Mozart Odessa

... 20g of vodka". I then figured out that he must be a RAGING alcoholic who basically lives at the train station. So he helped me find it and I gave him 30 grivna (a little bonus).

The train cabin was very small with 4 bunks. I shared it with 3 other guys, and it was an 8 hour train ride from 10pm to 6am. I was able to sleep the whole way luckily, or I would become claustrophobic in there!

... card from the camera and put it separately, and separate my cash from the cards, and hide my passport. That is how menacing the half-lit streets of Odessa seemed to us...
The next day we did a lot of research about the Crimea, what we can do there, how to get there, and we made the decision to get a night train to Simferapol, get on the world's longest trolleybus ride across the mountains down to Yalta, which looked like a pleasant enough seaside town ...

... me sad. Anyway, after Arcadia, we had heard of a mexican resturant called the Tequila House and we just had to try mexican food in Ukraine. I have to say that it was amazing. The waitress was very attentive but then she had no other customers other than ourselves. The last day of the Olympics were on and we just really had a great time and a great meal. Try the Tequila House when you are in Odessa, you definitely will not be disappointed.

... so did I and then they pulled away and I was left standing there...going.....wait a minute!!! why aren't we still in the van!?!? 9 Belgian girls having a party!? two traveling guys!? wait wait!!! come back!! that was a mistake *sigh* hehe oh well we moved on!! Well I stayed two nights at this guys place before heading to the Ukraine. I hitched from his town to the border where i walked across to the Ukraine. Now if you have every crossed the Ukraine border by ...

... Odessa is where westerners go if they want a Ukrainian bride and you see evidence of this everywhere. Not always a pleasant sight. The town itself if a manageable size for walking and has a very nice looking opera house which was closed for renovations. It is quite a pretty place - bright and green. Met up with Lloyd, Adam and Josh and made our reservations for the ferry trip to Turkey.

Odessa has been lovely so far. There's not a whole lot to see except the people watching is incredible! The women here really do look like supermodels, six feet tall, tons of makeup and fancy (though tacky) clothes, and stiletto heels. they walk very carefully, with their heads held high, perfect posture, putting one stilettoed shoe in front of the other. The men are also well groomed here, unlike the ...

... please, we need money right now?, get out of line, stand in line, get out of line once more for fun, stand in line, and pay. It took us two hours. With some time to kill, we kicked it in a sweet sidewalk cafe with the girls until it was time to go home and eat. I meant to say (and actually did mean to) pack, but we had no choice in the matter. We bid farewell to Vera and good riddance to Beelzebub and were escorted by Tanya and Alona to the harbor where ...

... and his answers. Long twisting passageways lit every so often by a naked electric bulb. In alcoves cut into the rock along the way, you can still see the detritus of their headquarters -- rusted typewriters, field telephones, handmade mines (that are still turning up unexpectedly every so often), straw piled on sleeping platforms, often scattered with flowers left by visitors ten days ago on Victory Day, still fresh in the dank, chilly air. We passed a well that had it's ...

... us what feels like several miles around the field, past a row of shiny new passenger jets -- and up to a small 40-seat two-prop plane that looked like it might qualify for free air miles for life. Onto the plane. Safety instructions in Ukrainian and English (though all I could make out was "Ladies and gentlemen . . ." and with a roar we're off. An hour later we land in Odessa and I'm requisitioned by a new cab driver. (You really never need to call one here, they ...