Month: August 2012
A brilliant bit of political parody – One Term More
Extremes
One week ago, it was so hot and oppressive outside I actually felt physically ill after walking just to the corner. It was around 40C/104F and super humid. In fact, last Tuesday was one of the hottest days in Kyiv in over a hundred years.
A mere 7 days later and the temperature has dropped to 14C/57F. I had to dig out a sweater for the walk to work today – incredible! And 7 months ago, it was so cold it was dangerous to be outside for two full weeks. What a year of crazy weather extremes!Last day in Kyiv
Much to my surprise, the Merrill-Seifer-Stuber family were packed and ready more than an hour before the taxi was scheduled to arrive. Wow! That gave us time for one last trip to the Holy Grail, aka the Playground. And plenty of time for everyone to get dirty! 🙂
Tess wowwed us with her gymnastics prowess, giant Scott wowwed all the little people. Both developed quite the fan clubs in the half hour or so that we were at the park! Then the taxi came and we loaded it up. One last minor panic locating passports, and we were off to the airport. We got them checked in and had plenty of time for a decent lunch at the Italian place in Terminal F. I walked them up to the second floor to go through security, and a super nice guard saw us with a baby and stroller in tow, and took us straight to the front of the long line! Way to go Josie, gettin' that VIP service! I couldn't go beyond the security check with them, but watched as long as I could see them. It was a quiet, lonely trip back home.
Couches
The way a couch should be 🙂
Tess makes matryoshkas
Tess is very creative, and just awesome with crafts and art projects. We found these unpainted matryoshka dolls at the souvenir market, which come packaged with watercolor paints and a brush – everything the budding artisan needs! As soon as we got home, Tess set up a workshop on the kitchen balcony, shut the door to keep curious cats and baby sisters from interrupting, and set to work. She was busy all evening, and the next couple of days touched them up, added more color to spots where the paint was too light, and voilà ! A beautiful hand-painted matroyshka set.
We went back to the market to buy more sets so Tess can give them as gifts to her friends. I hope she will paint more of them herself, too – she made beautiful dolls!
Zombie Baby loves her Daddy
Food adventures in Kyiv
One particularly special part of the family visit to Kyiv has been the opportunity to get to know Jonah and Tess a bit more. We already knew we liked both of them a lot, and that they are smart, witty people, but we didn't know that Jonah is a totally brave eater who will try just about anything once. This we really like. In Romania, he tried bear. So, of course we had to one-up it in Kyiv. At the really awesome Ukrainian restaurant Shinok, Igor of course had to order the plate of salo, aka pig fat, a Ukrainian staple. (I would call it a Ukrainian delicacy, except that I think "delicacy" implies eating it rarely or on special occasions, whereas most Ukrainians have a slab of it in the fridge at all times.) Jonah dove in with enthusiasm and gave it a thumbs up. Perusing the menu for something not-so-typical for an American, we asked if he'd like to try rabbit. He answered "Yes!" immediately, and ate it with equal enthusiasm.
(We did the vodka sampling with Scott and Angela, although Jonah did look pretty cool with a dozen shot glasses in front of him 🙂 Last night we talked more about foods, and Scott mentioned a few kinds of meat he would still like to try at some point in his life (despite having gone vegetarian last year). Igor suggested they try beef tongue, another very popular dish in Ukraine, and Scott gave a shudder and an "ick" sound. This, I have to admit, never fails to confuse me. Why is it OK to put a piece of butt in your mouth, but not a piece of tongue? (I've been a vegetarian since about the age of 16, so putting any of it my mouth sounds pretty repulsive.) Jonah, on the other hand, once again showed enthusiasm, so on the menu today will be tongue!
Peyzazhna (Landscape) Alley
Scott and Josie in the park
Anka in Kyiv 