You're reading: The Independent: Meet Ukraine’s real-life Barbie girl

For a long time, people questioned whether Valeria Lukyanova really existed. But here she is, perched on a sofa at Kama Sutra, Odessa’s premier Oriental café, sitting up with her back perfectly straight and her long eyelashes fluttering.

She slightly inclines her thin, fragile neck in a dainty gesture of greeting and chirps a “hello” in Russian.

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