Thursday, April 28, 2011

An afternoon at Shevchenko Park

This week has been stunningly beautiful here in Kiev.  And after endless months of bitter cold and dismal gray skies, the "stunningly" is not overdoing it.  Most afternoons Gio and I head to the swimming pool, but today we had to play hookie and hang out in our park.  We are so close by that Gio often ends up going there mulitple times a day- if he is running it takes all of 5 minutes to get to there, but most days are more of a distracted 20 minute stroll with many stops to gaze at gutter pipes, sidewalk cracks, pigeons, sticks, dog poo....

Here are some shots from our visits this week....
Always on the hunt for ants.
They are tough to spot.

Found one!
No one loves the huge cement mixer barreling down the park path more than Gio.
These drivers are ruthless.  Walkers, strollers, pigeons and puppies must quickly scatter.

An entire corner of the park is brimming with older gentlemen playing chess, cards and backgammon.
This being Ukraine, alcohol  is consumed early and often.  I took this photo at 11AM and every table was covered with beer bottles.

Ah hah!  Here is where that truck was heading!  Gio loves this construction project- we spend a lot of time here before heading to the sand pile to replicate the work.
The swings at the playground are very popular and parents fight for their turn.  Luckily Gio has no interest so I do not have to get involved in the struggle. 
Playground equipment that would never pass the safety tests in the US.  Gio has little interest anyway.
Here is where we spent 99% of our playground time.  The general rule is to bring your own toys but to never play with them.  Gio has learned to offer one of his in exchange for something he wants.  The barter system works just fine unless an uptight adult interferes.
Mechanical trucks and cars are available for rent- rather scary as they go fast and 3 year olds are driving. I am grateful for Gio's complete focus on sand- he has never even noticed these!
He does, however, like the horses.  He got to trot on this one today- I could here his peals of laughter all the way around the loop.
I am still amazed how women dress here- even at the playground.  Can you imagine me in these heels chasing Gio through the sand???
 
Oh, how Gio loves this particular stand- he ran the entire way home this evening singing "I love ice cream" at the top of his lungs.  Clearly my shy, quiet nature has not been passed along to this creature!

Sunday, April 24, 2011

Easter Week

We spent this last week outdoors as much as possible.  The weather has been delightful- near 70 and clear blue skies.  I have enjoyed witnessing the Ukrainian Easter rituals.  Special cakes (they look like giant cupcakes) were being sold everywhere- from the fanciest bakeries to babuskas with a few homemade ones displayed proudly on the sidewalk.  Daffodils are carried home in bunches and, yes, there are a few chocolate bunnies around. This morning I woke early to take a run in the botanical gardens, thinking the streets would be empty (as they would be in Washington before 7 on Easter Sunday!). Instead I was met with hundreds of people strolling to and from the large Orthodox church near our home (see my earlier post for the picture of the large yellow church) with wicker baskets.  Everyone was carrying them- women, children, even the large burly Ukrainian men.  I learned later that about the ritual of the baskets:
Families prepare the baskets with food they will eat later today.  Most contain the special cake (basically an egg bread with dried fruit with fondant frosting covered with tiny candies- hence the cupcake-like appearance), colored eggs and beeswax candles that are lit in the church.  Once the priest blesses the people and their baskets, the families head home for their Easter feast.
 Later this morning Gio, Paolo and I headed back to the botanical gardens to enjoy the weather. We strolled over to the church to witness the blessings and to listen to the continuous playing of the bells.  Later this afternoon we will head to the home of some friends to enjoy our own Easter feast. 
Here are some images from our last week:
Every playground in Kiev seems to have a bouncy castle type of set up once spring arrives.  Gio is making his way up the steps....

...and then throwing himself down!

A few requisite tourist shots of the most famous churches in Kiev.-  St. Sophia's Church.

St Michael's Church



Another park, another bouncy castle!

Making his moves on an older woman....


Gio always ends up in the sandbox, no matter which park we visit.  And he always seems to find a dump truck!
Here's the look I get when I tell Gio it is time to go home.  Extractions from playgrounds are never pretty....

Being forced to leave the playground + doves = a fit of rage/fear/??? for Gio
Easter Sunday would not be complete without a dirt pile to climb.
Next...the "giant steep big huge hill".  Gio does not lack for dramatic expression.


These giant swings are very popular in Kiev.  Usually they are filled with rowdy older boys, so this was a rare moment when Gio was able to try one out himself.

In front of the church steps awaiting blessings.  And no, this is not how I dress for Easter Sunday services.

The noon line awaiting the priest's blessing.  This has been going on nonstop since midnight.  Apparently the peak crowds are at 5am!

The priest blessing the people and their baskets- he dips a tool (that frankly looks a lot like a toilet brush) in a huge bucket of water and douses everyone very generously with water. Luckily it was quite warm today as many got soaked!

Gio and Paolo emerging from the church.  I remained outside as I did not have a scarf to cover my head.  In the Orthodox church there are no pews- the congregation stands throughout the service.

We hope that all of you pass a wonderful Sunday gathering eggs, climbing a dirt pile, or doing whatever it is that you enjoy.  And for my DC friends and family....GO CAPS!!!!

Monday, April 18, 2011

Th Former Botanical Gardens

Kiev is finally becoming quite beautiful. Flowers are just starting to bloom after a long cold early spring. I saw a big batch of forsythia in bloom today while I was running in the abandoned botanical gardens near our apartment. There is now a fancier groomed garden just outside of town so this place is left to grow more naturally and is filled with dog walkers and happy dogs off leash. I cannot wait to bring our puppy here when we get him next month.
Easter in Kiev is a much more a spring awakening and religion-focused holiday than in the US. I only see a few chocolate rabbits but a lot of flowers and sprigs that people buy outside of churches. The city is coming alive at last. People are strolling, visiting on park benches, drinking beer at outdoor tables and generally emerging from a long winter's hibernation.  Here are a few shots from a stroll I took this morning....

Pensioners at Shevchenko Park spend hours at chess
The entrance to Shevchenko Park from the University. 

Here is why I find it so confusing to find places here- this sign makes absolutely no sense to me.

The Ukrainians are great about bold color choices!

At the "Old" Botanical Gardens...

These stairs are a challenge on a run!

Is that you, Lassie?

Look!  The World Bank is making a difference in Ukraine! 

One of my struggles here is that everyone dresses their children as if it is 10 below, even on a day like today when it was near 70.  Notice these babies in full snow suits, gloves and hat.  I got quite a few scowls when I took Gio out only in a fleece and jeans this afternoon (his nanny had him in his snow pants and heaviest winter coat this morning). Ah, the crazy American.
Forsythia! Spring is finally here.
Our puppy's future playground.

Saturday, April 16, 2011

First day of "school"!

Today I took Gio for his first day of school....sort of.  We are considering a Russian Montessori preschool for September that is not too far from our house.  In order to be admitted he needs to do the "babies" class on Saturdays so off we went for the first try.  Gio was excited about going to school and could hardly contain himself.  I stayed with him (required until September), so I was able to witness him in action.  I think he would have liked it even more if there were older children there (most were under 2), but if we decide to enroll him in the fall the school is multi-age 3-7 so he will have plenty of "big boyzzz" to follow around.  His favorite things today were the indoor jungle gym (there's a shock), the live crab and birds and quite a few of the Montessori activities.  My only challenge was getting him to leave when our time was up. I snuck two photos with my phone but could not capture anything else....

Climbing UP something is never a problem....

Gio was mesmerized by this activity and did it many times.

Wednesday, April 13, 2011

Puppies are 6 weeks old!

We are back in Kiev and nearly over jet lag. I cannot say that the trip back here was easy but somehow we (and our mostly-patient fellow travelers) survived.  Gio slept 18 hours his first night home- a preview of his teenage years, perhaps. As for Kiev, it remains cold with only a few glimpses of spring. We are still in hats and heavy coats. Precipitation is as likely to be snow as rain. In fact, on Sunday we had rain, sun, snow, sleet AND hail. In typical fashion, I managed to be out in all of the inclement weather without a hat or umbrella.

We continue our excited wait for our puppy. We will head to Italy at the beginning of May and visit the 17 little beasts. Below is a link to the older litter (The "Q"s). You might be amused at our breeder's creative attempts to name all 10 puppies with "Q" names...

http://www.torredovarda.com/Qpups.html


I am also happy to report that Kiev has finally turned off the Christmas music. My sanity has been restored.

Here are a few photos- I am ashamed to report that I have been a terrible photographer lately, both in quantity and quality.....

My favorite photo in a long time.  Gio and Nonno (aka, my dad).  I cannot take credit.  Our dear nanny Hedvig took this!

While Gio and I were still in DC, Paolo went to Italy to visit the site of our future house!

We will all go to see the house-building in May.  Gio is going to be thrilled with all of the construction!

The view from our (future) front porch

For some reason that has NOTHING to do with my technical savy, this photo will not rotate.  Anyway, here is Gio drinking a double espresso.

Gio gazing at our airplane, thinking of the many naughty ways he can keep fellow passengers awake on the 8 hour flight to Frankfurt....all while kneeling on his Potbelly sandwich.

Apparently the thinking session was fruitful.  He managed to stay awake (and be loud) right up until a half hour before we landed when he, of course, fell asleep.

Back home in Kiev, time to read Richard Scarry's "A Day at the Airport", a must for world-traveling toddlers. Oh, and by the way, for those of you concerned about my mothering sense.....that "double espresso" in the earlier photo was actually just steamed milk.  Had you fretting, didn't I??