More Day 10

Addendum to Day 10:

I felt that it was a good place to end the previous letter - but I had more to say. (If you ask G3, he would say that I always have more to say!) I wanted to share some of our impressions about Mariupol in particular and Ukraine in general. We have really enjoyed Mariupol. It is a very nice city without the hustle and bustle of Kiev. The only problem that I can see (and it is a big one) is the horrible pollution! The steel mills pump out soot and smoke at an unbelievable pace. It is probably better to live with a smoker than to breathe this air.

We have found all the people to be so nice and lovely here. They typically do not smile at strangers on the street, but we have found with a hello or an attempt to speak Russian (a pitiful attempt on my part) they will smile and laugh and be very open with you. I don’t know if I mentioned this before, but the looks we get in public speaking English are a riot. Even the most reserved looking people will break out in smiles when they hear us trying to communicate with them. And they are always so helpful and willing to take the time to try to understand us.

There are plenty of stray animals around, but also we have discovered that many of the animals we thought to be strays, are actually owned, they just roam during the days. We found several cats we thought were strays, but then saw them in a window of an apartment the next day. There are no leash laws and I am guessing no animal control, so they just wander in and out of streets. People are always very careful driving and they are just allowed to amble across the street before cars move on.

The apartment we are in is about 5 minutes from your orphanage Dima. Across the street is a little market that has a few items in it. Honest to goodness, the lady behind the counter uses an abacus to count up the purchases. Amanda had never seen one so we took her in just to point this out.

Here is the market.

We have felt very safe here and in Kiev also. The most I think you have to concern yourself with is pickpockets. That is probably true with any tourist destination, but we have been warned here. I just wear my purse crossways over my chest and John keeps his wallet in his front pocket with most of our valuables in a waist pouch. We haven’t worried about carrying the camera too much - we want to have it with us to take pictures so we just lug it around. All-in-all I have felt very confident and even have ventured out on my own to do some shopping alone or with Amanda (my bodyguard!)not even taking my bodyguard Amanda!

I don’t know if it is the holiday and there have not been any city employees working or what - but all the downtown and park trashcans are overflowing. But really, Ukraine has grown on us, the people, the food, the atmosphere.

Tonight we were lucky to meet another family who are from our area in the states for dinner. It is nice to share the experiences with others. They are here only for a few days because of a paperwork snafu but will be coming on a second trip soon to finalize their adoption. We had a wonderful time and were thankful to connect with a little piece of home.

Tomorrow we will get to go in the afternoon to the orphanage again to see you and then also to fill out paperwork to take to Kiev. Once this is done, the paperwork has to be approved in Kiev to come back here to have a court date set. Things are moving along well, not as fast we want of course (we want you yesterday) but as fast as could reasonably be expected.

By the way, I got the best idea on this blog. I am really writing it for you Dima. And smartly I have been writing it on the computer in a document and just copying and pasting the entries on the web. It is already 60 pages long! So I think that I am going to continue it until fall and add pictures into it throughout the way - through your initial phase of adjustment - and then get it printed into a book (my publisher said they can do this as a one off) and make it a Christmas present for you! Hope you will enjoy reading it someday!

Till tomorrow,

Bethany, G3, G4, & Amanda