got any video discs you no longer want? Feel free to send 'em my way - use some discretion, however.....
do not send:
Arnold Schwarzenegger
Chuck Norris
Sex & Violence for the sake of sex and violence.
Pull them out of their packaging, please, or you will pay a mint to send them and I may not receive them!
Linda in Lviv
Dear All,
I must start by saying that summer has finally arrived – it once again is hot, though not as bad as it was in Chernihiv. I realize after living there for over 30 years, I have acclimated fully to northwest coast weather and neither like the heat nor too much sunshine. Would that Sandy were here to hear me say that!
I have found living in Lviv to be full of slightly surreal moments – moments when it feels like I am at home (in the U.S.) only to have one small element intrude to make it all feel totally bizarre. Yesterday morning I was in my room, at my desk next to a street-facing window realizing I was listening to House of the Rising Sun (by the Animals) playing on someone’s car radio.
For a moment there, things felt completely normal. It was someone walking by speaking Ukrainian that pulled me back into reality. At first even that felt normal – the cadence was of a nomal conversation; they were outside and across the street so it would be not have been unusual that I didn’t understand what they were saying because I could not fully hear their words.
It took a few moments before I realized that I could not ‘hear’ the words because the person was not speaking English! What a weird moment – I felt like I did not know where I was! I am understanding this as a good sign of assimilation. I sort of am existing between American and Ukrainian states of being. The Ukrainian stuff now is not so new that I am constantly aware of it; the American is still there but shifting to the background. Its all meeting somplace in the middle and producing a different way of being.
Hmmm, pretty interesting….
The other day the big news was a train derailment about 60 kilometers north/northeast of Lviv – a shipment from Kazakstan to Poland of phosperous.
Four cars dumped their contents into the groundwater. Peace Corps called around 1:00pm to say everything was okay for us, and we should not worry about evacuation. Rumors, however, were flying among the locals about another Chernobyl. It didn’t help that a minister was quoted as saying he hoped it wasn’t a Chernobyl, and that just aggravated the situation. Its not just the environmental aspects that folks are concerned about when they hear a comment like that, but it’s the gestahlt of living in a world in which you don’t trust what you hear on the media and from government leaders and wondering whether you should send your children outside to play and what it is that you really will learn about the truth of the situation tomorrow – when it is too late. The fear and distrust was palpable in everyone. I came home to find windows and doors tightly shut, and this in 90 degree weather. It only was after they had heard that the Peace Corps told me it was all clear in Lviv that they relaxed a bit. And then the grape-vine communication system kicked into place. They called some folks to say ‘the Americans’ said things were okay, so they trusted that. Soon friends and family were calling the house to ask about it. I kept hearing Michael tell people on the phone that the information came from the Americans, that I was told it was okay by ‘my people,’ so they could begin to believe what their own government was telling them via the media.
Well, my Peace Corps experience continues not to be what I expected. Now I have learned that Lviv has its own version of Costco. Costco! Its called Metro, and I get to go with the family next trip. This added to the good pizza and the imminent opening of a Mexican restaurant just down the street…
Getting psyched about moving into my own place, even though it still is 1-1/2 months away. Have been doing a lot of food shopping with Ivanka, getting some practice in asking for what I want – in Ukrainian, of course.
Think I will be living a blend of: shopping for produce and basic home items at the bazaar, bulk stuff like water and paper products at Metro and designer deli around the corner. I guess it will be much like what I was used to in Seattle – a cross between Pike Place Market, Larry’s and Costco – only different. Hmmmm, seems to me there was an original Star Trek episode something like this….
Started tutoring: great teacher (PhD in english; her specialty – teaching Ukrainian as a foreigh language – great for me; first lesson – in her son’s downtown nicely renovated flat – now for rent for only $800/month – which is outrageous for anywhere in Ukraine except here and Kyiv. Must admit it was quite modern inside while the exterior remains distinctively Ukrainian baroque. Great old building; and what a surprise to go inside to find state-of-the-art European appliances. Wouldn’t want to be living in the heart of the downtown, however, as it has soooo many people during the day….. I prefer living in a city neighborhood where things are generally more quiet – but I still am only a 20-25 minute walk from my office in the city center.
Closing thought – I LOVE having a washing machine again.. And, I have received confirmation that Ukrainians do not have licorice!
Next weekend I am off to visit a friend a few hours north, so my next letter won’t be for a bit. Now I must get ready for a Vivaldi concert in a beautiful Roman Catholic church up the street.
My best to you all.
Linda
Dear All,
This is the end of week #2 in Lviv, and I am pleased to say I like it as much as I did last week. There is so much opportunity, and it is set in this pretty amazing environment of architecture and art. The big surprise – the weather is pretty much like Seattle. It seems I will be having the same kind of Spring and Summer, but I get more color in the Fall and a bit colder temperature in the Winter. I was told today that snow does not really fall until late December/January, and then there is not a lot of it. The problem is more one of black ice, which should be interesting on cobblestone. Thank you Bainbridges for the ice-grippers!
My new apartment is finalized, and I will move in on September 5. My address will remain the same – Zukovskoho, 5 – I just am moving from a room in my host family’s home to the apartment upstairs. I will have to move my stuff all of about 20 feet. It comes fully furnished, and if I need anything not already there or more of something that already is, my host family has said they will provide it (within reason of course). This means I do not have to buy dishes, etc. Might buy a microwave, however… (Jamie, don’t groan.) We’ll see. Might not need/want it.
The apartment has two rooms plus a bathroom and a kitchen. One of the rooms is a very large master-bedroom with a balcony and is furnished with antiques. The other room is a very large living room w/a dining room space that sits at least five; a large area for a divan, chair, desk & TV (yes, it comes w/a tv – and cable, I think); and a third space that can accommodate more bookshelves, extra sleeping – or whatever I want. And folks, there is a kilim on the floor! This room has a gabled roof, so it feels a bit smaller and is a bit darker, but by Ukrainian standards, it is huge. The kitchen is small but has hot water on demand, a Frigo (fridge) and a washing machine. Yea! The bath is a large tub/shower, etc – and everything is relatively new. All of the windows are double hung (for the cold), there is a set of beautiful wood doors (set about a foot apart), and, I have a security system – my company calls me from the intercome at the gate below, and I buzz them in. Super safe. No roughing it for me on this assignment – at least not at home.
Logistics and administrivia are being taken care of: my first visit to my bank; the first package sent from the post office (this is more of issue than you might think); address changes to all the relevant places; Peace Corps paperwork submitted; two weeks on the job and settling in their routines/creating my own, etc. Next week I will get my first haircut here; that should be interesting. I’ll have to brush up on the relevant vocabulary and find a few good photos of stuff I like. Have not seen a lot of bad hair here, so I am not too worried….. Might go to the bazaar tomorrow to look for things like hairbrushes.... The bazaars in Lviv are huge and have everything you might need that can be carried. All of these things sound minor, I am sure, but remember I must figure out how to do them in another country and in a language I have not yet mastered! It takes so much more energy to do this simple stuff than it did at home (see comment on post office, above). And I have to pace myself – only a certain number of new things a day – or I do get overwhelmed. Am looking forward to it all becoming routine. And some of it already has!
I really like my neighborhood – it is picturesque yet has all the stuff I need (photocopy center, office supplies, lots of little shops with foodstuffs, AND two coffee shops (one w/pastry). Soon to open – a Mexican restaurant just up the block. Given the quality of some of the other non-Ukrainian food here, it might not be too bad. And I have found decent pizza in this City. Also had a chance to get lost on the other side of the downtown area. It is even more beautiful than my side, and quite a bit more upscale. Lviv is not Chernihiv, that’s for sure.
As I think back on my original listing of things I was missing from the States, I find that some of them are now available and the others don’t matter much anymore (except for the licorice, that is). I am looking forward to having my own place and quiet mornings, but I will miss my morning chats with Ivanka. I will have a washing machine, and now I am used to washing my clothes by hand. (Although I am VERY thankful for these great new travel fabrics!) And I have found good coffee (though Barbara, its not as good as what you are sending!). It will be interesting to start cooking again as I have not made a meal for myself in over 3 months! And Ivanka will teach me some basic Ukrainian stuff. I LOVE eating by the seasons; we have finished the cherries and now are on to berries. Ivanka makes a full range of stuff with everything – one of the best being something called ‘compote,’ which is a drink made from fresh fruit. She also makes cherry vareniki that are to-die-for. And last night she brough up a delicious concoction of fresh raspberry juice mixed with very fresh milk (out of the cow yesterday). One of the good things about living here – when I want to be around the family, I simply unlock the hallway door which leads into their part of the house. I expect the kids and Ivanka will be coming for regular visits – at least I hope so. Graeme, one of the children is a 12 year old boy named Artemi. Artemi just came back from an outdoor camp in the Carpathians where he rode a line like you want to make between your backyard house and the main house. (Have you made it yet?) Being near this family is one of the reasos I am willing to pay a bit more for this apartment. They are pretty amazing, and you will be hearing lots more about them.
Most impressive about Ivanka (apart from her sense of humor and her amazing patience with her four children) is her painting. It is based on traditional Orthodox icons, but is definitely modern in feel. I have a piece hanging in my bedroom now and am hoping I get to move it into the apartment with me. She currently is showing some of her work at the Lviv Art Museum. Most of her stuff is in churches, including one outside of Toronto.
Last week was a holiday here (and there are lots of them), so we had a four day weekend. Had lots of time to just wander about and get a sense of the place. The old buildings are quite picturesque looking, however they are not so on the inside. I had the opportunity to go inside someone’s apartment in one of the big, stately looking mansions. If you remember the scenes from Dr. Zhivago inside the large family home AFTER it had been subdivided by the Soviet system, you have a sense of what I saw. My office also is in one of those picturesque buildings in the City center – in what used to be someone’s apartment. It’s large, but I would not want to live there. Very much deteriorated - and there is a water problem in those old buildings throughout the City – simply put, there is none during work hours.
We have to fill the tub to be sure there will be water to flush the toilet and to wash during the day. I understand it is the same at a colleague’s school.
No fireworks here on the 4th, but both my host family and my office had little parties for me. I was surprised they even knew about it much less giving me the little surprises: flowers, candy and an American flag hanging in my office! I had a slight pang of nostaligia thinking I would not be hosting my annual party on the 4th (heard it was sunny and hot in Seattle), but then I have other stuff here to offset it.
This week I had the wonderful opportunity to look at one woman’s collection of traditional Ukrainian embroidery – most of it was family stuff, but the family member that pulled it all together was an ethnographer in the 30s.
She went around Western Ukraine documenting what folks had done. Her collection is some of the best stuff outside of a museum – and there is not much more of it to be found because Ukrainian embroidery was banned during the Soviet era – it was perceived to be too nationalistic, Ukrainian nationalism that is. Her stuff is stunning. She has given me the names of some of the Carpathian villages where I still might be able to find some stuff. And she has given me information on when/where to shop the bazaars.
I’ll close here. More in a week or so. Next time I will write about my work. Let me know if there is anything you are particularly interested in and I will write about it. Otherwise you will have to make do with my thoughts in the moment!
Love to you all.
Linda
Dear All,
Some of you were asking for an update/clarification on mailing to Ukraine. Here it is in a nutshell. (FYI, this is not a solicitation for anything.....)
1. Send everything to my new, permanent address!
2. Content should be valued at less than 499
3. Keep package size as small as possible
4. Use an envelope - boxes will be opened; envelopes generally are not
5. Don't send anything valuable unless you check with me first
6. Don't send money, checks, etc.
7. Items like jewelry, medicine, food, plants, seeds, etc. will be confiscated - I won't receive them. If you are sending any food-like items (candy, coffee) don't label the package as such unless you have no choice.
8. List all items as personal - unless they are books.
9. use Meest if at all possible (see the list of mail services I sent a few months ago. If you don't have this anymore, let me know as I can resend it.
Let me know if you have any questions about any of this.
Linda
Linda Knudsen McAusland (OSR 12) writes from her Peace Corps posting in the Ukraine.