Pleasantly Surprising Odessa

Once again, we had the chance to turn a liability (school start delayed 1 week due to construction - AGH!!!!) into an asset (more summer fun - YIPEE!).  

We packed the car & headed to Odessa - a port city on the Black Sea (and incidentally where our 40' of belongings spent a good month last year) - with our friends the Bellis

The 475km trip (~300 miles) was on what Logan described as the nicest highway he's ever driven on in Ukraine.  Reminded me of a flat version of Wisconsin......

....extensive fields & loads of farm stands

(with pretty fab prices - 2 medium watermelons for just $3)

...and bored kids in the back

(we LOVE you iPad!)

But, alas, we are not in Wisconsin.  So there are some deviations to report....

....the teeny, tiny farm stands - 'Babushkas' with single pails of potatoes

(wow - practically a strip mall!)

....a 110km/hour freeway peppered with middle of the road cross walks

....and plenty of hitchhikers 

(any car is fair game - people commonly 'hail' regular cars & negotiate a fee for a lift)

5 hours later, the city itself is old & quant with a good vacation feel nightlife....

But the real surprise was the gem of a hotel where we stayed.  It was not the easiest to find (unpaved windy roads with serious potholes, no signs etc) - but well worth the search...

With its own private beach

For lots of jumping waves (albeit pretty 'refreshing' water)

Very lightly populated given Ukrainian schools started - but still colorful people to watch...

(these guys' beach gear was 3 dixie cups & a bottle of hootch!)

Even a daily, blonde streaker.....

OK, so the streaker is Gio - Clara & Paolo's son - whom we all adore.  He has a propensity to strip and we like to say 'speaks in ALL CAPS' - makes everyday a party!

But even better were the 'beach toys' provided....

While the water was a tad too rough for the water tramp, it didn't prevent them from letting people play on it (no pesky rules or attendants)

Look closely and you'll see Zoe mid flip courtesy of her brothers tad too rough leaping catapult.  She completed the flip, caught a few feet of air and landed on the sand with a thud (photo taking stopped to ensure nothing broken)

And it gets better....

Seriously!  It is a bouncy castle ON THE BEACH - we got through about 4 magazines a piece!

So while there are some funny things about Ukraine, when it comes to entertaining kids & facilitating R&R these people are BRILLIANT!

Here's to road trips with friends, the beach & counting down to the first day of school!

Blame it on the vacuum

Senior year in high school, my mom restarted working as a flight attendant......which meant free flights for us.  Thus, my Scottsdale to Santa Clara trips to college were via America West Airlines.  Combine that with a frugal and ballsy mom and you end up with a vacuum cleaner rolling down the jetway to go to school. 

Where is this all going?  

Fast forward 20+ years (yikes, that many!?), and take a look at our growing stock of suitcases.....

Yes 9 checked bags filled with "USA essentials" returned Kiev with us....(and ALL of them made it!)

What could possibly be so essential??  Check out our cellar......

I say it's the mint M&Ms (you MUST try them), fake sugar (only funny pellets here) & hair dye (once you know your $9 color, you stick to it).  Logan says its the brownie mix.

The boys put the Legos high up (available here - but ~2.5x the price) 

As well as books (not many in English here) - and Nerf gun war supplies...

(Nerf here - but expensive & not the latest - like these very cool laser tag guns the Drakes introduced us to!)

Zoe is probably our most addicted to Kraft Mac n Cheese....but we also hauled half a suitcase full of party favors for her future class holiday party...

And the entire duffel of 4th of July decor was definitely mission critical given its impossible to buy here & the USA table barely passed as festive at last years school International night....

 (thanks Mom!)

Yes we transport silly amounts of stuff via plane overseas....

.....and yes, we have been "those people" shifting stuff from bag to bag at the departures counter to get below weight maximums.....

BUT we can also make sprinkle cupcakes, box brownies and peanut butter apples year round - all thanks to my mom's good influence!

Happy travels and here's to the cheap thrill of checking in a suitcase full of odd items & snowman sippy cups.

Screwing up our kids

One of our objectives moving overseas was to "expand our kids' horizons".  A side benefit has been the excuse to spend the summer in the States catching up with friends, family & our 'Americanism'.  But after essentially 7 weeks of indulgence, I'm starting to think we may have created a false sense of reality....

This summer we've hit 8 cities including trips to watersides, 2 amusement parks, 3 beaches & several lakes..... 

Wisconsin Dells is like Vegas for families - super fun, tons of show & activities - but sensory overload and you feel slightly ill after...

Rides, beaches, swimming & hiking in California....

(

Shooting stuff, fishing & cards in Wisconsin...

Water fun, games & mostly friendly competitions in Minnesota...

We've eaten out approximately 49 times and visited at least that many friends and family members...

We've indulged in many of our "American favorites"....

(Been to Chipotle at least 8 times)

Ice cream for dinner even seems reasonable after a year of DQ abstinence...

We've adopted the European "screw it" bed time. Kids up till 10 and sleeping past 9.....

At the tail end of it all, I now ponder.......how the hell will we ever again convince the kids that park district camp + a week vacation is a summer to be excited about?

Here's to summer and a special toast to all the friends and family who helped warp our kids with abundant hospitality & most excellent fun!

Reminders of Home

Last week while in Chicago we had the joy of the Ukrainian consulate (one of only 3 in the whole US!) for a "visa run"...... Not surprisingly we were reminded of Kiev there.....

No one at the window for a good 10 minutes upon arrival

Which - mind you - was carefully planned to coordinate with the whopping 14.5 hours a week they operate....

Not that the kids really minded the wait (thanks Apple!)

Honestly, how DID our parents survive without these?!

  

That said, I was REALLY reminded of home when we saw this girl's moving day outfit...

Yes - cheeks out for moving day with mom!  

BUT things started to look a little less Ukrainian while at the DMV renewing my license....

Note the poster......no bribing the testing officials?!  What fun is that?

And, the week before, things looked completely American while driving in California........lanes closed for construction with not a construction worker in site.....

While I'm pro-days off and all, traffic caused by empty construction sites makes one long for the union free, 24x7 "wild east" approach applied in Ukraine.

But the final confirmation that we were not in Kiev came today after a stop for ice cream.....

YES - that cone is DRIPPING!!!!!....

...a sharp contrast to the concerningly, non-melting cones one gets in Kiev.  I have NO idea what they make them out of - but am pretty sure it's best not to know!

Here's to good times in summer - and hoping you are enjoying traffic free roads and drippy cones wherever you are!

Forgotten differences

Back in the States after being overseas for almost a year, I keep stumbling across some 'everyday sightings' here in the US that you just don't see in Kiev.  Relatively non noteworthy  that only now, upon seeing again, do I realize are additional differences.....




Ink: An hour in the airport alone and it's obvious how much more ink we have here.  In Ukraine you just don't see much of it (and given you do see plenty of skin - I don't think the ink is simply hiding)

Eco Motivation: OK, this one is obviously missing in Ukraine......but I was reminded how vehemently the US (& California in particular) is protecting Mother Earth with this sighting....

Seriously - no plastic bags even available for purchase here.   Go California - setting the eco bar ever higher!




Muscles & Same Sex Couples: While the women in Kyiv are often quite svelte, bulgy muscles or serious tone is not something that is widely visible......and same sex couples?  NO WAY!  Pretty 50 years ago on that one.......

BUT, on the other hand, while at the Mystery Spot in Santa Cruz (another whole story on its own), I did see someone who reminded me of home in Kyiv....

What hair!

So despite the reminder about the differences, I was also reminded we have our similarities too!




Here's to appreciating differences & wishing you a good hair day.