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Author Topic: First trip to Odessa  (Read 9776 times)

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Offline IvanM07

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First trip to Odessa
« on: June 19, 2018, 03:02:49 PM »
Hey Everyone,

Just now back from Odessa. I was over there from the 8th to the 18th. Pretty Tired as I just drove from Philly to Fort Wayne 9 hours this morning so I may make some edits later.

The tl;dr is Overall I had an amazing time, the girl I met was awesome, got to see a new country I’d never been to and saw some great sites and had a phenomenal time. Her mother said next time I need to come to meet in her hometown, haven’t really planned it out with her but I’m thinking I’ll be back before the end of the year, hopefully before it gets too cold.

I got most of my Flights paid for with Miles, I had about 96k Miles saved up and spent 60k to get from FTW to Kiev, then purchased a Separate ticket to Odessa through UIA. Before leaving I upgraded all the tickets to Exit Row/Main Cabin Extra if Possible. All together after upgrades and Taxes I paid probably $500 Round trip.

Not too bad IMO the worst part was the Layovers though. 4 hours in Philadelphia, then 6 Hours in JFK, then 4 hours in Heathrow, followed by another 4 or 5 in Kiev. Same way going back too. I’ll definitely fix that in the future and pay Business class.

It should probably be mentioned that with Ukraine Air it’s like most “budget” airlines that charge a fee for everything. You must print your boarding pass off ahead of time or they charge you $10. In Kiev you can go to the 3rd floor, next to the luggage saran wrap station and there’s a Kiosk will print them for free but in Odessa they didn’t have a Kiosk and I had to pay. I also would have had to pay $80 USD to check a bag.

Fortunately, they had a promo running though that if there was an available Business class seat you could upgrade for $49. I did that which comes with “complimentary” checked baggage allowance. Luckily, I knew about this part ahead of time, You can check their site to find out more. - http://www.flyuia.com/ua/en/promotions/upgrade-to-business

I bought a Vodafone SIM in Boryispol on the first floor, I think it was 500UAH for the Unlimited plan. I used about 8GB of Data in that 10 Days and I was on my phone a ton for “Work” Remotely, video, Music, and Google Maps/Reviews. So, you may not have to buy the top tier SIM Either.

Customs into Kiev* was a breeze with the guy asking me to take my hat off, looked at me, asked if I was there on Business or vacation. After responding vacation, He looked at me, nodded, told me to enjoy my time and yelled “NEXT!”. I wish the US customs was that Easy. What the 2 CBP agents in Kiev* did in 6 minutes took 8 CBP Officers in Philly 52 Minutes, and that’s with the 30 or so Automated Scanners that scan your face/passport.

After what seemed like 2 hours but was probably only about 30 minutes our baggage was delivered, I was texting her since I’d landed and I think to her it also felt like an overly long time for the baggage to get there lol. We met in the Entrance at Odessa Airport, she had taken a bus from her hometown about 7 hours away. I guess during that whole trip the Bus didn’t use A/C just an open window, so she thought she was dirty from all the dust and wanted to take a shower. I thought that she still looked awesome though 😉

I tried to get an Uber but had a driver cancel and the 2nd was 16 mins out before I just said screw it we’ll take a cab. She talked to the cab driver for me and said she thought he was overcharging us at 300UAH but it was instant, and I didn’t have to wait 20 minutes so we just went with it and met the property manager of the Flat I rented through Airbnb, really nice place and the A/C was very cold. I like it to be around 72-73f, but she thought that was freezing. 

After the shower, We went down the street maybe 3 blocks to a nice Italian place that had pretty good reviews. I had Lasagna and it was fantastic, she liked hers but said it was a bit too heavy a meal than she was used to.

Speaking of meals in the time that we’d spoken over Skype beforehand I found out she liked spicy stuff, but she mentioned that it was difficult in her city to find anything hotter than Ketchup. Myself, pouring Tabasco and 100% Pain on just about everything I eat, brought a few sauces with me for her to have including Sriracha, Tabasco, A1, and 100% Pain. Out of all of them she liked Sriracha the best and put it on just about everything we ate, including Burgers and fries. 😊 one of the best places we ate at was a sports pub called Buffalo 99 and it had Sriracha, Smoked BBQ and some other sauce, when she saw us pouring Sriracha on our Nachos and Salad she rushed over to let us know that this sauce was extremely hot and would burn our mouths, haha.

As a gift when we met up I gave her some cosmetics, she watches a lot of YouTube tutorials on makeup and showed me a lot of the stuff she had, so I asked my Sister and a Co-Worker what to get her and settled on these 2. She seemed to be really pleased with them and used it the rest of the trip so I guess that was a good call by my sister 😉 http://a.co/6oKQJ3K - http://a.co/iZsOcHe

In addition to that I told her I was going to bring her a laptop since hers would always crash or freeze the video randomly or half the time on skype when I’d send her a link on Facebook or in Skype Chat. It was a pretty High end laptop I got for a steal on ebay with a cracked screen, and wouldn’t boot past BIOS. I replaced the LCD, Spare Memory I had (existing stuff tested bad) added an m.2 SSD I had, removed the Heatsink and Fans, and added some liquid metal so it’d run about 22c Cooler. Essentially got a $1300 Laptop for less than $400. She didn’t care about any of that, just the fact that it didn’t crash, was very fast, and that I loaded it up with about 800gb of bootleg games including the Sims which she played quite a bit while I was there. For me it was a fun Project 😉

2 days later when Monday rolled around she took me to PrivatBank since they had the best rate for exchanging money. I think she exchanged $340 there for me and I pulled $250 out of an ATM when I first got there Saturday. I still ended up having about 3000UAH left over by the end of the trip. Speaking of money, she was awesome at looking out for finding the best deal, for some painkillers from a pharmacy we went to 2 or 3 different ones until she found one that wasn’t overcharging tourist prices. Same with the Supermarket for food or when I wanted to buy some junk or souvenirs from the mall she took me to Pryvoz Market and haggled with them there and got the best price for the money. I was super impressed since I could have easily spent way more than I had to had she not been looking out.

During the entire trip my smart watch logged over 55 Miles of walking. A lot of that from bargain hunting from one place to the next, or her not wanting me to pay for an Uber lol. Not bad for 10 days. She said it was normal to walk this much but it certainly did not feel normal. Thank god I started working out about a month before I left, or I’d have died. The watch counted 25 flights of stairs one day O.o My feet are killing me right now and have a massage booked after work.

We did most of the tourist stuff, I think she said the last time she was there was when she was 12 as a family vacation so it was new for both of us, off the top of my head the stuff we hit up was Otrada Beach, Catherine the Great, Potemkin Stairs,  Duc de Richelieu, Odessa City Garden, Nemo Delphinium, Istanbul Park, Golden Baby, Sailors Wife, Golden Chair, Unknown Sailor, 411th Defense of Odessa. I really wanted to go and get a picture in front of the Vader monument, but we went there 2 or 3 times and each time it was closed or no one was on duty so the doors were locked.

Other places we went was the Cinema to see Deadpool 2, it was in Russian but I had a copy and had seen it a few times, so I knew most of the lines. I forgot there was a line about Odessa hookers in that movie, pretty funny. Also, I took her to a Virtual Reality Café, she didn’t think she’d like it but we played a Co-Op game against Zombies, and she seemed to have a pretty good time, it was a great time for sure.
At the end of each day a lot of time we didn’t feel like leaving the apartment and just watched movies, I had my laptop hooked to the TV and had a plex server playing all of my TV/Movie library. When we wanted to eat the two major places we ordered from were Shaurman Cafe and pizza.od.ua.

Shaurman had all kinds of stuff. Burgers, Sushi (Surprisingly good), Pizza, Tacos, You could even order Vodka and Beer and have it delivered (And we did) pizza.od.ua was mainly pizzas, We tried 2 pizzas one was their “Diablo” but it had onions on it which I hate, and had sausage on it which she hated, so we just ate their 4 cheeses pizza and it was fantastic. In total I think we ordered from Shaurman twice, we both had a burger the first time, the 2nd time she had a burger and I had sushi. From Pizza we ordered 3 or 4 times I think.

For Taxi’s there are 3 main Apps, Uber, OnTaxi, and Yandex. I mostly just used Uber and OnTaxi. Uber had UberSelect which I think I only used 3 times, the times were just way too long, but 2 of those 3 times they were the only Uber that used A/C and used a vehicle with functional suspension. OnTaxi I used OnTaxi Business which was Automatic Newer model cars. Average fare was between 67UAH and 157UAH depending on demand and distance.

For walking and Navigating about halfway through the trip I found an app called “Gear Navigation” it costs $2.99 if you get it through google play store and would sync with google maps and give me a monochrome always on readout of where to turn next, saved my phone a lot of battery doing that and I didn’t have to have my phone out which I was worried about losing or being stolen if it was in the Markets.

I also have to mention since it was said in my starting out post that I actually saw an SRT Jeep while I was over there! Granted it was a WK1 so it was 2006-2011 but I was still extremely surprised I saw an SRT Jeep there at all. I think that guy must live somewhere there near the City Garden since I saw it both times when heading to the apartment across the street from the garden. Other than that, I only saw 2 other FCA cars, A Chrysler 300c, a 2015+ Dodge Charger and a few Base Model Mustangs and Camaro’s.

Thursday she got a call for an interview in her city, they wanted to interview that day but she told them she was in Odessa but would be back Monday. She took the last bus from Odessa Sunday evening and Monday after meeting ended up getting the job and started today, so good news there.

Can't wait to go back, I'm hoping to be there by September, I think.
« Last Edit: June 19, 2018, 03:45:39 PM by IvanM07 »

Offline LAman

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Re: First trip to Odessa
« Reply #1 on: June 19, 2018, 03:16:41 PM »
What??? Customs into Odessa??? You must be tired or your story is all wrong!!  But continue......
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Offline IvanM07

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Re: First trip to Odessa
« Reply #2 on: June 19, 2018, 03:18:55 PM »
What??? Customs into Odessa??? You must be tired or your story is all wrong!!  But continue......

My bad, yeah, in Kiev not Odessa.

Offline LAman

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Re: First trip to Odessa
« Reply #3 on: June 19, 2018, 03:24:07 PM »
Should have read more of your story....

Yes, 300 uah was overcharging. In Odessa, I just make arrangements with uklon to pick me up at airport in Odessa. There is app too but I went online to arrange taxi BUT you still need a contact number ( Ukrainian preferably). Last summer it was  96usd to centre.


Actually, $12 is ok if you had no idea of local pricing. I used to pay that when picked up from company i rented from.
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Offline LAman

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Re: First trip to Odessa
« Reply #4 on: June 19, 2018, 03:37:42 PM »
Ivan, I love Odessa, been many times, so I have interest in your experience there. What street did you stay? In centre? I usually stay in centre and walk to beaches in ~25 minutes( lanzheron and otrada), lots of restaurants there.
 Did you go to Arkadia? Pretty cool at entrance, lots of shops there. Buffalo 99 is cool, i eat in the outside area and watch people go by. My favorite pizza is Olio's!!


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Offline IvanM07

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Re: First trip to Odessa
« Reply #5 on: June 19, 2018, 03:39:52 PM »
Ivan, I love Odessa, been many times, so I have interest in your experience there. What street did you stay? In centre? I usually stay in centre and walk to beaches in ~25 minutes( lanzheron and otrada), lots of restaurants there.
 Did you go to Arkadia? Pretty cool at entrance, lots of shops there. Buffalo 99 is cool, i eat in the outside area and watch people go by. My favorite pizza is Olio's!!

Funny you should say that since Olios was Directly across the street, as well as the Ukrainian place we ate ate 3 or 4 times :)

http://goo.gl/maps/hFFQFW6fxhR2

Offline JayH

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Re: First trip to Odessa
« Reply #6 on: June 19, 2018, 07:42:03 PM »
  To the OP -- sounds nice trip. I am also interested in your thoughts and experiences of Odesa.
So you decided not to drive?
What city is your girl from? 

Walking -- one big piece of advice I always give guys is to take shoes they can walk in -- because -just as you found  the distances walked will be massive compared to what most in west do these days/
Even though wearing track shoes  stamps you as a tourist( maybe not so much for a guy in 20's)  it the best way to keep your feet intact!
A few years ago I met another member here in Odessa -- and we were both wearing track shoes in preparation to walk wherever. Note -- I always have a car  -- that rarely gets used in Odesa unless venturing well out of centre.

On food in Odesa  -- basically you are spoilt for choice with many good places to eat.

I note LAman is bought out of the woodwork by mention of Odesa -I love it too !!
SLAVA UKRAYINI  ! HEROYAM SLAVA!!!!
Слава Украине! Слава героям слава!Слава Україні! Слава героям!
 translated as: Glory to Ukraine! Glory to the heroes!!!  is a Ukrainian greeting slogan being used now all over Ukraine to signify support for a free independent Ukraine

Offline IvanM07

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Re: First trip to Odessa
« Reply #7 on: June 20, 2018, 10:09:03 AM »
I was going to modify the original post since some of it didn't make sense and weren't clear, should have waited until today when I had actually slept after 2 days and wasn't running completely off of Monster/Rockstar. Unfortunately it seems I can't make any changes to the post now.

  To the OP -- sounds nice trip. I am also interested in your thoughts and experiences of Odesa.
So you decided not to drive?

I was going to post some of the pictures of us on here and actually edited them already to be uploaded but she wa against this idea and knows my username on here, so I decided not to do that ;)

I didn't decide not to drive so much as she told me she wasn't going to let me as it was risky and a huge waste of money (her words). She said the same thing about skydiving unfortunately -_- That and she said she didn't want to have to tell my parents my parachute didn't open due to some rickety soviet parachute failing (again, her words  ;D)

What city is your girl from?

She's from a small port town about 6-7 hours southwest of Odessa by bus.


Walking -- one big piece of advice I always give guys is to take shoes they can walk in -- because -just as you found  the distances walked will be massive compared to what most in west do these days/
Even though wearing track shoes  stamps you as a tourist( maybe not so much for a guy in 20's)  it the best way to keep your feet intact!
A few years ago I met another member here in Odessa -- and we were both wearing track shoes in preparation to walk wherever. Note -- I always have a car  -- that rarely gets used in Odesa unless venturing well out of centre.

True, I wore mostly Puma and Under Armor Cross-Trainer and Running shoes and it still was pretty rough on my feet, but like I said I don't walk much even when working out it's mostly endurance/HIIT and strength training not so much Cardio.

As far as looking like a tourist, as you say it could have been because I'm in my 20s but every waiter and twice people in the street spoke to us in Russian, she thought this was funny that they thought I looked local. The only exception was the one time I wore a bright shirt with an American flag on it they knew I was a tourist lol



On food in Odesa  -- basically you are spoilt for choice with many good places to eat.

I note LAman is bought out of the woodwork by mention of Odesa -I love it too !!

I thought it was great, different food everday, pretty much all of it was good with the exception of McDonalds, which I didn't want to eat at but she insisted twice, lol. I never really felt unsafe either, I had several friends and family members and a few on this board suggest it Might be unsafe, but I didn't feel that way at all even when walking from the Cinema down a dark alley to McDonalds at 3am, although she was pretty freaked out being out there that late.




« Last Edit: June 20, 2018, 10:10:58 AM by IvanM07 »

Offline Nightwish

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Re: First trip to Odessa
« Reply #8 on: June 20, 2018, 11:07:20 AM »
I was going to modify the original post since some of it didn't make sense and weren't clear, should have waited until today when I had actually slept after 2 days and wasn't running completely off of Monster/Rockstar. Unfortunately it seems I can't make any changes to the post now.

I was going to post some of the pictures of us on here and actually edited them already to be uploaded but she wa against this idea and knows my username on here, so I decided not to do that ;)

I didn't decide not to drive so much as she told me she wasn't going to let me as it was risky and a huge waste of money (her words). She said the same thing about skydiving unfortunately -_- That and she said she didn't want to have to tell my parents my parachute didn't open due to some rickety soviet parachute failing (again, her words  ;D)

She's from a small port town about 6-7 hours southwest of Odessa by bus.
and anyone knowing a little about buses and roads in Ukraine, that could be as close as 50 km from Odessa  :ROFL:
Quote

True, I wore mostly Puma and Under Armor Cross-Trainer and Running shoes and it still was pretty rough on my feet, but like I said I don't walk much even when working out it's mostly endurance/HIIT and strength training not so much Cardio.

As far as looking like a tourist, as you say it could have been because I'm in my 20s but every waiter and twice people in the street spoke to us in Russian, she thought this was funny that they thought I looked local. The only exception was the one time I wore a bright shirt with an American flag on it they knew I was a tourist lol


I thought it was great, different food everday, pretty much all of it was good with the exception of McDonalds, which I didn't want to eat at but she insisted twice, lol. I never really felt unsafe either, I had several friends and family members and a few on this board suggest it Might be unsafe, but I didn't feel that way at all even when walking from the Cinema down a dark alley to McDonalds at 3am, although she was pretty freaked out being out there that late.
I've said this before and I will say it again, I feel a lot safer walking around in almost all parts of Ukraine then I even do here at home. Regardless of time of day or night and through all parts of the cities.
Never been harassed or anything close to it, even though I been approached several times by people asking for a smoke or some other question I didn't understand since they didn't speak English at all.. Don't know why, but I just don't feel at all uneasy in this part of the world.
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Re: First trip to Odessa
« Reply #9 on: June 20, 2018, 11:13:39 AM »
I think it depends on the area.  There are parts of Kyiv I definitely would not walk at night.  I also know a lot of ex pats who have been assaulted in Kyiv in the past.

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Offline ML

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Re: First trip to Odessa
« Reply #10 on: June 20, 2018, 01:25:12 PM »

She's from a small port town about 6-7 hours southwest of Odessa by bus.



That would be in Romania ?
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Re: First trip to Odessa
« Reply #11 on: June 20, 2018, 01:36:58 PM »
That would be in Romania ?

She lives just south of Ismail. Small town
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Offline LAman

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Re: First trip to Odessa
« Reply #12 on: June 20, 2018, 03:16:58 PM »
She lives just south of Ismail. Small town

That is FAR!!! Can't get much south of Ismail with out being in Romania!!!
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Re: First trip to Odessa
« Reply #13 on: June 20, 2018, 03:23:03 PM »
She lives just south of Ismail. Small town

Travel time odessa ukraine to izmail ukraine.

4 h 16 min (256.4 km) via Автошлях Р 70/Р70 and E87/M15

But that's probably without snow.
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Re: First trip to Odessa
« Reply #14 on: June 20, 2018, 03:28:17 PM »
Travel time odessa ukraine to izmail ukraine.

4 h 16 min (256.4 km) via Автошлях Р 70/Р70 and E87/M15

But that's probably without snow.

Silly ML, girl went from Izmail to Odessa...... that is at least 257 km!!!!


My web site shows different than yours ML. 4hr 16 min?

http://www.della-ua.com/distance/?cities=5232,5230
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Re: First trip to Odessa
« Reply #15 on: June 20, 2018, 04:49:45 PM »
Silly ML, girl went from Izmail to Odessa...... that is at least 257 km!!!!


My web site shows different than yours ML. 4hr 16 min?

http://www.della-ua.com/distance/?cities=5232,5230

That could easily be a plus 6 hour trip. Take into account waiting etc.
When I am planning --I calculate door to door time --it gives a much better idea.
I know the road to Izmail and at that time I would not rate as bad ( by Ukraine standards) but --that can vary and at the end of winter roads can be very bad. More recently during spring I was on a road I know well--  it was in terrible condition and dangerous. A month later --it was mostly 'repaired" and back in much safer condition.

For those that have seen how bad some roads are -- at times    the average speed  can be down to 20kmh & less  for extensive periods. That is even slower for larger vehicles like a bus( even small bus)  as a agile car is actually the fastest of the most difficult roads.
A few years back  my Ukrainian ex was on the way to Odesa by bus ( against my advice to take seemingly longer route of overnight train) --    when I texted "how is road"?  --the answer was  "what road" ?    !!!! ;D     I knew that "road" very well !!
SLAVA UKRAYINI  ! HEROYAM SLAVA!!!!
Слава Украине! Слава героям слава!Слава Україні! Слава героям!
 translated as: Glory to Ukraine! Glory to the heroes!!!  is a Ukrainian greeting slogan being used now all over Ukraine to signify support for a free independent Ukraine

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Re: First trip to Odessa
« Reply #16 on: June 20, 2018, 04:54:19 PM »


I was going to post some of the pictures of us on here and actually edited them already to be uploaded but she wa against this idea and knows my username on here, so I decided not to do that ;)


My Ukrainian ex who is very computer savvy would have bobbitised  me if I had written or posted photos  !!   It is only quite a few years after events that I have written about them !
SLAVA UKRAYINI  ! HEROYAM SLAVA!!!!
Слава Украине! Слава героям слава!Слава Україні! Слава героям!
 translated as: Glory to Ukraine! Glory to the heroes!!!  is a Ukrainian greeting slogan being used now all over Ukraine to signify support for a free independent Ukraine

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Re: First trip to Odessa
« Reply #17 on: June 20, 2018, 05:01:03 PM »

I thought it was great, different food everday, pretty much all of it was good with the exception of McDonalds, which I didn't want to eat at but she insisted twice, lol. I never really felt unsafe either, I had several friends and family members and a few on this board suggest it Might be unsafe, but I didn't feel that way at all even when walking from the Cinema down a dark alley to McDonalds at 3am, although she was pretty freaked out being out there that late.

and anyone knowing a little about buses and roads in Ukraine, that could be as close as 50 km from Odessa  :ROFL:I've said this before and I will say it again, I feel a lot safer walking around in almost all parts of Ukraine then I even do here at home. Regardless of time of day or night and through all parts of the cities.
Never been harassed or anything close to it, even though I been approached several times by people asking for a smoke or some other question I didn't understand since they didn't speak English at all.. Don't know why, but I just don't feel at all uneasy in this part of the world.

I agree on safety.Definitely no worse than home .
Using a little commonsense and awareness is a must  -- but no need  to be paranoid.Looking like you belong  there ( wherever) is the key.
My comments apply to Kyiv too. I have had numerous incidents  -- but none that tells me that Ukraine is unsafe-- as such.
SLAVA UKRAYINI  ! HEROYAM SLAVA!!!!
Слава Украине! Слава героям слава!Слава Україні! Слава героям!
 translated as: Glory to Ukraine! Glory to the heroes!!!  is a Ukrainian greeting slogan being used now all over Ukraine to signify support for a free independent Ukraine

Offline IvanM07

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Re: First trip to Odessa
« Reply #18 on: June 20, 2018, 06:24:11 PM »
That is FAR!!! Can't get much south of Ismail with out being in Romania!!!

I feel like I should say that she made that trip because I'm kind of a big deal and worth it. However she would see that and think I'm a bit full of myself (perhaps rightfully so?) and yell at me so I definitely wouldn't say that at all, especially on a public forum ;D

My Ukrainian ex who is very computer savvy would have bobbitised  me if I had written or posted photos  !!   It is only quite a few years after events that I have written about them !

Luckily I did get permission to write about it, lol.

That could easily be a plus 6 hour trip. Take into account waiting etc.
When I am planning --I calculate door to door time --it gives a much better idea.
I know the road to Izmail and at that time I would not rate as bad ( by Ukraine standards) but --that can vary and at the end of winter roads can be very bad. More recently during spring I was on a road I know well--  it was in terrible condition and dangerous. A month later --it was mostly 'repaired" and back in much safer condition.

For those that have seen how bad some roads are -- at times    the average speed  can be down to 20kmh & less  for extensive periods. That is even slower for larger vehicles like a bus( even small bus)  as a agile car is actually the fastest of the most difficult roads.
A few years back  my Ukrainian ex was on the way to Odesa by bus ( against my advice to take seemingly longer route of overnight train) --    when I texted "how is road"?  --the answer was  "what road" ?    !!!! ;D     I knew that "road" very well !!

Next time I will probably take a drive down to her town. I've been talking about heading that way around September but she wants to see how this job goes for a while before asking for time off or free days. As she said, the 2nd day on the job probably isn't the best time for that ;)

Offline BillyB

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Re: First trip to Odessa
« Reply #19 on: June 20, 2018, 07:20:57 PM »
I didn't decide not to drive so much as she told me she wasn't going to let me as it was risky and a huge waste of money (her words).


Back around 2002 some Ukrainians told me a relative of theirs spouse was involved in a traffic accident which caused a fatality. They said when that happens, somebody goes to jail. I asked which driver was going to jail. They told me the driver that has the least amount of money to bribe cops.

I think it depends on the area.  There are parts of Kyiv I definitely would not walk at night.


I learned the hard way one time. At night I walked down in a tunnel and got stopped by a couple of cops. They frisked me and pulled out my wallet and checked for identification. One cop on my wallet and the other cop spun me around to frisk me some more but I turned around again to keep my eye on the wallet. I suspect they took a bill out but most my money remained. My now wife told me everybody knows not to walk in the tunnels at night because the cops are there. I called the American embassy to report this and they told me to avoid cops too. Of course cops today are supposed to be reformed and better.
Fund the audits, spread the word and educate people, write your politicians and other elected officials. Stay active in the fight to save our country. Over 220 generals and admirals say we are in a fight for our survival like no other time since 1776.

Offline JayH

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Re: First trip to Odessa
« Reply #20 on: June 21, 2018, 12:07:45 AM »
I feel like I should say that she made that trip because I'm kind of a big deal and worth it. However she would see that and think I'm a bit full of myself (perhaps rightfully so?) and yell at me so I definitely wouldn't say that at all, especially on a public forum ;D

Luckily I did get permission to write about it, lol.

Next time I will probably take a drive down to her town. I've been talking about heading that way around September but she wants to see how this job goes for a while before asking for time off or free days. As she said, the 2nd day on the job probably isn't the best time for that ;)

Reference my comments( & others with a bone of sensitivity) on forum about meeting in her home city . You are young and close to her own age -- a HUGE advantage in being seen with her-- but still not without potential problems that SHE MAY SEE !
Always plan on being VERY discrete .
Maybe next time consider driving down and collecting her - something like that. With my Ukrainian ex --I used to drive her to work and pick her up after work so we were able to spend time together even without her taking time off work.Sometimes she could call and say come and we will have lunch together - sometimes in cafe or a nearby park . From my perspective -- that all worked well as I amused myself during the day  - working and/or talking with locals  etc
Her work will loom large in HER mind .
I was going to say earlier  - so far -so good  --now the  much harder part starts --to maintain the enthusiasm of meeting.Long distance relationships are not easy to maintain --with many real life issues getting in the way.
SLAVA UKRAYINI  ! HEROYAM SLAVA!!!!
Слава Украине! Слава героям слава!Слава Україні! Слава героям!
 translated as: Glory to Ukraine! Glory to the heroes!!!  is a Ukrainian greeting slogan being used now all over Ukraine to signify support for a free independent Ukraine

Offline IvanM07

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Re: First trip to Odessa
« Reply #21 on: June 21, 2018, 11:22:59 AM »
Reference my comments( & others with a bone of sensitivity) on forum about meeting in her home city . You are young and close to her own age -- a HUGE advantage in being seen with her-- but still not without potential problems that SHE MAY SEE !
Always plan on being VERY discrete .
Maybe next time consider driving down and collecting her - something like that. With my Ukrainian ex --I used to drive her to work and pick her up after work so we were able to spend time together even without her taking time off work.Sometimes she could call and say come and we will have lunch together - sometimes in cafe or a nearby park . From my perspective -- that all worked well as I amused myself during the day  - working and/or talking with locals  etc
Her work will loom large in HER mind .
I was going to say earlier  - so far -so good  --now the  much harder part starts --to maintain the enthusiasm of meeting.Long distance relationships are not easy to maintain --with many real life issues getting in the way.

I'll probably end up doing this, renting a car from Kiev.

We've been talking about it. Maybe a few days in her town then drive to somewhere else, back to Kiev or maybe Western Ukraine. Still several months away. I've been looking at airfare, $1900 for Business Class with a straight shot from JFK to Kiev isn't bad at all.

Well worth it to not do the BS I did on my AirMiles trip from Fort Wayne -> Philly ->Laguardia -> Uber to JFK->Heathrow->Kiev->Odessa. I about lost my sanity going through Security 5 or 6 times. I'll also probably Sign up for Global Entry this Month. My AA Card pays for that too so that's not bad :)

For now I have to get ready to move to North Carolina. I got news while I was in JFK that I got a job I'd applied for a month back, FTE position with tons of benefits I didn't get as a Contractor, beter pay, and lower cost of living so that will be nice to have going forward for sure.

I also got some other pictures and edited them so she'd be ok with me posting them. Also a few shots of the inside of the Apartment as well.




Offline ML

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Re: First trip to Odessa
« Reply #22 on: June 21, 2018, 11:32:31 AM »
Silly ML, girl went from Izmail to Odessa...... that is at least 257 km!!!!

My web site shows different than yours ML. 4hr 16 min?

http://www.della-ua.com/distance/?cities=5232,5230

http://www.google.com/search?ei=Ye4rW-eAM4GYjwTogYXwAg&q
=google+travel+time+izmail+
ukraine+to+odesa+ukraine&oq=google+travel+time+
izmail+ukraine+to+odesa+ukraine&gs_l=psy-ab.3...87541.100652.0.102294.24.23.0.0.0.0.394.2643.2-2j6.8.0
....0...1.1.64.psy-ab..17.0.0....0.myqt_ubPzbs

4 h 20 min (257.1 km) via E87/M15 and Автошлях Р 70/Р70


« Last Edit: July 09, 2018, 01:34:56 PM by AnonMod »
A beautiful woman is pleasant to look at, but it is easier to live with a pleasant acting one.

Offline IvanM07

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Re: First trip to Odessa
« Reply #23 on: July 07, 2018, 06:34:21 PM »
Oh boy, she joined the site and saw some of the Edited photos and still wasn't all that happy XD

Good time I suppose to mention that I'll be going to see her in her hometown in September I think, Wanted to surprise her and show up on her birthday, but with switching jobs I cant. She wasn't able to get off of work so she asked If I'd be open to coming to see her after she gets off work each day that week.

I think It'll be another great time, maybe not as many places to eat, but still a good time. ;)

Offline JayH

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Re: First trip to Odessa
« Reply #24 on: July 07, 2018, 08:13:59 PM »

I would be very careful about trying to surprise her with your unexpected arrival . OK if you are really ( really really) sure of your status -- and even then -- my advice would be to not do it that way.
You said the right thing about working in with her working day  -- I used to do that -- driving her to and from work each day etc sometimes having lunch when she could get away for a short time.
Seeing more of her like that is what I think of as  "normalising" the relationship -- as distinct from being in holiday mode !  If the intent is a serious long term concept-- it at least allows you to see how she handles it in her world.
Mrs B often makes a very good point here on forum-ie that you do not really get to know someone until you actually live together -- so every step towards that can only enhance  your chances of getting your decision making as best as it can be.



4 h 20 min (257.1 km) via E87/M15 and Автошлях Р 70/Р70


ML -- read my comments on roads-- even google here is giving you a clue  = 257kms in 4 hours 20 minutes . Mostly on open road  that would be about 2 1/2 hours at 100kmh ( 60mph) . My guess here on that road  is IN A CAR with ME DRIVING it would be about 5 hours. Why? Google is already pointing to an average of   approx 60kmh ( approx 35mph) -- and it indicates the road will be slow -- with the potential to be slower. When I see Google with numbers like these--I immediately know it will not be an easy drive.Additionally --I move a lot faster than buses  -- especially over the more difficult terrain.

To the OP  -- until you actually see road conditions -- nothing-- and I mean NOTHING-- can prepare you, You need to drive every inch of the way-- and I mean drive. You cannot relax or divert your attention for one second.I can recall taking 20 minutes to get enough time to take the lid of drink bottle !
FWIW -- the first part of the road (maybe 100kms) is ok and progress will be good ( & you will be starting to think "ahh what did that guy know " !!  After that mmm
« Last Edit: July 09, 2018, 01:35:22 PM by AnonMod »
SLAVA UKRAYINI  ! HEROYAM SLAVA!!!!
Слава Украине! Слава героям слава!Слава Україні! Слава героям!
 translated as: Glory to Ukraine! Glory to the heroes!!!  is a Ukrainian greeting slogan being used now all over Ukraine to signify support for a free independent Ukraine

 

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