Vacation! (part 2)

By the time Jon and I arrived in Krakow, we were exhausted.  It was, once again, really early, and we decided that it was necessary for us to get a good couple hours of sleep.  We posted up at a hostel, which was great for the fact that they let us come in early in the morning, and because it was right on the main square of the old town!    However, it had kind of a strange atmosphere, so we didn't spend much time there after our epic nap.  Instead, we got out and saw the city.  Krakow is a beautiful city, and stands in stark contrast to ANYTHING in Ukraine.  It was so clean and well-kept, and the people who walked the streets were dressed in very modern and comfortable Western-style fashion.  None of this crazy heels business or abnoxiously puffy coats and zippered jeans...

                                    Beautiful Krakow! Our hostel was just to the right of this picture.

We meandered about the Old Town, which is at the center of Krakow and is composed of quaint streets with shops, cafes and bars littered throughout.  We ate at a Tex Mex restaurant for dinner (why not?) and were surprised with some almost spicy food!  We continued our night by walking up to the Wawel castle, which stands on a hill along one edge of the Old Town.  There were beautiful views of the city and river from the castle, and a nice walk along cobblestone.  This walk led us to the park that surrounds the Old Town, which was absolutely beautiful.  Also, the weather was warm, so we enjoyed just walking through the park for a while.

Walking through the park!

That evening, we decided to check out some different bars in Krakow, and made our way to four or five different establishments.  They were all very unique and interesting.  One played Andy Warhol videos on a big screen on the wall and was super chill, while another was located in a cavernous underground labyrinth, complete with spiral staircases and multiple stone-enclosed rooms.  It was a great, relaxing night (which ended in the purchase of some delicious kebabs--the local favorite in drunk food).  Ah, vacation!
The next day, we made the decision to catch a train back to Kiev late that night.  We bought our tickets at the train station in the morning, and then continued our exploration of the city.  We walked down to the Jewish district of the city, Kazimierez, and saw an interesting old cemetery there with Hebrew on all the graves.  We also made our way to the river, and found a bridge with marriage locks all over it :)

Locks to commemorate your marriage.

After our walk, we got some greasy Polish fast food, and went to the edge of the river to bask in the sun for a while.  We people-watched, as well as swan-watched, and enjoyed just sitting on a wall on the riverbank.  At the end of the day, we got a hearty Polish dinner, complete with stew and sausage, and spent our last few zlotyz on some beer.  We caught our train in the evening, and switched trains in Lviv (a cheaper option than going straight from Krakow to Kiev).  We were back in Kiev by 2PM, and spent a relaxing weekend at home before classes started again on Monday.  It was a great vacation, but one of the best parts was coming HOME, as that's how Kiev felt when we returned.  We were home again, to the city we are familiar with and the place we are comfortable!

Vacation! (part 1)

Wow, sorry I haven't written in a while!  My internet has been out for a few days, and I've generally been too busy doing things to think about writing my thoughts on this system of tubes.
Two weeks ago, I had the chance to go on my first 'vacation' here in Ukraine.  It was nice to have a week off and not have to worry about going to work, and to be able to travel to a different country in such a short time!  My roommate and I caught an overnight train as soon as we were done with our last day of the semester, and got to experience some very interesting Ukrainian train conditions.  Our destination for the first leg of our journey was Lviv, a pretty little town in the far Western part of Ukraine.  We had heard from both friends and students that it was an interesting place to visit, which of course proved to be true.  The city has, over time, been in the possession of Ukraine and Poland, so there is a lot of more Western influence as far as architecture and such than in Kiev.  We arrived early in the morning to a snow covered city, and we caught a tram to the center, where we explored the city before it really woke up.  We decided to begin our day by taking a trip to the cemetery, which was amazing.  I love cemeteries, and the one in Lviv is absolutely gorgeous.  It is situated on a hill side, and all of the graves and tombs are packed in tight.  There were many sculptures and extravagant memorials, and dead, wintry ivy covered everything, as did a light dusting of snow.  We spent about an hour making our way through the entire cemetery (it was huge!), and then wandered back to buy some fruit at the rinok we passed on the way.  We continued to walk about the city, stopped in a few cafes for coffee, and then made our way to the Lvivski brewery for a tour.  This brewery makes beer you can find at every kiosk in Kiev--a national treasure!  Honestly, it isn't very good at all, but the brewery was cool, and our guide was amazing.  She spoke Ukrainian, but spoke so slowly and articulately that Jon and I could understand her pretty well for the most part!
After our trip to the brewery, we were hungry, so we stopped in at a vareniki cafe.  We got a ton of food (3 big dishes of vareniki, a national dumpling dish here in Ukraine) and also some wine and beer for only 80 GRIVEN!  Wow!  That equals about 10 bucks.  For both of us.  Lviv is really cheap.  After our huge meal, though, we started to get tired.  We had been in Lviv since 6 AM, and wouldn't be leaving until midnight, when we would catch our train to Poland.  It was only about 4 in the afternoon, so we decided to occupy some time by seeing a movie.  We watched a ridiculous Russian movie, with the charming and catchy title "Love is a Carrot."  Whatever the hell that's supposed to mean.  It was the stupidest movie I have ever seen, but it was in Russian, so I got some good language practice.
Finally, it was time for us to head back to the train station and continue our journey.  We were delighted to find that we got a cabin to ourselves on the train to Krakow, which was amazing.  However, we didn't get a very good night sleep, partly because of the constant stopping and starting of the train, and also because we had to deal with a border crossing at 1AM, which lasted about 2 hours.  You need to get your passport checked by officers who enter the train on both the Ukrainian side and the Polish side.  It is kind of nerve-wracking, just because you never know when they are going to say that something isn't right and force you to pay a bribe to continue into or out of the country...luckily we escaped such misfortune (probably because it was the middle of the night and too much of a hassle for border guards to worry about), and we even managed to smuggle some vodka across the border for our train attendant, a Polish man named Josef who begged us to carry a few bottles for him, as he needed it for his friend's birthday party.  Ok Josef.  Whatever you say.

I will finish my vacation story later today...I've got some cookin to do right now!

Spring!

This week, I learned that in the former Soviet countries, the first day of spring is celebrated on the 1st of March. Luckily, the weather is beginning to change along with the title of the season, as every day, the red line on our porch thermometer migrates a little further north.  The constant sunshine helps the state of affairs, as everyone feels more hopeful for a warm spring when everything looks a little brighter and more beautiful.
Not only is this week the first week of spring, but it is also maslenitsa!  Maslenitsa is the week long celebration of...pancakes! (or blini, as they are called here...basically crepes).  I think the holiday has pagan roots, as many holidays do, and Eastern Europeans will use any excuse to celebrate for an entire week.  On Sunday night, my roommate Jon and I went over to our friend Teodora's place and kicked off maslenitsa with a night of making blini and drinking some shitty wine.  It was lovely, of course, as we had both sweet blini (filled with honey or jam or cinnamon and sugar) and savory blini (filled with caviar, sour cream, and cheese), and red and white wine!  On Saturday, we are planning on taking a trip to Peregova, the outdoor architectural museum located not far from Kiev.  It is a nice little place to get away from the city, and apparently, they have pretty rockin' maslenitsa festivities planned for this weekend!
For my work at the American English Center, this week is also unique, as it is FINALS WEEK.  Yes, my first semester working has absolutely flown by, and my last day of teaching before an entire week off is Sunday.  Today, I am giving the final to my students at Klovska.  It will be kind of a bittersweet day, because I am not teaching at Klovska school next semester (only at Nivki), and I will miss a few of my really great students!  However, after work tonight a few fellow teachers are planning to go out and celebrate with some students, which will be a nice way to finish up this amazing two month stint :)

Health, Happiness, and Many Children

This past weekend was my birthday, and I am pleased to say that I got to have a completely new and different experience on said birthday.  In the US, one can go out to eat, or gather with close friends and family and blow out some candles on a cake, which is generally what I've done on my birthday for my entire life.  However, being here, in a new country, away from the people I love and care about the most, I was not really...excited or looking forward to a birthday celebration.  Despite these low expectations, I was completely and pleasantly surprised on Sunday when every one of my classes whole-heartedly congratulated me on my day of birth.  Everyone was very sincere, wished a variety of pleasant things upon me (most common = to always find love, to always smile, to be healthy, and happy), and gave hugs/kisses.  A few students even brought small gifts!  I was amazed, partly because of the grand display of affection from people I don't really know, and partly because on Sunday, I have four classes of people that I see only once a week.  I had briefly/off-handedly mentioned that Sunday was my birthday during class the week before, and every class not only remembered this fact, but made an effort to do something nice for me!
The last class I taught on Sunday was the most amazing.  They are one of the favorite classes that I teach, as each student is very creative and spunky, and we always have a very fun time together, despite the fact that we only spend 2 hours together per week, and that they are only Level 1 students.  On my birthday, a few of the girls came in and congratulated me personally and brought in some small gifts, but then, they laid down their things and left again.  No one came into the classroom until two minutes after class had officially started, but when they did, they formed a semi-circle around me, sang happy birthday, and presented a cake and a bottle of champagne!  Later in the hour, we had a little party together, and did a traditional Ukrainian birthday toast--each person said something genuinely great that they wished for me during the next year, and we all commenced to sip champagne.  Of course, I was smiling constantly, and was very impressed at the honest and sincere way my students helped me celebrate my birthday in a country far from home.  I was floored by the compassion of these almost-strangers. :)

TOO COLD

Apparently, it is about -13C-ish right now.  According to the weather report, it is supposed to stay that cold until at least this coming weekend, so this week will be a week of doing things inside.  I have no plans to leave my apartment today until I go to work at 4, which kind of saddens me.  Oh well, I will continue to stare out my window and hope for warm weather (I've heard the rumor of an early spring!), and remember warmer days.
A few weeks ago, myself and a few friends went out on the first really sunny day since I'd been in Ukraine.  We took the metro a few stops, got out, and walked along a street that goes along the top of a ridge that looks over the Dniepr River.  We walked through a park and looked at a few memorials to the victims of Ukrainian famine, and ended up at the base of the the big Kiev statue, 'Rodina Maat,' which means 'Native Mother.'  She is basically a symbol of the motherland, and was erected after WWII to demonstrate the strength and fortitude of the Soviet people.  We also stopped at a huge lavra, or monastery, on the way back.  This monastery is famous as the "Monastery of the Caves," because you can walk deep underground through tiny little claustrophobic tunnels and see dead priest-saints laid to rest there.  After visiting the caves, we stopped for a bite to eat at a monastery kitchen, where we could actually see the ladies who worked there making borsch from scratch in huge pots!  Of course, it was delicious.

The memorial to the famine victims, complete with the saddest little girl statue you will ever see.

RODINA MAAT

Us being tourists, like hella.

Needless to say, I can't wait to have more days like that.  Go away, Siberian-esque weather!!!

24 hours

A usual weekday:

Wake up at 11ish.  Make coffee, sit in the kitchen and drink it while looking out at the view.  It's kind of like watching TV, except better because it's real-life, and things are actually happening.  Continue to slowly get ready for the day/prepare for class.
By about 2pm, ready to get out of the apartment.  Sometimes, go to Russian class, other times, go buy some fresh bread or other groceries either from the shop on the first floor of the building next door, or from the rinok (market).  There are 2 big rinoks not far from home, and a small one just down the street, where old grandmothers and grandfathers sell mysteries in jars and piles of potatoes, all produce from their dachas (cabins) outside of the city.
Head to the metro at 4 or 5pm, and ride for about 20-30 minutes to get to work.  Monday/Wednesday, work at Nivki location (far Western part of the city), and Tuesday/Thursday/Sunday, work at Klovska (more Central).  Teach for 4 or 5 hours (9 on Sunday), then head home.  Sometimes, meet friends at a bar in the center, but usually catch the metro before it closes at midnight.
Once home, commence bullshitting with the roommate about the day/life/thoughts.  Sometimes cook food (the most recent late night project was roasting peanuts), and usually make it to bed by about 2 or 3am.  Read a book to fall asleep (now it's A Tale of Two Cities--thanks Brother), and pass out till about 11am.

Of course, weekends (Friday/Saturday) are more fluid, but usually involve a metro ride to some new location and the purchase of some new interesting thing/food item.  Exploring the city will become easier as the weather becomes more complacent: right now it is difficult to be outside for too long purely for the reason that it is unpleasant.  However, every time the sun shines through the clouds and gives color to the usually grey-toned landscape, you can feel that spring is getting closer, and days of walking the city will become more frequent.  !

it's a beautiful day here

Wow!  Today I started using a new toothbrush and went out and bought some new clothes, so why not also start my blog??  The weather is beautiful here (warm enough to unzip your coat and ditch the gloves!), and everyone looks excited and refreshed.  The babushkas and dedushkas are relaxing on benches by the river, the kids are chasing pigeons, and even the stray dogs are ... barking a lot and running around like crazy.  I wish it would stay this beautiful, but I have a feeling we may get some more nasty weather before spring really sets in.
Over the past month, I have been getting comfortable in Kiev.  My apartment finally feels like...mine.  I am comfortable at my job, and with my students (they are all amazing people!).  I have been integrated into the AEC teacher's social circle, and have found a smaller group of people who I spend most of my free time with, and with whom I've already established some promising friendships.  I am getting used to daily life in Kiev, from getting groceries at the markets or at the small shop right outside my apartment, to riding the metro and marshrutkas (transport vans/buses) every day.  I even have a month-long metro pass--crazy!  I really live here!
Well, time to run to work (mid-terms today!), but I'll share more in the near future!