Sightseeing, Shopping, a Brief Detention.....

And so we continue...

It was more a sightseeing day than a shopping day, we were really grateful to take time to look around. Elena is an excellent tour guide.

We met Steve in town at about 11:00 am, and together walked down one of the main city boulevards, past the city council building where a quiet protest was occurring. We were struck by the tree-lined streets, showing autumn colour, and the wonderful old architecture – a mix of churches, and pastel coloured European 19th and early 20th century terraced buildings.

In the park where we met Steve

Looking down the main drag

Gathering of people outside the City Council building

Our walk took us past the Tchaikovsky Music Academy, to Independence Square, where we had lunch in a mall under the square and fountains.

Independence Square

Elena and Steve

Rose found the flowers in the Metro exit near the Square

Looking up from the foodcourt where we had lunch

We continued our walk "around the block" to the National Art Gallery which turned out to be closed. Near the Rada (or parliament buildings) we saw an approaching large group of people bearing crosses and singing hymns. We thought it was a group of pilgrims coming from the Lavra, but the procession continued for about 15 minutes, causing traffic jams, and the arrival of Police pointsmen to restore order to the traffic. Elena and Steve read some of the signs and placards, it was apparently a procession proclaiming the imminent end of the world;.and gained the impression it was in fact a religio-political protest against the implementation of biometric ID and passports for Ukraine which was signed into law in the last week or two. The protest sentiment was a mix of "I am not a number" and "the national identity number is the mark of the devil" sort of thing, and the participants were all ages – very quiet and respectful.

Art Gallery was closed...

Those brown trucks get everywhere!

Stars signify Russian recognition of standing up to the Nazi invaders

Finance Ministry building

The traffic manouverings and horn-blasting at our vantage intersection were really entertaining!

Was it a pilgrimage?

Actually a protest march

Even the traffic wanted to join in!

During our walkabout we stopped to look at lots of statues, some historic, some not, of military, civic, religious, and even modern media soap opera heroes.

Our ride home on the Metro was comfortable, as we beat the rush hour.

Wednesday 17th October 2012

Today we were on a mission to check out Darnyts'kyi Market in the next suburb, as Steve was looking for shoes, and a couple of winter jerseys. This is a huge market, almost entirely devoted to clothing and footwear.

I didn't take any pictures today (I didn't feel comfortable taking photos in the confines of the market.).  Our travels today all took us to suburbs on the east side of the river, towards the north of Kharkivs'ka.

Steve told us that rather than all-in markets, here in Ukraine they tend to be more defined, i.e. One is for clothes, another might be the builders' market, one might be electronics, another might be fruit and veg, etc.

We took the No. 487 bus to the market, in threatening weather, and immediately began the quest.

Phew! It was recommended that we not be too obvious in speaking English, but I reckon we were soon pegged as tourists! Tourists who were 'just looking' so unlikely to buy anything and unlikely to be ripped off! 

 Despite that the traders were very friendly and helpful, even if a sale was not likely, and we were both impressed by the camaraderie between the stall-holders, and their generally happy demeanour.

By then it was after mid-day, we were all getting hungry, so we stopped at a little market cafe where we had a bread roll stuffed with stewed fruit and dusted with sugar, and coffee. That really hit the spot.

Into another bus for a shopping mall in the next suburb over, Dniprovs'kyi, where we hit some label stores with more likelihood of true provenance on the clothing than was evident in the market (I mean, how many ways can you spell 'adidas'????).

Here, we ticked the items off the day's shopping hit-list, and after looking round other shops, including a gun shop full of AK47s, pistols, crossbows, and strangely enough wristwatches, product diversity!, we ventured outside to head home.

And the heavens had opened. Luckily we had jackets, although I had opted for my jacket without a hood, so in the space of the 25 or so metres to the bus stop I was feeling a little damp.

Within minutes a No. 45 bus arrived, which was good as that takes a straight run down Kharkivska Highway, past the rail yards, to Revuts'koho Street to our stop at Kharkivs'ka.

But the bus was chocker, and I was last man on. Didn't really need to hang on to the grab rails as we were packed in like sardines!

Thursday 18 October 2012

We had a plan today to complete our shopping, so agreed that we would leave together, but separate (Steve and me, Rose and Elena) after leaving Kharkivs'ka. However, we only got as far as the first cosmetic/chemist shop near the apartment before Steve and I got fed up loitering in the store waiting, so we ditched the women and made for the Metro.

Again, no pictures on this trip, as my camera decided to have a Card I/O error, and wouldn't even let me format it.

Our journey took us to Obolons'kyi Avenue on blue line, to Petrivka Market in the northern end of the city. This market seemed to have acres of antiques and collectibles, books, dvds, records, electronics, clothing,

Petrivka Market, from Google Earth

I completed my shopping list quite quickly, and also enjoyed browsing. We were sprung as 'tourists' quite quickly, I imagine the jungle drums echo quite well through those markets.

We were wandering through the clothing aisles looking at leather jackets (a good one for about $NZ150) when we bumped into Elena and Rose.

We took the Metro into city for lunch where Elena took us to a very nice restaurant. For 150UAH we were able to piletrays with Kiev chicken and fried potato, or borscht, salad, bread, a cold drink, It was a great lunch in a nice setting – not many places you can get a lunch like that for $NZ5 a head. Incidentally, we always refer to the chicken dish as 'chicken Kiev' but that is incorrect – it is called 'Kiev chicken'.

We made our trip home in two Metro lines, and it was jam-packed. I had to be quite forceful to get in and stay with the others, and one older lady laughed and apparently said I was like a 'pusher' on the Japanese subway trains. Very conscious about your underarm deodorant at the end of the day when crammed up like that, and holding overhead rails, but we were all in the same boat I guess.

We got home early in the afternoon, Steve had to go to work at 3:30 pm, and the women went to the local market, before picking up Dima at 5.

I managed to reformat my camera card in the Netbook, and it is now running fine again. For dinner we had a nice salad and some cold chicken – Steve and Elena had also bought a local delicacy he loves – salty fish to eat with dinner washed down with a local beer. I suspect he was a little miffed I didn't try the fish – Rose did and she thought it was perhaps an 'acquired taste'. Ever the diplomat!.

Friday 19 October 2012

Bus to EpiCentre for some final shopping and just looking. Even though we spent over an hour here, we still didn't see it all. It is huge (but I said that once before!)

Another view of EpiCentre, from Google Earth

In/out/in of the shopping area and apparently aimless browsing (bloody tourists!) saw us all stopped by store security on leaving, did not accept production of our receipts for the items we were carrying (said we could have dropped items outside and picked up new items to go with the original receipts), and so called the local police, who happened to be nearby.

Elena was her usual sweet self, Steven was getting a little bolshy, being aware from within the expat community this could signal a scam for double payment of goods. When they took us to an interview room near the doors and the store detective wanted to seperate us Steve was quite forceful in us remaining together.

While the cops spoke to us (to Elena really) and checked our passports/ID, the store detective went and reviewed CCTV footage to confirm our purchase. The cops, although Elena thought were pretty grim faced, were really very polite and fair, and I detected a friendly twinkle in their eye once they had determined we were not an organised band of international shop-lifters, and they allowed us to go. Actually, the one I thought had the biggest problem was the short-arse-wannabe-cop-store man.

Out of the store to fine sunny weather, with another adventure under our belt.

We got a newer bus back to Kharkivska, very comfortable, the lake was looking lovely under the blue skies.

Tonight was spent building Lego with Dimitri, then thought I'd make a start with catching up on the blog. Not sure what the others were doing though!

No, we are NOT all chatting together on line!