkiv before 1816. It is quite possible that this was a purely provincial phenomenon, since advertisements seeking travel companions are not found in the capital’s newspapers of the early 19th century, such as the *Moscow Gazette* and the *St. Petersburg Gazette*.

It is also unclear where such an announcement was first printed within the empire at that time, though I would like to believe and hope that it was in the city we all love.

However, one thing that is undeniable and beyond dispute for us today is that for at least 199 years, the practical residents of Kharkiv have been looking for a travel companion whenever they set out on the road in their own vehicles…