My Current Daily Routine

Perhaps this will give you a glimpse of what my days have been like so far.

7am: wake-up and put a huge pot of water on the stove, being careful not to burn my finger tips when I light the burner, for my "shower." (The hot water did finally get turned back on this weekend after 2 weeks without it). Then I eat some breakfast (cereal/yogurt...) and ask the cats why they continue to meow at me as if I am going to feed them. Shower and get dressed and I'm out the door at 8.

8-9am: Commute. I have a 7 minute walk to the metro, its about 6-7 minutes to get all the way down the the metro platform, another 7ish minutes of waiting and metro riding to the center of the city, then 3-4 minutes up out of the metro where I wait for a bus or minibus which takes me on a 30 minute ride to Hesed.

Public transportation here is pretty good as it covers most of the city, has a number of different routes/types of transport to get to a destination, is VERY CHEAP (10 cents for metro and bus, 30 cents for minibus), and runs frequently. There are of course some hassles/obstacles. 1) The metro is DEEP. Deeper than St. Petersburg, maybe 2 times as deep as the Porter Square station. So, it takes a while to even get to the trains. 2) The metro and buses and minibuses are HOT. Its a good 10-15 degrees warmer in the metro/bus than on the street. By the time I get to work, I am actively sweating. 3) The metro and buses and minibuses are CROWDED. When the train arrives it usually looks like another person could not possibly fit. This is not the case. Generally a good 5 people can squeeze in when it looks like there's no more room. People literally push the people in front of them into (or out of) the cars until we are squeezed so tight that I could probably life my feet off the floor and remain upright. It is important to clutch your purse in front of you. Buses are not quite as crowded, but the same rule applies, if it looks like there's no room, there's actually room for 5 more. Minibuses are especially exciting/harrowing. They follow the same routes as buses by the same number, but they don't stop at all the stops. To get on, you have to flag it down. You then pass your money to the driver who makes change and the change gets passed back to you. When you want to get off, you yell, "Please stop!" and get out.

Luckily everything is still so new and exciting to me that I don't mind this hour long commute. It gives me ample time for people watching. I love seeing what people are wearing (particularly the women) and checking out the hair styles. The women here are very put together, and much more dressed up than at home. They favor high high heels, tight fits, stockings of every color and texture (it is apparently nelzya to have bare legs or feet...so I purchased some little nylon socks to try and fit in) and plenty of make-up. And my oh my the hair does. Men and women alike are really into mullets...and less than subtle dye jobs are also en vogue.

9-5ish: Work at Hesed. This has included tasks like the following: Translating bad English into good English, translating small chunks of Russian to English, writing business letters/memos in English, determining what a legit e-mail in English and what is just spam, contemplating a grant proposal, helping give tours/receive missions, hanging out in the Day Center or Club. I eat lunch at Hesed with a bunch of other employees. We can get the same lunch clients get in the dining hall in a separate lunch room for 6 grivnyas (about $1.20). It consists of soup, bread, veggies, fish/chicken and a starch, and fruit for dessert. Its not too bad if you add salt to everything.

5-6: Commute home. I either take the bus/minibus to the center of the city and walk home (about 25 minutes) or take the metro like I do in the morning.

Once I'm home I consider going out and doing something touristy...but usually I'm too tired. Dinner has been a lit of salami and cheese...pasta a couple of times...I think I will get more adventurous and do some cooking once I'm in my own place. I chat with my host fam, have skype dates, and watch Ukrainian TV.

Weekends are much more relaxing and for right now anyway, more eventful and interesting! We'll see how that changes if/when things pick up at work...