Observing the Ukrainian Elections: Part I

Far too much happened within the past week to be condensed into a single blog entry, so I will have to make installments.

I'll start at the very beginning, it's a very good place to start. :)

I had signed up months ago with the Ukrainian Canadian Congress (a Canadian organization for Ukrainian diaspora) to join the hundreds of international observers monitoring the Ukrainian parliamentary elections on October 28th. After working with this organization, I don't mind telling you that it is the worst-run, most disorganized group I have ever worked with, and I definitely would think twice about working with them again. But hey... tse Ukraina.

(After they changed the date 3 times,) I knew our orientation would be at 8:30 AM on October 25th. I did not yet know in which city I would be observing the elections. Twice the UCCA had sent me forms to fill out about my preferences for where to be sent, whether I would need accommodations and train tickets, etc. etc. Twice I had completed these forms: twice I told them that Vinnytsia was my first choice, L'viv my second, and beyond that I didn't care; and that yes, I would need accommodations unless I was in Vinnytsia, and yes, I would need train tickets.

By the day I was to leave for Kyiv (Wednesday the 24th) I still did not know for certain where I was to be placed. I'd emailed them to ask; they hadn't answered. Jack (the other ETA) had called them and they'd told him they hoped to send me to Vinnytsia, but then they sent me an email the next morning saying they hoped to send me to L'viv. Then the final list was sent out (but not to me, Jack had to forward his), and it listed me in Vinnytsia. I thought probably this meant I was coming back home to Vinnytsia, but I packed an extra set of clothes just in case. Anyway, I was more concerned that I had not heard any word of where I was meant to be staying that night. Starting to panic, I tried to find a hotel in Kyiv, but many were full. I finally got ahold of UCCA to ask whether they had made arrangements; they had not, but they assured me they would. I was literally about to board my train when they finally called to inform me that they had booked me a room at Hotel Ukraina... for 800 hryven (about $100) that night. Expensive! But I was glad to have a place to stay, at least.

After that harrowing afternoon panicking about not having a place to stay, I finally arrived in Kyiv, took the metro to the hotel, and secured my room around 10 pm. Hotel Ukraina is very nice... a Soviet high-rise at the very center of town, right behind Maydan Nezalezhnosti.

See? Right behind the freedom monument.

So I was annoyed they couldn't have put me up someplace cheaper, but glad the place was reasonably nice.

My room on the 10th floor of Hotel Ukraina

What really made the place almost worth it, though, was the view from the balcony!

View this one full-size. I promise it's worth it! I am really pleased with how well the pano came out, and at night no less!

I didn't sleep too well, however, because the room was hot and there was noise from the street, and I was still feeling a lot of residual stress from all that had happened that day. All in all I only slept maybe 3 or 4 hours. I got up around 7 for breakfast at the hotel, then afterwards got back on the metro to Kyiv Mohyla Academy at Kontraktova Ploshcha for our orientation.

On Kontraktova Ploshcha... autumn leaves in the background, and the church on the hill...

The orientation was endless and frustrating. Everything was announced in English AND in Ukrainian, and the information was redundant anyway. On the plus side, I met up with some of the other Fulbrighters (click here to read about their projects): Russell, a journalism teacher from Penn State; Jack, the other ETA; Talia, a researcher working on the history of Jews in Ukraine; and Debra, who I hadn't met until this day but who was (supposedly) coming to Vinnytsia with me. At the start of the day she came up to me to say that UCCA hadn't found her accommodations in Vinnytsia like she'd asked (surprise, surprise), so I told her she could crash on my couch. They hadn't bought us train tickets either, though, so we spent the whole day struggling to find a good train back to Vinnytsia that evening. In the end we decided just to wait till we were at the train station and buy whatever was left, even if it meant getting in at 2 am.

The most (possibly only) interesting part of the orientation were the visits from the Canadian and United States Ambassadors. Unlike when we had met him during the Fulbright program, Ambassador Tefft had over an hour to talk and take questions, and we were allowed to take pictures. None of mine came out, though.

The orientation was supposed to end at 5 pm with us breaking off into our regional groups with our group leaders, but this did not happen until after 6. When the list of group leaders was read, guess what? There was no one for Vinnytsia. Debra and I went to ask... and were told that the leader for Vinnytsia, as well as the other four members of our team, had all dropped out. Either we could go and be the only people in Vinnytsia, or we could go someplace else, or we could go home.

WHAT.

Well, damned if I was going to go home empty-handed after sitting through that 10-hour orientation and paying $100 for a hotel in Kyiv... and Debra and I couldn't do it alone, since neither of us had any election observation experience... so I got sent to L'viv.

But I didn't have a place to stay in Kyiv that night, and I had no train ticket, no place to stay in L'viv either, I told them. And of course they hadn't made any for me. Panicking, I called my friend Taras at Ukrainian Catholic University who'd arranged housing for me on my last visit, and told him the situation. He found me a room in UCU's new dorm for 150 UAH a night. Acceptable. Then the UCCA people offered me a train ticket to L'viv they had already bought which left in a little over an hour. I bought it, but was worried about getting to the station in time for an overnight train and not having eaten dinner. This didn't turn out to be a problem, though, since the L'viv team's leader, a British woman named Darka, traded tickets with me since an unplanned meeting was called and she had to arrive earlier. This meant that I wouldn't need to leave until 11:30 pm, and I had time to go eat. Plus, another observer, a British guy named Peter, was also taking my train, so I would have help getting to the station and finding the train. Not that I really need it at this point, but still good to have the assurance since I seem to be very talented at messing up things I already should know how to do. Crisis averted.

In order to wind myself down from the panic attack nearly caused by all of this, Peter, Talia, and I went out for pizza and a few good drinks. After a tall glass of Chernigivske beer and a couple hours of friendly conversation, I finally began to relax. Oh, Ukraine. In the words of Svitlana, "This is Ukraine, where unexpected is happening every day."

After Talia went home, Peter and I moved on to an Irish pub for another beer. This pub had Halloween decorations everywhere-- spiderwebs, pumpkins, etc. It was so refreshing to see them, like being at home. :) Then we went to the train station, arriving about an hour early. We settled down in the waiting hall, but unfortunately the only seats empty were next to an extremely drunk bum. Peter, being a proper British gentleman, took the seat closest to him. Unfortunately he wanted our attention. He started talking to us in Russian, telling us (among other things) how pretty I was. Peter and I, of course, pretended not to understand him and carried on speaking in English. Then the bum tried to speak to us in English. Unfortunately (or fortunately, it's anybody's guess), the only words he knew were "Baku" "seven" and "thank you very much!" He repeated all these phrases to us in different permutations, and occasionally Peter would respond to him sarcastically. I felt terrible for making fun of this poor drunk man, but by the time we left for our train I was just dying of laughter.

Our train tickets, unfortunately, were third class, in separate cars, and top bunks. I barely slept at all during the entire ride, because it was noisy and the lights were shining directly in my eyes. By the time we rolled into L'viv around 8:30, I was completely exhausted. Taras called a taxi to take me to the dorms, and I checked in and went right to sleep for a few hours. I was too tired to do much else that day except go out for dinner with Charitie, another Fulbrighter who lives in L'viv. We went to a restaurant on Rynok Square called the Golden Boar and the food was phenomenal. I had Zeleni (green) Borshch and shashlyk (kebabs) made with mushrooms, cheese, and olives. Charitie had cherry Varenky (dumplings) which she shared with me. It was all so delicious. I'm definitely going back to that restaurant.

Before the actual election fun begins, I think I must take a break. You are starting to see, now, how insane these days have been, and I think you will understand why I am so glad to finally be back home in Vinnytsia, and why I need sleep! Part II to follow. :)

Life in Vinnytsia: Continued

Yes I know it's been a long time since I've written. I had that cold for a week or so, and not much was going on. Things have finally started to pick up, though. I am now teaching about 3 classes a week, working with Svitlana (my contact here at the university) and Oleg (the department head) (for the sake of simplicity, we might just call them "my Ukrainian mom and dad," hahaha) and various other teachers.

SO here are pretty much all the significant things that happened in the last few weeks:


A week ago Sunday, on the last warm day of the year, I finally went to the little cafe downstairs. I had cappuccino and apple strudel... and it was the best ever. Tasted better because I ordered in Russian, paid in Russian, and the waitress understood me... it tasted like VICTORY.

Apple Strudel a la mode. Mmmmmmmmm...

I've also done a lot of writing on my novel. I'm happy to report that it now stands at 51,615 words... ladies and gentlemen, we have reached the halfway mark! Yayyyyy!

Storyboarding on my living room floor... don't read the papers, there are spoilers!!!

So far, the most fun I've had teaching a lesson was the class I had last Tuesday with the Philology students. They were learning about British theater... so I made them a lesson based on Les Miserables. I passed out a synopsis, and we discussed it; then, we did a listening activity with "Stars," my favorite song from the musical. The students were really happy and enthusiastic, and we all had a really fun class.

On Friday, I helped out in Oleg's class. They are only first-year students, but they are very bold and talkative. In fact, they talk more than Svitlana's fourth-year students do. Whenever I begin working with a new class, I always give them a half-class or so to ask me questions about myself, where I am from, what America is like, what I think about Ukraine, etc. etc. One young man in this class wanted to know: "You are very beautiful. Do you have a husband?"

The entire class and I laughed for a good minute over that one. Teaching college students is so much fun.


After teaching that class I finally had my first lesson in Russian. Oleg, the department head, has taken it upon himself to personally tutor me every day. It makes my brain hurt, but if I keep up at this rate, I do think that, as he says "by the time you return to America, you will have a Russian accent."

Yes, this is a textbook for teaching English. Yes, I am using it to learn Happy Russian.

Another big step on Saturday... I had to go pay my internet bill by myself. It actually went off without a hitch, but I get so nervous every time I'm supposed to speak Russian without an interpreter around.

And the adventures continue... this morning, the light fixture in my living room, the main source of light in my apartment, fizzled out. Literally. I was afraid there would be a fire or something. Tanya's husband, who is an electrical engineer, will come to have a look at it tomorrow. But for now, my apartment is very dark. And also very cold, since I haven't yet called my landlady to turn on the heat. Another problem for tomorrow.

Today at the store I found fresh figs. I had never seen a fig not dried. I bought three, and this evening I ate one. Pretty tasty, but not as sweet as they are when dried (I guess that makes sense).

And now you know what a fresh fig looks like.

And that, I think, it all that has happened of importance over the last week or two. Updates as my Russian improves.

Fulbright in Ukraine Orientation

I'm feeling rather lousy today after the Fulbright Orientation in Kyiv. Partially because last night was really stressful, and partially because I seem to have caught the cold that the Fulbrighters in Kyiv said was going around their school- sore throat and runny nose. Today I haven't been up to much except laying on the couch and drinking tea, which, fortunately for you, means I have plenty of time to update my blog.

On my way to Kyiv, I had a seat on one of the new express trains with airplane-style seats. Not bad at all, and pretty fast as Ukrainian trains go. I used the ride to work on my novel, so the time went by quickly. Upon arriving in Kyiv, I followed the directions provided by the Fulbright office to find our hotel without any problems. When I checked in, I was told that I had been assigned a roommate, which was fine until I saw the room...

I've seen two queens or a single king, but how about a perfectly good full-size bed cut in two?

Uh-huh. Cozy... I guess.

After checking in, I went outside to meet Halya, one of my Ukrainian friends from the English Summer School. She took me to her parents' apartment, where she had cooked a delicious dinner of Borshch, roast chicken and potatoes, and salad, with cake for dessert. It was all so good, and I enjoyed a nice evening catching up with her, helping her practice her English.

Beautiful mosaic of St. Volodymyr, Baptiser of Rus', in the Universytet Metro Station

The hotel provided complimentary breakfasts, so after dining there with a few of my fellow Fulbrights, I met up with Halya again and she took me to her family's church for liturgy. It was the first Ukrainian Greek Catholic liturgy I've made it to since being here, and I was most happy. :)

Halya's church was modern, but still beautiful-- a balance which many American churches fail to find.

Even better, after Mass, Halya took me to the church bookstore and helped me to buy a prayer book which contains the entire liturgy and all the offices in Ukrainian. I was so excited! It will help me to not only follow along with the liturgy in a foreign language, but also to learn lots of new vocabulary :)

After church, we returned to Halya's family's house and ate a delicious lunch. Her parents didn't speak much English at all, so I had only a little conversation with them with my limited knowledge of Ukrainian and Halya's help. They were so kind and gracious-- they even gave me a bagful of apples to take home with me, and when it looked as though I would not be able to get to the orientation on time, Halya's father drove me straight to the apartment of the director of the Fulbright Program in Ukraine, where the meeting was being held.

The orientation was great-- it was nice to meet other Americans who share my love of Ukraine, and to put faces to names I've seen on contact lists. They all seemed like pretty nice people, and we got along well. While enjoying appetizers of fruit, cheese, and crackers, and drinking wine, beer, juice, and water, we saw presentations on the education system of Ukraine and the elections in Ukraine by the former Education secretary of Ukraine and by the dean of the law college at Mohyla Academy, respectively. Then we enjoyed a tasty dinner of blyny, shashlyk, varynky, and many other foods while milling around and chatting. After that day I was so tired I returned to the hotel and went to bed at 10 PM. It was probably for the best, though, because the next morning's events started early.

After breakfast at the hotel, a series of cars collected us and took us to the U.S. Embassy in Kyiv. Security was tight-- we had to turn in all our electronics and medications, and we were not allowed anywhere without an escort, including the bathroom. A day full of presentations began, all by the staff of the U.S. Embassy, including things like health in Ukraine, the Ukrainian economy, security in Ukraine, and so on. At the end of the day we were fortunate to have a visit from the U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine, John Tefft. He was a very nice guy, who chatted casually with all of us about our work in Ukraine.

Following the orientation we took cabs back to the hotel, and four of us went out for dinner in the time before we had to catch our respective trains. We enjoyed pizza and drinks at Oliva, a chain of Italian restaurants in Kyiv. Around 8 PM I caught my train (and yes, I caught it this time!) back to Vinnytsia, which put me back around 11:30.

Now, I had thought I might be able to take a tram home, but a look at the sign outside the tram stop told me that they had stopped running around 10 PM. The buses were still running, but I didn't know which number to take and I didn't want to end up God-knows-where. I would have called Tanya or Svitlana, but unfortunately when I had turned in my phone to security at the U.S. Embassy they had made me shut it off, and when I turned it back on it demanded a PIN which I did not have in my possession. Therefore, my phone was useless. I looked for a pay phone at the station (they are more prevalent in Ukraine than in the US) but could not find one. Despite the panic rising, I could not resist the urge to laugh. It was such a perfect storm of misfortunes, each so unlikely that their convergence was frankly absurd.

My next idea: take a taxi. I waited until one pulled up to drop people off, thus signaling to me that they were from a reputable company. I asked if he was free, and he said yes, but when I told him my address he could not understand me, so I got frustrated and got out.

Now I really didn't know what to do... so I sought out an employee at the Ukrainian train station, and tried to explain to her as best I could the problem I was having. Although I'd tried to explain to her in Russian, she took me to another employee who spoke English, who asked me to explain in English. I told her that I needed a taxi to get to my address, and she asked if I was staying with friends. "No, I live here!" I said. She was surprised, "You live here and you don't speak Russian!?" So I told her in Russian, "I speak Russian, but very badly!" I think the taxi driver didn't understand my request because of my accent.

She then went and got me a cab-- I am pretty sure it was the same one, actually-- negotiated the price for me, and gave me her number and asked me to call her when I got home. I offered her a little money for her trouble but she refused it. On the way back, I chatted with the taxi driver in my terrible Russian, explaining my frustration at my language situation and explaining that I *lived* here, I should know my way around! I know he had some trouble understanding my terrible Russian, but he was very nice about it. When I arrived home, I finally put the code into my phone, only to find a text from Tanya telling me which trolleybuses I could take. Lot of good that did me now, haha! I called the train station worker as she had requested. I told her I was safe at home and she responded, "You live alone!?" I assured her I had friends here and a job, that I wasn't just a helpless foreigner. She told me that I could call her any time if I needed anything, whether I just wanted to talk, or if she could help me buy train tickets. I thanked her and asked her what her name was. "Angel." As if I needed another sign that someone upstairs is looking out for me :) Thank God for kind Ukrainians!

That was the longest day ever, and after being so panicked at the railway station it took me a few hours to calm down so that I could sleep. And then I woke up with the cold, paired with a strong sense of discouragement at my language skills after all that had happened last night. Hence, my reluctance to do anything but lay on the couch today. Hopefully tomorrow I will feel better!

L'viv: The City of My Heart

Ahhh......... L'viv. What can I say about L'viv?

No words can describe L'viv. There is no city like it in the world.

L'viv enchants you. It gets into your soul and doesn't leave.

Rynok Square: the most beautiful part of the most beautiful city!

No pictures can do justice to the feeling of being there. There is just something so intense, so rich and alive, about this city.

It is a city of hidden treasures. Everywhere there are intricate facades inset with statues, historical buildings, old churches. You are simultaneously surrounded by history, and by life.

On Monday, I returned to L'viv for the first time. It had taken two years, but I finally made it back. The city's attraction is irresistible.

I got up at 5 in order to catch a taxi to the train station. At 6 am, I boarded the train, which arrived in L'viv around 12:50. Father Chrysostomos met me at the station, and I was so glad to see him! It's been two years. He took me to lunch at a little Armenian restaurant that he's fond of, then we walked around the city a bit. We went to the Orthodox Monastery, then climbed the hill north of the city to the open-air folk architecture museum.

The open-air museum is a forest filled with houses from Carpathian villages that were disassembled, moved here, and reassembled.

I think my grandma has a painting of this church at home...

There is a monastery and a couple of churches in the park, so they let us in for free, assuming that Father Chrysostomos was going to the church. He had planned to leave me exploring the museum while he went to vespers elsewhere, but since his taxi didn't arrive on time, we went to vespers at the church in the park instead.

Unfortunately I wasn't allowed to take pictures of the inside of the church, but the interior is just as beautiful as the exterior. Wooden walls, painted icons decorated with hand-embroidered banners, fresh flowers.  It was such a treat to attend vespers in Ukrainian in this candle-lit old church. Like balm for your soul. How much I've missed the Ukrainian services!!!

I checked into the apartment which Father Chrystostomos had reserved for me at Ukrainian Catholic University, the university for which I taught on my last visit. These accommodations turned out to be in one of their apartments for international students. I had my own individual room in a suite of five, which also included two bathrooms and a shared kitchen. The other people living there included a Ukrainian college student and a Venezuelan student who was there to study Ukrainian. I had wonderful conversations with these girls. We helped the Ukrainian girl with her English, and in turn she helped the two of us with our Ukrainian. It was great fun, and really helpful! Part of me wishes I could live with such roommates full-time! I will definitely stay there next time I go to L'viv, especially because it was cheap-- only 100 hryvnia (about $12) a night!

Interestingly, I also discovered that another girl lived there-- another Fulbright student from Louisiana! I'll see her in Kyiv this weekend! It's a small world.

On Tuesday I got a call from my cousin Nick, who was arriving in L'viv. I found my way to the train station to meet him, on foot. He and I wandered around the city for a while before returning to my apartment so he could get a shower and locate a hostel. We stopped at the chocolate factory I remembered from my last trip to buy some delicious candies. Nick had also brought me half a pretzel and some sugar-roasted almonds from Oktoberfest. Like, the actual Oktoberfest. In Germany. They were *amazing*, even after being squished in his bag for 16 hours.

Nick in front of the L'viv Opera House.
We wanted to see an opera but there was nothing showing on Wednesday :( 

Then, after checking him in at a hostel on Rynok Square, we met up with Mariana, who had been the academic director at the 2010 English Summer School where I taught. She brought us to Puzhata Khata, the chain of restaurants which serve a lot of traditional Ukrainian food, so that Nick could try some. Overall, it was a very pleasant evening.

Wednesday I met Nick outside his hostel, and we enjoyed a leisurely brunch at a cafe on Rynok Square. It was unbelievably delicious. Then we went to the National Museum, which contained a plethora of icons from old churches all over the region, as well as some interesting artwork. After returning to UCU to settle my apartment bill, we went in search of Lychakivske Cemetery, which I have been told I should see.

 This kitty helped us find our way. (Not really, but he was cute.)

By the time we found Lychakivske, there was not much time to spend there, but I will certainly have to return. It is an extraordinary place.

We were only able to see the newer part of the cemetery, but I will certainly return here on my next visit and try to get to the older part, where there are supposed to be some incredible Gothic mausoleums and monuments.

The reason we had so little time at Lychakivske was that I wanted to get Nick back to the city center in time to join Father Chrysostomos for vespers. Unfortunately this venture failed, but we met up with him and Mariana later to drink some coffee and say goodbye. After Father left, Nick, Mariana, and I enjoyed a tasty Italian dinner at Cafe No. 1.

The next morning Nick and I walked together to the train station, since my train left at 8:45 and his after 9. After a seven-hour train ride, I finally got back to Vinnytsia. It had been an incredible few days, but I was exhausted.

No rest for the weary though!

Today, I taught my first full class. The students were pretty good. I let them spend the first half or so of class asking me questions about myself and where I was from, where else I had been in Ukraine, etc. etc. Then we began a lesson on leadership styles, where I helped them to read an article on the subject and answer some questions. We will read the remainder of the article next time. Overall, they were enthusiastic and fun, and I had a good time teaching the class. Afterward, I was introduced to a student who is interested in applying for a Fulbright grant to the United States next year. I chatted with her for an hour or so, then made a grocery run and took the groceries back to my apartment before returning to the university to meet Tanya.

I had been so proud of myself when, after de-boarding my train from L'viv, I had gone to the ticket counter and purchased my return ticket from Kyiv on Monday. IN RUSSIAN. ALL BY MYSELF!!! I was so proud. I didn't even have any big problems-- the ticket lady and I understood one another just fine. She could tell I was a foreigner so she was a little snippy, but I got the ticket and it was correct!

...and then I got an email from the Fulbright office that I needed to change the ticket to leave later, or else I would miss part of the Orientation.

Oh well, it was great while it lasted. :D So Tanya and I returned to the train station to change my ticket for a later time. Then we went to the Italian restaurant in my favorite park to enjoy a delicious pizza dinner outdoors. The waitress must have been new, though, because our pizza was MUCH bigger than she told us it would be.

Tanya is shocked by the enormity of our pizza. On the plus side, I now have leftovers to take on the train tomorrow :)

Afterward, we went for a walk and she showed me more places around Vinnytsia.

All in all, a great week, but I am SO tired! I won't get the chance to relax until I am back from Kyiv. But so be it-- the adventure continues!!

The Teaching Experience Begins

First real teaching last Thursday. Nothing exciting, I taught a lesson on personal banking vocabulary to a group of Business English students. It was only for half the class, and Svitlana covered the other half. Next Friday I am supposed to take the whole period, and I am supposed to take this class for one whole period a week from now on. They all seem enthusiastic and friendly, so we should have a good year, I think.

On Friday I had to meet up with Iryna to continue working on the perpetually incomplete visa paperwork. I met with her at the main building of the university, which is just a block or so from my apartment. It's a beautiful old building, like so many in these parts.

With my free time, I've been walking around the town.

This manhole cover is so Ukrainian. Hahahaha

On Friday I also had a chance to remake some of the recipes that Tanya showed me.

A word about Ukrainian produce: That's not a carrot. THIS is a carrot.

Last night I went to a folk music concert with Svitlana at the local theater. She said that it was modeled after the one in Vienna, and was over 100 years old.

It was a really beautiful building.

The concert was nice, too. It was like the Beach Boys singing folk music, lol.

Anyway, it's bedtime for me now. L'viv tomorrow! Hooray!

Getting Settled in Vinnytsia

Busy day today!

First, an appointment at the university office where my department is located. There I discussed my prospective schedule with Oleg and Svitlana. Scheduling is much more complicated here. It seems that I will be responsible for six classes every other week, and four classes on the off weeks. I have no idea which class is which, and when they meet, but it is hopefully all supposed to materialize soon :)

 Buildings 2 and 3 of the university, where my department and classrooms are located.

This main entryway is usually filled with students hanging out in between classes. I love the flowers.

 The building where my department is located. It's quite nice on the inside.

After my meeting, I went down to the university's main building to sign some more paperwork for my visa application. Then, later in the afternoon, I went back out with Tanya to buy my train tickets for next week-- to L'viv on Monday-Wednesday, then to Kyiv on Saturday. She let me attempt to buy them myself, but my Russian is just not good enough to be fully effective. Plus, people at the train stations are rather short with foreigners. I was really glad she was there to help ensure I got everything right.

After the harrowing train ticket experience, we went to a cafe in the mall for a cappuccino.

(this one was Tanya's... the leaf on mine wasn't as pretty. :P)

After our cappuccinos, we went on a little walk. We passed this beautiful collapsing building which Tanya told me had once been a hospital.

It was really quite something.

Then Tanya showed me a spot down by the river with a beautiful view.

 I think I'd like to go down there and paint sometime.

It was quite a long day for me, especially after the weeks without much activity. I am going to do my first real teaching tomorrow, so I should go work on my material and get some sleep.

Life in Vinnytsia

Yesterday was completely uneventful. I tried to post the video tour of my apartment, but it wouldn't work. It seems okay now, though.

Apologies for being a little out of breath, I had just taken out my garbage, and the dumpster is at the bottom of the hill, so I had walked back up the hill before coming back and climbing the stairs :P The tour starts outside, at the cute little cafe I told you about, so that you can see what my building and the outside of my apartment door look like.

Anyway. Today I met with the director of the university *dusts off shoulder* ...for like five seconds. He was super complimentary and so glad to have me here! Everyone is so happy I'm here and I haven't done anything yet, haha. I just hope I can live up to the hype :o)

I also went to the university this afternoon to sit in on another English class. The first half of the class was for the students to ask me questions about myself and the US, which I would answer as well as I could. One of the girls asked me, "Are the men better-looking in the United States, or in Ukraine?" We all cracked up. My answer: "If I told you 'in Ukraine,' would you think that was the reason I came?" XD

So basically, I've started "working" except I haven't actually had responsibilities yet. Tomorrow morning I am supposed to meet with Oleg to discuss "teaching methods" so I hope that means we will figure out what the heck I am actually doing. I know I'll be sitting in on Svitlana's class again on Thursday.

I've also been talking with Father Chrysostomos (one of the priests from the English Summer School I taught at 2 years ago) about making a trip to L'viv, and it looks as though I will be able to go there Monday through Wednesday of next week, if that doesn't mess up my teaching duties too much. I will ask Oleg tomorrow, and then Tanya will take me to the train station to buy my ticket, to ensure we don't have problems like I had in Kyiv :P I'm so excited about the idea of seeing my students and friends from the ESS again! I hope it all works out.

It seems there is a dearth of visual aids today. So, here are some random pictures:

My street (Arhitektora Artynova), which intersects with the main street (Soborna) A pleasant little street...

....but watch your step. (Especially in heels!)

And this one's for my mom, who was worried I wasn't eating enough whole grains: Krupa. This happens to be of the corn variety.

And, just in case you were worried about poltergeists...

These little stickers on each wall of my apartment mean that the building has been blessed. So you can rest assured. :o)