Mixed Bag in Mariupol - Russian Ukrainian Belarus Travel Music Woman Dating News

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Mixed Bag in Mariupol
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Posted by: Raspberry

Hey, it's about 2:45pm here in Kiev, and on the way back from the states. It's a real nice 78 degrees and sunny out here.

On my way back from Mariupol this time, I decided to stop in Kiev, instead of stopping in Germany. It was long, relaxing train ride.

Mariupol was a bit of a mixed bag. Started off kind of strange. Called Tatyana from Munich, and she had forgotten that Monday was the day that I was coming in.(Although she had known for a while).

Stayed at the Spartak hotel the first night, since she was out of town. Bounced around town and then caught up with Tatyana the next day. Actually a nice hotel, and at $60 was reasonably priced.

I had really wanted to go over to Crimea and lay down on a beach for a while, but the weather wasn't that great. But that seemed to set the tone for most of the trip.....although it had its good points, it was frustrating.

Stayed at her apartment the rest of the trip. She of course had some appointments in the morning(masseuse is among her other talents). Which was fine to work around the work hours.

However, her obsession about her weight(she is slim)has made a bit of a problem on this trip. In fact, the combination of eating and sleeping habits. Too often, she goes to bed hungry(purposely) and doesn't sleep properly.

Posted by: Raspberry

PART TWO

The sun was beating on my face at 530 in the morning. I was sleeping in a separate room, and figured it would be a good time to sort things out and get my belongings in order.

Well, it woke her up and she was not all that happy. The next day, some a--hole from El Paso calls at 400am, and wakes her up concerning him meeting her this summer. I don't have an issue about that since I am also corresponding with others. But it did not make her happy.

Mariupol was hit with some heavy electrical storms, so lots of thunder and lightening.

We did go out and meet with her friends. Some I had met on previous trips, and others for the first time. Plus did some shopping.

One of her friends had made several dishes containing mushrooms---which see is allergic to----and she tried to be a good sport by eating them. And of course, she was dumping some of her portions of ALL dishes onto my plate.

By the time Thursday rolled around, I thought it might be a good idea to take off and go elsewhere, and give the lady some space. She was against the idea, and said that I was welcome to stay. (I think she might have been afraid that I would meet up with some girls in Dnepropetrovsk).

There were some grand ideas for the upcoming weekend......including going to church, visiting her grandmother's grave site, taking a day trip to Donetsk, getting involved romantically, playing and singing guitars together, and watching some movies.

Ultimately, none of that happened. Except for watching a movie on Monday morming.

Posted by: Raspberry

PART THREE

We did do some things together, such as going to the park, visiting the art institute, and also visiting with friends again.

Problem is, she was hitting the sack early. Plus, been laying down on the couch at the friends' places several times, while I was talking to them.

I even was at this friend's dacha, helping out planting vegetables. Having breathing the dirt, more pollution hitting the air, and Luba making a bonfire to destroy a pile of weeds, I knew I would have some respiratory and sinus deals going on later in the evening.

** TO BE CONTINUED ***

Posted by: Cheburashka

Good stuff Raspberry. Keep it coming.

Posted by: Raspberry

PART FOUR

So there was some Sudafed tablets sitting on my table. She sees them, and goes on and on about why I am taking these pills. Well, of course, I couldn't get a word in edgewise, so I gave up on trying to explain.

And actually I had taken a couple already as a precautionary thing. The last thing I want is the other person to hear me wheeze, cough, or snorr. Not to mention, just fall to sleep comfortably.

Well, Sunday night, was another "hit the sack early" night for her. She just didn't want to do anything again for another consecutive night. We should have gone out for dessert, seen a movie, whatever......

I was at wit's end, and didn't feel the trip went the way it was supposed to be. Having no real exercise all week, and a bit tensed up, I was ready to go ballistic. Of course, it would be stupid to punch out a wall or throw things...but at the same time I needed a release. I was really "losing it".

So---and an "out of character" thing, no less----I opened the window and started throwing a few things out. Like dirty underwear and socks, Sudafed, condoms, a few pennies, a couple of dollar bills a couple of dirty shirts, some sunglasses.....mostly things that were not going to make it for the next trip anyway......threw enough to get it out of my system.....and felt better.

There ware some old guys that go down and scavange the place, and sure enough they were out there picking the stuff up when I got up in the morning.
I was really not having a nice day.......at least there was this satisfaction of seeing someone else have a nice day.

And Tatyana was out for the count when I was throwing all this stuff out, which was strange. She had no clue whatsoever on what was going on.

** TO BE CONTINUED **

Posted by: mistermopar

Interesting story so far Rasp...to bad the weather wasn't better.

Randy

Posted by: mistermopar

Do you think she has some kind of health problems or is it the lack of food giving her the low energy and wanting to sleep all the time?

Randy

Posted by: Raspberry

Randy, interesting that you mention this. Her eyes look like that she might have a thyroid problem--as in they kind of stick out a bit..

Posted by: inlove

Quote:

Originally Posted by Raspberry

PART FOUR
I was at wit's end, and didn't feel the trip went the way it was supposed to be. Having no real exercise all week, and a bit tensed up, I was ready to go ballistic. Of course, it would be stupid to punch out a wall or throw things...but at the same time I needed a release. I was really "losing it".

So---and an "out of character" thing, no less----I opened the window and started throwing a few things out. Like dirty underwear and socks, Sudafed, condoms, a few pennies, a couple of dollar bills a couple of dirty shirts, some sunglasses.....mostly things that were not going to make it for the next trip anyway......threw enough to get it out of my system.....and felt better.

There ware some old guys that go down and scavange the place, and sure enough they were out there picking the stuff up when I got up in the morning.
I was really not having a nice day.......at least there was this satisfaction of seeing someone else have a nice day.

And Tatyana was out for the count when I was throwing all this stuff out, which was strange. She had no clue whatsoever on what was going on.

** TO BE CONTINUED **

It is weird to say the least. Why did not you go for a walk or a jog instead of throwing condoms out the window. A strange way to release some tension.. How often you do it, again?

Posted by: mistermopar

Quote:

Originally Posted by inlove

It is weird to say the least. Why did not you go for a walk or a jog instead of throwing condoms out the window. A strange way to release some tension.. How often you do it, again?

I'm guessing they were still in the package....

Sorry..had to throw that in,just joking.

Randy

Posted by: mistermopar

Quote:

Originally Posted by Raspberry

Randy, interesting that you mention this. Her eyes look like that she might have a thyroid problem--as in they kind of stick out a bit..

That is a possability,it is something that maybe she should have checked.

Thyroid disease, both hyperactive and under-active, is so extraordinarily prevalent today that even by conservative estimates it may strike up to 15 percent of the adult population. Women are particularly susceptible, and the disease tends to run in families. A possible reason for the increase in thyroid disease is the high prevalence of auto-immune disease today. Immunity in general is being assaulted by toxic chemicals in food, water, and air. Under-active or hypothyroid conditions can cause low energy.

Randy

Posted by: inlove

Quote:

Originally Posted by mistermopar

I'm guessing they were still in the package....

Sorry..had to through that in,just joking.

Randy

Yeah, but socks and underwear were dirty.

Posted by: Raspberry

Quote:

Originally Posted by inlove

It is weird to say the least. Why did not you go for a walk or a jog instead of throwing condoms out the window. A strange way to release some tension.. How often you do it, again?

InLove, yes, I could have gone out and taken a walk, and maybe had a snack or something. But it was an odd period of time(getting to be around 1030pm)where I still couldn't sleep. And I don't have the key to her apartment.....plus the fact that I may be waking her up in the process.

Had a bit of a unique "Catch-22" here.....felt like screaming--but didn't. And no computer access either. So not many options. And no harm done.

No doubt, this was a one-of-a kind deal, unexpected, extraordinary situation. On the next trip, I will be a bit better prepared for these kinds of situations in the future. Bringing some reading material, stationery, playing cards and have a bottle of vodka stashed away, or perhaps other such things.

Posted by: Raspberry

PART FIVE

Had a "farewell luncheon" on Monday, with two of her neighbors. It was really nice. Then took the long train ride to Kiev. But not without a few comments before leaving.

She was glad that I came, and was looking forward for me to come back. But she also made a comment that I was handsome---but needed to lose some weight.

Granted, I am not by any means obese.....but you know, she's right. I am not in as good of shape as I should be.

It's going to be interesting to see what happens, when she meets up with that guy from Texas. We have, of course, not kept any secrets about making the best choices. I did see his picture, though, which showed him from the chest up. Judging from the picture, he most likely has as big of a belly as mine, and probably bigger.

Of course, she was relieved that I am not stopping in Dnepropetrovsk on this trip, for obvious reasons. But she knew from the beginning, this was a "dedicated" trip.

Normally, my plans usually take me to an overnight stay in Europe, but decided to try an all-day stay Kiev instead. It's of course expensive to stay there, but other than that, nothing was too much out of line.

Actually a beautiful day, in the high 70s. A good day to be out and about.
Good to be in Kiev after that long train ride. Was bit dehydrated since the train ran out of any kind of bottled drinks somewhere during the journey.
Had a bottled water at around 5pm, was asleep most of the time, and only hot tea was left in the morning, which was fine.

But, word to the wise----buy water and/or other drinks to take with you on these long train rides.

Anyway, getting back to Kiev. It's really senic, having churches and other unique buildings placed among the monolithic Soviet apartments and other architecture.

Hit one of the casinos, just to sit down and get my bearings, and have a beer. Ended up winning 75 grivnya on roulette and left.

Picked up a few souveniers, and other items at the flea market-type places. Had some interesting stuff......memorabilia, coins, pins, etc. Sometime in the future, I would need to have a little more money, buy some more of this stuff, sell it on E-bay and finance my next trip.

Had a late lunch at O'Brien's. It was pretty cool.

** to be continued ***

Posted by: Raspberry

PART SIX

O'Briens was a really cool place. Wide variety of menu items. Granted, no corned beef and cabbage, but they had just about every other kind of Irish dish. Plus Chicken Kiev, Greek salad, typical Euro/American pub fare and other types of non-Irish items.

The waitress, Oksana, was excellent. Really cute, with short blond hair. She went beyond the call of duty, and was diligent about cleanliness. I had dropped a fork, and wiped it off with a napkin. She comes running to the table, with a clean fork, and takes the other away from me.

When I was done with my dinner, she came to clean off the dishes from the table. I wanted to keep the paper placemat for my friend, who happens to be named O'Brien. Despite the fact there were no stains or anything on it, she says, "No, you must not give your friend this dirty placemat."

She was the best waitress anywhere that I have seen for a long time. Of course left her a really good tip. Allowed or not, I don't really care. Just to show that I really appreciate the good service.

Speaking of food, there is a strange deal in Mariupol. Everytime I went to people's houses, there was chicken......but there was sweet red dessert wine served with it........this would be considered a "faux paux" in the US and most other countries. But normal in Mariupol, I guess....

Never did get around to writing any postcards, which was typical. Was kind of a herkey-jerkey pace that was not predictable. Next time, one of the first stops is to just get stamps before anything else.

I did pick up some maps there. It would have cost me a lot more to order them in the states, so I stocked up. Did get a country map, as well as a couple of cities(Kiev and Dnepropetrovsk)but forgot to get an Odessa map.
Got a Ukrainian-English dictionary.....already have RU-EN and BY-EN at home. Not to mention some "UA" stickers for my truck.

A strange experience with the internet in Kiev.........I happened to just take a quick look at Agency Scams and other anti-scam sites, just for the heck of it, and it happened to be blocked. Both downtown and at the train station.
You can get agency sites with no problem, but none of the anti-scammer sites. Apparently the scammers have some kind of deal going on with those who operate the servers.

The Kiev train station(I think it is called Pas)is nice. But I do not recommend it for disabled people, due to a lack of ramps and elevators. In fact, Kiev is worse than Paris, overall, when it comes to helping the disabled. You see all kinds of old ladies dragging their bags up the stairs to get to the trains.

Then there is the hotel business. You will see a sign that there is a hotel in the train station. But heck, if I could find it. I asked for directions, and people just pointed, and said, "It's that way". Until the lady at the internet shop said their isn't one there anymore. I don't know who's telling the truth. Needless to say, I just stayed up all night and people-watched, until talking a cab to the airport.

The baggage storage place at the train station is excellent, though. Had to laugh when I was going to one of the stores at the station. They were selling Viagra, without prescription, in a one-pill box, for 75 grivnya.(That's like $15.00 for ONE pill?? Never bought the stuff before, but still sounded high to me. Kind of like gas stations in Uruguay selling sunscreen for $19.00 when I was there.)

People in Kiev are nicer than expected, overall. I frankly expected worse. The beggars are more visible and vocal than anywhere else I've been in Ukraine.
The ones that are the most annoying are the able bodied adults that speak English. One comes up to me says that I should I do my good Christian duty to help them pay for their place to stay. I ended up giving this lady 40 gr just to get out of my face, as I was in a hurry to get back to the station.

No problem getting on the flights out of Borispol and Munich. In fact, slept really soundly and missed all the movies on the overwater flight. Got to Chicago relaxed, and then slept all the way through to Seattle. This was the easiest customs I've had in a long time, incidentally.

One of the girls at work asked for a bottle of vodka to bring home. She had asked on the previous trips, but I did not come through, for a variety of reasons. This time I did, and made sure that the label was all in Cyrillic, and no English on it. It was packed well in clothes, and thankfully arrived intact.

Went to bed right after midnight, and got up around 5am. Slept good, and felt like I was shot out of a cannon. Ironically, the sun really isn't even out at 6:30am here in Seattle, where as in Mariupol, it would be bright and sunny before 5am.

Now I am on a fast-track to get my life in order. Doing all my correspondence and now getting ready to do wash and excercise.

Of course, it was good to get away from work. But the real benefit of this trip is some soul-searching, and the fact that Tatyana is right. Got into some bad habits when I worked late nights, for a few months----and it shows--- and still stuck into them.

So far, the last two days I have not had anything to eat, nor any beers, at late night. Not to mention eating slower, and having more portions. I have been drinking more water. And I'm eager to get back into running, once I get off this computer.

I did hear from her last night, and she is anxious to have me back over. And all of her friends said they were glad that I came to visit.

Footnote: I did spend more money than expected, due to taking the cab from DOK to Mariupol, buying some things for myself, and spending the first night in a hotel. But ultimately it turned out, in the end, that I spent less than I expected, even for the fact that I bought her a few gifts.

So, although the trip was not entirely smooth, at least things are all coming out in the wash.