Saturday, August 26, 2006
Recycling Ukrainian Style
We have some new friends, Forrest and Darcy, Nicolas and Natasha. They have only been in Ukraine a week but took the time to have us over for dinner the other night. Now that’s hospitality. They are dear people and will be taking the DTS (Discipleship Training School) at YWAM in September. They moved here early so the kids can get started in their new school. After selling everything in America, they moved here with a commitment of at least 10 years. Five years ago, the children were adopted from an orphanage in the Eastern part of Ukraine. God has been putting it on their hearts to come and serve ever since that time. Lovely family!
Anyway, Darcy mentioned that she is so used to recycling that it is hard for her not to do so. It looks like there is no such thing here. At least, it looks like that at first glance. I was able to share our recycling secret. Her name is Baba Halya. She’s maybe a little older than I am—but that’s hard to figure out. She works outside our building early in the morning and late in the evening. She cleans around the front stoop but her main function is to sort the garbage. She has quite a system. The cardboard boxes are neatly folded and bundled—I don’t know what happens to them after that. Glass bottles are put together. Used clothing and shoes are sorted and the good ones go into a little building. I think she may sell some things out of it—I saw a lady getting a purse there one day.
She also takes a little cart and picks up junk around the building. She is always cheerful and greets us. She tells me that I must learn Russian so we can talk. One day she had picked up a bottle of beer and was drinking the little bit that was left. We “chatted” as we walked together toward our entrance. She told me how much she loves Ukrainian beer. I am including a picture of her. She was thrilled to have me take it—I just wish she had still had her bottle of beer with her. She is a kick.
So that is my recycling secret. It just goes to show that things are not always as they first appear.
Anyway, Darcy mentioned that she is so used to recycling that it is hard for her not to do so. It looks like there is no such thing here. At least, it looks like that at first glance. I was able to share our recycling secret. Her name is Baba Halya. She’s maybe a little older than I am—but that’s hard to figure out. She works outside our building early in the morning and late in the evening. She cleans around the front stoop but her main function is to sort the garbage. She has quite a system. The cardboard boxes are neatly folded and bundled—I don’t know what happens to them after that. Glass bottles are put together. Used clothing and shoes are sorted and the good ones go into a little building. I think she may sell some things out of it—I saw a lady getting a purse there one day.
She also takes a little cart and picks up junk around the building. She is always cheerful and greets us. She tells me that I must learn Russian so we can talk. One day she had picked up a bottle of beer and was drinking the little bit that was left. We “chatted” as we walked together toward our entrance. She told me how much she loves Ukrainian beer. I am including a picture of her. She was thrilled to have me take it—I just wish she had still had her bottle of beer with her. She is a kick.So that is my recycling secret. It just goes to show that things are not always as they first appear.
Tuesday, August 22, 2006
Shopping for Food can be an interesting experience
Shopping for food in Ukraine can be a real experience. I talked to some new friends today who have been here less than a week. They were saying they’d like to tag along with us sometime so they can learn about some of the items that a person can find on the shelves. They had just found some wieners that their kids were ecstatic about—they said they tasted just like Oscar Meyer wieners. Makes a person want to break out in song.
A Ukrainian friend told me that when she was a little girl (she is in her mid-thirties), her mother would get her and her twin sister up at 5 AM so they could stand in lines to get things at the store. The more people in a group, including the kids, the more you could get. I can’t imagine what it was like. Sometimes they would stand all day and then the store would run out of whatever it was you were waiting for.
Today, there are things absent from the shelves—at least the things that I want to buy—like peanut butter. Very few people like it here. My problem is that I want things I am used to America. I am spoiled. Rang Hee from Counterpart International sent a jar of Jiffy to the Counterpart office in Kyiv for us. We got a call saying there was some kind of butter in a jar waiting for us. They were wondering if it would spoil if we didn’t get it immediately.
It took me a long time to find baking soda but I finally did so. Cornstarch seems
to be non-existent. There is potato starch that we can thicken things with—it just makes really spongy lumps which are a little unappetizing. There are shelves full of mayonnaise and ketchup. It is difficult to find a plain one of these two items though. Meat flavored mayonnaise seems to be the favorite. There are also many other flavors, each with a unique taste. Same thing with the ketchup. Plain potato chips don’t seem to be available except for some boxed ones that are more like pressed strips. Chips come in ham, cheese, chicken, mushroom, shrimp, and several other flavors. We have found very small packages of corn chips at our closest grocery store but that is the only place we have found them. I can make “haystacks” and which I have always loved. Yeah!The fresh produce in the spring and summer is fantastic. There are a lot of little open air markets as well as little ladies who sit along the street and sell produce. We have even found lettuce in a few places—it’s not very popular except for a garnish. Right now peaches and melons are abundant and cheap. A form of zucchini has been a staple in our diet for a few months. I really love the produce and it is inexpensive. I am sure that will be different during the winter months. I can’t bring myself to buy chicken or any kind of meat in the markets. You can see Richard in the picture and what looks like rubber chickens next to him. This was taken on a very hot day. And NO they are not rubber chickens.
Tomatoes and cucumbers have been beautiful and plentiful throughout the spring and summer. Cabbage and potatoes are also staples. And many different kinds of fruits are available if you are willing to pay the price. Ukrainian chocolate is great. We really like the 76% bars and some of the other dark, dark candy. Yet we have never found chocolate chips. Also, no liquid flavorings are available. You can buy powdered vanilla in very small packets but it is very bitter so if you don’t get it all mixed into a recipe it can ruin it.
I will write more about shopping at a later date. Just suffice it to say that it is interesting and can be a very daunting experience as well.
Friday, August 11, 2006
Looking for the Perfect Cup of Coffee
So. . . here is the continuation of my sad saga of my quest for a good cup of c
offee. Over the years we have purchased two different coffee makers to use with SAI teams. I brought a large amount of paper filters with me—thanks to Costco. I also brought my favorite blends of both Starbucks and Pioneer Coffee with me. Since the tap water is unsafe to drink, I am using the bottled water we buy in large bottles. I have actually tried several brands of water but alas even with all these options, I have not been able to brew a decent cup of coffee. I finally shelved the coffee maker.
The sale of instant coffee is big business here. Often when we go to orphanages, we are invited to have coffee or tea with the director. I quit asking for coffee after a few encounters with instant-Ukrainian style. This picture is of my friend Maria having a cup of coffee at Mostysche Orphange. In the next picture you see director Natasha and our other friends.
This is how they make it: Take about four large spoonfuls of instant. Place in a small cup. Add about 6 ounces of water. Stir and drink. With this recipe, I am able to stay up for a couple of days without even nodding off. So now I ask for TEA.
Don’t feel too bad for me though because I have discovered MacCoffee. I kid you not. It is wonderful. In fact, MacCoffee went over so well that many different companies now make their version of it. (See the picture.) Individual packets are available in a number of different flavors. The 3 in 1 blends include coffee, creamer and sugar. I drink one sugar free coffee and creamer packet plus one of the flavored ones like mocha, amaretto or hazelnut. Otherwise the mixture is too sweet. Just last week, I discovered a Russian brand (MacCoffee has English writing on it and the words “American Taste” on the front. Hmmm! Wonder where that comes from.) I have liked every flavor so far. And best of all, each packet costs between 10-12 cents. So my coffee maker will remain on the shelf and I will just keep drinking MacCoffee. If you come to visit me, I will share this experience with you.
offee. Over the years we have purchased two different coffee makers to use with SAI teams. I brought a large amount of paper filters with me—thanks to Costco. I also brought my favorite blends of both Starbucks and Pioneer Coffee with me. Since the tap water is unsafe to drink, I am using the bottled water we buy in large bottles. I have actually tried several brands of water but alas even with all these options, I have not been able to brew a decent cup of coffee. I finally shelved the coffee maker.
The sale of instant coffee is big business here. Often when we go to orphanages, we are invited to have coffee or tea with the director. I quit asking for coffee after a few encounters with instant-Ukrainian style. This picture is of my friend Maria having a cup of coffee at Mostysche Orphange. In the next picture you see director Natasha and our other friends.
This is how they make it: Take about four large spoonfuls of instant. Place in a small cup. Add about 6 ounces of water. Stir and drink. With this recipe, I am able to stay up for a couple of days without even nodding off. So now I ask for TEA.
Don’t feel too bad for me though because I have discovered MacCoffee. I kid you not. It is wonderful. In fact, MacCoffee went over so well that many different companies now make their version of it. (See the picture.) Individual packets are available in a number of different flavors. The 3 in 1 blends include coffee, creamer and sugar. I drink one sugar free coffee and creamer packet plus one of the flavored ones like mocha, amaretto or hazelnut. Otherwise the mixture is too sweet. Just last week, I discovered a Russian brand (MacCoffee has English writing on it and the words “American Taste” on the front. Hmmm! Wonder where that comes from.) I have liked every flavor so far. And best of all, each packet costs between 10-12 cents. So my coffee maker will remain on the shelf and I will just keep drinking MacCoffee. If you come to visit me, I will share this experience with you.
A note on the coffee establishments that I mentioned in my last email. In December when Mike and I were waiting for the container, we were walking by the metro at the Golden Gates. We noticed that there were some boards being put together about 15 feet out onto the sidewalk. When we passed the spot the next time, walls had been framed up and heating ducts were being installed. By the time we left Ukraine three weeks later, we actually had a cup of coffee in a completely finished, new coffee house. We sat at modern tables set on ceramic tiled floors in the space that people had walked through for years after exiting the metro. We watched people walking by in the cold on the other side of the large plate glass windows. This building had literally grown there in a very short span of time.Sidewalks are being used for many things now. Small buildings appear very quickly and normal traffic routes have to be revised. Lately the biggest challenge is to not get run over by a car or bus while walking on the sidewalk. I will write more about that in a subsequent email. For now, enjoy your coffee and think of us.
Finding a Cup of Coffee in Ukraine
I’m going to have fun with this blog. This is the place that I can share all the weird and wonderful things I have encountered in Ukraine—most recently during the last four months living here yet with the history of many visits over the past eight years as well. It is 3:00 on Sunday morning and I can’t sleep so I decided that this is the time to write about coffee in Ukraine. The reason I can’t sleep has to do with over consumption of the stuff—I think. On my first visit in 1998, I learned that getting a cup of Joe was very expensive and getting a second cup was virtually impossible. Our International Bible Society team stayed at a hotel in Kyiv before flying to Crimea. (The hotel, The Bratslava, is near where we now live. I also remember that we had no hot water on that visit.) Breakfast was included in the price of the hotel. Cindy Reynolds and I got up early—jetlag does that to a person—and tried to find a cup of my favorite beverage. (Remember, I am from the Pacific Northwest where coffee shops, houses, and kiosks abound.) We were the first ones in the dining room and breakfast was not ready. Looking back I see that I had no idea of proper protocol in this situation--first we were early and second I asked for a cup of coffee. I received a strange look. (I had been warned not to ask for a second cup at breakfast so I thought I could order one ahead of time.) The coffee eventually came and I tried to pay for it but they wouldn’t take my money. I tried to tell the waitress (since I didn’t speak the language this didn’t work very well) that I wanted to pay for the coffee and put money on the table. Then the others arrived for breakfast. When I asked for another cup it became immediately apparent that I could not do so. I learned that coffee was very difficult to obtain at that time and the fact that I had asked for more was very inappropriate. They would not or could not bring me another cup even if I wanted to pay for it. Now, eight years later, there are coffee houses practically on every block in the center of Kyiv. Starbucks has not found its way here yet—which I feel is a bit sad. Where are the paper cups with 16 and 20 ounce lattes? As I was writing this, I realized that our section of town doesn’t have a single coffee house. (I guess I should amend that statement because in the local grocery store there is a lady who has a small espresso machine and she will make you a shot of pure espresso. I have never seen a line there though.)I haven’t figured out what to order since each different chain or individual establishment has its own definition of a latte (most of them don’t even have lattes), cappuccino, and espresso. Cappuccinos are the closest thing I have found to an American latte. It does have steamed milk in it. All the drinks are small in size and cost around three to four dollars in the coffee houses. This is too expensive for our budget so it is only on a rare occasion that I indulge. There is a pizza place, Uno, by the Golden Gate where I can order a cappuccino for $1.40. Once in awhile, I will splurge after leaving Mr. S’s office.We also recently found a Frappe at one of the chains. It is blended but with a small amount of ice and has a lot of whipped cream in it. The barista also adds the sweetened condensed mile that is very popular here. On a hot day, it is better than nothing.It’s time for sleep—it will probably be short since the sun comes up in another 30 minutes. Next time I will write about my troubles brewing a good cup of coffee at home. I have found an alternate which I love—so until then. Sweet dreams!!!!!! If I can’t sleep, I’ll just go count cups of the elusive lattes.
