Odessa, Ukraine

Trip Start Aug 06, 2008
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Trip End May 17, 2009


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Wednesday, August 20, 2008

We got the train station in Kiev at around 9 and soon discovered that there was another train that left for Odessa that same night, so we took it. Another 9 hours, but this train was actually nice. All four of us got into the same compartment and it was much roomier than the other train. The station master guy was funny because he reminded me of a Russian John Wayne. Tall and swaggering, he had that western drawl that until now, I thought only John Wayne could have. Вода? Чай? He asks in his drawl with his whole form in the doorway and his weight on one hip. I had to snicker. No one else got it. I thought it was funny anyway. We all immediately went to sleep and we only awakened when John woke us up at 5:30 am "доброе утро" he said in his John drawl as I silently added "pilgrim" in my head. I swear, if John Wayne wasn't dead I would have thought he turned Russian, honestly.
We couldn't get anyone to speak English that early in Odessa and frankly, we still couldn't later in the day, so we ended up taking a taxi to our "modern" hotel. The hotel billed itself as being modern with your own bathrooms, free wireless, air conditioning and a fridge. We were excited. Air conditioning???!! Yippee! We get there and the room is the size of my suitcase, with no air, no fridge and no wireless. Welcome to Ukraine. We were all exhausted so we went to our rooms and slept most of the day. Right now I am sitting splayed out on my single bed with my legs propped up on Hope's single bed. The room is that small. And it is hot as hell. Oh America and real air conditioning, where art thou?
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