We had a great day. So glad we could be a part of this country's celebration. Katya also took us to some interesting sites that we had not seen on our walking tour, but that's for another blog post!
Sunday, August 25, 2013
Independence Day
We had a great day. So glad we could be a part of this country's celebration. Katya also took us to some interesting sites that we had not seen on our walking tour, but that's for another blog post!
Connections in Kiev
It's A Small World
The expression above has proven itself true for us several times since we made the decision to come to Kiev. Some of these connections we should have or could have known about, if we had remembered, and some of them were a complete surprise!
1) The first connection was made 20 years ago! In 1993, when we were living in Blossburg, PA Jay's brother, Bob, who is a yoga instructor, stopped by our house on his way back from a yoga workshop. He had another guy with him named Andre, who had been one of the guest instructors at the workshop. They spent the night with us, and I remember how kind and appreciative Andre was. I remember him telling me that our home had good energy and he felt very comfortable staying with us. What I didn't remember was that he was from Ukraine. As it turns out, he still has a yoga center here in Kiev and still teaches. We were hoping to take yoga classes with him, but he is on the other side of the city from us, probably an hour ride on the Metro---too far! HOWEVER, our school just hired a local Ukrainian to teach phys ed. She has also volunteered to teach yoga classes after school twice a week for teachers who are interested, AND she is one of Andre's students!! We are still hoping to see Andre sometime in the near future.
2) In June I attended a workshop in Washington DC for international counselors. There were 25-30 guidance counselors in attendance from international schools all over the world, so you can imagine how surprised I was to find out that there was another counselor there from Kiev. Ingrid and I connected right away and spent a lot of time that week talking about living in Kiev. She is the counselor at the Christian school, and she lives only 3 Metro stops away. She took me shopping the second week we were here, which was a huge help. I will be seeing more of her both in and outside of school. She will be bringing students to my school for SAT and ACT testing, and we hope to get together with our husbands for dinner once in a while.
3) Another connection, also yoga related, was through a woman at our church in Surfside Beach, SC. When she found out that we were moving to Ukraine, she told us that she knew someone from her yoga class who had been to Ukraine many times on mission trips. We swapped contact information and that's how we met Nancy and Dick, who visited us before we left and shared pictures and stories from their trips.
4) We were reminded about another connection just last week. This connection was made 13 years ago! Again, I remembered the person but not the fact that she was from Ukraine. Katya was an exchange student and graduated from North Penn High School in 2001 while I was the guidance counselor there. Through her host family and Facebook, she found out that we were here and contacted us. What a nice surprise! Even better, we spent the day with her yesterday celebrating Ukraine's Independence Day and exploring the city. She lives and works in Kiev and really knows her way around. Plus, she speaks English very well and was very informative. We will be spending more time together, I'm sure. She is going to teach me how to make borscht and I am going to teach her how to make homemade brownies.
Will there be more connections?? I won't be surprised if there are. It makes us feel like we made the right decision to come here and that we're supposed to be here for some reason. Very interesting....
Sunday, August 18, 2013
Kyiv International School
KIS
Kyiv International School is part of Quality Schools International (QSI), a system of schools throughout the world. The school in Kiev was established in 1992, one year after Ukraine became an independent nation, to provide a quality education in English for the children of expatriates living in Kiev. Today, KIS has an enrollment of 721 students representing 55 different nationalities in grades preK-12.
Instead of placing students in "grades", KIS places children by age. This has taken some getting used to. For example, the elementary school has 6 year old classes, 7 year old classes...and so on up to 10 year olds. Middle school is ages 11-13, and the high school levels are named Secondary 1, Secondary 2, 3, and 4.
Although the school is located on the outskirts of the city, in a very safe community, the grounds are gated and there is security on site 24/7.
New Teacher Inservice
This past week KIS welcomed about 30 new teachers to Kiev. Many of them were transfers from other QSI schools and various international schools around the world, but about 4-5 of us are brand new to international education. The school has done a great job helping everyone get settled. They organized some shopping trips to larger supermarkets and stores by to get supplies. They also planned several get-togethers in the evenings so we could relax and get to know each other. We also had some sessions during the day about living in Kiev (using the language, the money system, public transportation, safety, etc) It has been a lot of fun. I heard several comments about how well everyone was interacting and getting along. I think the returning teachers are going to like us newbees! :) We will find out tomorrow when everyone returns! Monday and Tuesday will be for grade level and department meetings, plus some time to prepare classrooms. On Wednesday afternoon there will be an open house (mostly for new families), and then Thursday will be the first day of school!!
shipped in from the United States. Believe it or not, all of
this will be sorted and handed out by the time school starts!
Sunday, August 11, 2013
Downtown Kiev
A Walking Tour of Kiev
On Saturday we took the Metro to downtown/center city Kiev. We had heard about a free walking tour of the city highlighting several historical sites led by tour guides who speak English. We just had to find our way to "the big blue globe" by 1pm or 4pm for the two hour trek.
Near the Metro station we ran into some other teachers who were also going downtown to do some exploring. We decided to all ride together. After a quick bite to eat at a popular hot dog stand in the city, we split up to do our own things. Jay and I were the only ones who decided to do the walking tour. The others were still suffering from a little jet lag and the temperature was climbing well into the 80s. In fact, about 30 minutes into the tour, after walking uphill to St. Michael's Cathedral, I turned to Jay and said, "Let's remember how hot and sweaty we are right now when it's January and we're walking to school!"
The following is a pictorial narrative of our day:
of people at the window behind her. Who can resist a hot dog
wrapped in dough and fried to perfection?
especially since they were only about 70 cents each.
started. The distance to all European capitals is
measured from this spot.
We saw lots of brides outside the cathedrals.
from the Soviet Union.
The two I remember are the ones on the right. They
are the creators of the Cyrillic alphabet and the reason
I am having such a hard time learning the Russian
language!
St. Andrew's. It is a street known for its artists
and musicians.
Wednesday, August 7, 2013
Doing Laundry
These are the settings on the washing machine in our apartment! Thank goodness for google translator. Most of the translations were familiar: cotton, synthetic, delicate...Then there were those that needed a little more translating, like "without folding" (permanent press), "rinse and extraction" (rinse and spin)...and then there are the ones I still can't figure out, like "gentle boiling" and "volumetric things".
The first load I washed was just a sheet and some dish towels, but without a drying rack (dryers are a luxury in Ukraine) finding a place to dry the sheet took some creativity. You know how kids love to make tents out of chairs and blankets? It works for drying sheets too.
A couple of days later, after I bought a drying rack, I hung the second load out in the sunroom to dry. I think I may need to get some fabric softener. I forgot how stiff everything gets when it's hung out to dry. I will also have to get used to doing small loads on a daily basis instead of having one laundry day each week.
Notice the portable heater. It also came with the apartment. I guess that's for winter drying.
Tuesday, August 6, 2013
Shopping in Kiev
Groceries
As I mentioned earlier, the school delivered a few things to our apartment before we arrived to help us get started. On the kitchen table we found some food items (bread, milk, oj, instant coffee, cereal, breakfast croissants, salami, and cheese) and a jug of water (tap water is not safe for drinking). They also gave us two small plates, two small bowls, six juice glasses, and an electric kettle to boil water. Aside from that, the kitchen was bare. There were no other dishes or cookware. Even so, we were grateful, especially that first night. It was getting dark by the time we explored all the rooms of the apartment and unpacked some of our things. We were told there were a couple of small grocery stores nearby, but we were not sure we wanted to venture out at night without knowing exactly where we were going. Besides, we were exhausted. So our first meal in our new home consisted of bread, cheese, salami, and water. It tasted delicious!
By the afternoon of day two we were already joking about our "bread and water rations", so we went looking for a grocery store. However, without pots or pans, we still had to choose food that we could eat cold. Dinner that night ended up being more of the same: bread, cheese, bologna...except this time we added wine and chocolate! Too bad we forgot to pick up some candles.
As I mentioned earlier, the school delivered a few things to our apartment before we arrived to help us get started. On the kitchen table we found some food items (bread, milk, oj, instant coffee, cereal, breakfast croissants, salami, and cheese) and a jug of water (tap water is not safe for drinking). They also gave us two small plates, two small bowls, six juice glasses, and an electric kettle to boil water. Aside from that, the kitchen was bare. There were no other dishes or cookware. Even so, we were grateful, especially that first night. It was getting dark by the time we explored all the rooms of the apartment and unpacked some of our things. We were told there were a couple of small grocery stores nearby, but we were not sure we wanted to venture out at night without knowing exactly where we were going. Besides, we were exhausted. So our first meal in our new home consisted of bread, cheese, salami, and water. It tasted delicious!
By the afternoon of day two we were already joking about our "bread and water rations", so we went looking for a grocery store. However, without pots or pans, we still had to choose food that we could eat cold. Dinner that night ended up being more of the same: bread, cheese, bologna...except this time we added wine and chocolate! Too bad we forgot to pick up some candles.
dinner rations
Our first breakfast: pastries and instant coffee out of a bowl
Day three, Saturday, we decided we would just have to take our chances and try to find our way to a place called Mega Market where we could buy groceries plus household items like dishes, cookware, and other assorted kitchen and bath basics. It seems to be the Ukrainian version of Wal Mart. Getting to the Mega Market required a 4-5 block walk and then a Metro (subway) ride into the city. This was not a problem, and a one-way token for the Metro is only about 10 cents. The problem was we had to limit ourselves on what we could buy because we had to schlep it back to the apartment. This was a challenge for me; the Mega Market was huge, with so many new foods I wanted to try, and lots of nice dishes and cooking gadgets. I also had to remember that we did ship a box before we left the States which contains some of my kitchen stuff. So we bought a couple of coffee mugs, a medium cooking pot, a chef's knife, and some food. My favorite purchase was fresh dill and parsley that I bought from a street vendor on the way home. She was the stereotypical Ukrainian babushka, complete with a scarf wrapped around her head and tied under her chin. Thank goodness I had been practicing Russian numbers so I knew how much to pay her. She charged me 4 grevna, which is about 50 cents American. That night I made Chicken Kiev (chicken fillets rolled with fresh herbs and butter) and rice. I was glad that I had packed some of my Penzey's spices. Dinner was pretty good. :)
some cooking essentials
Monday, August 5, 2013
Getting Settled
8/1/13-8/5/13 Getting Settled
We arrived in Kiev around 4:30 Thursday afternoon, 30 minutes later than expected. I'm not sure why we were late; the flight was without incident. When we got off the plane we were separated by those who had Ukrainian passports and those with "other" passports. As we went through the gate our passports were simply scanned electronically and we continued on to the baggage area. All of our luggage arrived intact. Using the airport luggage carts, we loaded up and headed toward the exit. We were stopped one more time by security, but after only two or three simple questions: Why are you here? What is in your luggage? How much money did you bring into the country? they let us go. Sasha, a Ukrainian worker at the school, was there to meet us holding a sign that said Barton. He spoke English, but not very well. He explained that one of the school buses was coming to pick us up and take us to our apartment, and that he was going to stay at the airport to meet another teacher who was arriving later. I don't know if we looked worried or stupid, but when the bus pulled up to get us, Sasha decided to go with us after all. He said he thought he would have enough time to get back to the airport in time to greet the next guest. As we drove to our new home, Sasha and the bus driver spoke to each other in Russian. Every now and then Sasha would point something out to us, but for the most part it was a quiet ride and it seemed to take forever. Later that night Jay and I discussed what our first impressions were as we left the airport and drove closer to the city. We both felt like our first hour was about what we expected; at a glance from a bus window, Kiev is a typical city.
Our first impression of the apartment building was not as reassuring. From the outside it appears old and not well kept. Upon entering the building we were even more concerned. The hallways were dingy. The walls were painted a mixture of pink, yellow and dirty white. The elevator was dark and slow. If it hadn't been for the fact that I was struggling with heavy suitcases, I think I would have been holding my breath as we unlocked the apartment door. But what a relief! The inside of the apartment was bright, clean, modern, and very spacious. It is not the apartment the school had sent us pictures of, but it is just as nice.
kitchen
A Few Other Unexpected Surprises
We have a King-sized bed! That's the good news. The bad news is we never expected to have such a big bed and the largest sheets we packed are Queen-sized. Luckily the school left us a few items to get started and a set of sheets was one of them. However, a set of sheets in Ukraine and I guess most places in Europe, consists of a flat sheet, a duvet cover, and pillowcases. There is no such thing as a fitted sheet. The other bad news is the bed is as hard as a rock! So even though we were able to make the bed, I have only slept in it one night and even then I hardly slept. It is so uncomfortable I have been sleeping on the sofa.
Another unexpected surprise was no hot water. We thought for sure hot water would start coming out of the faucets as we went around the apartment turning them on and letting them run for several minutes, but it never did. We found out later that the hot water is turned off in the city until the middle of August. In the meanwhile, we are bathing the old fashioned way...boiling water and filling the bathtub! The school is supposed to install a portable/electric hot water heater in all of the teachers' apartments. Right now some have them, some don't. I hope ours comes soon because we also heard that this water situation happens two or three times a year.
Coming Soon....
Shopping in Kiev
Our First Dinner Invitation
Our First Day at Work
Doing Laundry
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