Vanya and I are safely in Kremenchuk. We are staying in the same apartment that David and I stayed in on our first visit. It has been nice how repeatative this trip has been so far (I was a bit hesitant going solo) all 3 of my flights took off from the exact same gate as on our first trip! Of course the same taxi driver picked me up at the airport (Sasha is the nicest driver in all of Kiev!) and now to be back in the same apartment -- it gives me great comfort to be amidst the familiar.
The passport director has said that the passport will probably be ready (in Poltova about 90 mins from here) TOMORROW! Probably of course means maybe not tomorrow -- but I am hopeful:-) If the passport is ready tomorrow, we will pick Garrett up from the orphanage in the morning, drive to Poltova to pick up the passport, and drive back to Kiev.
Then we will hit the US Embassy first thing Friday morning - they have done same day visas before (usually it is a 24hr turnaround). Currently our return flights are for Monday morning so it would be great to get his visa on Friday -- but again another probably.
So for now we will wait and see!!!! Can't wait to see Garrett in the morning!
Showing posts with label travel. Show all posts
Showing posts with label travel. Show all posts
Wednesday, September 24, 2008
Monday, September 22, 2008
Bye Bye (Paka Paka)!
I am off to Kiev tomorrow :-) We can not wait to have this journey over and have our son here safe at home!
Tuesday, September 9, 2008
Anything Different?
For those about to travel, I thought I would give you my "What Will I Do Different" on my return trip to possibly ease your travels. For those who have already travelled, please add your "Lessons Learned" in the comments and I will add them to the list.
1. Train in the right shoes. I am a jogger and I made sure I was running/walking atleast 6 miles a day before leaving. I believe this is right at about what we had to walk everyday so I would highly recommend this for everyone to prepare. Unfortunately I did not wear running shoes everywhere I went in Ukraine. I really should have pre-tested my non-tennis shoes for a good mile walk and see how bad the blisters would be!
2. More spice. I packed salt, pepper, soy sauce, ketchup, mustard, bbq sauce and a few other spice packets. I really should have packed more flavor. I was too cheap to buy the big containers at the store just to cook one or two meals and I ran out of the good flavor real quick. I love to cook and we tried to conserve our cash by cooking but it became redundant and boring very quick.
3. More movies. We packed 24 and watched most twice. The english is so nice to hear while you are there but I wish we would have brought some we had not seen yet and basically just more of them.
4. Laundry Detergent in individual ziploc bags. I had some handwashing individual sink packets so this did just fine until we could get to the market. The little laundry detergent containers (powder) at the store do not pack well once they are opened so each time we moved apartments we just left the container. Next time I will bring my own (probably since it seemed to be the first thing I used at each place!!!) or buy the liquid with a good lid at the store. The washing machines are so tiny that you basically wash everytime you change clothes.
** Most everyone always says they would pack less. We headed this advice and only had 1 small suitcase per person. 3 interchangeable outfits and lots of under garments. It was plenty and the limited luggage was truly the way to go.
If I think of others I will add them.
1. Train in the right shoes. I am a jogger and I made sure I was running/walking atleast 6 miles a day before leaving. I believe this is right at about what we had to walk everyday so I would highly recommend this for everyone to prepare. Unfortunately I did not wear running shoes everywhere I went in Ukraine. I really should have pre-tested my non-tennis shoes for a good mile walk and see how bad the blisters would be!
2. More spice. I packed salt, pepper, soy sauce, ketchup, mustard, bbq sauce and a few other spice packets. I really should have packed more flavor. I was too cheap to buy the big containers at the store just to cook one or two meals and I ran out of the good flavor real quick. I love to cook and we tried to conserve our cash by cooking but it became redundant and boring very quick.
3. More movies. We packed 24 and watched most twice. The english is so nice to hear while you are there but I wish we would have brought some we had not seen yet and basically just more of them.
4. Laundry Detergent in individual ziploc bags. I had some handwashing individual sink packets so this did just fine until we could get to the market. The little laundry detergent containers (powder) at the store do not pack well once they are opened so each time we moved apartments we just left the container. Next time I will bring my own (probably since it seemed to be the first thing I used at each place!!!) or buy the liquid with a good lid at the store. The washing machines are so tiny that you basically wash everytime you change clothes.
** Most everyone always says they would pack less. We headed this advice and only had 1 small suitcase per person. 3 interchangeable outfits and lots of under garments. It was plenty and the limited luggage was truly the way to go.
If I think of others I will add them.
Sunday, September 7, 2008
Thursday, September 4, 2008
TGIF!!!
Ok really it is Thursday. But we are currently in TGI Fridays at Kiev using their WIFI and eating the yummiest American lunch!!!! After a very miserable bus ride (I am still ill and with a high fever that kicked into full gear in the hot stuffy bus) we made it to Kiev last night. For others who have come before us, we are about 2 blocks from TGIF.
David has completed all his USEmbassy tasks (Thanks Lisa Payne for the helpful hints!!!!). And our tickets have been confirmed at the airport. Kiev is a really happenin' city and we look forward to being tourists for the next day and a half!!!!
Thank you to everyone for all your lover, prayers and support for the first half of our journey. We look forward to returning and even more so for coming back to bring Garrett home for good :-)
David has completed all his USEmbassy tasks (Thanks Lisa Payne for the helpful hints!!!!). And our tickets have been confirmed at the airport. Kiev is a really happenin' city and we look forward to being tourists for the next day and a half!!!!
Thank you to everyone for all your lover, prayers and support for the first half of our journey. We look forward to returning and even more so for coming back to bring Garrett home for good :-)
Saturday, August 30, 2008
Not exactly what I had in mind
"D" said I am addicted to blogging :-) So earlier I made the mistake of complaining about being bored. Well now I been presented with a constant pain in my tummy to entertain me. Probably just a touch of icky food but I went ahead and started the travelers antibotic the doc gave me - just in case.
"D" has also been blessed with a sinus infection. He of course in all his bravery refuses to take any medication. I pity him on the plane if he does not get rid of this ailment before Saturday.
That is right, "D" and I (no little man can not come home yet) are flying home on Saturday the 6th. I will then fly back myself to pick up "G" about a week or so later.
Our court is on Wed. We will have a little bit of paperchasing afterwards (for other PAPs --- "D" has to sign the application for his new birthcertificate in advance at the local registrar. Then "D" must also go to Kiev to sign in advance for the USEmbassy papers -- I think the main one is stating that he understands our little mans medical condition but I am not really sure).
After much deliberation we decided it best for us both to come home. We have been left here to go it alone for too long without our facilitators that neither of us feel comfortable in me staying here alone for 13 days.
Plus we miss "A" so much. We know that "G" is not going to understand any of this but we are hoping that his caregivers will help to ease the transition. They have been so kind and supportive up to now that we have no reason to think they will not be there for him in our absense.
We had to skip our afternoon visit due to my tummy and a major thunderstorm. So we (I) spent the time making a mark-off calendar (kinda like an advent calendar) for our little man to count down the days until I return.
See ya soon :-)
"D" has also been blessed with a sinus infection. He of course in all his bravery refuses to take any medication. I pity him on the plane if he does not get rid of this ailment before Saturday.
That is right, "D" and I (no little man can not come home yet) are flying home on Saturday the 6th. I will then fly back myself to pick up "G" about a week or so later.
Our court is on Wed. We will have a little bit of paperchasing afterwards (for other PAPs --- "D" has to sign the application for his new birthcertificate in advance at the local registrar. Then "D" must also go to Kiev to sign in advance for the USEmbassy papers -- I think the main one is stating that he understands our little mans medical condition but I am not really sure).
After much deliberation we decided it best for us both to come home. We have been left here to go it alone for too long without our facilitators that neither of us feel comfortable in me staying here alone for 13 days.
Plus we miss "A" so much. We know that "G" is not going to understand any of this but we are hoping that his caregivers will help to ease the transition. They have been so kind and supportive up to now that we have no reason to think they will not be there for him in our absense.
We had to skip our afternoon visit due to my tummy and a major thunderstorm. So we (I) spent the time making a mark-off calendar (kinda like an advent calendar) for our little man to count down the days until I return.
See ya soon :-)
Boring Day
It is mid-day on Saturday and our second weekend here. And I am rather bored. I am not sure how families that stay in excess of 2 months do it. Of the 10 days we have been in Ukraine, we have been without our facilitator for 7 of those days - that means no translator and no sense of adventure on our part.
Yes there are our twice a day trips to the orphanage which are wonderful. And there is our every other day trip to the grocery store which is fun. And daily I walk behind our apartment to the market simply to browse and kill time. They are starting to recognize me. Today I was even able to charade out "souvenier thimble".
I can not forget the 3x daily that we boil water. And once a day when we wash the tiniest load of laundry I have ever seen and hang it out to dry on the balcony. And there is the cooking of meals and the washing of dishes. And we spend atleast 30 minutes a day watching the BBC news - who by the way is having a hey day with the upcoming elections.
I try to read, I try to cross stich. We play family fued and other computer games. We email and blog and twitter and skype - thank God for the internet. And we watch movies --- every single night.
Except for our visits with "G", this is getting pretty old. Even with the fun of getting trapped in the elevator and flooding the bathroom with an overflowing washing machine.
And we nap everyday. We REALLY REALLY need something a little different to do!
Yes there are our twice a day trips to the orphanage which are wonderful. And there is our every other day trip to the grocery store which is fun. And daily I walk behind our apartment to the market simply to browse and kill time. They are starting to recognize me. Today I was even able to charade out "souvenier thimble".
I can not forget the 3x daily that we boil water. And once a day when we wash the tiniest load of laundry I have ever seen and hang it out to dry on the balcony. And there is the cooking of meals and the washing of dishes. And we spend atleast 30 minutes a day watching the BBC news - who by the way is having a hey day with the upcoming elections.
I try to read, I try to cross stich. We play family fued and other computer games. We email and blog and twitter and skype - thank God for the internet. And we watch movies --- every single night.
Except for our visits with "G", this is getting pretty old. Even with the fun of getting trapped in the elevator and flooding the bathroom with an overflowing washing machine.
And we nap everyday. We REALLY REALLY need something a little different to do!
Wednesday, August 27, 2008
Walk With Us To The Orphanage
We have a little under a mile walk to the orphanage. We walk this route twice daily to see our sweet little boy. I call the elevator evil because we got stuck in it the other day!!!! It is a tiny disgusting smelly elevator and we should have never used it because we are only on the fourth floor! Enjoy the walk.
Double Cheeseburger with Onions Only Please and a water...
I ended up with a double cheeseburger with ketchup and pickle. And an orange juice. I think this is as close as the Amercian McDonalds usually get my order :-) But "D" was craving ground beef and we can not find it (more like we can not identify it) in the grocery store. So McDees to the rescue for a bit of a taste of home.
The excitement of being half way across the world and the anticipation of meeting our son have subsided. We are now just anxiously awaiting all being together as a family under one roof (preferrably our own roof!!!) But we must be patient we have the following ahead of us:
- Court (Wed Sept 3rd)
- A mandatory 10-day wait period which for us because the last day falls on a weekend, we have a 13-day wait period (Thurs Sept 4th - Mon Sept 13th)
- Obtain "G"s Visa, Passport and US Embassy health exam (guessing Tues Sept 16th - Fri Sept 19th)
- Fly home :-) (guessing Mon Sept 22nd -- happy birthday to me --- my only birthday wish to have both my children safe and healthy together at home :-)
There is a chance that "D" can come home early after court but we are still waiting for confirmation on this. There is no chance that they can move up our court date to shorten our wait period because the judge is on vacation..... and so we wait.
Bye!!!
Monday, August 25, 2008
Rewind Aug23 - Going Solo
On Saturday and Sundays our facilitators have the day off so we are on our own. This weekend Monday is a holiday so we actually have three days to test our abilities. Luckily the baby house (orphanage for children 6 and under) allows us to visit on our normal schedule even on the weekends. So from 10-12 and 2-4 we are able to visit with our son. We quickly found that about an hour of one on one attention is about all he really wants and after that he is ready to go back to his group.
Saturday was our first solo day. We succeeded in walking to the orphanage (about a miles walk) and back - twice! The first time we had a bit of difficulty getting through the orphanage gate but eventually we figured it out. And to really strut ourselves we walked down the street (just a block) to our local market and bought some groceries.
We were hightly unsuccessful in trying to get our little compact washing machine to start. But more disappointly we walked about 3 miles looking for the internet cafe. I kept asking everybody for directions and "D" kept wanting to pretend like he did not know me! hum.... this is really no different than when we are lost in the states!!!!
So finally we called our life line (aka Vanya) and he had the social worker and her son stop by to start the washing machine. They also drove us to the internet cafe which surprisingly was right in front of where we had walked to -- we were just a few building off! But there was clearly no international sign awaiting us that we were in the right spot.
They also stopped back by later in the day and hooked us up with a dialup internet card. Now all is good :-)
Saturday was our first solo day. We succeeded in walking to the orphanage (about a miles walk) and back - twice! The first time we had a bit of difficulty getting through the orphanage gate but eventually we figured it out. And to really strut ourselves we walked down the street (just a block) to our local market and bought some groceries.
We were hightly unsuccessful in trying to get our little compact washing machine to start. But more disappointly we walked about 3 miles looking for the internet cafe. I kept asking everybody for directions and "D" kept wanting to pretend like he did not know me! hum.... this is really no different than when we are lost in the states!!!!
So finally we called our life line (aka Vanya) and he had the social worker and her son stop by to start the washing machine. They also drove us to the internet cafe which surprisingly was right in front of where we had walked to -- we were just a few building off! But there was clearly no international sign awaiting us that we were in the right spot.
They also stopped back by later in the day and hooked us up with a dialup internet card. Now all is good :-)
Sunday, August 24, 2008
Our Krenenchuk "home"
It is a nice apartment. Very clean - 2 bedrooms. Maybe 900 sq ft. Signing off for a bit :-) Will catch up the rest later tonight.
Rewind - Aug 21 after the SDA Appointment
There was a few bits of paperwork to do. And we had some lunch. The food here is really good. Then we headed back to our apartment to wait. We were hoping that the SDA could get our paperwork ready to go an visit Igor by the end of the day. This is not normal, usually we would have had to wait till the end of the next day. But the next day was Friday and it was the start of the Independence holiday weekend (officially on Sunday but Monday is observed and well an early dismal on Friday is just a good idea). Luckily our request was granted :-)
While we hung out, our apartment began to shake -- yes shake!! And a huge rumbling could be heard outside. So we ran to our balcony and watched 50 or so tanks, rockets, and other military looking things plow down our street! They were headed to the Kiev celebration of Independence Day.
I am going to try to upload some pics. This dial up is touch and go on the pics.
While we hung out, our apartment began to shake -- yes shake!! And a huge rumbling could be heard outside. So we ran to our balcony and watched 50 or so tanks, rockets, and other military looking things plow down our street! They were headed to the Kiev celebration of Independence Day.
I am going to try to upload some pics. This dial up is touch and go on the pics.
More Kiev apartment
The first was our view out the kitchen window. The second is the family room. The man is Vanya. He is our facilitators assistant and he has been wonderful! He is in his last year at the University getting a degree in English. He definitely puts our vocabulary skills to shame. He has exceptional work ethic and is a ton of fun to hang out with.
Rewind....Aug 19 Travel Day
I have a little more time this morning and a new dial up internet card so I thought I would backtrack and let you know a bit of what we have been up to.
Aug 19th we flew in the late morning from STL to CHI and it was very uneventful. Then 9 hrs on a Luthansa flight to Frankfurt. I hope I am not speaking too soon (as we still have to get home!) but Luthansa was awesome! Yes we flew coach -- I typically assume those that still like to fly must always go first class since coach seems to get more unpleasant everytime I fly. But not this time - yes it was cramped. But very comfortable. The attendents were awesome and the food was very good.
The Frankfurt airport was interesting. Everything was in English and most folks were able to understand us. But they have taken airport security to a max! Just to get to our transfer flight - 2 pat down searches and 3 passport checkins. But I rest assurred that no one of crimminal nature would be that patient and we would have a safe flight as a result!!
We had a few hours to kill so we sacked out in the airport lobby. The flight itself was a bit loud, cramped and smelly but then again we were pretty tired.
We arrived in Kiev and made it through customs and picked up our luggage all within about 20 minutes :-) Our facilitator (Vanya) and our driver (Sasha) were there and we headed out. We were still have difficulty accepting the fact that we were really there.........in Ukraine..... wow!
We must have said a hundred times "I wish 'A' was here". Up to now that has been our only regret ... not taking our daughter (age 16) on this trip. It does not seem right for her not to be here. :-(
Our apartment in Kiev was really nice. I will try to upload some pics....
We had some dinner at Marios and then tried our best to stay awake until dark. We failed miserably and sacked out about 7pm ;-)
Aug 19th we flew in the late morning from STL to CHI and it was very uneventful. Then 9 hrs on a Luthansa flight to Frankfurt. I hope I am not speaking too soon (as we still have to get home!) but Luthansa was awesome! Yes we flew coach -- I typically assume those that still like to fly must always go first class since coach seems to get more unpleasant everytime I fly. But not this time - yes it was cramped. But very comfortable. The attendents were awesome and the food was very good.
The Frankfurt airport was interesting. Everything was in English and most folks were able to understand us. But they have taken airport security to a max! Just to get to our transfer flight - 2 pat down searches and 3 passport checkins. But I rest assurred that no one of crimminal nature would be that patient and we would have a safe flight as a result!!
We had a few hours to kill so we sacked out in the airport lobby. The flight itself was a bit loud, cramped and smelly but then again we were pretty tired.
We arrived in Kiev and made it through customs and picked up our luggage all within about 20 minutes :-) Our facilitator (Vanya) and our driver (Sasha) were there and we headed out. We were still have difficulty accepting the fact that we were really there.........in Ukraine..... wow!
We must have said a hundred times "I wish 'A' was here". Up to now that has been our only regret ... not taking our daughter (age 16) on this trip. It does not seem right for her not to be here. :-(
Our apartment in Kiev was really nice. I will try to upload some pics....
We had some dinner at Marios and then tried our best to stay awake until dark. We failed miserably and sacked out about 7pm ;-)
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