Russian Women Discussion
RWD Discussion Groups => Trip Reports => Trip Reports sans Responses => Topic started by: calmissile on September 01, 2012, 01:41:01 PM
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After several months of delay, I finally got my trip booked for my next Ukraine trip. I was originally going for 3 months, but due to pressing business matters it was delayed and now shortened to 6 weeks. I will be departing next week from LAX.
My last romance/engagement did not result in a success and this trip is going to be different. Rather than a WOVO trip, I am going to take a relaxing vacation and try to assimilate more into the culture and do my best to meet many friends and perhaps network with them to meet others.
From last year I have a family that I am good friends with and they have invited me to stay with them for about 1 week out of the 6 total. I had a blast last year, not only with a little night life, but also going out any staying at their dacha in the forest and picking mushrooms and eating out of their summer garden.
There is a long list of ladies that want to meet that I have been Skyping with, so will try and juggle my schedule to go and visit some of them. If a love connection happens so be it, but I am going to focus on having a good time and making friends. Nearly all of the women I have chosen to communicate with speak at least some English, so that should make it a lot easier than before.
For those interested in current travel costs, here is the breakdown for my AAA arranged itinerary.
Round trip LAX - Paris - Kiev Air France
Base Rate 799.00
Taxes 681.10
Total $1480.10
AAA processing fee $35
Medical Insurance 6 weeks $101.00
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From last year I have a family that I am good friends with and they have invited me to stay with them for about 1 week out of the 6 total. I had a blast last year, not only with a little night life, but also going out any staying at their dacha in the forest and picking mushrooms and eating out of their summer garden.
Doug, there are some positives in this, particularly if you look at it from a life experiences perspective.
But, on the other hand, this can be a waste of time with respect to finding a life time partner . . . unless this family has lined up a few prospects for you.
Yes, it is fun to spend time with friends in different cultures, but I wouldn't do it at the expense of missing out on the opportunity to meet some additional eligible women.
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Doug, there are some positives in this, particularly if you look at it from a life experiences perspective.
But, on the other hand, this can be a waste of time with respect to finding a life time partner . . . unless this family has lined up a few prospects for you.
Yes, it is fun to spend time with friends in different cultures, but I wouldn't do it at the expense of missing out on the opportunity to meet some additional eligible women.
Thanks ML for the comments.
There are about 15 gals on the short list that I am on Skype with regularily. They all seem serious but I do not want to create any false hopes. I am going to visit them as well as enjoy the local culture and make new friends. I won't consider it a waste of time if I do not find someone to get serious about. I never traveled abroad prior to my trips to Ukraine (except my business trips to Japan). As I am aging, I figure it's about time to just enjoy the travel and the lifestyle of Ukrainians. We don't have the time or money to visit the whole world and my previous trips to Ukriane were very rewarding and I sort of developed a love and respect for the people. It probably could have occured in many countries, but I am already familiar with Ukraine and want to explore more of it.
Also, the Military History Channels have had so many documentaries about the Eastern Front during WWII and I recognize many of the cities in Ukriane where the tank battles took place, etc. Also, there is an ICMB Soviet missile site I want to tour for personal reasons. I wish I had recorded all those documentaries so that I could watch them again before leaving.
My ex fiance has been Skyping me, so might drop in and vistit with her and the kids.
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Arrived in Kiev this evening via Air Chance (Air France) by way of Paris from L.A. It seems that every trip has some challenges along the way. Last time my luggage ended up in Moscow. This time, we have no idea where it is, but it was not on the plane.
Since I plan on doing some networking this time, that might have got off to a good start. In Paris I sat down deside a beautiful blonde and started chatting with her. I told her I was coming on vacation and wanted to make many new friends. She said good, I have a beautiful girlfriend that you can call, she would like to meet you. Maybe tomorrow. LOL
Upon arrival, it was pouring down cats and dogs. I got rescued by Val at the airport and he brought me to my apartment and got me settled. No umbrella, no jacket, no clothes. Second time to go through this exercise. At least the apartment is only a couple blocks from Independence Square.
As if things are not bad enough, I just got a text from my house sitter stating that her purse was stolen last night in a restraunt with one of my debit cards in it. If it isn't one thing it's another. At this point I am not going to let ANYTHING spoil my vacation. LOL
I am butt naked in the apartment while my only clothes are washing. Perhaps tomorrow will be a better day. The image of the sexy gals walking below my apartment at least puts me in a good mood. LOL
Also got a Skype call from a gal from Huston, TX that is in Ukraine that wants to meet up. We have Skyped in the past. She wants to meet up.
More tomorrow........
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Upon arrival, it was pouring down cats and dogs. I got rescued by Val at the airport and he brought me to my apartment and got me settled. No umbrella, no jacket, no clothes. Second time to go through this exercise. At least the apartment is only a couple blocks from Independence Square.
Have you noticed the new water fountains inside the square yet Doug?
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Not sure Vinny. Is it the one over a glass dome. It was raining so hard, I was dodging the puddles in my tennis shoes. LOL
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Not sure Vinny. Is it the one over a glass dome. It was raining so hard, I was dodging the puddles in my tennis shoes. LOL
Yes, around the dome. They have installed new fountains with fancy lights. Quite a nice job I thought.
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It is night and the rain makes it all fuzzy. I will check it out tomorrow. I am supposed to change apartments tomorrow. Val is really a saviour. I would recommend him to anyone coming to Ukraine.
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Hey Doug! Glad you made to Kiev safely. Sorry about about the luggage. I can't say I have ever been in your shoes in this regard. I guess I have always been lucky. LOL
Have fun and remember to stay away from the Kiev cops in Independence square. Especially when walking underground!!!
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I never had any lost luggage, but I know it happens all the time. Some airlines are worse than others. You should always include a paper in large type face INSIDE all luggaage with your name, address where you are going, phones numbers, etc. in case the tag on the outside of the luggage gets torn off. It is also a good idea to have a carry on bag with a few changes of clothes.
On an international flight, most airlines will only pay a certain maximum amount for lost luggage. This amount is usually much less than a domestic flight in USA. You can pay an extra fee to bring that amount on the international flight up to about $5000. You would probably need receipts for any lost items valued at more than $200 for one item.
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This trip to Ukraine started out from Los Angeles and flew to Paris then on to Kiev on Air France. I had never flown via Air France and probably will not do so again. More on that later.
To begin with I tried for several days to get a seat assignment on the LAX to Paris flight and was unable to do so. I was told the seats were locked and no seat assignments are given until check in at the gate.
Upon arrival at LAX the French lady at the ticket counter said that there were no seat assignments allowed. She also said that everyone was already boarded the plane (this was 2 hours before boarding time). I asked "You mean to tell me that the passengers are already boarding the plane". She said yes, we have been boarding since this morning. At this point I decided to not pursue the question any further and would sit wherever they had me assigned even though she could not tell me where it was.
As it turns out it was a middle seat and I had 10 hours to look forward to enjoying a middle seat. Once on the plane I noticed that a man a wife had two aisle seats with the wife sitting beside me. As they were chatting across the back of her seat I motioned to her husband that we could switch seats and he could sit by his wife. He was very happy to switch, so that issue now solved.
I noticed that the flight attendants were not particularly friendly and the service was very poor. They served the meal, picked up the trays and then disappeared for the rest of the flight. I really wanted something to drink and well into the flight I got hungry again. While stretching my legs one of the guys sitting behind me asked if I knew about the extra food. I said no, and he told me a little secret about Air France. It was an airbus A380 double decker and at the rear of the aisle there is a stairway going up to the upper flight. He took me up there and it enters into the galley for the upper deck. Sure as hell, there were baskets of sandwiches and sodas sitting on the galley counters. Problem #2 solved.
Switched planes in Paris with barely an hour between flights and headed off to Kiev. Customs was a snap and there were no questions. Since one of my earlier trips ended up with my bags ending up in Moscow, I was very diligent to get my luggage off the conveyor as soon as possible. Guess what? No bag on the conveyor. In fact there were about 25-30 passengers with no baggage. After waiting in line for about 1/2 hour I finally got to the Lost and Found desk. The woman (this time) was reasonably friendly and we filled out the paperwork. She said she would call by 9 a.m. the next morning. As Val later told me, this is a Ukrainian promise. It means it will never happen. He was right! I must have made 10-15 calls and Val made a bunch of calls also. Finally Lost and Found called the next day and told me that Air France found the bag and it would be put in a van and delivered to my apartment. NOT!! So Thurs and Fri night was wash the clothes and dry them over the stove. Also since I was told multiple times that the bags are en-route to the apartment, I was afraid to leave the apartment for fear of not being there when they arrived. Who knows what happens if your not there when they try to deliver.
I had been chatting with a few Kiev gals that wanted to meet me and I told them the story and we would have to delay our meeting until my bags arrived. Finally on Saturday (mid day) one of the gals asked me for the details of the Lost and Found report, etc. and said that she would try to help me. The other gals I just put on hold and said I would contact them when I got the problem ironed out. I did not hear from L all day and wondered if she blew me off because of my issues. Finally about 1600 she messaged me that she had gone to the airport, raised hell, and my bags would be delivered by courier in 45 minutes. What came to mind was "Yea, another Ukrainian promise". She then messaged me again and said that she was on the phone with the driver and he had the wrong address, the wrong apartment number and did not know how to find it. She had him on his cell phone and directed him step by step to my address. This was somewhat incredible since neither Val or I could even get the phone number for Air France. We had to always talk to Lost and Found at the airport and they just kept repeating the same info that the bags were on the way. At any rate they showed up exactly when she said they would. She even messaged me the color, make, model of the car and the license plate of the courier. No SHIT! Someone needs to hire this gal. She is a problem solver!
She called immediately after the courier left and confirmed I got the luggage and then asked what I was going to do in the evening. I told her that I would love to take her out and really appreciated the assistance with the luggage issue. She said she preferred to meet at a coffee shop and she was not hungry anyway. She also refused my offer to take her to sushi and said that she prefers to make it herself. I can't beat that for an answer since I love sushi.
She ended up at the front of my apartment and called me to let me know she was here (15 minutes early). I am not used to a women being on time, let alone early. LOL
She said she drove her car, but we walked about 1 KM to the coffee shop she picked out. Fortunately the coffee shop had Wi-Fi because I discovered that the translator programs I installed on my tablet do not work without an internet connection. We must have chatted for about 1.5 hours. Her English was many years ago in school and she had never used it. It was amazing that she started remembering words and could use some sentences in English after a while. The translator worked really pretty well. Only a few things that had to be rephrased to make sense. Turns out she is separated and her husband promised a divorce in October. She had taken the kids from him. She indicated that her husband was more interested in hanging out with his friends rather than be with the family and also developed a drinking problem. L then asked me what I was doing tomorrow. I told her that my schedule was open if she wanted to see me. She called her mom to see if she would babysit. Mon said maybe, she would let her know later.
We left the cafe and started walking. I had no idea where we were going. We finally arrived at her car. I am glad I buckled up the seat belt. This little gal drives like the rest of the nuts on the Kiev streets. Stick transmission, darts in and out of traffic, etc. I didn't piss my pants but sure was paying attention! She dropped me off by the apartment and said she would call me in the morning. Also indicated that if mom won't babysit then we will have her little daughter to go on a walk with us. A little peck on the cheek and that was the first date.
Since it was only 9 p.m. I decided to go out and see what Kiev looks like at night. My current apartment is about 1 KM from Independence Square so I headed that direction. Since I was always engaged on my previous visits I had never seen Kiev at night. What a sight! The streets are all lit up and it is beautiful. There was a concert at the Square and must have been tens of thousands of people. Some kind of large group dancing and very well choreographed. The women walking on the streets were something to see. Even though at night and a little chilly, the sights were worth seeing Long legs, nice boobs, and very high heels. I hope Ukrainian women never lose the desire to be feminine!!
I have delayed my next venture to friends in Cherkasy in order to meet several other women that I had to put off because of the luggage fiasco. As I indicated in an earlier post, this trip is for a vacation and making new friends. If romance happens, it happens, if not I am going to have a good time anyway. LOL
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This trip to Ukraine started out from Los Angeles and flew to Paris then on to Kiev on Air France. I had never flown via Air France and probably will not do so again. More on that later.
To begin with I tried for several days to get a seat assignment on the LAX to Paris flight and was unable to do so. I was told the seats were locked and no seat assignments are given until check in at the gate.
Upon arrival at LAX the French lady at the ticket counter said that there were no seat assignments allowed. She also said that everyone was already boarded the plane (this was 2 hours before boarding time). I asked "You mean to tell me that the passengers are already boarding the plane". She said yes, we have been boarding since this morning. At this point I decided to not pursue the question any further and would sit wherever they had me assigned even though she could not tell me where it was.
As it turns out it was a middle seat and I had 10 hours to look forward to enjoying a middle seat. Once on the plane I noticed that a man a wife had two aisle seats with the wife sitting beside me. As they were chatting across the back of her seat I motioned to her husband that we could switch seats and he could sit by his wife. He was very happy to switch, so that issue now solved.
I noticed that the flight attendants were not particularly friendly and the service was very poor. They served the meal, picked up the trays and then disappeared for the rest of the flight. I really wanted something to drink and well into the flight I got hungry again. While stretching my legs one of the guys sitting behind me asked if I knew about the extra food. I said no, and he told me a little secret about Air France. It was an airbus A380 double decker and at the rear of the aisle there is a stairway going up to the upper flight. He took me up there and it enters into the galley for the upper deck. Sure as hell, there were baskets of sandwiches and sodas sitting on the galley counters. Problem #2 solved.
Switched planes in Paris with barely an hour between flights and headed off to Kiev. Customs was a snap and there were no questions. Since one of my earlier trips ended up with my bags ending up in Moscow, I was very diligent to get my luggage off the conveyor as soon as possible. Guess what? No bag on the conveyor. In fact there were about 25-30 passengers with no baggage. After waiting in line for about 1/2 hour I finally got to the Lost and Found desk. The woman (this time) was reasonably friendly and we filled out the paperwork. She said she would call by 9 a.m. the next morning. As Val later told me, this is a Ukrainian promise. It means it will never happen. He was right! I must have made 10-15 calls and Val made a bunch of calls also. Finally Lost and Found called the next day and told me that Air France found the bag and it would be put in a van and delivered to my apartment. NOT!! So Thurs and Fri night was wash the clothes and dry them over the stove. Also since I was told multiple times that the bags are en-route to the apartment, I was afraid to leave the apartment for fear of not being there when they arrived. Who knows what happens if your not there when they try to deliver.
I had been chatting with a few Kiev gals that wanted to meet me and I told them the story and we would have to delay our meeting until my bags arrived. Finally on Saturday (mid day) one of the gals asked me for the details of the Lost and Found report, etc. and said that she would try to help me. The other gals I just put on hold and said I would contact them when I got the problem ironed out. I did not hear from L all day and wondered if she blew me off because of my issues. Finally about 1600 she messaged me that she had gone to the airport, raised hell, and my bags would be delivered by courier in 45 minutes. What came to mind was "Yea, another Ukrainian promise". She then messaged me again and said that she was on the phone with the driver and he had the wrong address, the wrong apartment number and did not know how to find it. She had him on his cell phone and directed him step by step to my address. This was somewhat incredible since neither Val or I could even get the phone number for Air France. We had to always talk to Lost and Found at the airport and they just kept repeating the same info that the bags were on the way. At any rate they showed up exactly when she said they would. She even messaged me the color, make, model of the car and the license plate of the courier. No SHIT! Someone needs to hire this gal. She is a problem solver!
She called immediately after the courier left and confirmed I got the luggage and then asked what I was going to do in the evening. I told her that I would love to take her out and really appreciated the assistance with the luggage issue. She said she preferred to meet at a coffee shop and she was not hungry anyway. She also refused my offer to take her to sushi and said that she prefers to make it herself. I can't beat that for an answer since I love sushi.
She ended up at the front of my apartment and called me to let me know she was here (15 minutes early). I am not used to a women being on time, let alone early. LOL
She said she drove her car, but we walked about 1 KM to the coffee shop she picked out. Fortunately the coffee shop had Wi-Fi because I discovered that the translator programs I installed on my tablet do not work without an internet connection. We must have chatted for about 1.5 hours. Her English was many years ago in school and she had never used it. It was amazing that she started remembering words and could use some sentences in English after a while. The translator worked really pretty well. Only a few things that had to be rephrased to make sense. Turns out she is separated and her husband promised a divorce in October. She had taken the kids from him. She indicated that her husband was more interested in hanging out with his friends rather than be with the family and also developed a drinking problem. L then asked me what I was doing tomorrow. I told her that my schedule was open if she wanted to see me. She called her mom to see if she would babysit. Mon said maybe, she would let her know later.
We left the cafe and started walking. I had no idea where we were going. We finally arrived at her car. I am glad I buckled up the seat belt. This little gal drives like the rest of the nuts on the Kiev streets. Stick transmission, darts in and out of traffic, etc. I didn't piss my pants but sure was paying attention! She dropped me off by the apartment and said she would call me in the morning. Also indicated that if mom won't babysit then we will have her little daughter to go on a walk with us. A little peck on the cheek and that was the first date.
Since it was only 9 p.m. I decided to go out and see what Kiev looks like at night. My current apartment is about 1 KM from Independence Square so I headed that direction. Since I was always engaged on my previous visits I had never seen Kiev at night. What a sight! The streets are all lit up and it is beautiful. There was a concert at the Square and must have been tens of thousands of people. Some kind of large group dancing and very well choreographed. The women walking on the streets were something to see. Even though at night and a little chilly, the sights were worth seeing Long legs, nice boobs, and very high heels. I hope Ukrainian women never lose the desire to be feminine!!
I have delayed my next venture to friends in Cherkasy in order to meet several other women that I had to put off because of the luggage fiasco. As I indicated in an earlier post, this trip is for a vacation and making new friends. If romance happens, it happens, if not I am going to have a good time anyway. LOL
Make nice with the stewardesses on any long international flight. They'll let you hang out in the back of the plane and chat them up. Free coffee and food, and they often enjoy the companionship on long flights. That was my experience with two gals from Texas, at least.
L sounds like a keeper! The kindness of strangers is phenomenal sometimes.
Tell Val Scott says hey, and when is he gonna get to Alaska? Enjoy your trip, buddy.
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Good to see that you finally got your luggage and can focus on your mission in Ukraine. Thanks for the report, it's always very interesting to read what people experience while travelling. Keep it up and best of luck.
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Very nice report. Thanks.
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The past couple of days has been intersting and a learning experience.
L did not call me until about 5 p.m. so I had waited around all day to hear from her and go on a walk together. Since there were about 10 other women in Kiev I had 'put on hold' I was a little annoyed that I wasted most of the day waiting for a phone call and could have met up with one of the others. Perhaps was a communication misunderstanding.
One lesson learned (I think) for a WMVM trip..... Do not sit around waiting for a woman to call you and tell you when she is available. Instead, tell her when you are available and if she can't make time..... move on to the next one.
Another thing to think about is that most women work during the week and the only real opportunity to spend much time together is on the weekend. It would seem that this can seriously limit the time you can be together.
I forgot to mention a couple of things that happened on the way back from the concert the other night. There was a large crowd on the sidewalk and I went over to see what was going on. There was a guy with a tilted board and a champagne bottle that you are supposed to stand upright using a stick with a hoop on the bottom. The guy charges 10 grivna per try. The prize if you are successful is a bottle of champagne. The crowd was cheering everyone on. He had demonstrated many times that it can be done and it did not look that hard. LOL I never saw anyone win, but got sucked in for 3 tries myself. Got very close on one try but.... no champagne for Doug. LOL
Also saw a gal get pissed at her boyfriend and threw down a bouquet of flowers at his feet. They had a few words and she stormed off. A real beauty!
From my apartment on the 3rd floor I can look down on the parking lot and observe people below. I have always been a people watcher and enjoy watching peoples behavior. A babushka in a wheelchair was sitting in the courtyard and her very obviously drunk husband was staggering around near her. They were arguing and raising hell in a very loud manner. No one around them seemed to care and just ignored them. I saw this behavior on an earlier trip and it seems you do not want to be on the receiving end of a pissed off UA woman.
The hand brooms they use in Ukraine are rather interesting. They look rather crude and hand made and have very short handles. There is a young woman that cleans the courtyard every morning. It is rather large and I would think would take a while to sweep by hand. Not so! This gal has the whole thing done in a few minutes and she has swept up every leaf, cigarette butt, and misc papers. Uses only a dustpan and the little broom. Can't see her face as she is wearing a baseball cap but she is certainly built well!
I asked Val about all these guys on the street in orange jackets and seem to be parking attendant's for the parking on the sidewalks. Val said that they assist in parking in order to get more cars squeezed into the available space. He also indicated that the governor cancelled all the jobs but the guys still show up and expect tips for their work.
Another item related to parking. You will find small metal horseshoe like frames all over the sidewalks and in some of the courtyards. It took a while observing them to figure out what they are for. Some of them have a mechanism for adding a padlock to keep them in an upright position. It is obvious that you would not want to smash your oil pan on the car by trying to drive over one of them. On the side walks, some of them are flat against the ground and some are upright. It turns out that they are used to keep people from parking in certain spots. Since the folks seem to park anywhere including sidewalks, these devices are used by the shop owners and apartment owners to prevent others from parking in 'their' space.
After a few hours I ventured out and discovered the underground malls and markets. It it truly amazing. You use the underground entrances (much like a subway entrance from the sidewalk) in order to cross the street to the other side. You would NOT want to try and cross the street with the traffic the way it is. The underground passageways to the other side of street are connected to huge underground malls. Thousands of stores. The underground network is so large that I have not explored it entirely. The fear of getting lost means take it a little further each day. It is obvious that the underground network goes on for many blocks with intersections going all over the place. Since the underground network is so huge and at street level there are older, huge building on top; I am curious about the history of how long the tunnels/stores have been there and how it was constructed. The foundations for the huge buildings must have been something to consider when developing the tunnels. I am wondering if it might have been a similar story to Seattle where the city was built on top of the old burned out business district. I would also have guessed that the tunnels might have been used in WWII if they existed at the time.
As I had indicated earlier, I had planned to extend my stay in Kiev in order to have time to meet several other women that want to meet up. I received an IM from the daughter of my friends in Cherkasy and the father indicated that he now got called in to work next weekend (Ukraine Border Patrol) and desired that I arrive in Cherkasy on Tuesday. Thanks to Val, my apartment rental was easily changed once again. I plan to take the bus to Cherkasy as it is only 2 hours. My train rides will have to wait until I go to Crimea later in the month. The ladies in Kiev are willing to wait until I return, so no problem there. I was told that my friend in Cherkasy has a dacha near his that I might be interested in purchasing. Unfortunately the one next door to him was already sold. I sort of had my heart set on it last year but did not act quickly enough. At any rate, we will see what the other one looks like.
There are a few women in Cherkasy that have indicated that they would like to meet, so I will see how that goes. I don't know where I will be staying in Cherkasy but it would not be likely I can date while staying at my friends, since it is on a military base and requires a pass to get in. Perhaps I will get an apartment later in my stay. We really had a great time at his dacha last summer. It is in the forest and about 15 miles south of Cherkasy. We ate from the summer garden and picked mushrooms in the forest. The ladies made very tasty meals. It was sort of like camping out and having a small house at the same time.
That's about it for the current situation. Since I am leaving Kiev tomorrow morning I am going to spend the day getting ready for departure and finally get the files organized on all the women I have been chatting with. It's embarrassing to not remember what was said to who in earlier correspondence. LOL.
Next report is probably going to be from Cherkasy. If we are at the dacha, there will be no internet or phone so reports are likely to be erratic.
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I had some false hopes last night. About 2100 hours there was a knock on my apartment door. I thought it must have been L coming over to go over our communication misunderstanding. When I opened the door there was a beautiful blond standing there.
My natural instincts told me that this must be one of the 'working girls' that find out where foreign visitors are staying. She asked for "Fire". I was wondering if there was a fire in the building or what the hell was she talking about. She then gestured striking a match. I pulled out my lighter and cigarettes and gestured is this what she wanted. My inquisitive mind was now thinking that this must be like the "borrowing a cup of sugar" as an excuse to meet someone.
She indicated that she only wanted to borrow the lighter and wanted to eat. She gestured that she was in the apartment above me. She said in near perfect English that she would bring the lighter back. My mind was spinning wondering how to handle this situation.
Later there was a knock on the door and she handed me back my lighter and said thank you. At this point I asked her if she had a husband. She laughed and said yes, and she has two babies also. So much for what our minds can do for us when we picture something else. LOL
Looking down in the courtyard, I see many people out with their bags. I assume they are all of the thousands that were in Kiev for the Herbalife convention/meeting.
On this trip I decided to pay more attention to how the men dress and how best to blend in. My observation is that most local men dress very casual. Blue jeans and shirts that are worn out, rather than tucked in. In almost every case they are wearing tennis shoes although most of them are black rather than white. I never saw any man dressed in a suit that was with a woman. In the evening the men wore black pants and a casual shirt, still not tucked in. Black sneakers or in some few cases hard soled shoes.
I did not go to any night clubs yet, so can't say if the dress was more formal at these places. However, on the street the men walking with women were still dressed casually. The only men in suits I saw were during the day and they looked like businessmen. These are just my observations, but might be helpful to newbies that are coming to Ukraine. I really did not want to have to pack a suit if it was not necessary and did not do so. For one thing, I did not want to dress in attire that I am not comfortable in. Nor do I find it necessary to dress in a manner that is only intended to impress someone when it is not the real me. California dress is casual except for some occasions. Even the bars are casual.
I guess I passed the test of blending in. LOL! I think I was asked for directions about 10 times a day when I was out. Herbalife visitors I assume. I said "sorry only English" and they understood and looked for a Russian speaking native.
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One lesson learned (I think) for a WMVM trip..... Do not sit around waiting for a woman to call you and tell you when she is available. Instead, tell her when you are available and if she can't make time..... move on to the next one.
Another thing to think about is that most women work during the week and the only real opportunity to spend much time together is on the weekend. It would seem that this can seriously limit the time you can be together.
It might be a little late for you . . . but when I am setting up my WMVM visits . . . I tell the gals that they MUST meet me during middle of a week day rather than on weekends . . . because of X Y Z.
Only one out of ten or so have refused to do this.
Without these daytime weekday meetings . . . there is going to be a ton of wasted time.
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Yes, around the dome. They have installed new fountains with fancy lights. Quite a nice job I thought.
I love the one outside "Maidan" (Independence Square) - the fountain named "Khreschatyk". Its history dates back to 1979 when the first Kyiv's fountain with colored lights was officially opened.
In April 2012 the fountain was re-opened. Evening performances of this musical fountain dancing today to the tune of classic music while producing many color mixes are gorgeous .
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LZHtJ7iAQ-A (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LZHtJ7iAQ-A)
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It might be a little late for you . . . but when I am setting up my WMVM visits . . . I tell the gals that they MUST meet me during middle of a week day rather than on weekends . . . because of X Y Z.
Only one out of ten or so have refused to do this.
Without these daytime weekday meetings . . . there is going to be a ton of wasted time.
I have to agree with you about having the wasted time, but also have a question.
How do these gals get off work during the weekday to meet you?
If you like one of them, did they also have to take time off work to see you or did you then shift it to weekend dating them?
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I have to agree with you about having the wasted time, but also have a question.
How do these gals get off work during the weekday to meet you?
If you like one of them, did they also have to take time off work to see you or did you then shift it to weekend dating them?
I myself made it a point to make sure the lady was going to take some time off work. At least a week to spend actual time getting to know each other. My first trip was wasted waiting til evening to do anything with the lady. I decided that wasn't going to happen anymore. Its worked out great for me since.
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I have to agree with you about having the wasted time, but also have a question.
How do these gals get off work during the weekday to meet you?
If you like one of them, did they also have to take time off work to see you or did you then shift it to weekend dating them?
As I said, I told them we could only have initial meetings during working hours weekdays. Most everyone in any job can take time off if they really want to meet someone. Yes, it is a burden on them, but you are the one who has traveled thousands of miles and living out of a suitcase, so you have still put more effort into it than they will.
And yes, after the weekday meetings, when the screening starts narrowing it down, then I spend weekends with those ladies. But no weekdays . . . then no weekends either.
Don't lose sight of fact that we are the ones in short supply; not them.
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One lesson learned (I think) for a WMVM trip..... Do not sit around waiting for a woman to call you and tell you when she is available. Instead, tell her when you are available and if she can't make time..... move on to the next one.
Yes, that is consistent with the RW mentality that real men take charge. However, one must still be smooth about asking for time, especially in making them feel that they are special. If not special, why are you calling them?
Another thing to think about is that most women work during the week and the only real opportunity to spend much time together is on the weekend. It would seem that this can seriously limit the time you can be together.
Initial meetings can occur during lunch or coffee breaks (15-45 minutes). As ML says, most can arrange for more time if the first meeting went well.
Each evening is a golden opportunity for a real date. Volunteer to pay for their taxi and babysitter so they can meet you sooner (public transport can take a long time, and in the late evening the public transport options diminish).
The only problem of the weekend is that if a woman likes you, she will want you to spend all of her available time with you. If you see a woman for just a couple of hours, it rubs her nose in the fact that you are seeing many women.
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Enjoying the tr. The parking attendants are widespread in quite a few cities.Police will back them up-- you can guess why ! Where it is usefull is that they will keep a spot if you look after them--nice to park outside where you are going!
The underground tunnells are present in quite a few cities-- think of the winter and it makes sense.Generally the cheapest retail in Ukraine-- good place to buy flowers if you are having problem finding somewhere ,and also cheap toys,cd's,dvds.etc
I agree with Gator comment above-- very.very important I think.
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ML/Gator/JahH thanks for all the tips. This is my first WMVM trip and your advice will definitely make the trip more efficient.
I will be temporarily be leaving Kiev in a few hours to go to friends in Cherkasy for about a week. Since I have a little time before I leave, I thought I would provide an update.
Yesterday afternoon I got a surprise SMS from L. She said that she wanted to see me before I left. I was busy trying to sort out all the profiles and correspondence with women that I had not done before leaving the US.
In this case I gave her a time to meet instead of asking her. I told her I would be available at 1730 hrs if she wanted to see me. She confirmed the time. Since I was a little annoyed with her from the day before, I decided to try this on my terms!
L. said that her car went into the shop for service and she would arrive in front of my apartment at 1730. She showed up exactly on time. I had no idea where we were going and it was apparent that she did not know either. I grabbed my Galaxy Tablet and suggested the we get some dinner at a great buffet up the street. We had used the Galaxy 2 Tablet in the past to communicate via a translation program, and we were getting pretty good at using it. We had a great meal and afterward she pointed to the tablet gesturing that it was time to chat. We discovered immediately that there was no Wi-Fi that was unsecure so the translation program could not work at this location.
As we left the buffet, she asked where we were to go now. I told her the supermarket. There is a huge underground supermarket across the street so we went there. My idea was to pick up a bottle of wine as well as refill my diet-pepsi stock and go to the apartment. I had no idea if she would be willing, but what the hell might as well give it a try. In the supermarket we made it to the wine area and I suggested that she pick out a bottle of wine she liked. She gestured that she did not want to drink this evening. I said OK and we got the pepsi and headed back to street level. I was expecting her to make a recommendation where to go or what to do and it was clear that she going to make me take charge. She asked where are we going and I pointed to the apartment. She initially became nervous and did not seem comfortable in going there. I was able to convince her it would be OK and she reluctantly agreed.
Upon arrival at the apartment I got the tablet and translator working. We then moved over to the laptop and I showed her hundreds of photos of my family and vacations taken in the US. She seemed to enjoy it a great deal. I then had the idea of calling one of our Russian speaking members on Skype and let them chat. That was a real treat. Here she was sitting on my lap and the two women chatted in Russian. In addition several questions were asked by each of us and my member friend became a translator for us. After the Skype call we moved back to the kitchen and resumed our chatting on the tablet. In trying to describe her family we got into the usual confusion about sisters, cousins, brothers, etc. We eventually used a quad tablet and made a family tree on paper. LOL. I also learned that her son, brother, and mother spoke very good English. I said "sometime I should talk to your mother in English". L picked up her cell phone and immediately called her mother. He mom and I chatted a few minutes and she does in fact have very good English skills. We joked and laughed a lot and it was a pleasant surprise.
Eventually she indicated it was time for her to go and reminded me that her 4 year old daughter had the flu and she needed to be home. She suggested that we should continue our correspondence via email. She gave me her email address which looked like a business name. She saw my response and then told me that she had owned a large beauty shop in Kiev several years ago and gave it up to move to Yalta and have her baby. The email address was the name of her business and all made sense. The fact that she wants to continue to correspond was encouraging.
I walked her to the street and looked for a taxi. We could not find one parked on the street or the sidewalk so was not much help to her. She then surprised me by standing by the side of street and started waving a cab down like I have seen in the movies in NY for example. Personally I had never done this and thought it amusing to see her take charge and be assertive about hailing a cab. I gave her cab fare and off she went. A few minutes later she called me on my cell and in English said "I am home. Thank you".
All in all, I feel that this was a successful platonic date. My intent was to come on vacation and enjoy the culture without any expectations of marriage. L. is a very friendly personality. She is so much different than my previous experiences with older women. She is only 38 and much to young for me for marriage, but a real pleasant person to be with. No rude remarks, very polite, smiles a lot, and seems to be happy. If only I can find that in women in their 40's and 50's. LOL
Upon her departure she indicated that when I return to Kiev her daughter will be well by then and in kindergarten and she will have more time to spend with me. Now I will need to figure out how to see the other Kiev women that have been on "hold".
Since my previous experience was with only one UA woman and was engaged for nearly a year, this was a chance to meet someone else and compare the personalities as well as evaluate how to go about making friends and dating someone else. Since L. did not blow me off, I guess I have a little more self confidence and also am learning more every day about how to interact with UA women.
Off to Cherkasy in a couple hours. More to follow later.
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Doug,
L seems like a winner. She is a problem solver (your luggage), is organized, introduced you to her family albeit by phone, trusts you as much as anyone can at this stage, is tolerant of your VM trip and thus respects your decision, wants to see you upon your return, etc.
Is there some initial chemistry? Being friends is better in my mind than hormonal attraction yet both are mutually necessary.
38 is indeed young for you; however, it is still a possibility. My guideline - the younger they are the more dating time is necessary. One key is whether you want to be a daddy to a 4-yo girl. To determine this you need to spend time with L to understand her expectations and dreams, and if that advances then meet the little girl. Being a daddy is a much greater responsibility than being a stepfather to a 19-yo woman preparing to leave the nest. And at your age the commitment through university education and beyond must continue for the rest of your life. Do you want that?
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Great post Doug. Great to see that you are approaching this in a realistic way. I think this will be a great trip for you overall if you continue exactly as you planned it. Hey, a few pics of some of the sights wont' hurt either. :clapping:
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I dont think 38 is too young--and I dont know how old you are,dont care either.If you pass all the hurdle--do it. Look at it this way--even if she was 50% your age now-- she will be 75% by the time you reach 100!!!!! :)
Important!! Using computer to translate is great-- and I have found it a lot of fun.
You need to have mobile wi fi--it makes everything so much easier. If you look for "LIFE" mobile phone store-- there will one close to you--- but a wi fi dongle and internet access--- dongle is about $35 and 300grv gets you a lot of access--so cheap to use. This will give you net access from anywhere--all the time.Far superior than finding hotspots--- and much safer and secure.
You can top up money for access very easily--look at website to do it--it has Eng option and is easy to use site.I also have mobile on this network--incedentally-- the sim for dongle can also be used to make phone calls and has its own ph number-- so you could get away with one-- not as convenient as having them separate.
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She is only 38 and much to young for me for marriage, but a real pleasant person to be with. No rude remarks, very polite, smiles a lot, and seems to be happy. If only I can find that in women in their 40's and 50's. LOL
you can , i'm sure of it.
At least in my experience this is a typical Ukrainian woman.
Others who find different , I often wonder what country they visited ;)
I can see why you'd think her too young to marry.. does she
know this concern and that it's *just friends*?
Good luck on your trip!
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I dont think 38 is too young--and I dont know how old you are,dont care either.If you pass all the hurdle--do it. Look at it this way--even if she was 50% your age now-- she will be 75% by the time you reach 100!!!!! :)
Important!! Using computer to translate is great-- and I have found it a lot of fun.
You need to have mobile wi fi--it makes everything so much easier. If you look for "LIFE" mobile phone store-- there will one close to you--- but a wi fi dongle and internet access--- dongle is about $35 and 300grv gets you a lot of access--so cheap to use. This will give you net access from anywhere--all the time.Far superior than finding hotspots--- and much safer and secure.
You can top up money for access very easily--look at website to do it--it has Eng option and is easy to use site.I also have mobile on this network--incedentally-- the sim for dongle can also be used to make phone calls and has its own ph number-- so you could get away with one-- not as convenient as having them separate.
Jay, I ended up getting a Kievstar phone modem for my phone. I purchased the more expensive 'high speed' option. The gal behind the counter was the typical merchant that appears they could care less is you are there. Also acted annyoed that I asked any questions. LOL. I was told by my hosts that Kievstar is the only network that works at the dacha, so it sounded like the correct solution. The nework connection was nearly useless. In fact dial-up service is much faster. I would hate to see what the 'low speed' option might have been like. LOL
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It is time for the bus trip from Kiev to Cherkassy. Val picked me up at the apartment and drove me to the central bus station. I was surprised how far it is from Independence Square. Along the way I would see signs indicating "Central Bus Terminal". We finally arrived at the bus terminal. What a shock! I don't even remember seeing a building. Just a parking lot with a bunch of buses parked there. I guess it was similar to the response I had last year flying into Borispol Airport in Kiev.
At any rate Val got me on the right bus and told me it was the last stop in Cherkassy so I would not have a problem figuring out where to get off. So pack like sardines into the minibus and off we go. I was told by Val that it is a 2 hour ride, but in reality it is more like 3 hours. My Galaxy 2 Tablet has GPS and I downloaded a Ukrainian map, so it was intersting to ride along and follow the trip on the Map/GPS. For those not familiar with the Samsung Galaxy 2 tablet, I am really impressed with it. The battery life is exceptional and since it is Android there are thousands of free or almost free applications.
About 2/3 the way to Cherkassy we stopped at a rest stop with a small market and restaurant. I inquired of the driver where the toilet is and he pointed to a little outhouse behind the restaurant. I had noticed a few women walking back and forth to the outhouse, but did not know if it was for men and women since I had not seen any men use it. After waiting a few minutes, a women came out and I headed down the path. This is one of Ukraine's finest!! A grated steel floor in a tiny structure with a hole in the floor. There was pee all over the floor. Fortunately I only had to pee, as I can remember the horror of using these public restrooms last year. Balancing myself without falling over while searching for the toilet paper is a challenge I have not yet mastered. LOL
Val had called my friends in Cherkassy before I left Kiev and told them of my arrival time and which stop I would arrive at. Just as planned, when we pulled into the parking lot my friends had already recognized me on the bus and were waving.
This is probably the best place to introduce the cast of characters that will be in my reports over the next couple of weeks.
Andrew and Elena - My friends that live in Cherkassy I met last year via my former fiance. We stayed in touch after I left Ukraine last year, and they invited me to stay with them anytime I come to Ukraine. Andrew is a retired Ukraine Border Patrol officer and is currently working part time for a security company. He guards corn fields 24/7 to prevent thieves from stealing the corn to feed their farm animals. They live in military housing on a military base south of Cherkassy called Ukrainian Border Patrol Training Center. Apparently his retirement provides them housing but no flats are available off base. I am told grain in very expensive to purchase for farms, hence the theft problem. Andrew and Elena are about 40 yrs I think.
Elena is a housewife and has a part time beauty business in their flat.
Maria (19) is the oldest daughter and is in the first year of college in Cherkassy.
Dasha (13) is the younger daughter and goes to primary school (GR 1-9) about 100 yards from the flat.
Roman and Kate -
Kate is 28 and is the niece of Elena and lives in the flat with her boyfriend Roman. They are looking to move into a flat of their own soon. Roman is a Major (officer) at the Border Patrol Center and recently met Kate.
Julia1 - A beautiful 19 year of blond in her 3rd year at the university in Cherkassy. Julia1 is the daughter of one of Andrew's army buddies. She is fluent in English. Andrew and Elena had made arrangements for her to by my companion and translator. It was a surprise to me.... a pleasant surprise. She is not like most 19 year old women. She seem to be more like 35 in her mannerisms and life experience. She had lived in South Africa for 3 years when her father was assigned to the Ukraine embassy. She not only knows English very well, she knows life very well.
Julia2 - 38 year old beautiful blond that is a girlfriend of Elena and lives in Donetsk. Much more about her later. Some photos will follow.
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Great post Doug! Looking forward to reading more and the pics!!!! :clapping:
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OK, I count 6 females that you mentioned in your cast of characters.
How many does it take to constitute a harem?
Anyway, nice write-up Cal. :)
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Trip to the dacha---
Julia1 is an interesting woman to talk to. In order to take 3 days out of school she had to fake an illness. She had to get a doctors notice. In order to get it she drank vodka which reddened her throat. Apparently, the doctors are wise to this excuse and asked her if she had drank vodka recently. She told him no...wink wink.
I also learned that everyone that gets good grades in school through grade 11, and passes an entrance exam get a government grant for college. The school also has a penalty for missing class. Julia had to pay 100 grivna per day for missing class. I assume that is to reimburse the college for loss of grant money for days missed.
I have had a very bad head cold ever since I left the USA. Sinuses draining constantly and coughing due to mucus in throat. Andrew said that I need to use the age old Ukrainian cure...... lots of Vodka and sweat when sleeping. I guess it is worth a try.
As we left the bus station in Cherkassy, I noticed that Andrew was driving through a lot of back alleys and narrow streets. Finally we ended up on a dirt street and stopped. I had no idea why. Andrew got out and went into a residence. A few minutes later I could hear him putting something in the trunk. I had no idea what it was. We then drove to the base and military housing. We had not discussed where I would be staying. They took me to their flat and unpacked and told me we would go to the dacha the following day. Once we unpacked, we ended up in the kitchen and it is here I learned why we stopped in Cherkassy. Andrew had purchased 8 liters of Vodka, apparently from a bootlegger because it was all in used plastic bottles (water bottles, etc.)
While getting settled in the flat, Julie1 came over and was introduced to me. What a doll! Elena announced that Julia1 would be going to the dacha with us to translate and be company for me. I also got to meet Kate and Roman. It's amazing how 7 of us can live and sleep in a 2 room flat, but it can be done.
The following day we stopped for groceries and off to the dacha we went. Andrew brought 6 of the 8 liters of vodka since it is quite a distance to the closest store. Upon arrival at the dacha I noticed several improvements Andrew had made since last year. Last year we had to hike down a hill in order to get water from the well. Also, there was no outhouse and your bathroom tools was a shovel and t.p. He built a nice outhouse and additionally reactivated an old well by the house and installed an electric pump. I also noticed that the garden was expanded a great deal, probably because he now had water to irrigate it.
We had 3 days of relaxation and a wonderful time. Julia1 was a very joy to be with. Her English is near perfect. She gave me an assignment. Find her a good American man up to age 33. LOL.
What an incredible figure these women have. Not skinny, but beautifully developed and healthy looking.
The women prepared meals, almost entirely from the garden at the dacha. One of the fascinating things about the dacha is a fireplace/oven/stove combination made out of brick. Above the unit is a space for two people to sleep. In the evening Andrew builds a fire in the fireplace and within a half hour the bedspace above it is warm and toasty. Last year there were cans, boxes, etc piled up in front of the entrance to the bed and you had to climb over them to get up to the bed. Fortunately, this year it had all been cleaned and it was a safe journey to the top. As some of you might remember, last year I had to pee in the middle of the night and came crashing down to the floor spreading the boxes and junk everywhere. This year was safe.
There was a dacha for sale next door to Andrews last year. I failed to act on it after returning to America and it has already been sold. Andrew showed me two other that are for sale, but I was not interested in them at the moment. FWIW.. These are homes that were once houses in the local village and were abandoned when the village folks migrated to the cities. Most of them have been left in serious disrepair and require a lot of work to make liveable. Nearly all of them have electricity and a well on the property. Even though the condition of the homes are very poor in most cases, the price is very inexpensive. The 2 that are for sale plus the one I liked that was sold went for $1500 - $3000.
Ukrainians have a passion if not an obsession for mushroom picking in the forests. This trip was no exception. We went out daily to pick mushrooms.
Having the interpreter with us this time allowed Andrew and Elana and I to communicate about a lot of things we could not on my earlier trip. One interesting thing I learned is that about 20 years ago, the river was very wide and large boats would sail up and down it. What now is a large dry valley was once the river/lake. Andrews dacha is on the edge of a plateau and you look over the large valley. He explained that many years ago, the bottom of his property was the river bank. The old well at the bottom of the hill has water up to the surface.
In the house there were a lot of old spent rifle shells. Andrew found them while digging in his garden. He gave me one to take home. My next large gift in the coming year might be a metal detector for Andrew. He says that a lot of artifacts from the previous battles are to be found in the ground nearby.
I will post a number of photos. I assume that most of them are self explanatory, and will answer questions anyone has.
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More photos from dacha
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As I said, I told them we could only have initial meetings during working hours weekdays. Most everyone in any job can take time off if they really want to meet someone. Yes, it is a burden on them, but you are the one who has traveled thousands of miles and living out of a suitcase, so you have still put more effort into it than they will.
And yes, after the weekday meetings, when the screening starts narrowing it down, then I spend weekends with those ladies. But no weekdays . . . then no weekends either.
Don't lose sight of fact that we are the ones in short supply; not them.
Та ну щас!
They MUST meet you!Haha Like I like to say, stay where you are, boss around local ladies and save money on a suitcase.
They work! Do you know what it is? You are om vacations and they work.
They don't owe you anything.
As for short supply, then you think too good about AM.
:crackwhip:
I am smelling control freak and super American boy,
Та щас!
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Guys, Cal is 69 years old! 38 to girl for him is crazy. 50+ is my sentense ;D
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All in all, I feel that this was a successful platonic date. My intent was to come on vacation and enjoy the culture without any expectations of marriage. L. is a very friendly personality. She is so much different than my previous experiences with older women. She is only 38 and much to young for me for marriage, but a real pleasant person to be with. No rude remarks, very polite, smiles a lot, and seems to be happy. If only I can find that in women in their 40's and 50's.
Great trip report Doug but what inspired you to decide to skype and visit a woman out of your age requirements for marriage? Although you are just visiting as friends first which is excellent strategy for doing a WMVM, some of those women will be very serious and it's important that you've told them ahead of time you are just visiting as friends.
L's actions told me she's serious and wanting to be more than just friends. You have to determine if her actions are sincere. L wants to see you when you come back. It's been some weeks since your wrote about L and I don't know where you're at until the rest of story unfolds but if you haven't gone back to Kiev yet I recommend not visiting L as she may get more attatched to you unless you change your mind and consider a serious relationship with her.
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Great pics Doug. Is the shed with the tank on top the shower shed?
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Great pics Doug. Is the shed with the tank on top the shower shed?
Yes, you figured that out right away. LOL. They still had to heat the water on the stove before pouring it into the tank.
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Off to the night club Ultra--
We decided to celebrate Saturday night at the Club Ultra. I was told by the interpreter that it is owned by a singer and performer that we were watching on television. It is the same club that we went to last year. Fortunately, I did not have a spill on the dance floor this time. LOL
Andrew had to leave town for work on Friday, so left Roman and myself with all the women. LOL
The group photo of us sitting in the booth consist of (L-R) Kate, Roman, Julia1, myself, Maria, Maria's Girlfriend
The dancing is in a separate room downstairs. Some of the photos show local guys hitting on the two young gals in our group.
The hours of the club are 1200 Hrs to 0400 Hrs. It was intersting to note that the crowd does not show up until about 2300 Hrs. I asked Julie why that is the case, and she said that most people drink at home and then come out later.
This Ukraine vodka is the smoothest I have ever drank. It also seems to leave you without a hangover the next day.
The cost for the evening was about 1200 grivna. which included the cover charges, several bottles of vodka, the food, and the juices. This is the first club I have been to where you can order a bottle of liquor instead of paying by the drink. It was also nice to have the juices to drink between toasts. The price of the vodka (.5 liter) is 60 grivna in the club and is about 35 grivna in the store.
At 0100 Hrs there is an erotic show performance that was quite entertaining. The performers pull men and women out of the audience for some erotic entertainment. Anyone coming to Cherkassy should definitely go to the club on a Friday or Saturday night.
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Та ну щас!
They MUST meet you!Haha Like I like to say, stay where you are, boss around local ladies and save money on a suitcase.
They work! Do you know what it is? You are om vacations and they work.
They don't owe you anything.
As for short supply, then you think too good about AM.
:crackwhip:
I am smelling control freak and super American boy,
Та щас!
Yes Doll, they must. And I won't stay where I am. I will travel when I want to and meet women whenever and where ever I want to. Yes, I know what work is. I do and have worked harder than most anyone else I know. I am not a control freak. No one is forced to be with me at any time and no one is forced to do what I want. I merely state my conditions. They can state their conditions. If the desires, possibilities and abilities overlap, then the situations will work.
And most definitely in this situation of WM interacting with FSUW, it is the desireable WM that is in short supply.
Men involved in this should stop thinking about what they should do to cater to the whims of silly women.
Treat the women will respect, care, tenderness, love, etc., but stop taking crap from the women. Only kiss their ass when it is part of a sex interlude; not when it is to cater to their whims. 8)
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Continued nice TR Doug. And thanks for taking time to include the pics. I don't know how you find the time and expertise to do this.
But I agree with what some others have said. Stop contacting and spending time with any women who do not meet your criteria regarding age or anything else. You waste your time and their time.
I always told my children . . . don't start any interactions (period) with someone who you know up front would not make a desireable and compatible (in any respect) mate. People start out with these things saying . . . oh it's nothing . . . we are just going for pizza or whatever. Next thing you know, some seriousness develops, a pregnancy develops, a marriage happens between two people who are not suited for each other (in any of a hundred ways), or any such scenario you can think of, etc., etc.. It all starts with that first silly idea of . . . oh we are just friends.
Don't let it get started.
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ML, to me it doesn't smell well when the WM who is on vacations tells me I must do something during my work.
As for "short supply", as soon as you're back to the US you are no longer in short supply. RW figure it out very soon.
BTW, a question: a 69 yo man is looking for a wife. What age range could it be?
I remember I was 43, met 59 yo American and....never saw him again. Too much.
It is 6 years between my husband and I , but he always says he is too old))))
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Don't worry about the age gap. I will let the woman decide that issue. As long as she has all her marbles, I would prefer to take her decision about the subject. I am leaving my options open and want more experience before making a decision. I am not the type to lead someone on, so no need to worry about that either.
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ML, to me it doesn't smell well when the WM who is on vacations tells me I must do something during my work.
As for "short supply", as soon as you're back to the US you are no longer in short supply. RW figure it out very soon.
BTW, a question: a 69 yo man is looking for a wife. What age range could it be?
I remember I was 43, met 59 yo American and....never saw him again. Too much.
It is 6 years between my husband and I , but he always says he is too old))))
Good questions all. Perhaps they are better posted in a separate thread altogether.
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Doll, I would appreciate it if you would take your opinions elsewhere rather than interrupt the TR.
thanks
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Julia2-----
Elena and the interpreter asked what type of woman I am looking for. I thought it a little bit strange but went ahead and described the perfect woman.
A short while later, Elena told me that one of her girlfriends in Donetsk wanted to meet me and asked if it was ok with me. She showed me her photo and of course I said 'sure'. It is a 14 hour train ride from Donetsk so she would not arrive until the next day. Elena also indicated that we could get a military hotel room about 1/4 mile away if I wanted to. She did not have to twist my arm too hard to get me to agree. LOL The cost of the hotel in only 150 grivna per night (less than $20).
Julie2 was to arrive at 0500 hrs the next morning and Roman asked me if I wanted to go with them to pick her up. I agreed, but the next morning I was sleeping so soundly they just let me sleep and they went to pick her up. At about 1000 hrs. the dog barked and woke me up. With one eye open I caught the glimse of a beautiful blond walking past in the hallway. A few seconds later, she returned and said 'good morning'. Still groggy, I wondered if I was having a dream.
It was a great couple of days with Julia2. We slept in the hotel, but spent the days and late into the evenings with the family. We also went mushroom picking. Julia2 has a personality much different than any women I have met from FSU. She is bubbly, happy, and fun to be with. She is also intelligent and supports herself and her 14 year old son.
I though we were going for a short walk to pick mushrooms. What a surprise. We were gone 3.5 hours. The forest was full of others hunting them also. This seems to be an obsession with Ukrainians. The gals in other apartments seem to be out every day as well.
Once we were back home to the flat Irina had a client show up for a manicure and turned the kitchen over to Julia2. One of the photos shows Julia2 in the kitchen and has everything under control. I asked her if she is a good cook and she said she is #1 cook. Watching her take over the kitchen, I can believe it!
I think we brought back about 60 lbs. of mushrooms. It is difficult to understand how the forest can continue to produce so many mushrooms with everyone out picking them constantly.
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Mushroom Picking ------
Some photos of the mushroom picking expedition. We are located in a large pine forest with very little udercover, so it is fairly easy hiking. The soil here is very sandy and easy to cultivate plants.
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Doll, I would appreciate it if you would take your opinions elsewhere rather than interrupt the TR.
thanks
I am not (interrupting). Actually, all the members express their opinions, me too.
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Cal, for your education:
1. you will never (ever) be able to make RW shut up
2.it is a public forum, I am a member of it, so untill banned I will post what and when I want.
Thanks
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Cal, for your education:
1. you will never (ever) be able to make RW shut up
Not quite entirely true, but close enough.. and continuing the education, the most efficient and effective way to guarantee an RW will NOT shut up (and not shut up loudly) is to tell her to shut up.
The best way to deal with questions you don't want to answer is to ignore them..
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Doug, perhaps it would be better to ask the mods to move your TR to the Sans Responses section?
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Not quite entirely true, but close enough.. and continuing the education, the most efficient and effective way to guarantee an RW will NOT shut up (and not shut up loudly) is to tell her to shut up.
Dave, exactly! I would skip this thread but now I am in :D
BTW, now we both (you and I) interrupted the "hunting for mushrooms" TR
Hahahaaaaaaaaaaaa!
(http://s9.rimg.info/ab4dcd0cd657fac758cd1f8e66cf328c.gif) (http://smayliki.ru/smilie-688022343.html)
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Elena had indicated that the English teacher and Headmaster at the primary school (grades 1-9) would like to meet me and perhaps speak to the students. We arranged a meeting and then followed it up with a visit to the school which is very close to the flat I am staying in.
Every student takes English class. The English teacher is the short hair redhead in the photos. A very attractive women. She got married only one month ago and is 30 if I remember correctly. She has a very friendly personality and was a joy to chat with. The kids were very friendly and curious. We went around the room and each child introduced themshelf, told their age, and what occupation they wish to have. Being on a military base, it was not surprising to hear that most of the boys wanted to join the army.
One young man about 14 really stood out. His English was great and he had a personality that will get him far in life. Julia2 and I were in a local market/ restaurant near the flat and this young man came up to me and started talking to me in English. He seemed very happy to talk to a native English speaker. The teacher told me that this boy entered a contest in Cherkassy for English speaking and came in 13th out of 32 contestants.
Also when walking near the flat, the kids that lived in the complex would come up to me and say hello.
The English teacher made a request for me to try and acquire a large wall flag of the US for the school. I guess it's time to contact my congressman to see if there is any strings he can pull to get a free flag to send them.
The blond lady in the leather jacket and skirt is the headmaster of the school and is about 40 yrs.and single. LOL
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More school photos
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Cherkassy Park and Beach ----
Beside the river is a large park and beach.
I was fascinated that the park has exercise equipment including instructions for using each type of equipment.
I think some of our US cities could use this idea.
Also shown in the photos is a river boat making passage down river.
The park is also a popular spot of lovers in the evenings. Since drinking alcohol is forbidden in the park, it seems that most people put their vodka in coke bottles. LOL
Behind the park is a hill called "Glory Hill" unfortunately I do not have a photo of it this year. I believe it is a monument to the men that fought in the great wars.
The photos of two young men on bicycles are of them repairing a flat tire. The boys spoke perfect English and one of them had a flat tire. They were repairing the tube in the photos. It turn out that they compete in tournament frisbee contests as part of the Cherkassy team.
One of the photos is of a sundial created from a birdlike sculpture.
We put Julia2 on the train last night. It will be 14 hours before she is home in Donetsk.
Tomorrow I go back to Kiev for a few days. I will be going on the tour of the missile base before venturing off on my next city.
I have to say that living with a family and experiencing everyday life in their home is a great experience. Seeing how they react to each other, how the children are disciplined, the strange hours that meals are served, etc. is very interesting.
It's nice having a break from US politics and no political advertising on TV.
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More photos from park
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Before moving on to the Kiev trip I thought I would pick up some loose ends about my stay in Cherkassy----
I wanted to bring a gift for the children but had no idea what they would appreciate the most. I asked Eduard to call Andrew while I was in the US. We needed to coordinate when I would arrive in Cherkassy and also I wanted some suggestions as to what the girls might like or need as a gift. Eduard's reply was that Andrew was hesitant to suggest anything as a gift but did mention that Maria was in her first year of college. Having no clue what to bring, I decided to wait until I arrived and try to determine what the girls might be in need of.
During my stay I asked Maria if she had a laptop or tablet to use for her studies. She said 'no, but hoped to have one one day. At last, I now knew what to look for. I had no idea whether I should have my housesitter buy one in the US and send it, or to buy one locally. The whole family including Julia1 went to the large computer store to check out prices and see what Maria might prefer. With the help of Julia1 she, Maria, and Elena picked out a modest nice laptop. The price was about the same as the US prices. I bought the laptop for her and her dad bought a mouse and carrying case. Seeing the sparkle in Maria's eyes was worth it. LOL
At about the same time I learned that 13 year old Dasha was using a hand me down old phone her mother had given her. For about $ 70, I bought Dasha a new smart phone with all the bells and whistles. She has carried it with her ever since.
Not only were the kids very grateful, but the parents are as well since they could not afford to purchase these items for them.
During my stay in Cherkassy, I had the opportunity to discuss the age gap issue with several women including Elena, Julia1, Julia2, and their friends. It is their opinion that it does not matter. If a man and a women love each other, the woman can care less about the age difference. In effect, they said to ignore the age gap haters and go with your heart. While there are practical issues to consider, I am going to take their advice and forget about age differences and see what happens.
The weekend with Julia2 was the hottest weekend with the hottest woman I have ever been with in my life. If nothing else I will have fond memories to remember. LOL. I see why men flock to FSU in search of a wife or lover.
As mentioned earlier, I had the worse head cold in a long time. The Vodka treatment did not seem to work that well. Due to my coughing Roman suggested that I should see a doctor. The images of Ukrainian medical horror stories immediately filled my head. I put him off for a while but finally he insisted. He said he had a good friend that was a doctor and would come to the flat to check me out. I agreed, knowing that it was unlikely that I would loose any vital organs with a visit to the flat. A good looking man about the same age as Roman showed up around noon. I think they were both on lunch break from their army duties. The doctor brought a metal box that looked like something you would find in the trenches of WWII. Inside was a blood pressure monitor (pneumatic) instrument. After several minutes of trying to hold my mouth open without gagging, and much probing of my chest with a stethoscope, he finally took my blood pressure. When he was all done, he indicated that I had high blood pressure. I indicated that I take blood pressure medication, but had not been doing so. After a scolding about not taking it as well as a lecture about smoking he decided that I needed to take medication to get rid of the cold/flu. In the evening Roman showed up with some awfully smelling nose drops, some cough syrup that wasn't too bad, and two types of prescription pills for me to take 3 times a day. Since everything on the meds is in Russian, I had no clue about any bad interaction with my normal meds. What the hell, I was so miserable that I gave it a go anyway. After several days, the cold is nearly gone and I feel nearly normal again.
Smoking --- I have yet to find anyone that does not smoke. Men and women! Even if the gals say they do not smoke in their profiles, as soon as I ask if it is OK to have a cigarette, they pull theirs out of their purse and off we go. LOL
Sitting around the table drinking toasts of vodka one evening the family was asking about America and what opportunities are there, etc. On about toast #6 we decided the whole family would come to America and open a Russian/Ukraine restaurant. Kate is a professional cook, Elena and Maria are great cooks. Funny how some drinking can create dreams.
I had a conversation with Julia1 about dating, sex customs, etc. It was awkward talking to a 19 year old about this topic but she is very open and willing to discuss anything. I asked about the use of sex toys by Ukraine women. Her response was that she could not ever imaging using one and did not know any women that do. She then responded with "Why would I need a sex toy, I can call a man any time I need to". I guess that pretty well sums it up. I was also curious what methods are used by women for birth control and she responded that women use many methods including the 'pill'.
Seat belts --- No one seems to wear seat belts. That is scary considering the madness of how they drive. LOL
The minibuses can go from 1.5 - 3.0 hours without a rest stop and there are no toilets on the bus. Going to the toilet before departing is mandatory.
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Some photos of visit #2 to Ultra Club in Cherkassy. This time have Julia2 and a different girlfriend of Maria. I learned that the age to get into clubs is 18 and they can drink beer but not hard liquor. I also learned that they ignore the law. LOL.
Julia2 got busy with making flowers from the table napkins.
Next installment.... back to Kiev.
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Back to Kiev ---
Elena, Julia1, and Maria put me on the bus in Cherkassy and off I go. The ride was nearly identical to the trip coming the other direction. The only difference was the rest stop used on this trip had very clean rest rooms.
I had called Val in the morning and told him I needed a flat near Independence Square for $70 or less. As usual, he said no problem and I gave him my expected arrival time at the bus terminal (next to the train station) in Kiev.
As Val and I were entering the apartment complex a guy outside was asking if we were 62. Val blew him off and we went inside to enter the elevator. Two good looking women started to come out of the elevator and then the doors closed. We waited a minute or so and the elevator returned and the women got out. They asked Val something and he blew them off. Out of earshot he said something about prostitutes, probably from apartment 62. He is a really funny guy to talk to.
After getting settled in the apartment, I was too tired to try and get my bearings but Val told me I was only a few blocks from where I stayed before. I did manage to get my laundry done and hung out on the balcony to dry before going to bed.
After fiddling with the TV for a while I found some English channels and listened to world news for a while.
I am on the 9th floor overlooking the statue of Stalin. I think I am close to Independence Square. In the morning I will get the GPS fired up on the tablet and see exactly where I am.
These washing machines remind me of toys. Something you might find on a sailboat or a motorhome. Of course there are no clothes dryers anywhere.
I contacted L and she said she would call me the next day.
Lights out for tonight.
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I woke up this morning after a good nights sleep, only one in the apartment rather than 8. My laundry was dry on the balcony and I needed to figure out where I was. A few minutes on the GPS and I discovered that I was only a few blocks from one of the apartments I had stayed in earlier. Also, I am only a couple of blocks from my favorite buffet restaurant.
It is interesting to watch the electric trolley buses below the apartment. I was raised in Seattle and most of the city used trolley buses. I can remember many times when the trolleys came off the wires and the driver had to get out of the bus and pull on the cords to get them properly back on the wires.
A little skulking around in the underground and it was no problem to find my way to the buffet for breakfast. I also contacted a friend of mine that lives in Tuscon half the year and half the year in Kiev. We have never met in person but have been on skype for over a year. Fortunately he is in Kiev at this time so we plan to hook up within the next few days.
L called during the day and said she would be free after 1530 hrs and she wanted to take me to one of the sites. She knows that I am interested in military history and suggested that we go to the Memorial Complex (National Museum of the History of the Great Patriotic War of 1941-1945).
She showed up at my apartment in her little car and off we went. I forgot how this woman can drive. For such a tiny little thing plowing through traffic just like the cab drivers and most everyone else. I DID wear my seat belt. Also, she has a stick shift and handles the starting and stopping on hills like a pro. She would have no problem driving in Seattle or L.A.
We arrived at the museum late and had to rush to see most things. The place is deceptively huge inside. I don't remember the fee to get inside but it is very nominal. We rushed through the exhibits and I plan to return earlier in the day to spend more time. At the place where you buy tickets for entrance there are various books for sale. There is one in English for around $12 that is a great bargain and full of photos as well as a little history about Ukraine's point of view of the war.
The photos inside the museum did not turn out well. I would suggest anyone that wants to take photos of the exhibits take a camera that has a very strong flash. My little digital camera just doesn't cut it with low lighting.
After the tour, I had a list of things I needed to pick up for the apartment and L took me to the various stores to find the items. I had been looking for a flower shop earlier and ran out of time before she arrived. After shopping we dropped off the items at the apartment and walked to the buffet. As usual, the food was very good. It was the first time that I had eaten the little ravioli like items that were filled with cherries. I think the word starts with a V but it is late and I am too lazy to look it up.
After dinner we went shoppong again and I was led by a flower shop. LOL. Aren't women clever?
After buying the roses, L beamed with a big smile and we departed. Her mom called her and reminded her that she was babysitting her son and would like her to come home. We said goodnight and she asked me to chat with her on Skype after she gets home.
I will be gone from Kiev all day tomorrow on the tour of the Soviet Missile Complex so we probably won't meet up until the following day. There is another site she wants to take me to that involves many aircraft, but the translation was poor in her message, so I will wait until we meet again to see where the next journey takes us.
We have lightning, thunder, and rain at the moment and it is time to shower and hit the sack!
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More museum photos
Also hops (for beer) growing outside the museum. I see this everywhere. Does anyone make home brew from them?
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For the pilots in the crowd..... check out this cockpit. Imagine how busy you would be with this many controls and instruments.
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The past couple of days have been quiet. It has been raining and mornings are blanketed with thick fog,
Yesterday I was scheduled to take the missile tour and it turned into a SNAFU. I waited at the designated pickup point for an hour and no one showed up. I even had a policeman and the hotel staff verify that I was in the correct location. The tour company claimed they were there and did not see me. Not likely, I was the only one standing around. Since it was raining I suspect that either the tour company or the original tour group cancelled and they failed to notify me. As Val would say "Welcome to Ukraine". I am rather annoyed since I changed my schedule to accommodate the tour. In talking to Val, he said that the tours of the facility is an open museum and the tour company simply organizes the transportation. I might see how much Val would charge to take me there and interpret for me.
Yesterday my friend and I took her daughter to see the dolphin show in Kiev. It was a nice show and also included trained seals doing all kinds of tricks, etc.
It is foggy and gloomy this morning so not sure what I am going to do today. I am considering extending my stay in Kiev for a few more days before moving on to the next destination.
From the 9Th floor it is interesting to watch the crazy traffic below. 3 lanes of traffic make a right turn onto another street and the right hand lane is blocked with parked cars so the right hand lane discovers that there is no lane to turn into. Sort of mass chaos but somehow they manage to merge with a lot of horn honking and gestures. Surprisingly no road rage! This would never do in L.A.
I also notice that the cop cars seem to run around with their blue strobe lights on all the time. Another thing that is new to me is the traffic lights change from red, to amber, then green. In America, I have not seen this. Also, some of the pedestrian signals have a digital clock counting down and a ticking sound to indicate how much time is left to cross the street. Not a bad idea considering the fate of a pedestrian caught in the intersection.
The platonic relationship with L. has been a real joy. We seem to enjoy each others company and her daughter is a sweetheart. For those that did not read me earlier intro, I am not on a sex tourist expedition and any age difference is irrelevant. I get along well with people of all ages and this is no exception. It's also nice to have an attractive woman to show you the sites around Kiev. I am yet to enjoy her culinary arts, but she has indicated that she wants to make borscht for me. I order it every time we go to the buffet.
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Well it finally happened! L, myself and her daughter were sitting in my flat and we heard a loud bang. In looking outside from the balcony, it appeared that 3 cars came together simultaneously in the middle of the intersection. The scenerio that followed was very similar to California. Although there appeared to be no injuries, it took about a dozen cops to handle the situation including directing traffic manually.
Seeing 3 lanes merge into one was somewhat comical. Additionally, a trolley bus had to make a very sharp turn to make a right turn and avoid the wrecks. His trolley came off the wires which then blocked the only lane of traffic. The horn honking and seeing the frustration of the drivers was interesting to watch.
When I lived in Washington State, the cops would have had the cars either pushed onto the sidewalk or over a cliff in order to restore traffic quickly. Not here, this is much like L.A. A dozen cops to assess the situation for an hour or two while traffic is blocked.
It's been 2 hours and 2 of the 3 cars are still in the intersection. It appears that they may be be abandoned now. There is no one around the cars and the cops are gone. All that remains are traffic cones around the wrecks. Are there no tow trucks in KIiev? As you can tell, sometimes I can be easily entertained. LOL.
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I am loosing track of time, but I believe it was Thursday that started out dreary, foggy. L. sent me a text and suggested that we 'watch airplanes' today. Immediately brought to mind my teenage years of 'watching the submarine races', but that is not what she had in mind.
As usual, I am not quite sure where we are going but she has trained me to bring the tablet translator, my coat, and umbrella. It turns out she meant we would go the Aircraft Museum. It is well worth the inexpensive price for admission.
I will only post a few photos out of the hundreds I took. There is just about every kind of aircraft from the FSU on display. I was particularly interested in the experimental, helicopters, missile carrying planes, and the cruise missiles.
My favorite is an experimental aircraft that is near the beginning of the photos. Unfortunately, the photo of the information plaque did not turn out. It listed the performance characteristics and the inventor's name. It is a twin propeller plane and appears quite light. I can only surmise that it uses a single engine in the fuselage and somehow transmits the power out the wings to the props via shafts and gears. I might make another trip just to see this plane again.
There was a small red and white building that should not be overlooked if you are taking the tour. It is easily missed if you are not aware of it. It is actually a book store and they have English books and information about the museum.
There is a very good display of a jet engine. It has been machined in a cutaway view and anyone that knows jet engines can figure out the components and their functions.
Being a helicopter pilot, I was interested about the controls on a Soviet built unit. I discovered that the collective, cyclic, power (throttle), and anti-torque pedals are identical to American made helicopters.
All in all, a nice day.
A cute sidenote…. When walking, the 4 year old took L’s hand and put it in mine. I think the 4 year old is less shy than her mother. LOL
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More photos from the Aircraft Museum.
Note the retired officer giving a class of children a guided tour.
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About a year ago one of my high school buddies sent me an email when he heard I was going wife hunting in Ukraine. He suggested I contact a friend of his in Tuscon, Az and get the inside poop on RUA dating. His name is Bob and he owns an apartment in Kiev and spends about 1/2 of the year in Kiev and the rest in Tuscon and his ranch in Colorado. During the past year we had never met in person, only frequent Skype calls. His only advice was actually a question.... Why would you want to marry one? Just enjoy their company. LOL
On Friday Bob invited me to dinner at his apartment in Kiev. Wow! what an apartment. It is on the top floor of a very tall, modern apartment building. I knew that he has a full time personal assistant and cook, but had no idea they would be preparing dinner and co-hosting the evening. The dinner was fantastic. He also invited a good friend of his named George, also from the USA. It was a very enjoyable evening and nice to finally get to meet in person. As I suggested earlier, there is nothing like networking to make friends and meet people.
I took a taxi to get to his apartment, but decided to walk back to my apartment. Fortunately it was mostly downhill. Nevertheless, walking about 1.5 miles was felt in my legs the next morning. As much walking I have done the past month I was surprised that I felt the pain.
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Sunday....
Another gloomy, rainy day in Kiev. I tried to find out what L. wanted to do today and got all kinds of garbled translations. She initially said she would be available in 3 hours after her mom got home to babysit. After that I did not have a clue what she was saying. Finally after several attempts she sent an email that I could understand (mostly).
Here it is.....
My son was riding with a friend on the subway home yesterday at 9:30 he was approached by a man wearing glasses and punched him in the nose and fled. I was with my son in the hospital until 1 in the morning. Then at night we came to the police took statements from her son and his friend. A friend's son spent the night with us, since it was too late to go home, militsyya left for 3-30 nights. The son of a broken nose.
I have no idea what the bold part of the statement means, but it was enough to get the gist of the message.
Mom's have their work cut out for them for sure!
At about 3 L called me on my cell and said "I am here". OMG, I was not expecting her and was not ready. I took the elevator down to the street and did not see her. She usually pulls up in her car out front and calls me. This time she was not there and I could not see her parked nearby. I ran back upstairs to the apartment, changed my shirt, brushed me teeth and grabbed my coat, umbrella and tablet translator and headed back down to the street. Just as I opened the umbrella, she came down the sidewalk with her usual smile.
I had no idea what she had in mind for today since it was raining and we had not discussed going anywhere. It turns out she just wanted to be together and chat. We chatted with the tablet translator for about an hour and I started getting messages about the free trial expiring. Our conversations were interrupted by extra messages telling me how many times I have used it, etc and it became an annoyance. We took a break and I researched what it would cost to purchase it. Turns out is was a whopping $2.98. Needless to say, I bought it and we continued our conversation.
It was a real pleasant afternoon. Tomorrow is my last day in Kiev for a least a week. I might ask L if she wants to meet me in Cherkassy in about a week. I have several stops to make before going back to Cherkassy to say goodbye to my friends. We will see what surprises tomorrow brings.
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Monday Oct 1,
Before leaving Kiev tomorrow for about a week I thought I would add some odds and ends that did not fit earlier.
First to identify the location of my apartment and comments about the area.
The apartment is located at 2 Shevchenko Blvd. It is on the corner of Shevchenko and Khreschatyk St.
It is a about a 10 minute walk to Independence Square. Within 2 blocks of the apartment is the Arena (a one block large building housing entertainment, bars, stores and the Mandrin Plaza which houses a large supermarket at the lower level, Also T.G.I. Fridays is within a block and my favorite buffet restaurant Puzata Khata. Directly across the street from the apartment is Billa, a 24 hour supermarket very popular among the locals at all hours of the day and night. It is housed in another very large building that consumes one city block. Inside the building is a huge open market that sells all kinds of produce, meats, fish and other items of food. It also houses the best, most economical flower shop I found.
I have previously stayed within a few blocks of Independence Square, however I actually prefer this location for all it has to offer.
A few words I have picked up
Machine.... a car.
Stoy......... stop immediately (used to tell your child a car is coming and do not move)
These security guys are taking things a little bit far. I was trying to get a photo of the entrance to the Mandrin Plaza and he came over and covered my camera. A bit much that you can't take a photo from the sidewalk.
A tip about buying flowers. When I purchased flowers the first time, it was at a booth at the entrance to the supermarket inside the Mandrin Plaza. They were 60 grivna each. I later found a flower booth inside the large open farmers market inside the large building called Bessarabskyi Market. The price was 30 grivna each for long stem roses and one morning a cheerfull sales gal said, just for you they are 25 grivna today. It pays to be friendly with the merchants. LOL
A tip about taxi fares. When my friend Bob invited me over for dinner he suggested that the cab fare should be 30 grivna but they might try to get 40 or more out of me being a foreigner. That at least gave me a target price to keep in mind.
When I got to the street level below my apartment, I asked the first driver if he would take me to the address on my cell phone he said NO, 50 grivna. I walked away and looked for another cab. I asked him the same question and he said "no worry, I am English speaking driver" and accepted the 30 grivna price.
Don't ever, ever, get distracted or take your eyes off the traffic when crossing the street. The drivers seem to play a game of chicken with pedestrians. Seeing many babushkas telling off the drivers is sort of funny except that there were only inches short of a disaster.
There appears to be no law enforced about public drinking. Across the street, in front of Billas there is an open area that many people spend their evening drinking, chatting, and listening to a solo guitar player playing to the public. There is also an upscale outdoor restaurant in the middle of the area where you can have a beer or a meal and watch the locals.
I had no problem with safety, however I did witness several drunk teenagers during the day and evening that looked like they might be looking for trouble. The best way I found to avoid trouble is to not look at them and walk on past. No one ever approached me other than those asking for directions and those asking to bum a cigarette.
In general I found the public to be very friendly once you have some dialogue of some kind with them. Approaching a women and asking "do you speak a LITTLE English?" usually gets a positive response and they are very willing to help you if they can.
I never saw any hookers wandering the streets however there are men that hand out cards with phone numbers to anyone that will take them.
I want to also make another recommendation for the personal services of Val. He is fabulous at getting you an apartment as well as booking your train and bus trips. His service of taking you to the bus station or train station includes making sure you get on the right bus/train, getting the ETA at the destination, etc. You can also call him in advance and he will get an apartment for you closest to your requirements. His fees are very nominal and well worth it. His phone number is +38 067 2332353
Tomorrow I head off to Nikolaev to see my nurse friend that I have known for over a year. I had promised her a Pimsluer Russian/English course a long time ago and finally want to deliver the gift. From there I am not sure where I will go before ending up in Cherkassy again.
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Monday Oct1
I woke up this morning feeling refreshed after a good night sleep. I am so happy the head cold is finally gone completely.
L called and gave me 10 minutes to get ready for our daily outing. She informed me we were going to Babi Yar. I did not have a clue what it was but it became apparent once we got there. Babi Yar is a large park that holds a monument to the 100,000 Russians, Jews, Gypsy's and others that were murdered in Kiev by the Germans in WWII.
L told me that there was a flood at one time and bones were floating in the streets. In the photos you can see the deep pits where the bodies were buried. A class of students was accompanied by their teacher and were touring the memorial when we were there.
From this site we visited 2 other parks. I don't know the names of them but they are huge. I have no idea how many miles we walked, but it amazes me that a 4 year old can seem to go forever. I think I will call her the Energizer Bunny.
At one of the parks, they rent electric cars for the kids to ride for about 15 grivna. The little one was raring to go. As you can tell in the photos she figured out where the gas pedal was (to the metal), but has not yet figured out the steering and watching where she is going. The two guys that rent them were standing in the middle of the area and took their life in their hands as two kids were trying to run them over.
All in all, I am very impressed with the parks in Ukraine. They are very well attended by the locals and you will find old folks as well a young lovers spending their leisure time there. The only thing derogatory, is that some of the locals leave a lot of trash on the pathways. There are trash cans everywhere, yet some people are too lazy to use them.
I also was driven by L's University where she obtained her double masters degree. It was called the Ukraine National Agrarian University and since has had the name changed to University of Life and Water Agronomy. It is also the university that her mother was a professor for many years. Her 19 year old son is currently attending the same university.
After returning to my flat, L brought out a photo album of her family photos going back to childhood. She was a good looking gal back then as well. I had told L that I wanted to copy all of our photos to a CD for her to have so we lit off for dinner at the buffet and stopped and bought blank CD's. We had a nice chat while her daughter watched TV. Val showed up with my train ticket so I was set to go the next day.
I included a photo of the little juice cartons meant for kids. I think it is quite clever that they include the straw with the package. No fuss, no muss, all mom has to do is push the straw through the foil hole and it is near spill proof.
As L and daughter was putting on their shoes to leave, L broke out in laughter. I asked her what was so funny. She said her daughter thought they should move into my flat and live together. The mind of a 4 year old. It reminds me of the old Art Linkletter show on TV where kids come up with the most embarrassing comments and questions.
L has been a real peach. She has asked for nothing. No gold digger here. She is also very intelligent and best of all always has a smile and a pleasant personality. What a huge difference from my previous experience last year.
She is planning to drive to the train station tomorrow to see me off. Hopefully daughter will also be there. A last minute email from her late in the evening asked the question "what are the responsibilities to be your wife in the US?"
Hmmm! I'll have to think about that whole scenario over the next week or so before leaving for the US.
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More photos from the memorial and parks
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It's Tuesday morning and I am scrambling around the apartment trying to get packed and also book an apartment in Nikolaev on line. No success, the time it takes for them to respond does not look like I will get an apartment booked before I leave. Well, I have read many TR's about guys going off on their own without any plans so I guess I will give it a try as well. LOL
Val said that all the overnight trains were suspended so he got me a train ticket for a 12:26 departure from Kiev and a 22:21 arrival in Nikolaev. L had indicated that she would meet me at the train station. She had looked at my ticket earlier, so I hoped she would be able to find me. Val's driver picked me up exactly on time and the fee was supposed to be 100 grivna. He told me that to escort me to the train would be another 40 grivna (because he speaks good English and is worth more). Oh well, for $5 its certainly worth it. We arrived 20 minutes before the train departure and went to the waiting train. L was no where in sight so I called her on the cell and let the driver talk to her to see if she was coming. She told him that she was running late but is on the way. 7 minutes before departure I see L and her little daughter running down the sidewalk toward us. She was winded and explained that every traffic light was red and she had to drive like crazy to get there (her normal driving habit). The little one seemed to not be tired of the run at all. This little Energizer Bunny has more energy than any kid I know. We said goodbye and waved and blew kisses as the train departed. The little one and L ran alongside the train as it started off. The little one has a habit of giving me the thumbs up and even takes her moms hand and forces her to do the same. How cute!
Prior to departure, while getting my luggage put away in the compartment, there was a man and women that came into the compartment and stashed their luggage. The man told me that the woman was his wife. OK, I assumed that I would be traveling with a man and woman in the compartment. Just prior to departure the man left the train and waved goodbye to her.
I will share the details of the trip because it is a good illustration of the hesitancy to talk to foreigners, yet the openness and friendliness once the ice is broken. The woman's name is Sveta.
We had no conversation for about an hour into the trip. I was trying to make a call on my cell and kept getting a 'service not available' message. Sveta was on the phone intermittently the whole time. I finally asked her if she had Kievstar. She said yes. We then shared some information about the cell phone service in somewhat broken English. After about another 1/2 hour she got out her bag of groceries and asked me if I would like to eat. I accepted, and she cut a sausage and a offered a flat like bread. She also had a bag of small tomatoes and other vegetables. I noticed that she put the sausage onto the flat bread and wrapped it up. I did the same. She then offered the tomatoes and suggested I try them. They were great. She said that they were from her dacha.
As the conversation continued, she started speaking in near perfect English as we discussed our respective lives. She and her husband are both medical doctors. Her husband is still practicing medicine however a few years ago, she went back to school. I asked her what her profession was now, and she said she is a policeman. That's great, I have no worries on this train. The lady likes me and is a cop to boot. LOL
Well, not quite. She is a DNA expert and works for the police department. After much more conversation I learned that she is in some kind of management role over all the DNA laboratories in Ukraine. The training of all the DNA analysts are done in the US (Denver) and the Denver facility makes visits to the Ukraine laboratories about 2 times a year. Sveta was on her first trip to Nikolaev. They had just opened a new lab in Nikolaev and she was going there to inspect and audit the lab and its procedures. She indicated that she is the only one in this position and audits all of the labs in Ukraine. An interesting statistic she wanted me to understand was that Denver has about 500,000 people and has 35 DNA experts. In all of Ukraine of 46 million people there are only 8 labs and only 25 DNA experts. I also asked how many years she had to go to school to be a doctor and forensic expert. She said about 8 years total.
I asked her if her family goes to the dacha every holiday as I have heard is the custom in Ukraine. She said yes, and indicated there are 3 buildings on the property and in the summer her parents live at the dacha.
Sveta has a 23 year old son that is studying International Economics and also has a 6 year old just starting school. She kept offering to feed me. Once you befriend a Ukrainian, their hospitality is unreal. At one point on the trip we were 45 minutes behind time. She kept checking the schedule for the next stop so that she could have a cigarette. Finally, she joined me in the noisy connection compartment between the carriages and we would sneak out and have a smoke together. You are not supposed to smoke on Ukrainian trains, but I caught the female attendant having a smoke and she gestured to just put the cigarette ashes and butt through the hole that goes onto the tracks.
We reached a stop at the city of Dolinskaya. It was a 20 minute stop so I had time to go to a small market alongside the station and get some refreshments. While there I noticed we had lost our electric locomotive and a diesel unit came up and replaced it. It was too dark to see if the electric wires were no longer overhead, but I suspect that this may be the end of the electrified portion of the route.
We arrived in Nikolaev about 22:15 right on time. The train made up the 45 minute deficit we had accumulated earlier. The train station is unlike the other ones I have arrived at. Usually there are taxi cabs swarming around you. Not here. In fact it was difficult (at night) to tell which direction to go to find a cab. I decided to follow the majority of the crowd. It was necessary to walk about a city block before you can cross the tracks and get into a parking lot. On the way, there was a middle age lady with a younger women that was holding a child. Also a young man about 13. I asked if anyone spoke a little English. The Ukrainian woman knew no English, the younger gal knew very little and the young man seemed to know more. The younger gal indicated that she was Italian and her baby was Italian. Between the 3 of them they made a joke about an American, a Ukrainian, and an Italian, and we all were different languages. The Italian gal finally said to come with them to her friend, the taxi driver. I followed them to the parking lot and her taxi friend. The taxi driver did not know much English however I finally got it across that I needed a hotel room somewhere downtown. They pointed to another taxi that was sitting idle so I went over to see him. He knew absolutely no English. I was getting no where fast. The other taxi pulled up and everyone piled out to assist. With the help of the other taxi driver and the women, they apparently conveyed to him that I needed a hotel room. Off I went with the taxi to who knows where. LOL
As we meandered through the streets I saw no signs of a city center. I was beginning to wonder where he was taking me. I called Julia2 in Cherkassy and this time she answered the phone. I explained the situation and she said to hand the phone to the driver. After some conversation between the two he handed the phone back to me and Julia2 told me that he was taking me to a nice hotel on the bank of the river. Great, it seems my helpers at the train station did understand my messages. We arrived at a nice hotel but they had no rooms available. They suggested the Hotel Tourist nearby. They had rooms and a single was only 280 grivna ($35). A lot better than the $70-$100 per night in Kiev. It was a sparse, small room but adequate for an overnight stay.
Upon awakening, my first priority was to find an apartment. I searched on-line and of all the ones I looked at http://www.cometonikolaev.com was the one I chose. Using the real time chat window I was in contact with an agent. He found me an apartment for less than my limit $50 and arranged for the manager to pick me up from the hotel and get me situated in the apartment. The internet did not work, however the manager returned a couple hours later and fixed the problem (service provider). So far I have not found it nearly as friendly as Kiev. I asked about 6 gals for directions to McDonalds and all I got was stares and grunts. BTW, McDonalds is closed. It is undergoing major renovation. An employee near the work site said that it will reopen December 1. I am paid up for 2 nights. Whether I stay longer will depend on how much I enjoy the city and the city.
Thinks got a little better in the friendly department. I was walking back from a supermarket and wanted to find a larger market that has either Pepsi Light or Diet Coke. I asked a redhead at a corner about a supermarket and it was clear that she did not understand me. Two other gals standing nearby overheard me and asked ‘can I help you’? They said that there is no larger market nearby and I would have to take a taxi to one. Maybe things are better than my first impression.
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Friendliness is improving. I was ready to turn in for the night and while on the balcony, I heard women's voices in the courtyard below. Just for the hell of it I decided to go down and have a smoke and see who was there. There were two young women sitting at a picnic table chatting. I asked them if either knew English. One gal said a little bit of English. Her friend had to go home (she was married) so the other gal and I chatted (sort of). They had both been drinking Vodka for quite a while. It was a little difficult understanding the remaining gal, but she asked if I drink Vodka. I said yes, and she proceeded to pour me a triple shot and one for herself. Her speech was already slurred, but we went on to chat for a while. I learned that she was 20 and lived in one of the apartments with her parents. She also works from 0800 Hrs to 2100 Hrs at some business. I have no idea how they can get up in the morning after drinking a bottle of Vodka until 23:30 hours, but somehow they must do so. LOL
She isn't my type but it was interesting to chat with her. I made my escape while she was cleaning up the mess they had made of the table (sunflower seeds, etc). Once the ice is broken, it seems that people are generally friendly. But trying to start a conversation on the street is useless. It takes some setting where they are relaxed and do not feel threatened I guess.
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Yesterday (Thursday) was so event filled it is difficult to remember all that occurred.
To start the day off I got two great examples of Ukrainian service.... NOT!
First thing I wanted to do was get some breakfast. I had hoped to sit at the outdoor cafe on Velyka Morska and watch the pedestrians while I enjoy the fruit filled pancakes.
The first thing to realize is that it can take 10 minutes before anyone comes to wait on you even though you are in plain sight. The waitress knew no English but indicated that my selection was not available on the menu. Based on the photos, I chose the next best thing that appeared to be an open omelet with meat. It was available. Next thing was asking for an ash tray which she did not understand. Making a smoking gesture, she finally got it and after another 10 minutes she brought one. I watched this gal for over 30 minutes and she never talked to any customers and was 100% business with minimal communication with everyone. She never had any expression on her face and never cracked a smile the whole time. Reminds me of what someone in a forced labor camp might be like. The male waiter was not much happier about his job either. He intitally went to get me an ashtray and ended up dropping it on the concrete and had to clean it up as well as wait on another customer. The female came back with the ashtray. I hope these folks have a better social life at home than they display on the job! Waiting for the check takes them at least 10 minutes and another 5-10 minutes to get your change. Just for grins, I thought I would leave a large tip to see if it improved her disposition....Nope! Not a smile or a thank you. Anyone stopping for a cup of coffee should expect it to be a 1/2 hour endeavor.
The second instance of their great service was when I was looking for soap for washing my clothes. I went to a smaller market I had been to the day before that had an English speaking young woman. When I arrived, there were two women holding the door part way open. I said 'excuse me' wanting to pass them and enter the store. They were smoking a cigarette and one of the women told me '3 minutes please'. I assumed that they were counting cash inside or something that they needed to close the store for a few minutes. Nope...... I had to wait until they finished their cigarettes before I could enter the store. LOL
My friend Sveta lives in Nikolaev and it was the primary reason I came here. When in Kiev she said to call her whenever I arrived in Nikolaev. Unfortunately she did not respond to my SMS messages or Emails and I was beginning to think I would not hear from her before I was scheduled to leave on Friday, the following day. The apartment manager indicated that if I wanted to extend my stay, I would have to switch apartments. I had decided to leave on Friday as planned at 1 p.m. as the manager had arranged. I already had booked a room at the hotel in Berdyansk for Friday night although I had no idea how I was going to get there.
Sveta is recovering from a car accident and had been in the hospital when I was in the US but was getting daily treatment at the hospital for her recovery. At around noon, she finally answered my SMS and wanted to know where I was. She explained that she had been sleeping the day before when I sent her the SMS and she did not understand that I was already in Nikolaev. At any rate she was busy all day at the hospitals and would be free in the evening.
At this point, I had not seen any sights in Nikolaev and decided to go to the zoo as it is touted to be the best zoo in all of Europe. When at the store I took advantage of the woman that speaks English and inquired about where the zoo is and how to get there. She said to take a taxi and it should be no more than 30 grivna. Great, now to find a taxi that speaks English. Not easy to do here. The first taxi driver that understood (with some difficulty) wanted 50 grivna. The money was not a big issue for me, but getting taken advantage of is an issue. I refused and continued looking for another taxi that was not so greedy. After going through this same exercise several times, I found a taxi driver that with the help of another driver finally understood I wanted to go to the zoo. It would have been easier if I had known to say that I wanted to go to the park rather than the zoo. I offered the guy 40 grivna and he was very happy to take me. Still no English, but he smiled and was clearly friendly.
A tip for newbies.... the taxis that are new and modern can charge up to 2X the price of the Lada clunkers. For me, if I am only going a few miles or less, I don't really care. Might as well take the Lada taxi, they have always got me there. For longer journeys, particularly if I have my luggage with me, the extra for a more modern taxi is worth the extra money.
A good example of this occurred last year when Irina and I arrived in Mariupol after a train ride from Cherkassy. Irina went to a taxi in the parking lot and asked the cost to go to Primorsk. It is a ride of 2-3 hours. The first driver quoted her a price she did not like and she then walked to another taxi and asked him. His price was 1/2 the price of the first taxi and a modern car also. It was a nice ride and no reason to have paid 2X the money for the same thing. Just a tip for how to deal with the taxis.
Upon leaving the zoo there were no taxis nearby and very few driving down the busy street. There were a lot of packed buses, but I had no clue what bus to take and did not want to hold up a bus driver trying to explain in English if this was the correct bus. I finally walked a few blocks to what looked like a busy intersection. There were 2 taxis waiting so I approached one of them. A very large guy with his beat up Lada taxi. He did not understand my request, so went to the other taxi driver and between the two of them, they deciphered the address of my apartment that I had stored on my cell phone. A good idea to always carry your address with you at all times. I offered him 40 grivna for the trip. He said no, 30 grivna as he wrote 30 in the dust of the hood of his car. Great, a taxi driver that is not greedy. LOL It was comical watching this huge guy get into the drivers seat.
Sveta (nurse) called me on the cell about 6 p.m. and wanted to meet. She said she lives about 1/2 hour drive from city center and wanted to know if I would help with cab fare. I told her no problem. She had a hard time finding the apartment so we met at the McDonald's under construction. I had bought flowers for her earlier in the day hoping I would get to finally meet her in person before leaving on Friday. We got in her cab and she said we were going to pick up her girlfriend from her work and she would join us. Reasonable, I suspect as a safety measure for a first meeting. She suggested we go to a quiet place to talk and have something to drink. Her English was very good. She indicated that since the accident, she has been studying English at home during her recovery. In two months she knows English well enough to carry on a conversation. I was surprised. I had promised to bring her a Pimsleur English course many months ago.
We went to a nice restaurant that she said was a Georgian atmosphere. I know nothing about Georgia but the place had small rooms with drapes across the entrances for privacy. We ended up in a larger room with a glass table. The waiter asked about drinks and I asked Sveta if she drinks Vodka. She said she prefers Tequila. We ordered Tequila for the both of us and the girlfriend ordered American whiskey. It also was a surprise that she smoked. She said she started after the accident. In fact both gals smoked. We ordered appetizers and we were shooting tequila shots and making toasts until we left. With all the food and drinks I was surprised that the total bill was only $70. The prices of Jose Guervo on the menu were from $ 100 to $ 600 per liter. Seemed outrageous to me. LOL
After dinner we took a taxi to the apartment so that I could give her the language gift and say goodnight. She was a little upset that I did not stay for the weekend, but I had already made reservations in Berdyansk and had to be out of the apartment at 1 p.m. the next day. The night ended with a very warm kiss. I gave her taxi fare to take her home
Friday morning, I got an email from one of the gals I hoped to meet. She had not read her emails for a few days and was disappointed that I was leaving and hoped to meet before I go. We will see....
Friday morning's task was to figure out how I was going to get from Nikolaev to Berdyansk. I already knew there was no practical train routes between the two cities. I was unable to find anything on line about the bus schedules, yet I knew that Irina takes a bus from Primorsk to Odessa to purchase goods for her store. I finally contacted Demetre on cometoukraine.com. He looked up the bus schedule and the departure times were 7:05 pm 8:50 pm and 10:30 pm. I was to be out of the apartment at 1:00 p.m. so this left a problem of what to do for those hours. Of particular concern is that I would have all my luggage with me and it is not practical to walk around town with all that in tow. The apartment manager called and asked about my departure. I requested an extension until 6:00 p.m. He said OK and he will meet me at the apartment to get the key and then drive me to the bus station. Great, that problem is solved.
Having a few hours before departure would give me time to wash my underwear which was now getting to the bottom of the stock of clean ones. This led to the next challenge! The apartment has a clothes washer but no place to hang them to dry. I decided to get them washed and then try and find a solution to dry them. I placed the underwear in the washer. I still had not found any washer soap, so put in a little dishsoap hoping that it would be OK. The washer ran for a little bit and then stopped. Furthermore, the door would not open. My clothes were trapped in a foreign machine with no English instructions!! After several minutes of screwing around with all the knobs and banging on the door, it finally opened. I took the clothes out and they were dripping wet. The machine had apparently not done a wringer cycle. At this point I was not going to risk loosing them in this machine again, so I washed them by hand
in the kitchen sink.
Now the problem was figuring out how to dry them in the 3 hours left at the apartment. I had previously discovered 3 ways to dry clothes in an apartment without a clothes dryer. Last year, Irina held my underwear over a gas kitchen stove when we were in Kiev. It was time consuming but it worked. When in Cherkassy a few weeks ago, I observed Maria drying her jeans with a hair dryer just before we departed for the night club. Of course, the obvious way was to hang them out, but there were no clotheslines outside the balcony at this apartment. Time to improvise. There was no hair dryer at this apartment, so that is out. There is an ironing board and iron however. I figured that a steam iron gets them wet and they still are dry when done, so why not try that. Well, that did not work very well. It made hot wet clothes. LOL Finally, I hung them over the stove and turned all the burners on. Isn't it amazing how the knobs and handles on the cupboards are placed so that your clothes can never hang properly to dry? I finally found a few clothes pins and hung them above the fire on the stove. It seems to we working better than the iron method. As long as they do not catch on fire, I will be OK.
This is a real pain in the ass. Perhaps the more experienced can give some clues of better ways to take care of drying clothes when you are unable to hang them out on a clothes line.
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Friday evening. Departure from Nikolaev.
My last deed in Nikolaev was to get a bite to eat and be back at the apartment by 6:30 p.m. for my ride to the bus station.
I went to my favorite outdoor cafe and hoped I could be out of there in less than an hour. It was 5:30 and I thought I had a good chance. I noticed that the unfriendly waitress from the day before was much livelier today. When I signaled for her to wait on me she pointed to another waitress that I had not seen before. Guess what? She must have inherited the sluggishness of the other one during the night. LOL
I ordered the pancakes again and again was told they are not available. I selected an innocent looking Pizza from the photos and requested black chie (tea) and an ashtray. The ashtray arrived in about 10 minutes and the tea arrived in about 15 minutes. I already knew that you don't get a teapot with hot water, only one 3/4 filled cup of hot water and a tea bag. I was wondering how long it would take for the pizza because I wanted to drink the tea with the pizza, not before.
The pizza finally arrived in 40 minutes. I asked for the check when she brought the pizza because I had to eat it, pay the check, and be back at the apartment by 6:30. In spite of asking for the check several times all I got was a stare back and a nod. After wolfing down the pizza I finally got up to go inside and ask for my check. She did not have it but told me the price. I quickly paid her and out of the change handed her a 5 grivna tip. She actually smiled and said thank you. Amazing, I finally got an expression out of one of them other than a frown. LOL
When I got back to the apartment at 6:25 the driver was waiting and said I was late and was supposed to meet him at 6:00. I told him that he told me 6:30 and it would take 5 minutes to be ready. The cleaning lady he brought with him was waiting and followed me up to the apartment. I rushed into the apartment ahead of her, turned off the stove and quickly got my underware off the kitchen cupboards. It only took 5 minutes to get the laptop packed up and was wondering why the driver had not come up to the apartment. The luggage was very heavy and he must have remembered carrying it up 4 flights of stairs when I arrived. Took 2 trips, but got it down myself.
I told the driver I would give him 50 grivna to help me purchase the bus ticket and get me on the right bus. He accepted. When we got the train station he went to the ticket window and after conversing with the agent, told me that there were no seats available on the 7 p.m. or 8 p.m. bus, but there was a seat on the 9 p.m. bus. I had him buy the ticket and he determined where the bus would arrive. I now had a 2 hour wait, which was not too bad other than it gets me into Berdyansk later. It would now be about 5 a.m. I did not have the hotel number handy, so just decided to go with the flow and deal with it later.
There was some kind of director in ordinary clothes that greeted every bus and talked to all the drivers and many of the passengers. I was not sure what his duty was but he checked the manifest of each bus before it departed. I had the Cyrillic name of the cities written on the ticket so had an idea what to look for as the buses came and went. Finally I asked the guy about my bus. He knew absolutely no English but gestured that this one was not my bus. I asked about how the luggage was stored on the bus and he just sort of blew me off and went on to talk to other customers. I did not know if the driver takes care of the luggage or one of the other people that seemed to be handlers for the terminal.
The bus arrived a little late but the name on the bus matched the name on my ticket so I was pretty sure that it was the right one. I brought my luggage over to the front of the bus, still not knowing what to do with it. I had noticed that people waiting to board the buses stand outside the bus and do not board it until the last minute. Not sure if this is because you have to wait for the driver to tell you it is OK to board, or because they just don't want to board until later. As I was standing there wondering what to do the 'director' came over and gestured that this was the right bus. I then pointed to the luggage and he told me to take it to the left side of the bus. OK, did that! After waiting in line for the others to get their baggage put in the compartment, the handler told me to take it to the opposite side of the bus. Great, I don't have a clue WTF is going on. I take it to the other side and there is no one there and the baggage door are closed. I gestured to the 'director' that the other guy told me to bring it back over here. He then took my ticket and gave it to the driver. After some discussion, they decided that this is the right side of the bus for Berdyansk luggage. Finally, the driver opened the baggage bin on the right side. He wanted to put my computer bag in the bin also. I indicated no, I wanted to take it on the bus. Not only did it have all the computer stuff in it, but my passport as well. He finally won out and I gave him the computer bag as well.
I was concerned because last year Irina had a box of goods for her store taken by someone at one of the stops along the way between Odessa and Primorsk. The thought of loosing my passport and all my computer stuff was not comforting. I was a little less concerned when the driver attached plastic, numbered tags to both bags and gave me a plastic chit with the same numbers on it. Maybe they have better security for suitcases than all the bags and boxes that were stored with no tags.
When getting on the bus, I was not aware of if there were any seating requirements. I chose a seat and a woman shooed me off toward the back of the bus. This was repeated a couple of times, and finally I just went the very last bench seat at the back. Before we left, every single seat was taken. I had no idea if there was a toilet on the bus as it was not obvious. A woman in the terminal that knew some English did not know either and told me some have toilets and some do not. She then assured me that the buses stop about once an hour at rest stops that have toilets. That's good news!
The bus was rather warm inside with all the people heat even though the night air was cool. I fired up the Galaxy tablet and followed the trip on the GPS. I had purchased a Ukrainian map for the GPS program and it worked very well. The bus did stop about every hour at rest stops. I now know where Kherson and some of the other cities are located as we stopped along the way. The 'toilets' at every single stop were the famous Ukrainian porcelain holes in the floor. Not a western toilet in any of them. Fortunately, they all have urinals. I had deliberately not eaten any more than the pizza earlier and limited my liquid intake for this very reason. It was difficult to imagine going 8 hours without having to use their Ukrainian toilets, but I mangaged. LOL
At 5 a.m. we were at a rest stop and I turned on the GPS to see where we were. As the unit was booting up the bus driver came back and said something in Russian. I asked "Berdyansk". He nodded his head so I scurried off the bus to the baggage bin. I could see both bags were there, and handed the driver the two plastic chits he had given me earlier. I noticed that he checked the numbers on both the tags and the chits, which gives me some confidence of their security of luggage. I have no idea what the other passengers do that have no tags on their boxes and bags from shopping.
Here it is 5 a.m. in the morning on a dimly lit terminal. I could see two taxis at the rear of the bus. An older guy came up to me and said 'taxi'. I tried to explain that I need to go to the Berdyansk Hotel. All he said was da, da, da and took my bags and put them in the back seat of his beat up taxi. He talked in Russian while we were driving but I did not have a clue what he was saying. Finally he got louder and louder and it was clear he was trying to ask me something. All of his da, da, da earlier must have been to get me into his cab before the other driver could approach me. At one point, he pulled over and after some more lack of communication, he pulled out a pad and pencil and apparently wanted me to write the destination down. I wrote Berdyansk Hotel. He did not recognize the English and was getting frustrated (as was I). He wrote numbers down as though he wanted the address. I had no idea of the address because the reservation was all done on line. Finally, I made the gesture that I wanted to sleep. He finally figured it out and more da, da, da.
We arrived at the entrance of a multistory hotel and everything was dark. There were not any lights on even at the entrance. This was not a good sign! The cab had left and took my luggage up to the front entrance and found the doors locked. There were no lights on inside. My immediate thoughts were, do I sleep on the porch until someone shows up, or where do the homeless sleep? As I was contemplating my dilemma, I saw a shadow coming toward the door. What looked like a maintenance man or night watchman finally unlocked the doors. I brought my luggage through the doors and a dim light turned on at the reception desk. There sat a cute brunette wiping the sleep from her eyes. It was obvious that she sleeps at the desk at night. I had already told them on the phone I wanted a double bed. After being quizzed about why does only 1 person need a double bed, they had agreed to give a room with a double bed. The receptionist found my reservation and quoted me 400 grivna per night. I thought it would be less based on their web page ads, but I was in no mood to argue about it now. I could see that even after agreeing to the price, she was having a hard time figuring something out. Finally she said 400 grivna per night and 200 grivna for today. No problem...... just give me the key and let me get to sleep! She told me 1000 grivna total, and I handed her my Visa card. Now the fear sets in. She responds that 'only cash'. I knew I had only 200 grivna left in my wallet. I asked her about a bank machine ATM? She finally said go to the bank tomorrow.l Relief, I finally got the key and set out to my room on the 4Th floor.
The lobby was still not lit and I was wondering if I was the only guest in the hotel. I found the elevator and pushed the call button. The button stayed in. Hmmm, did I break it? As the elevator arrived, the button popped out with a loud click sound. Interesting, I had never seen this kind of control on an elevator. When I pushed the 4 botton for my floor, the button also stayed in and upon arrival at the floor the button popped out with a loud pop sound. I guess the all the floors selected have their buttons stay in and then release as the floor is reached. The grinding noise and vibration in the elevator sounds like a wire cable that is not properly wound around the drum. The shaking and bouncing was like I have never experienced on an elevator. Since I am on the 4Th floor, I figure worse case I have only 4 floors to fall if it breaks. LOL
When I got to the room, I did not bother to unpack anything. I used the first western toilet I had seen in 8 hours and piled into bed. Did not even care when I would wake up.
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I woke about 10 a.m., too late for the free breakfast.
My priority for the morning was:
1. Get the laptop onto the internet
2. Go to the bank and get grivna
3. Find the shop within the market that I purchased the moped from last year.
4. Try to locate the English speaking gal that tried to assist Irina and I when I bought it.
5. Determine how to launder my clothes since the hotel advertised laundry capability.
6. Find out how to take the bus to Primorsk.
7. Get the hotel staff to turn up the temperature on the water heater.
In a normal place this should take 2-3 hours max. Not here. LOL
It turns out the hotel only has wi-fi on the first floor. No rooms have wi-fi or direct connection. This is a problem. I have become so dependent on the internet. Even my language translator programs require it. My first thought was to try and find an open wi-fi connection I could snag onto. No luck! The few that are showing up are all secure. Two that are not secure will not connect and are very weak. There is one very strong signal with the name office_wan. I decided to try and locate the business that has the site and offer them a fee for the password to use for a few days. I used to have a directional wi-fi sniffer but must have taken it out of my computer bag because I never use it. For another approach, I decided to take the Galaxy tablet for a walk and see if I could locate the business that way. After about 15 minutes of circling the block I cannot pick up the signal at ground level. So much for that idea! The next idea was to try and marry the laptop to my Kievstar account via the cell phone. Turns out the laptop does not have bluetooth. I think the last time I tried this I had purchased a bluetooth USB adapter and naturally, it is not in the bag.
Next thing was to try to marry the cell phone to the tablet since I knew it had BlueTooth. I was able to get the devices to talk to each other, but was unable to access the internet via the cell phone. Probably a configuration option I have not figured out. At this point I give up on the internet task and move on to the next one.
The bank was a piece of cake. Paid the hotel and asked them about where to do my laundry. No communication other than she said 'Monday'.
I also asked about turning up the temperature of the water heater in the room (it is sealed). After much difficulty she said 4 or 5 p.m. I assume she meant that someone would come to unlock the thermostat at 4 or 5.
I located the open market we had been to last year. After spending an hour trying to find the moped shop, I finally stumbled upon a restaurant that I was sure we had eaten at last year. I remembered it had a western toilet. LOL I then knew I was in the right area but could still not find the shop. I approached 3 gals and asked if anyone spoke a little English. They answered no. I then said moped and made a gesture of riding a motorcycle. The gals pointed down the street. It did not look like a promising lead but what the hell, down the street I went. It turns out that a block away is another open market. Sure enough I found the shop. I looked over what they had for sale but they were all too small for my purposes. I inquired about the English speaking gal that sold fishing lures last year. The owner was not sure what I was talking about and asked his partner to come forward that speaks a little English. I made the same inquiry and he was not sure either. Finally I gestured, the one with the big boobs. Instant communication!!! They both laughted and took me over to the stand that she worked at last year. They inquired about how to contact her. The woman they were talking to cracked up about the boob reference and looked her number up on her cell. OK at least part of today's mission was accomplished.
It was late afternoon by now and I decided to wait until tomorrow to investigate how to catch a bus to Primorsk. There are a couple of gals there that I have been chatting with and I also wanted to visit Irina's mother and Irina's kids that I had become so fond of.
I really needed a map of Berdyansk, so went about trying to figure out where to buy one. I approached a gal on the street that spoke English and she told of a magazine shop that probably has one. I went off in the direction she pointed and did not find the magazine shop, but instead found a book store. After some confusion, one of the clerks understood what I wanted and they located a nice map of Berdyansk. It is even on no-tear mylar or something similar.
I remembered that I had no provisions in the room so lit off to buy diet Pepsi and some snacks for the room. Found a local supermarket and got stocked up for a couple days.
At about 5 p.m. there was a knock on the door of my room. Finally, they are going to turn up the heat on the water heater. Nope! Two middle age women were there wearing some kind of aprons or uniforms. Neither knew a single word of English. This was fun. We could not talk at all, and I had no idea why they were here. The translator program would not work without the internet and I was screwed to be able to communicate. I have gotten pretty good with gestures over the years so finally we learned that they were here to take care of my laundry needs. One of the gals went over to my suitcase and gestured that she should take the clothes. She also picked up the clothes that were dirty sitting nearby. The next problem was to figure out when I will get them back. She had nearly all of my clothes in her arms and I did not want them delivered next week after I was gone. All the time both women were laughing and seemed to think the communication problem was funny. My concern was if I will ever see my clothes again. Finally, I pulled up a calendar on the laptop. One of the gals pointed to today's date and then pointed to tomorrows date (Sunday). It seemed strange to get them returned on a Sunday, but at this point I was lucky that we figured out this much of the task. I asked how many grivna and got a response I did not understand. I then opened my wallet and said 'grivna' and pointed to the clothes. The gal waved her hand as though there is no charge. We will see tomorrow if I am buying new clothes. LOL
I got a SMS from L in Kiev that she is in trouble. Something about tenants leaving in Yalta and she might have to leave Kiev. Did not know when she would return to Kiev and her mother and daughter. The message was garbled and I could not understand the whole picture. I called my terp in Cherkassy and asked her to call her and find out what is going on. She responded that she had no money on her cell account and was having her birthday party. I wished her happy birthday and told her to borrow the money from my friends and I would pay her when I return to Cherkassy in a few days. She responded that she would call me tomorrow. It seems like one fire after another.
It's Saturday night but I am rather tired. I have to go out and get some dinner, so might look around for some night life while I am out. Since the maintenance guy never showed up to change the water temperature, I suspect I will have a cool shower in the morning. BTW when entering the elevator the last time I saw a sign in English that indicates that hot water is available from 6-10 a.m. and 5 -12 p.m. You gotta be shitting me!
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I am glad I went out for dinner. The city has a totally different atmosphere. The main street is pedestrians only and filled with people. Everyone is happy and having a great time. The locals seem to have a little more respect for their city than Kiev. Instead of bottles and trash all over the sidewalks and streets, they seem to put them in the trash bins. It's also quite obvious it's a college town with all the young lovers necking on park benches and walking hand in hand down the street.
Upon leaving the hotel, I notices some kind of lantern or balloon being launched from the square near the hotel. It had the appearance of being fueled by a candle or something similar. I watched it for maybe 10 minutes before it became a spec in the night sky, still burning. I asked one of young guys sitting on a bench where to buy them. He indicated that they are not for sale and were from some kind of promotion or celebration. I don't think it would go over to well lighting one off in California or any other dry place, but really wanted to see how they are made. At any rate if someone is familiar with these objects, please post in the alternate thread what you know about them. It sort of reminded me of the stories about the Japanese sending balloons over the Northwest part of the US during WWII, in order to start forest fires.
Finding a restaurant was a bit of a challenge. It seemed that every one had a private party going on. The tables were always in a banquet formation and it appeared that there were no people in attendance that were not part of the party. I finally found a restaurant that looked like no party was going on, so sat myself and waited for service. A beautiful gal of college age came out and asked what I would like to order (in Russian). I asked if the had an English menu and she responded "No, only Russian". I then asked if the menu had photos, and she replied yes. When she brought the menu it was all in Russian and there were no photos. I have yet to master the Russian names of food, so was not sure what I was going to do. Shortly thereafter, she delivered a plate of food to one of the 3 guys sitting at the next table. It looked good and I was hungry. I told her to bring me whatever she served him. This gal was cheerful and always smiling. What a difference from Nikolaev. I also ordered a Tuborg beer. I had the first one ever in Nikolaev and found it quite satisfactory.
She brought my dinner and it turned out to be battered and fried chicken steak and was delicious. The beer even tasted unusually good. The dinner also included mashed potatoes and sliced cucumbers as well as bread. I noticed that this restaurant was no exception, there was the local cat that hangs around. But in this case the cat looked well groomed. It went up to the table of the guys next to me and quietly sat and waited. One of the guys finally gave it some table scraps and it sat quietly and ate. It never did any begging or was a nuisance. At the end of my meal, I wanted a cigarette but had ran out. I bought one from one of the guys at the next table. They did not speak English, but were quite friendly. Upon their departure, the guy I bought the cigarette from came over to my table and asked if I had any $1 bills. In fact I had only one $1 bill left in my wallet. I gave it to him for a souvenir and he gave me 10 grivna.
After dinner I decided to walk down the street until I get tired. I suspected that this was the same street that ends up at the Sea of Azov, but was not sure. It had been a year, and when you are following someone else you tend to not pay that much attention. On the way I heard some loud Latin music. Following the sound, I came upon a restaurant that another party was going on. It was obviously a wedding party and everyone was having a great time. One of the gals standing outside having a smoke spoke some English. She said that it is a private wedding party. They certainly know how to party after a wedding. LOL It turns out that all of the restaurants and bars were having wedding parties tonight.
Meandering down the street, it ended just where I expected. At the seawall of the Sea of Azov. There was a huge ferris wheel at the end that I did not remember from last year, but the other landmarks were familiar.
Time to return to the hotel as it looks like there are no public/open bars or dance places tonight. Upon returning to the hotel, I had taken the trip report that was stored on the laptop and went down to the first floor to post it. I could not get the internet to connect. I entered the password that was written down for me and the gal confirmed it was correct. After about a half hour of messing around, I asked the clerk to enter the password. Presto, it worked. I had watched her enter it and discovered that she had written it wrong on the paper. For the number 1 she had written a 7 in one case and later in the sequence she had written a 1. I corrected it with a pencil and now had the key.
After sending off the post, the translator was now working so I asked about the temperature of the water heater. In a few minutes, one of the guy clerks gesture for me to follow him to my room. He tested the water and confirmed it was not warm enough. Instead of changing the thermostat he decided to have me change rooms after he had tested it in another room. OK, now to move all my stuff from one room to another and return the key to the desk.
After getting settled in the new room, I remembered that I had purchased a USB phone modem from Kievstar. It was next to useless at the dacha in Cherkassy and I had forgotten about it. I decided to give it a try, not knowing how much credit remained on the account or how fast it eats it up using the internet. It worked like a charm, so now I have internet in my room. Problem finally solved. The English speaking gal that sold fishing lures told me to meet her at the moped shop at 9 or 10 in the morning, so off to bed I go. Hopefully tomorrow will have fewer challenges than today. LOL
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Today (Sunday) actually went fairly smooth. There was a knock on my hotel room door at 9:30 a.m. and the two gals were there with my laundry. I figured out they are hotel maids and that is what the uniform/aprons are about. There were 13 pieces of clothing which included shirts, socks, jeans, underwear. The total bill was 147 Grivna (about $18). Not too bad considering all the problems I had with the washer in the Nikolaev apartment.
I had received an email in the middle of the night from a gal in Primorsk asking if she could come to Berdyansk to meet me at 2 p.m. I had already planned to go by bus to Primorsk today and visit her and my ex-fiance (Irina's) mother and children. I told her to send me an SMS and I would meet her.
The first mission was to meet the fishing lure lady at the moped shop per our scheduled 9-10 a.m. appointment. I stopped by the open market where we were to meet and several guys recognized me from last year when Irina had a tantrum and made a scene over the fishing lure gal talking to me in English. There was a lot of ribbing and laughing. I did learn that her name was Olga. She had not shown up yet and it was after 10 a.m. One of the guys made a gesture of flicking his index finger against his throat, indicating that she tips the bottle a little and probably is why she is late.
At this stage, I was not going to wait around to see if she was coming. One of the guys gave me directions to the bus station so off I went in that direction. It's about a mile, so a decent little walk. I had written down the names Primorsk and Berdyansk and carried them with me. I stopped at one of the cashier windows and asked about a bus to Primorsk. The gal could not speak English, but pointed for me to go around the corner. I did so and found a larger bus terminal with several windows, even though only one had a clerk. We finally got my destination and fare figured out. I asked her what time, by pointing to my watch and it was only 10 minutes away. None of the signs matched the name I had put down and as I was wandering from sign to sign looking at the destinations, the original women came up to me and I indicated I was trying to figure out which stall is the correct one for the bus to arrive out. After looking at all the signs, she could not figure it out either. She asked some passengers that were waiting and at one of them. The folks told her that this is the correct one. Great, now I know where the bus was to arrive at. The minibus showed up on time and off we went. It's only about a 30 minute ride, so no big worries.
As we got about 8 miles out of town we came to a roundabout that I had remembered from last year. It was the place where Irina and the paid moped driver had pulled off the highway. We were behind them in a cab. After the tantrum in Berdyansk, the final solution was for the paid moped driver (a customer of the shop) and Irina to ride the moped to Primorsk while I followed in the cab. Irina was still pissed about me talking to the fishing lure lady that had been trying to assist us. After pulling off the road, they had gotten off the moped. The driver looked sort of stunned, not knowing what was going on. I felt the same way. She finally motioned for me to come and get on the back of the moped. I paid the driver and the taxi and off we went. I think she decided to get even with me by making S-turns over both lanes. Needless to say I was a little worried since it was a highway. At any rate, the intersection brought back memories of that incident over a year ago. LOL
The bus arrived in Primorsk and I recognized the surroundings around the station. I was pretty sure I could navigate to the open market where Irina has a stall. I was not sure I could remember all the twists and turns to get to her house. My attempts to call her on her cell, as well as her daughter had failed earlier in the day. Her house phone also appeared to be disconnected. No choice but to go to her shop or try and find my way to the house. As luck had it, was able to find the open market. I expected to see Irina working, but her mother Nadia was tending the store. She recognized me immediately, even though she had no idea I was coming. After the hugs and kisses, she mentioned making borscht for me. I agreed and was planning to take a taxi to the house. I asked which house to make borscht. She indicated Irina's house. I made a gesture that Irina was likely to sock me in the chin, and she laughed and in her broken English said “It is OK, I love you." In trying to get her to write down the address for the taxi we had a communication problem of what I wanted. She eventually, gestured that she would put all of her goods away and then we would go together.
While waiting for Nadia to close up shop I walked around the market looking for a pair of tennis shoes that might have a Velcro strap rather than laces. I have found it very awkward and cumbersome to get my shoes on and off when entering homes and apartments due to the laces. I did not find exactly what I was looking for, but found a pair that has sort of an elastic flap above the tongue. After trying them on, I decided they would suffice and purchased them. The price was a little less than $20. The laced pair that I had bought in the same market a year ago were holding up very well, so guessed that these might be a quality shoe also.
When we went to leave the market for a taxi, I noticed we were going out the back rather than the front where the taxi was. I asked what we are doing and Nadia just grabbed my hand and indicated to follow her. In the back parking lot, we came upon the moped I had bought Irina last year. My thoughts instantly moved to thinking granny is going to drive the moped with me on the back. As I was standing by the moped wondering what was next, Nadia pointed to the rear of the lot and said ‘Look’. It was 23 year old Max coming toward us (Irina's son). Nadia said ‘Taxi’ and pointed for me to get on the Moped. Max drove us to Irina's house. I was very apprehensive about going there without Nadia's protection. LOL. After arriving at the house there was no one coming out to greet us so I waited for Max to go in first. He motioned for me to go, so I quietly went inside. I had no idea what happened to Nadia or where she went. Once inside I met Vika (14) and we did our hugs and kisses. Vika brought up the translator on the computer and I asked where Irina was. She responded that she was away. I asked when she would return and she said she did not know. I asked if she could call her and find out if it was OK to be there and Vika said that her phone was not working and she did not take it. OK, it looks safe for a while.
A short time later, Nadia showed up on her bicycle with a bag of groceries. She indicated that she is going to make borscht for me. As Nadia was cooking in Irina's kitchen, the kids and I chatted via the translator program. In addition to visiting them, I was curious as to whether the room addition ( 50% increase in the size of the house) had been completed. Max took me out to survey the progress. The room was to become a master bedroom, shower, spa, toilet. Unfortunately, very little had been done since I left. Max indicated the electrician quit when the money ran out. Max had added a bathtub in the room and had built a new square brick shower behind the new room. I had no idea why she did not put the shower inside the new room as planned, as you would not have to walk so far in the cold on a winter night. I asked if the refrigerator and washing machine I bought them was still working. Vika gave me a hug and a thumbs up. I remembered that she liked ice cream, so no doubt the refrigerator is her favorite. LOL
Nadia wanted me to spend the night, but I told her that I already had a room in the hotel in Berdyansk and needed to get back. The borscht was fantastic as usual and she tried to stuff me as she always does. We said goodbye and Max took me to the bus station on the moped. It was a nice visit and since I am not sure I will ever see them again, I am glad I took the time to visit them. With Irina out of town, the planning could not have been better. No fights, no scenes, no vodka, just a great short visit.
While sitting in the bus waiting to leave, I noticed we were a little late. The driver had been gunning the engine during the stop and it sounded like the engine was missing. Wonderful, the bus was packed and I can not imagine the next bus having room for everyone. The driver left and showed up a few minutes later with a bunch of wrenches. After pulling off the vinyl engine cover, he opened a large hatch and started working on the engine. From the smell of it, it seemed he was looking for a fuel leak. I guess the bus drivers are their own mechanics on the road. After several minutes he put everything back together and buttoned it up. He was greasy all over his hands and arms. Diesel engines are notoriously dirty and greasy. He disappeared for a few minutes and came back looking like new. LOL The trip back to Berdyansk was uneventful.
After dark I was walking in the square next to the hotel and from a distance noted a couple with one of those lantern things I was curious about. I raced to get there before they launched it, but did not quite make it in time. By the time I got the camera out and ready, the gal had let it go. Like the other one, it slowly rose into the night sky with its light flickering for quite some time. I inquired about purchasing one and even though they did not speak English, they pointed down the street and said “magazine shop”. OK, close enough, I will check it out in the morning.
As I was about to return to the hotel and call it an evening, I could hear loud music nearby. I followed the sound and came upon an indoor/outdoor nighclub. I decided to go inside and have a beer. The place was packed with women. In fact there were 10 sitting at two tables that had been pushed together. They all looked like they were in their 20’s or early 30’s. No doubt all students at the local university. Since I love to watch peoples behavior, I decided to have a few more beers while watching these gals contort on the dance floor. I was beginning to think they were all go-go dancers with a night off. LOL
Some of the sexy moves these gals do on the danced floor is enough to keep me drinking beer all night! One of the gals was really hot. Probably as close to a perfect 10 as I have seen to date. She also knew it and flirted and shot glances at me and a few other guys in the crowd.
While being entertained by the dancers, I noticed two couples at a table near mine that included a couple of beautiful gals. One of the boyfriends/husbands was rather sober and the other little guy was obviously very drunk. Throughout the evening, it was interesting to watch them. The drunk guys girlfriend was about 6 inches taller than him and he was barely able to stand, let alone dance. He was also asking every other woman in the place to dance while his girlfriend sat and chatted with the other gal. This guy eventually found a cooperative gal to dance with him for quite a while. Watching his girlfriends animations and expressions was a riot. At one point it was clear that she was venting to her friend and she had both of her fists knotted up indicating her boyfriend was in for a surprise later. What surprised me was that the gal he was dancing with seemed to care less that he was with someone else. Eventually, the gal got so pissed that she and her girlfriend, got up from the table and left the bar with the sober guy still sitting and the drunk guy still on the dance floor with the other woman. It would have been interesting to have overheard what she has said earlier, but the animations were probably enough to get the drift.
In addition to the hotties on the dance floor, there was one attractive lady that seemed to be having a very good time and was sitting somewhere behind me. She had danced with an older guy and I assumed she was with him, so did not pay much attention to her other than than to express a brief compliment in English as she walked by earlier. Probably a half hour went by, and coming off the dance floor alone, she stopped at my table and said she wanted to talk in English. She sat for a few minutes, and we exchanged names, etc. She then excused herself for a few minutes saying that she was going to rejoin her parents. I waited for a while and she eventually returned and invited me to join her at their table. I did not realize it earlier, but she was sitting with what looked like a whole family of people. She introduced me as Douglass to all the people and announced I was an American from California. It turns out it was in-laws, parents, friends, and a couple of relatives from Moscow. They drove down to visit them. She said it took only about 5 hours. Kind of hard for me to believe, but I did not have a map with me. Everyone was very happy and jovial. We all were drinking toasts, and the singing DJ came over to the table and had a toast with us. We drank several toasts to Ukraine and America and the gal reminded me that we had 2 Russians with us and should include them as well. Sure, why not some more toasts LOL. When the DJ went back on stage, he announced my presence and played our national anthem. Everyone in the place cheered and applauded. Nothing like Ukrainian hospitality! It was already 2 a.m. and my friend told me she has to get up at 6 a.m. to go to work. She works one week on and then has one week off. Bummer! She said that tomorrow was her sons birthday. The rest of the family decided we were getting married on the following day and she reminded them that it would have to be the following day. At his point everyone at the table was leaving to go home and we all hugged and shook hands. My friend asked when I was leaving and I told her I was not certain. A nice good night kiss and off they went. She had said that if she got out the following night it would be after 10 p.m. All in all, a very nice evening. I was not interested in hitting on anyone and was not sure what my plans would be for leaving Berdyansk.
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Monday----
My mission for the day is to find out more about the 'airborne' lanterns. After breakfast, I walked in the direction that I had been given the night before. I could not find a magazine shop and no one knew where one was. I eventually asked a group of 3 guys that were probably in their late teens about the lanterns. They spoke no English, but the animations I made were adequate to describe it. One of the guys tried to give directions and seemed to know exactly where I should go to purchase one. The directions were a failure due to the language barrier, and one of the other guys said "Go with him". We walked about 6 blocks and he led me to what looked like a bridal shop. Inside were all kinds of fireworks, balloons, and party supplies. I thought this was a strange combination until I connected marriage=fireworks. Also, marriage=partying after the wedding. LOL.
The young man explained to the very attractive clerk what I wanted. She asked a question that I could not answer. She then took a piece of paper and drew a heart and another peaked item. I did not know if she meant that the heart represents a love symbol or if the lantern was shaped like a heart. In any case I bought four of them for 50 grivna each. I could see inside the plastic bags that my suspicion was correct. The fuel pellet was a block of what looked like parafin, but there was no wick. Close enough, it was likely that customs would not think I was smuggling explosives into the US.
I noticed that the instructions were in Russian only. My little helper decided he was going to help me get it translated. I tried to tell him that it was not necessary. I asked him for directions to the hotel and he insisted that he take me there. I wondered how I was going to get rid of this guy. I like hospitality, but I did not need a sidekick for the rest of the day. He even stopped a bunch of chicks and asked them if they speak English. When we got to the hotel, I was able to convince him that I was OK on my own. Only after exchanging phone numbers was I able to get loose. Later I was thinking that this would have been a good way to inquire about hooking me up with a local gal. I guess I was too interested in the lanterns to have thought of it. LOL
Upon getting to my room I was determined to see how the lantern works and what assembly was required, etc.
The lanterns are very thin paper with a metal wire ring around the bottom and two crisscrossing wires in the ring. The block of fuel looks like parafin but a little different. I was contemplating light one of them up in the room just to photograph it. I had it all planned. I did not want to burn down the hotel so I figured I would light it off in the bathroom and could throw it into the shower if necessary to put out the fuel. As a precursor, I would take the block of fuel and light it in the sink to characterize how it burns. Glad I decided to try this first. The block burns like you would expect, except that it looks like cotton is embedded in the parafin. I suspect that this is done to prevent the 'candle' from blowing out if any wind caught it.
Well, the fuel burns just fine and with a hard blow I was able to extinguish the flame. One thing I had not counted on was that the parafin melts and drips off as it burns. It also expands in size considerably as it burns. Not too good of an idea to have parafin all over the bathroom floor. In addition, there are smoke detectors in the room, so decided to forego the indoor testing. Probably just as well. LOL
I have concluded that these devices are a symbol of love or affection and that is why the couples are launching them in the evenings. If someone knows the proper name for these devices and the history of their use, you might post in the alternate thread so we all can know.
Evening came and I had still not figured out the next leg of my journey but thought I would get up early and do it the next morning. I could hear music from the night club next door and even though it was a Monday night, I decided to go and see if my friend from the night before was there. As I entered the club, the security guard recognized and personally greeted me and suggested a table. One of the very animated guys from the night before also recognized me and waved. The DJ made some kind of announcement and once again, everyone knew an American was there. Everyone was warm and friendly except the waiter. He was next to useless! He took forever getting me a beer and when I paid him, I gave him more than the bill and he kept insisting on something that I did not understand. I tried to give him more money and he shook his head and was frustrated. It took about 1/2 hour but he finally came back with my change. It appears that he wanted a smaller bill and could not make change. I guess he must have left and made change at a nearby store. I encountered this a couple more times since and the clerks in the stores are also rather aggressive about making sure you don't have smaller bills as well as coins.
At any rate, there were fewer women in the bar and I could not see my friend from the night before. I planned to stay just a little while and watch the dancers. I noticed a couple of women sitting at a corner table that were occasionally glancing in my direction. They were not 10's, but nice looking and nice figures. One of them was pretty active dancing and has some nice moves that kept my interest. At one point I finally had the balls to move my drink over to the table next to them. One gal is a stunning blond and the lively one is shorter and a brunette. I sort of took a fancy for the blond but the shorter one was paying more attention to me. I asked the blond if she spoke English. She said yes. It became clear that this was going no where with the blond, the other one made sure that she sat between me and her and was soon sitting on my lap and asking me to dance. She used the blond as an interpreter. The blond was very nice and friendly but it became clear that she was not going to mess up her friends dreams. After an hour or so, the blond leaned over to me and said "She wants you". Uh, really? She is in her 30's and never mentioned any age difference. What is a man to do? I have not planned the next leg of my trip and this evening could easily prevent me from doing it early in the morning! Oh well, as they say.... go with the flow!
The only things I will describe is what might be important to newbies that have not experienced Ukrainian women. As it is said, if they like you and want you, there is no ambiguity. The women are in charge in the intimacy department. They determine who, when, how, under what conditions, etc. I am also impressed at the hygiene of Ukrainian women. Not only is the secret clue words "I am going to take a shower", but there are likely to be several showers during the night as well as in the morning. Enough said.
Mid morning was interrupted with a phone call and my friend got called into work on her day off. Time to get the planning done for the next leg of the trip. I plan to go to Kirovograd. One of the gals told me that she thought it is about a 6 hour bus ride. There is a gal at the front desk of the hotel that speaks a little English. She has been rather helpful in the past, so I asked her to find out the train and bus schedule to go to Kirovograd today. She researched it for me and told me that there are no train routes and the only bus trip is at 08:20 in the morning. It was already past 10:00 so that option is out for today.
Useful information for newbies.... the train schedules are very much curtailed off season. The overnight trains seem to be cancelled and a lot of other routes are cut way back. Even the bus transportation is significantly reduced.
Not having much choice, I bought a ticket for Kirovograd bus transportation tomorrow morning. Instead of the 6 hours that the gal in Kirovograd quoted me it is actually more like 13 hours and it is a minibus, not a large one. I think this leg is going to suck! I am not sure of my plans for tonight. I have to get up early and am a sound sleeper. I guess the question will be whether to risk being called or nudged in the morning. LOL.
Before leaving Berdyansk, I wanted to offer an opinion about Nikolaev vs. Berdyansk. From what I saw, I think Nikolaev is over hyped by the MOB agencies. I also did not find the people that friendly either on the street or in the stores and restaurants. Berdyansk is a little off the beaten path, but is a great city to visit for many reasons. It is on the Sea of Azov with warm water and nice beaches in the summer. Based on my experience, once the ice is broken the people are the friendliest I have found in Ukraine so far. It may not be everyones cup of tea but there are a lot of beautiful women here and they do not appear in huge numbers on the dating sites. Just a suggestion for those that may want to explore part of Ukraine that does not get the attention of Odessa, Nikolaev, Kiev, etc.
Lastly, we can't go more than a couple days without a public toilet story. I forgot to add it to the Sunday report at the bar. Having drank several beers, it was finally time to use the bathroom. The security guard was kind enough to point out the direction. Upon getting there, I noticed that there were two doors to the toilets, but in this case I could not tell that there were any signs telling which was the men's and which was the women's. The gals standing in line did not understand the question. After standing for a while, I noticed that women were coming in and out of one of the doors and the other door never opened. Finally, after the women filed through I got tired of waiting for the other door to open so went into the one the women were using. After entering it became apparent why they are not labeled. The toilet consisted of the famous Ukrainian porcelain bowl in the floor. The same appliance for either sex. At least in the unisex toilets in the Cherkassy bar there were western toilets in every stall. I also noticed that in most cases two women came out together. That makes me wonder if there is some functional reason that the women go in pairs. It is not like the western 'powder rooms' where there is a lot of room, there is barely enough room for two people to squeeze in there. It is also not an environment that I would think conducive to having a chat with your friend. In one case, two men came out. That raised my eyebrows, but after thinking about it, I am beginning to think there is something functional, that an assistant would be helpful. Perhaps someone with direct knowledge can fill us in using the alternate thread.
Attached are some photos of Julie (nurse friend from Nikolaev) and I having dinner.
Also some photos of the 'lantern' that I bought. The white block is the wax like fuel for it. And yes, it is heart shaped although I did not get a photo of the top of it.
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Another attempt to upload the photos
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THE DAY FROM HELL!
It was a few days without Internet so I am reconstructing the past few days with the help of a calendar and my memory.
Tuesday Oct 9
After my overnight guest went to work, I decided to purchase the ticket for Kirovograd via bus. It is 13 hours by minibus. In the evening I decided to blow off the 13 hour trip by bus. I was just not ready for 13 hours in a minibus! I advised the gals in Kirovograd that it would have to be on the next trip.
There were no options to go anywhere the rest of the day, so extended the hotel for another day. I had decided to try and get to Cherkassy and spend a few days with my friends before leaving for the US. I had asked the hotel clerk about train and bus schedules to Cherkassy. She was unable to contact the train station in Berdyansk and indicated that it would be morning before they would reopen. I requested that since she would be on duty until 9 a.m. that she call them first thing in the morning and then call me and wake me up in time to get to the train station. I awoke at 10 a.m. on Wed morning and she had not called. I went to the desk and inquired what had happened. She called the gal (now off duty) and she had explained that there are no trains from Berdyansk to Cherkassy, but probably from Mariupol. She did not bother to ask them when she called. The clerk at the desk tried to reach the train station in both Berdyansk and Mariupol and could not get an answer to the phone. She suggested that I take a taxi to the train station and inquire in person. OK did that! The taxi driver spoke some English and we inquired about a train from Berdyansk or Mariupol. The clerk indicated that the only trains from the region to Cherkassy are from Zaporizhzha. I would need to take a bus from Berdyansk to Zaporizhzha and then board a train to Cherkassy.
I was already getting frustrated!!! The taxi driver returned me to the hotel. I packed my belongings and got ready to take the bus to Zap. The clerk called the bus station in Berdyansk and was told the time of departure. I called another taxi and off to the bus station we went. This driver spoke no English. He made a call to an English speaking dispatcher and I explained that I was going to Zap on the bus and needed the driver to help me buy the ticket. She said OK and gave instructions to the driver.
Upon arrival at the bus station, the driver went to the window and inquired about a bus to Zap. We were told there are no buses to Zap, only Kiev and some other places I had never heard of. Frustration grows!!! The English dispatcher suggested that I take the taxi to Zap. He wanted 1000 grivna. At this point I was very frustrated but figured if I could at least get to Zap, then at least I could get on the train for cheap and get to Cherkassy. I agreed to the price and off we went. It was 1:45 P.M. in Berdyansk. I had no idea how long the ride would be.
I noticed that the gas gauge was reading empty as we left Berdyansk. About 10 miles out of town the driver called the dispatcher on the cell and handed me the phone. The woman explained that he needed to stop for fuel and I would need to leave the car. She said to not get alarmed. OK, I can deal with that! I had already been through this on a previous taxi ride. While I waited about 50 yards away on an entrance road the driver fueled the taxi and then picked me up. I noticed that the gas gauge was still reading empty. OK, it must be broken. I also noticed that the driver was always fiddling with the odometer and watching the time.
The next stop for fuel, I got left even farther away from the pumps and it was only about an hour since we last got gas. Same exercise as before. Standing out in the cold and waiting for him to fuel. The next event was that the driver got lost in one of the little towns. It seems that the highways dump into the small villages but there are no signs as to how the hell to remain on the highway route. Finally after about a wasted 1/2 hour, he found his way out of the village to the highway. Relief for the moment!
Finally we arrived in Zap after more fuel stops and getting lost. We arrived at the train station. The taxi dispatcher had already called and verified the departure time from Zap to Cherkassy. The driver went to the window at the train station and I could tell there was a problem and there was arguing with the clerk. He called the dispatcher and she talked to the clerk and more arguing took place. Finally the dispatcher told me that they lied to her, there was no train from Zap to Cherkassy. I was wondering if I was being screwed over for a long taxi ride, but i don't think so. The driver was getting pissed and it was clear that the info they had been given was incorrect.
Next stop was to the bus station in Zap. The dispatcher had the bus schedule and there should be no problem taking a bus to Cherkassy from Zap. Guess again!! When we arrived at the bus station the driver went to get me a bus ticket to Cherkassy. More arguing with the clerk and more phone calls to the taxi dispatcher. Finally the dispatcher told me there is no bus or train to Cherkassy from Zap. By now I am starting to get pissed! It is already getting dark and the taxi driver was very frustrated. I have to hand it to him, he did not leave me stranded but did not know what to do. More calls to the dispatcher. The dispatcher said that the taxi could drive me the rest of the way to Cherkassy for an additional 1200 grivna. I countered with another 1000 grivna for 2000 total rather than 2200 grivna. After more calls to the dispatcher, the driver agreed to 2000 total.
It was already dark and cold outside, so at least I will be in a warm taxi. After once again getting lost in Zap, I fired up the Galaxy Tab and the GPS program. With the help of the GPS, I got him on the correct highway for Cherkassy.
Out of Zap a ways, he was once again looking for a LNG special filling station. He was unable to find one in the little town. I don't know how many regular filling stations we passed to look for his special station. He finally gave up and pulled into a normal gas station. I noticed he went to the trunk of the car and did something. He put in 4 liters of gas. We are off again. I notice that the gas gauge now reads about 1/8 full. Now have this figured out! The taxi runs on LNG, but he can switch it over to normal gasoline. How many hours we spent screwing around with the out of the way LNG stations, I do not know but it was a lot!
A few more fuel stops between Zap and Dnipropetrovsk. Now it was late at night and getting dropped off on a pitch black night over 100 yards from the fueling facility was not comfortable. I was still in my short sleeve shirt and very light jacket for my ‘bus ride’ to Zap. In Dnipropetrovsk he got lost again trying to find one of the special filling stations. At this point I fired up the GPS and got him back on the highway. Many, many more fuel stops between Dnip and Cherkassy. I used the GPS and noticed that the battery was getting low in the Galaxy so would turn it off between each crisis. I noticed in every little town that he got lost in, he would be looking over at my lap hoping that the GPS turned on.
In one case he was lost and the battery went dead before he found his way out of town. At that point I shrugged my shoulders and gestured he was on his own. When getting close to Cherkassy, he asked for me to call my friend Andrew that was going to pick me up. Prior to arriving in Cherkassy, he pulled across the oncoming lane and parked beside a car that had its parking lights on. I sat there wondering ‘what now?’ A minute or two later, my friend Andrew came to the taxi and said hello. He bought a newer car and I had not recognized it. As I got into Andrew's car I noticed the two of them talking for quite a few minutes. It was pretty clear that the taxi driver was trying to get directions on how to get back home. LOL
I had no idea why we met on the highway still out of town, but Andrew informed me that they are at the dacha, not at the house. It now made sense why we stopped out in the boonies.
This was a 13 hour taxi ride with no stops for food. It was fortunate I had a couple of Snicker bars with me for my ‘bus ride’ to Zap. Needless to say, I was relieved to find that I was still alive after this ordeal.
I learned numerous lessons from this adventure. Most might be obvious to the more seasoned travelers, but you can be assured that I will not forget them…….
1. Do not travel to the villages in Ukraine in the winter.
2. The bus and train transportation are severely curtailed after the summer season.
3. Don’t take a taxi on a long trip that uses LNG.
4. Don’t take a taxi at night for a long trip.
5. Don’t’ believe anything the bus or train stations tell you until you show up and have a ticket in hand.
6. Take your own GPS……. You might need it!
7. Take at least $2k more than you think you might need for your trip to Ukraine
8. In this kind of situation, don’t’ panic! The driver is motivated to survive and you will likely also. If you piss him off, it could make matters worse.
9. Remember, you probably had worse days in your life, even if you can’t remember them. LOL
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Update,
It's been rather quiet the past few days with no crisis to report.
I decided to return to Kiev from the dacha in Cherkassy a little earlier than planned.
On Saturday, Julia (interpreter) took a taxi with me to Cherkassy bus terminal and got me on the right bus for Kiev.
The bus trip was uneventful and I was picked up by Val's driver Andrea.
The apartment I was put in was a nightmare. It was only $50, but not worth even that. The elevator was inoperative the whole time and more importantly, there was no light at all in the stairways. At night it was pitch black. I now understand some of the stories I read about dark stairways and landings where a thug could be waiting to mug you. It is not a comfortable feeling at all. In addition there were several other problems with the flat including the washing machine that has no rinse or spin cycle working. Furthermore, it locks your clothes inside and the door cannot be opened. Great fun!
On Monday I changed to a different apartment that is much nicer. More modern, and everything works. LOL
Larisa and I have been together every day after 3 p.m. We have decided to go to Sevestopol for several days before I depart for the US. I was successful in changing my departure date to add one week to my stay with Larisa. The cost for the penalty was $545.
I have learned a lot about shopping in Ukraine. Larisa is a common sense gal that also likes to get the most for your money, and we share that common goal. I only had a very light jacket that I brought with me from the US. It was great until the past week or two. It has now gotten chilly during the day and cold at night. Also there is intermittent rain and drizzle day and night. It reminds me much of living in Seattle, Washington. Larisa and I went shopping for a leather coat for me. We went to many places looking for something I liked. Finally, she called her 19 year old son and he suggested a couple of stores.
Here is the lesson......
The fancy stores both above ground as well as the ones below ground have retail prices and they do not seem to negotiate prices. The markets that are found in huge warehouse like buildings as well as the small one man shops in the outdoor markets have the same goods for far lower prices. We found a leather, very nice coat that has a removable fur lining and removable fur collar for $200. The original listed price was $700 which is probably not realistic, but the merchant originally quoted $350, and eventually reduced it to $200 as we were leaving his store. This will make leather coat # 5 in my closet at home. LOL. The quality appears to be higher than any I currently have at home. In any case it seems like a very good price and Larisa thinks so also.
I want to thank all those that sent me PM's and postings that offered suggestions for our sightseeing in Sevastopol. Larisa owns a flat in Yalta and knows Crimea pretty well as she lived there for several years.
Unfortunately, it appears that I will not get to visit the Missile Base on this trip. The express train from Kiev to Sevastopol will not allow me to interrupt the trip for a side visit to the base. Perhaps on the next trip. Or, if there were more time, Larisa could drive us there in her car and back in one day. We will see what time remains after we return to Kiev.
As I may have mentioned earlier, Larisa's 4 year old daughter will be going with us to Sevastopol. She is the "Energizer Bunny" and probably will have no problem with the trip and the tours. Larisa sent me a text today saying that her daughter has already gathered her toys to take on the trip and stated that she is ready to go. LOL
I asked Larisa to do all the planning for the trip and to purchase the tickets for the train.
Another little lesson for newbies.......
She had called the railway ticket office as well as made two trips to the train station to purchase tickets. She was told that there are no tickets available on those dates for either 2nd class or 1st class. Larisa had told me that it is better to purchase the tickets from a ticket agency and have them delivered to the flat. They charge about 35 grivna for the delivery service. I don't know the mechanics of why the private companies can have access to tickets that the official site does not, but it does not matter. She is correct. She was able to get 1st class tickets from the private company. FWIW, the cost of 1st class tickets on the train is about $350 round trip for 2 people from Kiev to Sevastopol and return. The cost for 2nd class was about 1/2 that, but there were no tickets even with the private companies.
As far as handling money, let me explain how Larisa and I are handling it. I request Larisa to find the price of anything we are looking to purchase (other than groceries) and she finds the best choice and asks if it is OK with me. That included the train tickets, apartment rentals, etc. We discuss choices and agree on a selection. It works fine with me. She is not a gold digger nor loose with my money. She is also no dummy. She has a double master degree in business and Agronomics (I think it is called "Human Factors" in the US industry). The only drawback is that her English classes were 20 years ago and needs to take English classes. She has indicated that she is anxious to do so.
Unlike my experience with my ex-fiance last year, we have had no disagreements, nor anger in our relationship. She also has a great personality and is always in a good mood. We will see what lies ahead in the future.
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Today (Tue) was a pleasant day.
Larissa came over in a taxi, so she can have some champagne. She will not drink one drop when she is driving. Probably a good idea considering how she drives when sober. LOL
Last night we went out for champagne and snacks for my daytime enjoyment. We went to a supermarket I had discovered during the daytime. I would never have found it on my own. There are very few markets near Independence Square. A local gal that spoke English directed me to it. I could not believe it. You enter a clothing store for men and then take a narrow stairway down to the basement that turns into a large supermarket. The only entry/exit is through the narrow stairway.
Last night I had asked Larissa to help me pick out some more healthful snacks so that I could lay off the cookies and junk food I was eating for snacks. At the market I suggested some sausage, cheese, and bread. This seems to also be a favorite when shooting vodka shots. When we were standing in line at the sausage counter a woman ahead of us was having the clerk show her nearly every sausage in the cooler. The woman would take each one in her bare hands and squeeze it between her thumb and forefinger. Watching Larissa's expression was priceless. She finally turned to me, rolled her eyes and shook her head. I had not idea why she was squeezing so many sausages, but it did create some images in my mind. LOL.
We also purchased some other items from various rooms/compartments in the store. We put all the goodies into our cart and headed for the checkout stand. We were stopped by security and he made us go back to the compartment that we picked up the items from and pay for them there. I could tell she was annoyed and acted like she had never experienced this before. At any rate, I took it all in stride and we laughed about it as we left (the clothing store). LOL
Tonight she again took a taxi to me, so I suggested that we go get some champagne. I suggested that we go to the same market. Instead, she grabbed my arm and lead me up a big hill. I wondered why the hell do I have to climb a hill when the other store is near the same level. She asked locals for directions to a supermarket and as we climbed the hill she pointed out the beautiful view of Independence Square. In addition there was a nice neon rainbow sign that is beautiful at night. OK, this is the scenic tour rather than the practical route. I asked her why not the other market and she reminded me that she never wants to go there again. She was annoyed about the sausage feeling incident and the crazy way you have to pay in each room.
We finally were strolling among a bunch of apartments and she led me to the back parking lot. There was a small entrance and it led to a medium sized market in the basement of a large apartment. How would anyone know this place was here. No signs, etc. Welcome to Ukraine as Val would say.
Upon getting back to the apartment, my key fob security device would not work. This is the second time this week this has happened. The outer door uses an electronic key fob the size of a button cell battery which holds the security code. While standing outside I called Val and no answer. I thought that I must have shorted out the device in my pocket with the coins, etc. After a while another tenant came up and had the same problem. Great, at least he speaks Russian and probably knows what to do to gain access. After he made several phone calls the door buzzed and we all got in. I tried the key fob and it still did not work. No problem, I was in for the night and Larissa can still get out to go home.
We had a great evening splitting a bottle of her favorite champagne. As usual, we spent most of the time using the translator on the tablet. I learned a lot more about her history and successes in her life. In fact the more we are together, the more I am getting attached to her. My fist lip-lock with her told me it was mutual. There must be some truth to the posts that indicate not all women are anxious to jump into bed prior to getting to know you.
Larissa is making food for the train ride. She indicated that she does not trust the train food and will be preparing home made food for the trip. She is also a very doting mother and surely feels the same way about what her daughter eats. Where the relationship goes may well depend on the next few days. I am crossing my fingers. We have not yet had a disagreement on anything.
When walking Larissa to get a taxi tonight, I learned a little tidbit about how the taxi system works. She calls a taxi and gives the address. The request seems to go into some kind of automated system. She then waits for a call back about availability. I did not realize it earlier, but she is actually waiting for an SMS message on her phone. The system will send the license number of the cab and ETA in an SMS message. Pretty clever, except that oftentimes there is no response. After trying several times I noticed that periodically there were some HOT women coming out of our apartment building. They stood like Larissa waiting for a taxi. I asked Larissa if they were prostitutes. She blushed and said yes. She was unsuccessful in getting a response for a taxi so we walked to the main street. She did her finger out gesture toward traffic to hail a cab. One guy stopped that was not a cab. After a brief exchange, she slammed the door and the guy took off. Within a minute or two a legitimate cab stopped and picked her up. One thing I liked is that she always called when she got home to tell me she was safe.
As a side comment, I have not seen any apparent prostitutes in Ukraine walking the streets. The closest thing were guys handing out business cards in the evening with hand written notes "I am the best!! cell:xxxxxxxxx" It looks like it is all out-call services for a nice massage. LOL
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Wed Oct 17
Today was interesting. I was required to vacate the apartment at 12:30 p.m. and Larissa could not pick me up until 4 p.m. I took a taxi to Val's office to store the luggage and wait for Larissa. On the way to the office, the taxi got pulled over by a cop. It is not clear how this is done but I suspect that a cop radioed another cop several blocks away that flagged him down. There were no cop cars in sight, so not sure where he came from.
The cop was a middle aged guy and he and the cab driver got into an argument about the driver making a wrong direction turn some blocks earlier. I sat in the back of the cab and for the 20 minute argument wondering if I was going to have to call another cab. The two of them were going hot and heavy the whole time. A younger tall, skinny cop showed up and this guy ran his mouth and escalated the argument.
As if this was not enough a third cop whom I assume was a supervisor showed up to resolve the situation. When all was said and done, they let the cab driver go. I don't know if he is getting a ticket or not. If this kind of verbal argument happened in the US, the cab driver probably would have been in handcuffs if not worse. I am wondering if this is some kind of sport. The other passenger said that he did make an illegal turn.
I had a few hours to kill, so left the office and walked down to the Arena area to eat at my favorite buffet joint. As I left the buffet, it started raining cats and dogs. Wouldn't you know it, my umbrella was in my baggage at Val's office. I searched for a store to purchase one but they seem to be never available when you need one. I asked a young couple where to buy an umbrella and the young gal said she did not know but gave me one as a 'present'. As I left the building to go back out into the rain, I now know why they were laughing as I left. The umbrella was broken and opened inside-out, shaped more like a funnel to catch rain. LOL I was able to jury-rig it well enough to use it to get back to the office.
Larissa called a taxi for me at 4 p.m. and I went to her mothers flat where Larissa lives with her young daughter and teenage son. I did not get to meet her son because he was in classes, but I did get to meet mama. Nice lady. She is a retired professor from the university and is 75. Still pretty spry for her age. She also knows English quite well. Perhaps she will teach English to Larissa.
We stored my large suitcase at mom's flat and took a taxi to the train station. The 4 year old had been begging to go with us so we decided to take her also. The train departed Kiev at about 17:50 and arrived in Sevastopol at noon the next day. There were not many stops along the way. I think there were two 15 minute stops and a few 5 minute stops.
The ride wasn't bad. I really like the train rides and don't mind the rocking and rolling you experience on some of the track. This is the first time I went first class on the train. From what I can tell, the cars are identical to the 2ND class cars, except the top bunks are removed. The toilets were also identical, but much cleaner and actually had toilet paper and paper towels. When we ordered tea, it was delivered in a packaging I had never seen before. Rather than the conventional tea bag, the tea comes in a perforated metal tube. Kind of clever. It also serves as a stir stick.
The previous 24 hours Larissa had been texting me about different apartments and prices in Sevastopol. I finally told her to use her own judgement, I don't have a clue about the details she was trying to relay in the messages. After we had agreed on the final apartment, she told me on the train that she picked out a different one. Oh well, I am used to women changing their minds. LOL
As it turns out she said that she got a nicer apartment for a better price. OK, whatever dear! We were picked up by the apartment owner at the train station. The weather was beautiful. During the night, Larissa's mother called on the phone and said that is was raining heavily and the wind was blowing in Kiev. Larissa told me it would be 22 deg C. in Sevastopol when we arrived. That suits me, I was getting tired of the dreary, wet weather in Kiev.
I could not believe the apartment she found and negotiated for. It was all done on the phone in Russian between Larissa and the owner. The apartment owner did not know she had an American with her which was probably a benefit when it came time to negotiate. Initially she wanted 700 grivna per night. When they got done the final price was 400 grivna. I never even came close to this kind of apartment in Kiev, even for 800 grivna per night ($100). I have attached some photos of the apartment. Newbies might want to keep it in mind to have your girlfriend bargain for apartments and to not let the owners/managers know that a foreigner is going to stay there. This apartment has two large bedrooms, a large living room and a very modern kitchen and bathroom. It doesn't get much better than this.
Larissa decided to make borscht for me for the first time. We went shopping for the ingredients and I added a few photos of the work in progress.
Edit: The borscht was great. I had wondered why she had bought so much meat, when other borscht had only small pieces in it. I found out when dinner was ready. They were ribs, not like any I have bought but very tasty.
There was another side dish that I could not identify. It seems like some kind of grain about the size of rice or smaller. The translator came back "buckwheat porridge".
Tomorrow we will probably go out and see some of the sights. I don't want to miss the submarine museum which is about 30 minutes out of town.
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Train Ride
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Borscht in the works
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Oct 19
Today we went to see the 'secret' Soviet Submarine Museum site named "Balaclava". It is located in the city of Balaclava, about 30 minutes taxi ride from Sevastopol. The taxi fare was 60 grivna, which is quite reasonable and far more convenient than bus.
The site is a "must see" for anyone visiting Sevastopol. It is a huge underground tunnel/canal built to house and repair Soviet submarines. The tour consists of a boat ride which gives you the feeling of being on a sub while navigating the interior canal inside the mountain. The tour guide speaks only Russian and talks 90 mph, so having a translator might not be of much use. What might work better is to have an English speaker/guide that already knows the site and what is being said.
I am very glad that I decided to take the walking tour in addition to the boat ride. Both tours are 50 grivna each, so the whole thing was 100 grivna each ($13). It is well worth the money. On the walking tour you get to see the interior of the additional tunnels and work places. Also the armament areas and maintenance areas for the subs.
I had assumed that the facility was a WWII relic, but it is not. It was built after WWII and is a 'Cold War' relic that has been restored into a museum. There is an English pamphlet available at the cashier window available for 13 grivna.
It is interesting that the pamphlet contains the propaganda from the cold war era that justified the military expenditures based upon the aggressive nature of the U.S. and NATO.
Some of the quotes from the propaganda suggests that the US planned to:
1. drop 300 atomic bombs onto 70 large Soviet cities and 29,000 ordinary bombs onto 100 towns
2. invade the Soviet Union with the help of 250 divisions
3. take over the territory of the USSR and it's allies.
4. to occupy the territory
As many times as I was in Simferopol last year, I have no idea why my ex-fiance did not mention visiting Sevastopol when we were this close. I am sure glad I am free to go as I please this year and see what I want. LOL
It is dark inside the tunnel/canal, so there are not many good photos, but included a few that might be acceptable. Also photos of the city and harbor of Balaclava. The port is really a nice area to visit and as you can tell there are a lot of tourist boats and excursion boats that probably operate mostly in the summer months. Also, a very nice restaurant is shown with indoor and outdoor seating. While we were eating there were a few brave swimmers taking a dip in the harbor.
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More photos Balaclava sub base
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More photos of Balaclava sub base, restaurant, harbor.
Note the vacuum tube sockets in the torpedo control unit. LOL
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Saturday Oct 20
Today we went to the Diorama in Sevastopol. It is subtitled "Assault of Sapun-Mountain" A very interesting museum describing the German-Russian fight over Sevastopol during WW II.
A quote from the English pamphlet...
"Hitler Command viewed Crimea as the main base of the Black Sea Navy and Sevastopol was the main obstacle on the way to the Caucasus's oil. Hence, to remove it was considered by the Germans as one of the most important goals."
Germany overran the defenders of Sevastopol and occupied it for 22 months. The Soviets took it back and it was a very bloody conflict. The monument and museum is dedicated to the brave men and women that died in the defense and later, the liberation of Sevastopol.
The painting of the battle inside the building is excellent and the visit is well worth the time and cost. The battles are depicted on a large panoramic canvas with actual objects of the battle in the forefront. They blend together almost seamlessly. As is the normally the case, the cost of museum visits is very nominal. A brochure is available in Russian and English for about 15 grivna. Be sure to ask for books and pamphlets because they do not always display them. In addition, many of the sites have DVDs for sale with several languages describing the monuments/museums. The cost of the DVDs is also very inexpensive.
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More photos of Diorama in Sevastopol.
Note photo of Larissa hailing a cab at the top of the mountain.
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Panorama - The defense of Sevastopol 1854-1855
Another historical site.
As quoted from the pamphlet available for sale at the monument.....
"The panorama Defense of Sevastopol 1854-1855 is a well-known work of battlefield painting and a historical-artistic monument to heroism of those who defended the city during the Eastern (Crimean) War between the Russian Empire and the allied coalition of Great Britain, France, Turkey and Sardinia aimed at the redistribution of the spheres of influence in Europe, the Caucasus, the Middle East, Front Asia, and Asia Minor. today it is the only panorama in Ukraine and one of the best in the world."
Like the Diorama, this site is a huge panoramic painting on canvas integrated with objects in the foreground. This site has a hand held device that you can rent that tells the story in English as you walk around the exhibit. It was a very worthwhile exhibit to see. There is also a DVD for sale at the site in several languages.
There were very few still photos taken as I was busy listening to the story with one hand and could not operate the still camera at the same time. LOL. I did make a video and when I have time I may edit it and add it later.
The various historical sites reflect the importance of Sevastopol as a strategic piece of geography and explains why so many battles took place over a long period of time.
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Sunday October 21
Today we decided to visit the 35Th Gun Battery in Sevastopol.
The nomenclature is a little confusing as it seems to also be referred to as the 30Th Gun Battery.
This site is the last stand by the Soviets in WWII before Sevastopol was overrun by the Germans.
The museum and gun battery is a very interesting site however it is not English friendly in any way. Even the DVDs are in Russian only and no pamphlets are in English. I also learned the hard way after being chastised, that photos are not allowed in the guided tour.
I would recommend that anyone that wants to take this tour to first research the material on the site on the internet in depth before going. The tour will make more sense. The facility is huge and much of it is underground. At one point in the tour, you descend about 100 ft down a narrow spiraling staircase. You also climb back up it, so anyone not in decent physical condition might find it a challenge. The underground also stored all the ammunition and deep, long, narrow tunnels lead from the main facility to the gun turrets.
The Ukrainians are very proud of the history of this site and it shows in the display of all the heroes that defended the position until the very end. The guided tours start at certain intervals so you must wait for the next allotted time to start the underground tour. You are free to walk above ground and view all the sites in the mean time. Note: Most of the photos are taken of the above ground artifacts. Only a couple of photos were taken below ground before I was directed to take to photos. The smaller gun mount above ground has the elevation and lateral mechanisms working and kids love to rotate and raise/lower the gun with the crank handles. It's nice that there is something that actually functions to add realism for the kids. The breach looks intact and I would not be surprised if it is used occasionally for some celebrations.
I hope the Ukraine government improves the friendliness to English language speakers. As a minimum, adding an English sound track to the DVD would help a lot. Adding English brochures or dual language brochures would also be beneficial. The other sites we visited had already done so.
After a long and tiring walk and climb in the gun battery, I was bushed and ready to take a nap. Not gonna happen. LOL. Larissa decided we were going for an hour walk at the 'embankment', meaning the waterfront. It was a nice romantic walk with her and the 4 year old. I noticed that people were sending off Chinese lanterns so suggested we buy one and set it off. Finally, I got to light one off. LOL. We strolled on the waterfront and listened to several bands play and two Karaoke places. In UA, the night life is a lot different than the U.S. Even late at night the families go outside and stroll in the parks and public places such as the waterfront. Wish we had more of that in the US. At one point Larissa decided I was going to get on a horse. You gotta be kidding me! I have not been on a horse in 30+ yrs. Oh well, what the hell. Somehow the stirrups seem to be a lot further off the ground than they used to be.
This is our last night in Sevastopol. Tomorrow night we board the train for Kiev and then on Wed, I head back to the US. I am impressed with Sevastopol as a city that is clean, without the beggars and bandits in Kiev and a nice place to visit for an extended period of time. I can't remember seeing one drunk passed out on a park bench either. There seems to be lots of pretty women also, but I had blinders installed so can't really make an accurate assessment.
http://englishrussia.com/2011/06/17/the-symbol-of-heroism-and-tragedy-of-sevastopol/
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More photos 35Th Gun Battery - Sevastopol
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Photos from Sunday night at the harbor. Sevastopol
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Monday October 22 (Part 1)
Since we are leaving Sevastopol today I thought it would be a nice day to sleep in. Nope! I was wakened with a tugging on my arm and Larissa stated "Get up we go. You sleep in America."
She already had plans for the day and it did not include sleeping. In retrospect, I am glad she got me up.
Our first stop was to visit an incredible site of ancient ruins in Sevastopol. It is called “The National Preserve of TAURIC CHERSONESOS” This is a must see and I am so happy I did not miss out on seeing it.
To quote from the English pamphlet I purchased………….
“In 1996 by a special decision of UNESCO, National Preserve of Tauric Chersonesos was included in the list of the hundred most important monuments of the world culture.
By its preservation and informative potential Chersonesos is a unique monument of the ancient civilization and Byzantime culture, it is an inexhaustible wellspring of evidence about the last epochs.”
This site is huge. It is like a whole city. One thing that is unique is that it is open to stroll around the whole site. Nothing is roped off. You can sit in the marble seats of the theatre and imagine a performance going on. The history covers from the 6th century BC through the 15th century AD. I have included many photos of the site to illustrate how large it is as well as to offer a sample of what is here.
I was surprised to also find a small beach here where there were locals sun bathing and swimming in the Black Sea. Larissa and the 4 year old decided to go wading at the beach. After a lot of prodding she finally got me to roll up my jeans and go wading with the little one. Larissa guided me around in the shallow pool and promptly led me into a hole. My jeans were soaked. It gave her something to laugh about and kid me about for the rest of the day.
I strongly recommend this site to anyone that is anywhere near Sevastopol on a trip to Crimea. In fact, I am more impressed with the historical sites in Crimea than anywhere else I have been to in Ukraine.
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More photos of ancient ruins
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More photos of ancient ruins
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More photos of ancient ruins
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Monday October 22 (Part 2)
The second visit today was to the "National Museum of Folk Architecture and Life in Ukraina"
We got there rather late in the day and it was overcast sky and getting a little chilly. All of the buildings had padlocks on them. Larissa found some babushkas that worked there and got them to open up some of the buildings for us.
This site is a historical record of the different types of farm buildings, homes, and churches. Having been to many villages and dachas of this period it was interesting to relate to the architectural style as many of the dachas still are similar to this type of construction.
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More photos of Folk Architecture Museum
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More photos of Folk Architecture Museum.
Note the schoolhouse. The guide was quick to point out the willow switches in the bowl to discipline the "bad boys". LOL
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More photos of Folk Architecture Museum
Note church. Flash not allowed, so photos are not great.
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Monday October 22 (Part 3) Train ride from Sevastopol to Kiev
Larissa arranged for us to stay in the apartment until 4:30 p.m. The apartment owner picked us up and drove us to the train station.
We had an hour or so to kill, so sat outside in an area that had a number of others also waiting for their trains.
While sitting there we noticed a man washing his feet on the bench he was sitting at. He had bare feet and was pouring water from a plastic bottle over his feet and washing them. Larissa was embarrassed and just rolled her eyes and shook her head in disbelief. I thought it was sort of funny for him to be bathing in front of all the other folks sitting around, but it got worse. After a while he pulled a large pair of sewing scissors out of a bag and began to clean his toe nails and trim them. For the most part everyone ignored him, but it was clear that Larissa was disgusted with him. LOL
When we bordered the train we were greeted by the same two women attendants that served us on the trip coming down. What a coincidence. One of them was a little flirtatious. I had asked permission to take a photo of the control panel that was in their private room. It appeared from the sounds while underway that this carriage was providing some of the power. I was not sure but had noticed that there were multiple cars with the electric apparatus that connects to the overhead electric wires. I was curious about the control panel and wanted a photo for future reference. One of the attendants granted me permission to enter her compartment and take a photo. She then suggested that I should also take photos of her. OK, no problem. Ha Ha, Larissa and her insane jealousy did not think it was such a good idea. In fact she later referred to them as village women. I guess that was supposed to be a put-down, but they just seemed friendly to me. LOL
As I recall , we departed Sevastopol about 6:30 p.m. and arrived in Kiev at noon the next day. The ride was great. Larissa had prepared food for the trip and the only problem was that while I was taking a nap the little one ate all the sausage. She is so cute and a great big flirt with any little boy she sees. A few compartments down the car, there was a mother and a little boy about her age. They were back and forth between compartments and giving each other little gifts of food, etc. She does a great Marilyn Monroe pose to show off. Learning young I guess. LOL
Since it was necessary for me to stay one night in Kiev before my departure at 6:40 the next morning, I had previously asked Larissa if there was any chance at staying with her at her moms apartment for one night. I explained that I was worried about oversleeping and missing my plane and wanted to spend the night together. She made it pretty clear that we were not allowed to stay at moms together. Getting an apartment for one night seemed like such a pain, but I knew mama was very strict. As we bordered the train she advised me that she had talked to mama and she would rearrange the sleeping scheme at the apartment and I could stay. What a relief.
When we got to the apartment I got to meet mama, Larissa's older brother, and Larissa's 19 year old son. We had a nice chat and everyone was very cordial. Mama and I had some in depth discussions about religion and politics. She is 75 and goes to school every day to learn Hebrew. She said that she wants to read the bible in its original Hebrew and that the translations of the bible were bogus. She taught Atheism and Religion for many years at the university and considered it part of her professional education. As far as I can tell she is an Atheist, but has very strong moral values. We discussed the parliamentary elections coming up this month and her views were the same as every one else I had talked to. They are all a bunch of gangsters. LOL As far as I can tell, things went well with the family. We were not allowed to show any physical affection for each other which I thought was sort of strange, but as much as I have read about others in this endeavor it does not seem that unusual.
We went out to pick up some champagne and Larissa took me to a supermarket that had a recreation center in the upper story. It has a bowling alley that she and her family and friends frequent. It also has a huge area for kids. This is something that I have not noticed much in the US. For one thing, the adults can be somewhere drinking and the kids are not isolated from the parents. It allows you to do more things together as a family and I am told that family get-togethers and BBQ's are the same way. The 3 of us adults had the bottle of champagne and it ended the nice evening.
Larissa woke me up at 4 a.m. and made breakfast. She then drove me to the airport and waited until I was past the security check point. Then the SMS messages started coming. LOL
This was a fantastic vacation and I met a lot of very nice people and saw a lot of great sites. It was unfortunate that my previous visits to Ukraine did not take in any historical sites, but tried to make up for it this time. As far as a dating style, I don't really have any strong feelings about what methods are best. I think it is a matter of what works best for the individual person. One thing for sure you can't do it the way I did this trip unless you have a lot of time and funds to keep you going. The biggest money hog was the apartment costs at $50 to $100 per night. That can eat your budget up in a hurry. For those lucky enough to have a girlfriend that already has an apartment, it can reduce your expenses dramatically. The costs for food, taxi, train, admittance to sites, etc. is rather trivial compared to the housing costs.
After reviewing my several trips to Ukraine, the one thing I would recommend to men from the US and Canada is to plan to take in the sites and museums rather than just making it a dating trip. The cost to go to Ukraine/Russia is so large that you might as well take advantage of the fact you already paid to get there.
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The adventure had a happy ending. We were married in July, 2013. For personal reasons we chose not to share the rest of the adventure immediately. Perhaps in the next few months we can continue to share the journey up to the current date.