And it only took one meeting for all three of us to know immediately she belonged with us.  Just turned five on December 2, Katya, as she is called, is bright, smart, funny and VERY talkative. 

The Director agreed to see us at 1pm today.  We drove the 20 minutes to the ‘less reputable’ side of town, to a quaint orphanage over looking the city cemetery.  We waited only a few minutes to be greeted in a flurry of turquoise and followers.  Numerous women crowded around her wanting information, signatures and various decisions.  She apologized and asked Natasha to shut the door.  The Director (no name was ever given) asked Natasha to introduce us and then read the file aloud for Katarina.  All the doctors had given her a recent physical and said she was very healthy.  She has been in the orphanage system since she was born- so her files were very complete.  The Director told us that she liked to dance and has a real musical ear.  She was also very smart…then the young lady “arrived”. 

The size of a big 5 year old- she had shoulder length brown hair, brown eyes and a cherub round face.  She swept into the room, running up to the Director and planting herself firmly in her lap.  She was chatting and laughing the entire time.  The Director asked her several questions- Katya was very articulate and detailed in her answers.  Today was “St. Nicholas” day- so all the children had received presents.  Katya detailed the types of candies she and her friends had received. The Director then introduced us- and she came to see what we had brought her.  She immediately dove into the food sack pulling things out, asking “What’s this? And what’s this?”  The Fig Newtons were a novelty.  Her hands were so full that she just dumped everything back into the bag and picked the entire bag up with a huge grin.  Pam then pulled out a stuffed rabbit we had brought her- she managed to hug it and never let go of the food bag.  When the Director asked her to come back to her, Katya replied, “Wait, let the rabbit have a seat,” setting the rabbit on an unused chair.  The Director asked her a few more questions, then Katya ‘announced’ that she was going to recite a poem for us…and boy did she…easily reciting a 15 to 20 line poem without missing a beat.  She evidently knew more of the poem, but the Director stopped her to all of our applause.  Katya then spoke with Natasha.  Natasha was amazed at how smart and verbal she was.  The Director gathered Katya back to her lap, then asked what we thought about her.  All of us were speechless, even Jake.  I think he has met his match!  The Director asked Katya if she liked us and wanted us to visit again.  She happily agreed.  Then the Director dismissed Katya and asked if we wanted to see her again.  The answer was a resounding yes.

As we stopped for a coffee on the way back from the orphanage, we gave Svetlana a rundown on the meeting.  She told us the next step was a ‘firm’ commitment.  Pam and Paul looked at each other then at Jake- and no ‘thinking time’ was needed.  We all answered in unison “YES”.  Svetlana will start the paperwork tomorrow- and we hope to have a court date next week.  We are going back for a play session tomorrow- hopefully we will get some pictures to post!

Natasha called late Monday night and advised that the SDA had completed the paperwork and that she was taking it straight to the Regional Inspectors office to have it signed first thing Tuesday morning.  She had spoken to the Director, and she would receive us at 3pm!  Yeah!!!  So Tuesday morning, we got all cleaned up and ready…and waited… and waited… and waited. 

At 1.30, we still had not heard from Natasha- so we called….What’s up?
 
The Regional Inspector (read Deputy Mayor) is not in the office today- so they took it to the Mayor of Kiev… who is also not in the office today.  Unless the paper is signed before 3pm, you cannot go to the orphanage.

Does anyone know when he will be back?

No.

Having learned the Ukrainian way- Paul and Pam decided to waste no more time and struck out across the city.  We wandered down the main street of Kiev, where to Jake’s delight, we found a TGI Fridays.  Tired and frustrated, we gave in to temptation of something familiar.  Ehhh- did I say familiar- the menu was exactly the same… only the prices?!?!  Never in our lives have we dropped $110 at a Fridays ordering 3 drinks, 2 main courses and an appetizer! OUCH!  I must admit it was good… but not that good!

We wandered back home, and on our way up the hill, Pam’s cell phone rang (about 5.30pm).  It was Natasha.  They had located the deputy mayor and gotten his signature.  However, it was too late to go to the orphanage.  The Director had instructed Natasha to call Wednesday at 10am to schedule the appointment.  Here we go again… Uno anyone?

Jake lost it when his DS finally lost its charge… and his charger doesn’t work here.  I guess we’ll try to find an electronics or gaming store tomorrow…

Its only lunch but we have heard the ‘verdict’ from the Director.  Both the 8 and 9 yo are on hosting in Italy, so we are unable to see them.  The five year old, however, is here and available for adoption.  The Director has given us permission to see her; now we have to wait for all the formalities before meeting her.  The SDA will send a referral to the Regional Inspector (also the Deputy Mayor of Kiev)- once he signs it, it will go to the Director, who will schedule an appointment to meet us.  Natasha says we should be ready to go anytime from first thing tomorrow morning- all the way until Thursday.  We will have very little notice- and must be able to go at the immediate invite of the Director.  In the meantime, we will wait… Jake is only hoping to meet her before he leaves on Saturday.
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Without any plans, we decided to sleep in Sunday.  We got up in time to head out for lunch. (No Nanny, you did not wake us up!!)  In an attempt to be adventurous, we decided NOT to go to one of our standard haunts and headed to a new restaurant.  The waiter greeted us in Ukrainian- and when we asked for English service, he shook his head “No” and pointed to a table.  The menus were entirely in Ukrainian…with no pictures. Hmmmm…  Pam pulled out her shiny new translator and began laboriously hunting and pecking for the Cyrillic keys.  10 minutes later she had ID’d the Main Course and Dessert sections (just nothing in them).  The waiter came to the table, and we asked again if he could find someone who spoke English- he just smiled and answered in perfect English “Why? When I speak English?”  I guess he had decided to let us suffer for a few minutes…  He recommended the Borsch, Beef Stew and a Chicken dish.  None of us were up for Borsch yet, so we ordered the other dishes.  The chicken was amazing!!  We topped the meals off with ice cream that made Haggen Daas look like a cheap generic!

We decided to take the “Funicular”- or cable car, down to the lower city.  Excited, we pushed our way to the front car to get the best view.  What we got was 90 seconds of hills on both sides of us… not very thrilling.  Jake’s comment- “that’s it?”  We went strolling to the river and played in the snow.  All the paths were frozen solid, so it was like a mile long ice rink (not so fun going down the steps- where Pam almost wiped Paul out trying to stay upright!!)  Even in snow boots- Jake was able to get a running start and slide hip and knee down for a good 100 yards…squealing all the way!  Of course, when he couldn’t stop and landed face first into a snow drift, he was laughing even harder.  We walked to the WWII memorial and the Soviet Friendship Arch.  On our way back, we found a HUGE (in Ukrainian standards) grocery store where we picked up some more BAGGED milk, bread and cheese- to make some grilled cheese sandwiches for dinner.  But they had meat and fruit and lots of things we were looking for previously- so we know where to come once Monday brings a decision…  We rode the Funicular back to St Michaels- and took some beautiful photos of the snow covered, sunset behind the cathedral.  Unfortunately sun up to sun down is only about 8 hours- so it is dark by 4pm…Then went home to grilled cheese sandwiches and Uno…  we’ll see what tomorrow brings?!?!

To more snow!!!!  Okay- the first three inches were fine- but now we are pushing a foot and its not cute anymore.  Although Paul has seen some beautiful shots with his ‘photographic’ eye- churches covered in snow…buildings covered in snow…monuments covered in snow (are we sensing a theme here?)- so we ventured out to get the ‘priceless’ photo- and maybe some fuses for our adapters…which both blew on the first day.  We traveled down to Independence Square where we saw several weddings, numerous people dressed as rabbits (I didn’t want to know and didn’t ask!), the Kiev Christmas Tree and one of the famous traffic corners in Kiev- 12 total lanes, 3 in each direction- with no traffic light or stop sign. (Yes- we had the video rolling) We have realized why there are police standing at every major intersection…they are waiting for the accident so they can direct traffic around it!  The law seems to be simple – “Ye with the loudest horn and most guts goes first”- Of course we had to dive for cover when one of the drivers was forced up and across the sidewalk where we were standing!?!?!

We ventured into the “underground mall”- literally- one built beneath the city streets filled with high street shops- bought a map, Michael’s spoon, David’s shot glass and some Gelati.  Off the sides of the mall are corridors filled with 6x6 glass booths with a 1ft hole in the center.  You knock on the hole, point to what you want, a calculator with the price appears thru the hole, you stick your money in the hole and what you bought comes out.  I’m sure there is a very small person behind the hole- but you never see them?!?!  We managed to buy some batteries and an extension cord this way.  When we got home the extension cord didn’t work… I’m not sure the hole will take returns!

Did I mention real milk in cartons last time???  Well- I think we will go back to the bags- because the milk in cartons pours with a ‘plop’.  It was as thick as pudding and smelled like buttermilk. Ewwwwww!  I think it’s back to the market tomorrow.

I think our greatest observation yesterday was on fashion…or lack there of.  There appears to be some basic rules of dress that everyone follows.  1- Women must wear a coat with fur on it- at minimum, around the hood, preferably all over.  Color is irrelevant (and I really want to know where one lady found a lime green sable!).  2- Women must wear heeled boots- heel height is based on age.  Under 20- 5+ inches.  20-30- 4+ inches.  30-40- 3+ inches.  40-50- 2+ inches.  50+ -1 inch wedges.  3- Wear as much fashion as possible, even if it doesn’t match.  One young lady had cherry red 5in stiletto boots, grey skorts, cherry red belt, grey jacket, red beret, all under a pink fur coat….  Paul’s favorite was a young lady in black stiletto boots, black leather shorts, a puffy black sweater and a full length black fur coat. 4- Make-up- either you must have SO much on- that you look like a Drag Queen or you paint your face pasty white.  With these basic rules- it is easy to spot the foreigners!

The snow has not stopped- and has accumulated to about 6 inches everywhere.  They don’t scrape the sidewalks- so it becomes a compact sheet of ice.  Luckily, we had purchased heavy duty snow boots for all of us in the US.  They came in handy today.  We waited until 1030- per Natasha’s request- and then started calling.  The Director could not be found.  Finally, about 1pm, we were informed that the Director was in an all day meeting and could not be reached until after 5pm.  The good news was that they didn’t believe any of the girls were unavailable- but the Director would have to confirm it.  In the meantime, we went out for lunch and more shopping.  We walked about 2 miles to a “larger” market….(7-11’s are bigger with more selection!) but at least we were able to stock up on bread, real milk…in cartons, juice, yogurt, soda, cereal.. and most of all- tissues!  All three of us have been fighting over the tissues with not a dry nose in the house!  There was no meat- other than deli style salami- so we will try Saturday to locate somewhere else.  We stopped for lunch in a Belgian Café- and were delighted to be greeted with French- bon!!  It was very pricey- and clearly for the ‘well to do’ crowd.  We returned to the apartment and waited for the call.  Finally at 630, Natasha rang and advised that they had spoken to the Director, but she was not in her personal office and could not provide any details regarding the girls.  We were to call back Monday at 9am.  Natasha said the SDA would hold open our referral until we got a clear answer from the Director.  So we face the weekend with no plans, no translator and still no referral… It sounds like an early night?!?!

I’ll try to provide some more detail on the areas where people had questions.

Ukrainian Immigration and Customs
 When we arrived, a small bus met us on the tarmac- and they crammed 100+ on to it-  It felt like the London Central line at rush hour.  Jake was doing his best to keep from getting stepped on by poking anyone who backed into him   It took no more than 30 minutes to get through passport control.  All the lines were open, and there were about 10 people in front of us in our line.  The airlines gave out immigration cards in flight- so we had ours completed, but there were numerous desks with copies of the form in passport control.  One guy in the line across from us had not completed his form- so the lady simply asked him to step aside and complete it.  They didn’t ask us why we were or how long we were staying- we did, however, put our reason for visit as “Adoption".  Once through passport control, we waited maybe another 5 minutes for the luggage.  There were customs forms at the end of every carousel in many different languages.  You need to fill one out per person over 16.  We declared our money and high value electronics that we would be taking back home.  We went through the red channel, and they asked us to place our luggage on the X-Ray machine.  The only question they had was about the magnetic rocks- as you are supposed to declare precious stones.  Once Paul started talking- the guard put up his hand in the ‘stop’ motion and waived us through.  From off the plane to out of the airport was maybe 40 minutes.

The Food
 Why anyone claims they lose weight here is beyond me!  The food is amazing- so far we have tried smoked salmon, chicken, beef, potato pancakes, scrambled & fried eggs, sausages, bacon et al- they were all wonderful.  The only “surprise” we got was went Jake ordered Hot Chocolate.  An espresso cup full of hot, thick fudge syrup was what appeared (see picture).  After about 3 spoonfuls, Jake pushed it away- saying it was too sweet for even him.  The boards were right about having no Diet Coke- they only have Coke Light, which has a very different taste.  The grocery shopping for Paul was an adventure.  They had no ‘loaves’ of bread- only individual rolls.  He managed to find the milk in bags.  We still haven’t opened it- for contemplation on how to keep the bag upright.

Animal Fascination
 The “animal identification book” we created for the little girl has been a huge hit with everyone we have met.  Svetlana told us to take it to the SDA appointment as well.  Having that many animals is a novelty, and folks are amazed with how large both the dogs and horses are.

The Environment
 It really isn’t as cold as we expected it to be.  Natasha was mortified when she saw Pam not wearing socks.  Jake spent most of his day with just a long sleeve shirt and his jacket flapping open in the breeze.  Our apartment, however, is on a hill…a very BIG hill.  And to make it to the shops and cafes- we travel down… but when you want to come home!?!?  You go UP- and UP- and UP.  Imagine 20 minutes on a treadmill at a 45 degree angle.  Of course Natasha is used to it- so she does the hills at 5-6 miles per hour.  She has taken to walking next to Jake- as he is the only one who can keep up with her.  They stop periodically to wait for us old folks to catch up.

Snowing today- Jake was very pleased.  We got about 3 inches over night and it has continued to snow all day.  It was hard trying to keep Jake dry on the way to the appointment because he was jumping in every drift he saw!!  We arrived at 3:30 for our 4:00 appointment.  The building is very unassuming, and you enter through a side door.  The guard was clearly bored as we caught him napping on our entrance.  We waited in the hallway to be called upstairs.  Our SDA representative was Elena, a very nice, young woman.  She showed us 5 files, none of which were of any interest.  All of the little girls had serious physical or mental issues as well as being in the worst administrative region 6 hours away in the Ukraine.  Once we reviewed all the files, we asked if she had any girls available in Kiev.  Originally she said ‘No’- but after Natasha explained about Jake leaving next weekend- Elena left the office to see if she could locate any girls closer to Kiev.  10 minutes later she returned with 3 files- all girls located in the same orphanage here in Kiev.  There was a 5 year old, an 8 year old and one estimated to be 9, but they are unsure.  Any of the three are a great choice for us!  Because the files had not been prescreened, we must call the Director of the orphanage tomorrow to see which, if any, of these three are available.  We have to go back to the SDA tomorrow with a decision.  If all three girls are unavailable, we will look at other options.  In the meantime, we have stopped at Double Coffee for dinner… beef pancakes and sour cream…mmmmmm!!

We spent most of the day in a local café… one with English menus!!  We stopped for breakfast with Natasha- then headed out to see some of the churches.  We went to see the beautiful architecture- and took some great pictures.  We even stopped at the flea market to pick up some souvenirs from a vendor friend of Natasha’s.  Jake rattled off his list- and had a great time examining every egg, painting and box to select just the right one.  Then we headed off to St. Michaels- where we lit a candle for Shannon and Lilly.  Lots of pictures!!  Then we headed back to the café to meet with Svetlana and go through the details of our meeting tomorrow.  3 hours later J and Pam may have enough detail!!  Amazing how much of what we had ‘learned’ from previous travelers/web boards was not true…Our meeting is at 4pm- last one of the day- so we will head out to take the cable car across the city tomorrow morning.  Paul has headed to the market- and Pam and Jake went to the Wi-Fi café- where Jake has not ceased to impress.  When the waiter walked up and started speaking Ukrainian- with out a beat- Jake answered in Ukrainian “Can you find someone who speaks English?”  Bless him!  We will follow up after our meeting tomorrow (plus that's when the Wi-Fi place opens!!)

Well at least for the next few days anyway… We made it safe and sound- although I must say that 19 hours on a plane is horrid for anyone, especially when the planes are packed!  All of our luggage made it- and we made the terminal shift in Gatwick with over an hour to spare!  (Jake voted to use the hour for breakfast at Garfunkel’s) Paul gives the highest reviews to Ukraine Air International’s food and service!!  We went through Ukraine immigration and customs with no issues- again- nothing like the horror stories we had heard- and certainly not worth the $180 each to go VIP!  Everyone was very nice and accommodating …once we got our 345lbs of stuff loaded onto carts, although the magnetic rocks took some explaining for the customs officials.  We were met by Svetlana (the primary coordinator here in Kiev) and Natasha (our facilitator for the SDA appointment)- as well as our two drivers (one for us & one for the luggage).  Despite what everyone said, neither of us thought the driving was that scary- although all three of us (Paul, Pam & Jake) shoved into the back seat of a compact car was unsettling.  We were settled into our apartment and immediately struck out unsupervised to find some food.  We managed to find the mall, the food court and a local market.  Jake was disappointed that the market only contained the Ukrainian essentials like bread, water, juice and cigarettes…so the McDonald’s napkins we swiped will have to do for toilet paper for now!!  So far we were able to communicate in German/English with all of the shopkeepers- so we will head out tomorrow to do some sight seeing- as well as get some greater sustenance.  The apartment is classic European with 20 ft ceiling and chandeliers.  The entire apartment has one bedroom, a sitting room, kitchenette and bath- and is about the size of our living room.  Poor Jake had to sleep on a pull-out love seat… never seen one of those before?!?!  Although we have a modem and internet connectivity in our apartment- you have to have a ID and password to access it.  We will work on getting that fixed today- in the meantime, we will stroll to the local wi-fi café and get this uploaded.