Day 17 – Tuesday, 29 December
If a candlelight dinner is romantic, what do you call a shower by the flame of a tankless waterheater?? One thing that we had noticed this trip was the improved availability of public utilities…we hadn’t had a single power or water outage on this trip, except for on the train. Around 9:30, as I finished writing, Mark showered and shaved; as I opened the bathroom door and flipped on the light, the light flipped back off again. Checked the switch, it was on. Checked the next room, no light. On our very last day, when we need to get ready for court and finish the last-minute packing, the power went out.
Thankfully, the sun returned to us today, and our apartment had a lot of windows, so we finished getting ready in natural light. Our translator was running errands this morning to prepare for the congratulations party at the orphanage later that afternoon, and around 11, we began pacing and waiting for him to call.
The phone finally rang, our driver arrived, and drove the few blocks to the courthouse. We showed our passports and followed our translator upstairs, where Lena and a representative of the orphanage were waiting on a bench in the hallway. We hugged Lena and sat on either side of her to wait for our 12:00 hearing.
About noon, a court clerk opened the door to the courtroom, and we all entered and found our seats. The local Inspector greeted us; the orphanage psychologist had brought several photos of Masha, and gave the local inspector an update on how she was doing. Everyone chatted in low tones while we waited for the judge. And waited. And waited. At about 12:40, Lena started to get very worried that something was wrong. The orphanage psychologist was sitting next to her, and reassured her that everything was fine, and that the judge probably was just running late.
The judge finally entered the courtroom at about 1:20, and from there on, the hearing went smoothly. He read the documentation, and Mark and I answered a few simple questions. We were quickly ushered back out and the other family, whose appointment was scheduled for 1:00, traded places with us. Once both hearings were done, we waited outside the judge’s office while he finished the official decree. He then invited us in, read the full decision to us, and we were done.
We thought the original plan had been for us to go back to the apartment during the other family’s hearing, get a bite to eat, change clothes, and finish our last-minute packing before heading to the orphanage for the party. The wait…wait…wait…HURRY UP of the afternoon blew that plan out of the water, and following court, we rushed to the orphanage, trying to make it there in time for the dance/singing concert that was scheduled for the afternoon.
Typically, when a child is adopted from the orphanage, the kids put on a nice little program with singing and dancing followed by a party with fruit and juices for all the kids (a rare treat!). Both times we’ve adopted, we have coincided with major programs that were already scheduled, and we’ve kind of “piggy-backed.” This time, though, the show went on without us. We were able to spend some time with Lena and the Director shared some kind congratulatory words with us, and then we whisked off to change, load our luggage, and get to the train station ON TIME!
We also stopped briefly at a grocery store to grab some water, bread, and summer sausage for the train (we were starving, and nearly out of Ukrainian money with no time to exchange more!) The store the driver stopped at was new to us, and we discovered it was a two-story grocery, with moving sidewalks that shoppers could “ride” with their carts between the two levels. I do wish we hadn’t been in such a hurry!
We got back to the apartment and changed in record time, crammed our last minute things into the suitcases, and quickly cut up the summer sausage and some cheese for the train snack bag. As we began hauling our luggage down to the car, we again regretted the amount of stuff we brought to Ukraine and the amount of new stuff we’re bringing home….our bags are really heavy!!
We got to the train station in plenty of time, and the drivers helped us haul all our luggage up to the platform where we waited for the train to arrive. The air was much warmer than for our last voyage (it felt about 40), and the wait was pleasant. In time, the train pulled in, and our translator helped us lug all our bags through the train and get them stowed in our cabins.
We lucked out…the only tickets available were in first class compartments. While they are the same size as the second-class compartment we rode in last time, there are only two bunks, so Mark and I had the compartment to ourselves. We were next door to the other couple, and our translator was in the compartment on the other side of us.
Just as the train got underway, our translator walked up the corridor of the train with a bottle of champagne to celebrate. That kicked off an evening of drinking and snacking and general fun; our translator almost had us all talked into changing our flights and going to Egypt for the 10-day wait! We eventually called it a night and tried to get a bit of sleep before the train arrived back in Kyiv at 8:30AM.
Wednesday, December 30, 2009
Tuesday, December 29, 2009
Your Order Is In The Cooking
Day 16 – Monday, 28 December
5:50 AM: THUNK THUNK......THUNK THUNK THUNK..............THUNK THUNK.....THUNK......rattle rattle......THUNK THUNK.....THUNKTHUNK!
The neighbor apparently decided today was the ideal day to break through the concrete wall of his apartment with a sledgehammer to run a new electrical outlet or some other such nonsense. Yes, before 6 in the morning. Yes, it’s still dark out. This is crazy even by Ukrainian standards.
I got back to sleep long enough to have some disturbing but now forgotten dream about operational process related to equipment delivery, and woke up in a cold sweat. Am I really hardwired to dream about work on Sunday night?
After the refreshing joy of a sunny day, the gloomy cloud cover returned this morning and rain is in the forecast for what we hope is our last full day in town. I got up around 7:00, made coffee, and wrote for about two hours, the time punctuated by random noises from the neighboring apartment.
We left for the orphanage about 10:00, and began the morning’s Blokus tournament with a tie between Mark and Lena. During Game Two, a girl summoned Lena to dance rehearsal; Lena replied with a rapid-fire string of angry Russian that could only be interpreted as “how dare you interrupt me when I’m with my FAMILY!” OK, so maybe that’s a little bit of an overstatement, but she clearly chose hanging out with us over rehearsing for tomorrow’s recital. When the game was over, though, she dutifully ran upstairs for the remainder of the short rehearsal and then returned.
Also, because of the break-neck pace of paperwork upon our arrival and because we arrived on a Saturday, we had skipped the usual “background information” meetings that families typically have on the first or second day. Today, we met with the medical and psychological staff at the Center to be sure that we had all the information we needed before returning to the States with Lena.
We were not surprised to discover that she’s very healthy and well-adjusted. The psychologist shared Lena’s strengths with us, and also helped us understand where she will need encouragement and guidance. Most importantly, since she also remembered Masha and had known the two of them together, she was able to share some insights into their interactions. We had made similar observations, and it was really comforting to get that professional confirmation from her.
We also asked for special permission to take Lena out to lunch. With the quarantine, we didn’t expect this to be approved, but we were pleasantly surprised when our translator popped his head into the room and asked where we wanted to take her. He recommended a place called Pasta Project. It was a newer restaurant, and each table was equipped with an interactive touchscreen menu with descriptions and photos of all the dishes on the expansive menu. Each time you added a dish to the order and told it to send the order to the kitchen, the computer confirmed “Your order is in the cooking.” :-)
The other couple joined us as well, and we were having a blast browsing the menus and submitting orders; I was a little scared of what the final bill would be. Even in what is probably one of the more expensive restaurants in town, though, we got out of there for just under $100 for six people…and we were STUFFED!
After lunch, we returned Lena to the Center and headed back to our apartment in the driving rain. We met up with the husband of the matroshka doll artist that we met last time we were in Ukraine, and he drove us to their home, with the translator and the other couple following us. She greeted us like old friends, and we admired some of her private collection of matroshkas (nesting dolls)…there were a couple of beautiful large dolls that we asked about, but she replied “Oh, those are not for sale, they’re mine!” She explained that they were both some of her earlier work, and were very special to her. We can see why! We still bought a lot of stuff, including an 11-pice set telling the story of Cinderella, and then her husband returned us to our apartment through nearly flooded streets; it’s been raining hard for two days straight….again.
Our last big purchases made, we began to pack our massive amounts of stuff into four suitcases. We held out everything we would need for traveling over the next two or three days, and then carefully wrapped vodka, chocolates, and matroshkas in our clothes. We are leaving with more stuff than we brought…and that says a lot, since we brought a lot of stuff for other people!! I am resolved to travel much lighter for Trip 2!
After we were all packed up, we invited our translator and the other family over for a drink and to prepare for court. We shared stories about kids, movies, language, and culture before they walked back to pack up.
A final note, as we were packing, we received confirmation that our last document had come through and was on its way here. We are all cleared for court at noon tomorrow (5:00 AM Eastern time for those of you awake and inclined to think about us at that god-awful time of day!), then back to the apartment for a quick change into travelling clothes, pile ALL the luggage into the car, then off to the orphanage for a dance recital/concert to celebrate the adoptions of both Lena and the other family.
5:50 AM: THUNK THUNK......THUNK THUNK THUNK..............THUNK THUNK.....THUNK......rattle rattle......THUNK THUNK.....THUNKTHUNK!
The neighbor apparently decided today was the ideal day to break through the concrete wall of his apartment with a sledgehammer to run a new electrical outlet or some other such nonsense. Yes, before 6 in the morning. Yes, it’s still dark out. This is crazy even by Ukrainian standards.
I got back to sleep long enough to have some disturbing but now forgotten dream about operational process related to equipment delivery, and woke up in a cold sweat. Am I really hardwired to dream about work on Sunday night?
After the refreshing joy of a sunny day, the gloomy cloud cover returned this morning and rain is in the forecast for what we hope is our last full day in town. I got up around 7:00, made coffee, and wrote for about two hours, the time punctuated by random noises from the neighboring apartment.
We left for the orphanage about 10:00, and began the morning’s Blokus tournament with a tie between Mark and Lena. During Game Two, a girl summoned Lena to dance rehearsal; Lena replied with a rapid-fire string of angry Russian that could only be interpreted as “how dare you interrupt me when I’m with my FAMILY!” OK, so maybe that’s a little bit of an overstatement, but she clearly chose hanging out with us over rehearsing for tomorrow’s recital. When the game was over, though, she dutifully ran upstairs for the remainder of the short rehearsal and then returned.
Also, because of the break-neck pace of paperwork upon our arrival and because we arrived on a Saturday, we had skipped the usual “background information” meetings that families typically have on the first or second day. Today, we met with the medical and psychological staff at the Center to be sure that we had all the information we needed before returning to the States with Lena.
We were not surprised to discover that she’s very healthy and well-adjusted. The psychologist shared Lena’s strengths with us, and also helped us understand where she will need encouragement and guidance. Most importantly, since she also remembered Masha and had known the two of them together, she was able to share some insights into their interactions. We had made similar observations, and it was really comforting to get that professional confirmation from her.
We also asked for special permission to take Lena out to lunch. With the quarantine, we didn’t expect this to be approved, but we were pleasantly surprised when our translator popped his head into the room and asked where we wanted to take her. He recommended a place called Pasta Project. It was a newer restaurant, and each table was equipped with an interactive touchscreen menu with descriptions and photos of all the dishes on the expansive menu. Each time you added a dish to the order and told it to send the order to the kitchen, the computer confirmed “Your order is in the cooking.” :-)
The other couple joined us as well, and we were having a blast browsing the menus and submitting orders; I was a little scared of what the final bill would be. Even in what is probably one of the more expensive restaurants in town, though, we got out of there for just under $100 for six people…and we were STUFFED!
After lunch, we returned Lena to the Center and headed back to our apartment in the driving rain. We met up with the husband of the matroshka doll artist that we met last time we were in Ukraine, and he drove us to their home, with the translator and the other couple following us. She greeted us like old friends, and we admired some of her private collection of matroshkas (nesting dolls)…there were a couple of beautiful large dolls that we asked about, but she replied “Oh, those are not for sale, they’re mine!” She explained that they were both some of her earlier work, and were very special to her. We can see why! We still bought a lot of stuff, including an 11-pice set telling the story of Cinderella, and then her husband returned us to our apartment through nearly flooded streets; it’s been raining hard for two days straight….again.
Our last big purchases made, we began to pack our massive amounts of stuff into four suitcases. We held out everything we would need for traveling over the next two or three days, and then carefully wrapped vodka, chocolates, and matroshkas in our clothes. We are leaving with more stuff than we brought…and that says a lot, since we brought a lot of stuff for other people!! I am resolved to travel much lighter for Trip 2!
After we were all packed up, we invited our translator and the other family over for a drink and to prepare for court. We shared stories about kids, movies, language, and culture before they walked back to pack up.
A final note, as we were packing, we received confirmation that our last document had come through and was on its way here. We are all cleared for court at noon tomorrow (5:00 AM Eastern time for those of you awake and inclined to think about us at that god-awful time of day!), then back to the apartment for a quick change into travelling clothes, pile ALL the luggage into the car, then off to the orphanage for a dance recital/concert to celebrate the adoptions of both Lena and the other family.
Monday, December 28, 2009
Here Comes the Sun!
Day 15 – Sunday, 27 December
Finally, a bright blue sky and sunshine bathed the courtyard behind our apartment! Neighborhood animals surveyed their territories, sniffing the trees, leaping from stairwell to windowsill.
We went downstairs a couple minutes early to wait for our driver in the crisp air. I discussed world politics with a pretty healthy-looking stray cat who alternately rubbed against me, attacked my head, and then rubbed again…clearly, I had violated etiquette by failing to present an offering of tuna to the King of the Alley.
We had been waiting about 15 minutes when Mark decided to call our translator to be sure we hadn’t been confused about our pick-up time; our translator was surprised to hear that we were still waiting and made a couple calls. There had been a communication mix-up with our driver, and a car arrived for us about 10 minutes later. These are the things you just take in stride…
Lena ran down to greet us when we arrived, returning New Moon and telling us how she and her friends enjoyed watching it. We pulled out Travel Blokus, and Lena quickly remembered how to play. She and Mark played a couple games with me helping both of them where I could. After a few minutes, we heard a bit of commotion upstairs, and kids started streaming out the front door; with the nice weather, it was time for the older kids’ groups to get some fresh air. Lena ran upstairs and reappeared with just her face peeking out of her coat, hat, and scarf.
We donned our coats as well, and followed her outside. The girls from her groupa quickly gathered around us and started practicing their English. We took many pictures, learned many of their names, and giggled as they played, sliding around on the ice, stomping in the mud, and generally enjoying the clear air and sunshine.
Too soon, the caretakers herded the kids back toward the front door. All of a sudden, all the girls ran over to a quickly-melting snowpile and started stomping around on it. We looked at them curiously until we realized that they were all cleaning the mud off the bottoms of their boots! We followed suit, and then everyone returned inside.
We had about an hour left of our visit with Lena, and we spent most of it watching her get better at Blokus. While she wasn’t winning yet, each game grew closer until the last game against Mark ended in a tie. She kept the game to play with her friends, and I suspect by tomorrow, she’ll be killing both of us.
When our time was complete, our driver took us to a restaurant by the Sea; we had heard about it, but in our 4 weeks here last time, never ate there! It was a beautiful day to sit by the window and look out over the sea; the ice gave way to soft waves about 100 yards off the coast. People took advantage of the great weather; couples walked along the coast, parents pushed strollers, people walked dogs on leashes (we were surprised by that one…you really don’t see a lot of leashes here!)
We enjoyed a couple of salads, including Herring Under a Fur Coat (which I found on the menu without the benefit of an English title!), a meatball soup, and a couple of kebabs. Add to that three beers between the two of us and we were stuffed for about $25.
We returned to the apartment with about an hour of daylight left; Mark couldn’t let it go to waste, so he asked our driver to take him up to the Ренок, the open air market, for a couple of hours while I stayed at the apartment. He picked up several souvenirs and had a great time; arriving back home safe and sound at about 5:00.
We puttered around the rest of the evening, finishing up a movie we had started earlier in the day, reading, and watching a Ukrainian music contest on TV—similar to American Idol—while riveted to NFL.com watching the Steelers finally pull off a win. Unfortunately, the Colts game started at 11:15PM local time, and we logged off and crashed just before kickoff (and, as I’m writing the following morning, I’m really glad I didn’t stay up for it!!)
Tomorrow is a pivotal day for us; we need one more document to be completed by the SDA in Kyiv in order for us to continue with our court hearing on Tuesday. It typically takes 5 days for them to produce this document, but everyone is trying get it done much more quickly so we can complete court before the holidays, and return home on the 31st as scheduled. Stay tuned, and pray hard for us?
Finally, a bright blue sky and sunshine bathed the courtyard behind our apartment! Neighborhood animals surveyed their territories, sniffing the trees, leaping from stairwell to windowsill.
We went downstairs a couple minutes early to wait for our driver in the crisp air. I discussed world politics with a pretty healthy-looking stray cat who alternately rubbed against me, attacked my head, and then rubbed again…clearly, I had violated etiquette by failing to present an offering of tuna to the King of the Alley.
We had been waiting about 15 minutes when Mark decided to call our translator to be sure we hadn’t been confused about our pick-up time; our translator was surprised to hear that we were still waiting and made a couple calls. There had been a communication mix-up with our driver, and a car arrived for us about 10 minutes later. These are the things you just take in stride…
Lena ran down to greet us when we arrived, returning New Moon and telling us how she and her friends enjoyed watching it. We pulled out Travel Blokus, and Lena quickly remembered how to play. She and Mark played a couple games with me helping both of them where I could. After a few minutes, we heard a bit of commotion upstairs, and kids started streaming out the front door; with the nice weather, it was time for the older kids’ groups to get some fresh air. Lena ran upstairs and reappeared with just her face peeking out of her coat, hat, and scarf.
We donned our coats as well, and followed her outside. The girls from her groupa quickly gathered around us and started practicing their English. We took many pictures, learned many of their names, and giggled as they played, sliding around on the ice, stomping in the mud, and generally enjoying the clear air and sunshine.
Too soon, the caretakers herded the kids back toward the front door. All of a sudden, all the girls ran over to a quickly-melting snowpile and started stomping around on it. We looked at them curiously until we realized that they were all cleaning the mud off the bottoms of their boots! We followed suit, and then everyone returned inside.
We had about an hour left of our visit with Lena, and we spent most of it watching her get better at Blokus. While she wasn’t winning yet, each game grew closer until the last game against Mark ended in a tie. She kept the game to play with her friends, and I suspect by tomorrow, she’ll be killing both of us.
When our time was complete, our driver took us to a restaurant by the Sea; we had heard about it, but in our 4 weeks here last time, never ate there! It was a beautiful day to sit by the window and look out over the sea; the ice gave way to soft waves about 100 yards off the coast. People took advantage of the great weather; couples walked along the coast, parents pushed strollers, people walked dogs on leashes (we were surprised by that one…you really don’t see a lot of leashes here!)
We enjoyed a couple of salads, including Herring Under a Fur Coat (which I found on the menu without the benefit of an English title!), a meatball soup, and a couple of kebabs. Add to that three beers between the two of us and we were stuffed for about $25.
We returned to the apartment with about an hour of daylight left; Mark couldn’t let it go to waste, so he asked our driver to take him up to the Ренок, the open air market, for a couple of hours while I stayed at the apartment. He picked up several souvenirs and had a great time; arriving back home safe and sound at about 5:00.
We puttered around the rest of the evening, finishing up a movie we had started earlier in the day, reading, and watching a Ukrainian music contest on TV—similar to American Idol—while riveted to NFL.com watching the Steelers finally pull off a win. Unfortunately, the Colts game started at 11:15PM local time, and we logged off and crashed just before kickoff (and, as I’m writing the following morning, I’m really glad I didn’t stay up for it!!)
Tomorrow is a pivotal day for us; we need one more document to be completed by the SDA in Kyiv in order for us to continue with our court hearing on Tuesday. It typically takes 5 days for them to produce this document, but everyone is trying get it done much more quickly so we can complete court before the holidays, and return home on the 31st as scheduled. Stay tuned, and pray hard for us?
Sleepy Saturday
Day 14 – Saturday, 26 December
Call us boring, but we just didn’t do that much today. The weather was awful; cold and rainy and gloomy. We went to the orphanage at about 10:40 and had a good visit with Lena. We gave her the DVD copy of New Moon and then played games—Uno is a big favorite, and we also played several rounds of Set, with Lena trouncing us each time.
After our visit, we returned to our apartment, grabbed a bit of lunch. Our driver returned around 2:30 to take us to the “upscale” mall in town. We are still amazed by the contrasts; in a town where the average income is well under $500 US per month, we see women dressed amazingly well in fur coats and hats, high heeled boots, and fashionable handbags. Yet the prices on these items at the mall are beyond even what I would be willing to pay…I saw a cute gray sweater on a mannequin and peeked at the price tag: 1,500 hrivna, or almost $200 US. ACK! Now, the prices at the other mall were a little bit lower, but I’ve been looking for a knit hat and can’t seem to find one for under $20. Where’s Wal-Mart when you need it??
We browsed the mall for about an hour, found the free wi-fi spot that the other family told us about, checked headlines and learned of the foiled terrorist attempt on the same route we will be flying on Thursday (Amsterdam to Detroit). Now there’s no way we can slip through even the small vodka bottles in our carryons…We’ll be watching the news a little more closely now to see if we need to change our packing strategy!
We stopped into an adjacent grocery store, picked up some Coke and a bottle of water, and then met our driver in front of the giant Santa outside the mall for a ride back home through the cold rain. Back home, we snacked and watched a couple of movies, and then headed for bed.
Call us boring, but we just didn’t do that much today. The weather was awful; cold and rainy and gloomy. We went to the orphanage at about 10:40 and had a good visit with Lena. We gave her the DVD copy of New Moon and then played games—Uno is a big favorite, and we also played several rounds of Set, with Lena trouncing us each time.
After our visit, we returned to our apartment, grabbed a bit of lunch. Our driver returned around 2:30 to take us to the “upscale” mall in town. We are still amazed by the contrasts; in a town where the average income is well under $500 US per month, we see women dressed amazingly well in fur coats and hats, high heeled boots, and fashionable handbags. Yet the prices on these items at the mall are beyond even what I would be willing to pay…I saw a cute gray sweater on a mannequin and peeked at the price tag: 1,500 hrivna, or almost $200 US. ACK! Now, the prices at the other mall were a little bit lower, but I’ve been looking for a knit hat and can’t seem to find one for under $20. Where’s Wal-Mart when you need it??
We browsed the mall for about an hour, found the free wi-fi spot that the other family told us about, checked headlines and learned of the foiled terrorist attempt on the same route we will be flying on Thursday (Amsterdam to Detroit). Now there’s no way we can slip through even the small vodka bottles in our carryons…We’ll be watching the news a little more closely now to see if we need to change our packing strategy!
We stopped into an adjacent grocery store, picked up some Coke and a bottle of water, and then met our driver in front of the giant Santa outside the mall for a ride back home through the cold rain. Back home, we snacked and watched a couple of movies, and then headed for bed.
Saturday, December 26, 2009
Merry Christmas
Day 13 – Friday, 25 December
In our dreams, Christmas dawns still and clear, sunshine glinting off freshly fallen snow, reindeer tracks on the roofs of every small child. In Ukraine…not so much.
We have figured out how Santa manages…he distributes his workload in Europe across the month of December, visiting Ukraine (and probably many other places) over New Year’s; he’s not due here for another week. He did a fly-by for us, though, and dropped off some warmer temperatures.
As our translator left the apartment around 9:30, she winked and instructed me to look at the window—she thought she heard Дед Морошь (Santa) during the night. In my morning haze, however, my brain processed her command as “Look OUT the window.” I spent the next 20-30 minutes intently staring out the window while I tried to get my laptop online. I have no idea at all what I was supposed to see, but I was sure I was supposed to be looking out the window.
When our translator called again to let us know when our driver would arrive, she asked if we had found it.
Mark: Found what??
Translator: Look on the windowsill behind the blind.
“Santa” had been there, and had brought us a couple of small souvenirs from the town we are staying in! Our translator is so thoughtful!! It’s so wonderful when you meet someone halfway around the world, and things just click so quickly that you can move beyond the professional arrangement and into a real friendship, and we really look forward to staying in touch with her after we get back home.
Lena had asked us to wear warm clothes today so that we could go outside and walk around, maybe slide down the small hill on the orphanage grounds a few times, and get some fresh air. Looking outside, I was skeptical, but we bundled up with thermals and extra layers anyway.
On the way to the orphanage, we stopped at a bookstore to pick up a Christmas gift for Lena. The plan had been to give her the first Twilight book. We needed to get a new copy….the ones we bought in Kyiv were in Ukrainian, and she told us a few days ago that she doesn’t read Ukrainian all that well; she prefers Russian. Ooops. We walked into the bookstore, and the first thing we saw was a beautiful boxed set of all four books in Russian. It was a little bit more than we had planned to spend, but it was less than I spent on my English set. We paid, and then Mark remembered that we needed a gift bag. We returned, and selected a cute pink gift bag with butterflies. After a short but intense discussion regarding the need (or not) for tissue paper (I didn’t see any and have no clue how to ask for it, so my position was that we didn’t need it…), we purchased the gift bag and left.
We arrived at the orphanage during dance rehearsal, so we waited patiently. Soon enough, Lena appeared. She presented each of us with a gift; mine was a pretty folded-paper vase with six flowers, and Mark’s was a small swan. She told us that she had learned about half of the English words that I wrote down for her yesterday, but she’s still pretty self-conscious and she refused to tell us which ones. We all decided that the weather was too grim to walk outside, so we just hung out for a while, Lena taunting the fish in the aquarium with a plastic shark at regular intervals.
Near the end of our visit, our translator finished with the family she was helping, and we presented her Christmas gifts…the book set, a Russian copy of the Twilight DVD, and a new wristwatch. Lena was overjoyed; she decided that we should take the books back in our luggage on this trip, and then she could read them when she arrived in the US.
Our translator asked her to make a list of any other Russian books, DVDs, or music that she wanted, and after we left the orphanage, she took us shopping. Shopping in Ukraine is an interesting prospect…the economy here is growing, and you can find modern malls with specialty shops as well as open air markets and street vendors. Mall shops tend to be pretty expensive and carry somewhat higher quality merchandise—the street vendors are where the deals are.
Our translator and driver shuttled us through the foggy streets to find the best prices. Each vendor was happy to show us his selection of CDs and DVDs, and we quickly discovered that some of them might not be of entirely legitimate origin, considering that we found DVDs for movies like Avatar, 2012, and New Moon…still in theaters! We returned from our shopping expedition with several books and a few movies and DVDs for Lena to watch as she settles in, and also to help keep both girls exposed to the Russian language over time.
Shopping works up an appetite, so we popped into a pizza restaurant for a final meal with our translator before she returned on tonight’s train to Kyiv. As we returned to our apartment, we passed through the center of town and noticed a big holiday celebration getting underway. As we live only a couple blocks away, we quickly returned to the apartment, organized our purchases, and then set off into the early evening.
As we walked toward the city center, we browsed through a few shops, enjoying the walk through the balmy 40-degree evening. We visited a pet shop and saw Chinchillas, miniature guinea pigs, and even piranhas! We also stopped into a couple of watch shops, and browsed through one of the local malls. The highlight of the evening, though, was the outdoor program to kick off the holiday season. A crowd of people gathered in front of the town’s auditorium; families with small children, small groups of high school friends, and older people. A huge Christmas tree was set up next to a small stage, where the town was treated to skits with St. Nicholas and the Snow Princess and performances from what appeared to be local high school kids.
All in all, a unique and memorable Christmas day!
In our dreams, Christmas dawns still and clear, sunshine glinting off freshly fallen snow, reindeer tracks on the roofs of every small child. In Ukraine…not so much.
We have figured out how Santa manages…he distributes his workload in Europe across the month of December, visiting Ukraine (and probably many other places) over New Year’s; he’s not due here for another week. He did a fly-by for us, though, and dropped off some warmer temperatures.
As our translator left the apartment around 9:30, she winked and instructed me to look at the window—she thought she heard Дед Морошь (Santa) during the night. In my morning haze, however, my brain processed her command as “Look OUT the window.” I spent the next 20-30 minutes intently staring out the window while I tried to get my laptop online. I have no idea at all what I was supposed to see, but I was sure I was supposed to be looking out the window.
When our translator called again to let us know when our driver would arrive, she asked if we had found it.
Mark: Found what??
Translator: Look on the windowsill behind the blind.
“Santa” had been there, and had brought us a couple of small souvenirs from the town we are staying in! Our translator is so thoughtful!! It’s so wonderful when you meet someone halfway around the world, and things just click so quickly that you can move beyond the professional arrangement and into a real friendship, and we really look forward to staying in touch with her after we get back home.
Lena had asked us to wear warm clothes today so that we could go outside and walk around, maybe slide down the small hill on the orphanage grounds a few times, and get some fresh air. Looking outside, I was skeptical, but we bundled up with thermals and extra layers anyway.
On the way to the orphanage, we stopped at a bookstore to pick up a Christmas gift for Lena. The plan had been to give her the first Twilight book. We needed to get a new copy….the ones we bought in Kyiv were in Ukrainian, and she told us a few days ago that she doesn’t read Ukrainian all that well; she prefers Russian. Ooops. We walked into the bookstore, and the first thing we saw was a beautiful boxed set of all four books in Russian. It was a little bit more than we had planned to spend, but it was less than I spent on my English set. We paid, and then Mark remembered that we needed a gift bag. We returned, and selected a cute pink gift bag with butterflies. After a short but intense discussion regarding the need (or not) for tissue paper (I didn’t see any and have no clue how to ask for it, so my position was that we didn’t need it…), we purchased the gift bag and left.
We arrived at the orphanage during dance rehearsal, so we waited patiently. Soon enough, Lena appeared. She presented each of us with a gift; mine was a pretty folded-paper vase with six flowers, and Mark’s was a small swan. She told us that she had learned about half of the English words that I wrote down for her yesterday, but she’s still pretty self-conscious and she refused to tell us which ones. We all decided that the weather was too grim to walk outside, so we just hung out for a while, Lena taunting the fish in the aquarium with a plastic shark at regular intervals.
Near the end of our visit, our translator finished with the family she was helping, and we presented her Christmas gifts…the book set, a Russian copy of the Twilight DVD, and a new wristwatch. Lena was overjoyed; she decided that we should take the books back in our luggage on this trip, and then she could read them when she arrived in the US.
Our translator asked her to make a list of any other Russian books, DVDs, or music that she wanted, and after we left the orphanage, she took us shopping. Shopping in Ukraine is an interesting prospect…the economy here is growing, and you can find modern malls with specialty shops as well as open air markets and street vendors. Mall shops tend to be pretty expensive and carry somewhat higher quality merchandise—the street vendors are where the deals are.
Our translator and driver shuttled us through the foggy streets to find the best prices. Each vendor was happy to show us his selection of CDs and DVDs, and we quickly discovered that some of them might not be of entirely legitimate origin, considering that we found DVDs for movies like Avatar, 2012, and New Moon…still in theaters! We returned from our shopping expedition with several books and a few movies and DVDs for Lena to watch as she settles in, and also to help keep both girls exposed to the Russian language over time.
Shopping works up an appetite, so we popped into a pizza restaurant for a final meal with our translator before she returned on tonight’s train to Kyiv. As we returned to our apartment, we passed through the center of town and noticed a big holiday celebration getting underway. As we live only a couple blocks away, we quickly returned to the apartment, organized our purchases, and then set off into the early evening.
As we walked toward the city center, we browsed through a few shops, enjoying the walk through the balmy 40-degree evening. We visited a pet shop and saw Chinchillas, miniature guinea pigs, and even piranhas! We also stopped into a couple of watch shops, and browsed through one of the local malls. The highlight of the evening, though, was the outdoor program to kick off the holiday season. A crowd of people gathered in front of the town’s auditorium; families with small children, small groups of high school friends, and older people. A huge Christmas tree was set up next to a small stage, where the town was treated to skits with St. Nicholas and the Snow Princess and performances from what appeared to be local high school kids.
All in all, a unique and memorable Christmas day!
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