Locked in

Hmmm - getting locked in a wing of the orphanage wasn’t on my to-do list today! It was kind of funny, though!

We woke up late morning since our sweet C-bean was awake so late. She had some oatmeal and a banana. We had PBJ (and of course she helped because that child is a bottomless pit)! The power all went out right as I turned on a light, so I went out in the hallway to realize that the whole hotel (or at least the upstairs) was out of power, too! Brian and I laughed saying we hoped it was a breaker and not a fuse-box where they’d have to go get a fuse. The lights were back on very quickly thanks to the fast housekeeper Lub@. Unfortunately, our bathroom light burnt out (it had just been replaced yesterday). It is still not fixed tonight, but when I asked she said she had called the electrician. By “said” I mean we played charades - haha. Oh, and she’s awesome to wash our clothes and then hang them up. They’re in a cold room, though, and don’t get completely dry until I pull them in our room and drape them everywhere. Nobody uses dryers here. Nobody. Still, her putting them in the washer is worlds better than me doing them in the bathtub without a spin cycle!

When it was time to walk to the orphanage, the rain was coming down pretty hard. So, I called Aleksey and he sent a cab. It’s only $1.25 each way, but we still walk if we can. Snow and cold I will do. Rain - eh, not so much. We got there and went into the playroom/living room as usual. We worked a little on English and then played some cards. Aleksey had said we should go ask the director about if we could take V*ktor out Saturday. So, we started to go ask the director, but V said he wasn’t in his office. Back to the playroom where I dazzled B and V with a card trick I learned on you tube. A little while later, we started to go again only to realize that the glass door to this wing of the building was locked. Aaaaaaaannnd apparently nobody had a key. V*ktor didn’t seem the least bit concerned - like this sort of thing happens all the time and it will eventually get unlocked. He yelled out the window at someone who was coming in, but clearly letting us out wasn’t their top priority (or possibly not within their ability). So, we continued to play and V asked to play Angry Birds for a bit. Aleksey called and said we needed to go to the office and get an important document to give to our cab driver (so he could go to Uz and put it on the train). I said, “Sure! As soon as we can get out!” Every now and then we would hear pounding on the door from someone (adults and kids) trying to get in or out. We would go out and everyone would shrug at each other since nobody had a key. Eventually, somebody unlocked it and life went on! V*ktor and I went to the director’s office where I handed the phone to a lady and Aleksey talked to her. Then we went into another office and talked to a lady who seemed to know what she was asking. The important document was handed to me and as I turned around, the director walked in. Perfect timing! I shook his hand, V said hello and I kind of handed him the phone. He talked to Aleksey briefly. I heard lots of “dobre” which means “good” and after a quick exchange he handed the phone back and went on his way. As V*ktor was grinning, I figured it was an a-okay for Saturday. It was! Back in the room we visited a little longer and then headed over to the little store to buy a 2L drink and loaf of bread for him to share with his friends. (Both items total was only $.75) We said goodbye at the gate and took the cab back to the hotel (where the driver had a telephone exchange with Aleksey about the document). I gave him the document and $12.50 for him to drive it over to the train (roughly 25 miles away) and get it there so it will be in Kiev tomorrow morning.

We came in the room for awhile, and then I bundled a very sleepy C and vacated the room for Brian’s meetings. We found the restaurant and sat down. Total failure at ordering… again. Tomorrow, I will totally be taking Aleksey up on his offer to call him for anything. Hopefully he can help me order! Really, the food was awesome. C slept the whole time so I got to read - which was perfect. I just didn’t order exactly what I wanted, but I loved the potato pancakes and borscht. The whole meal was under $5 including tip. It seemed like kind of a fancy place. I felt underdressed in a T-shirt. Of course, in Ukraine, if you’re wearing any brighter or lighter colors you’ll stick out. I got the impression the next table over was thoroughly enjoying my failed attempts at communication with the waiter. Ah well, glad to provide some entertainment for them J

Next stop - supermarket for Brian’s ramen noodles. He loves them - which makes easy meals for him. I got about 8 packs of ramen, sugar for our oatmeal (whew - almost got salt but realized just in time), box of cereal, vereneki, sour cream, cheese for sandwiches, and bananas. All that was less than $9! The other day when I was there and bought what I believed to be tuna, and clearly I was wrong. Brian looked it up on the internet before we opened the can, and we realized it was sardines in tomato sauce. Ewwwwwww! No thank you! Shopping in a store where you can’t read any of the labels doesn’t seem like it would be so hard, but it is. Now I’m back in the room and C just fell asleep!!!!!!!!! Yaaa! Maybe a little earlier night for me. Brian will still be up late because he’s working the same hours from home. Well try to let him sleep in tomorrow, though. Stay tuned for more adventures!