When we came to Ukraine on those first few short-term trips, we were told many times by our friends who lived here that alcoholism was a huge problem in their country. We also learned that drinking was not acceptable if you were a member of a church and called yourself a follower of Jesus. I recall thinking- Wow, that's pretty legalistic. No drinking? What's the harm in having a drink now and then?- And this is the mindset of many followers of Jesus in the US. I'm sure many of you would agree. (FYI: I'm not writing this to get into any theological arguments or debates- I have another purpose in mind- so hang tight).
After having lived here for the past year, I have a much better understanding and respect for the "no drinking rule" and also a greater understanding of how many lives here are affected by alcoholism.
Now this is my own personal thought/opinion/view from a non-native. It seems like there are 2 kinds of people here: those who drink and those who do not. There is no "social drinking"; if you drink, you drink hardcore, you drink to get drunk (in its various stages from giddiness to passed out on the street)- and will most likely end up being an alcoholic. If people know you drink, this is what they expect from you. The only other alternative is to not drink.
Some people (like I did myself) may think this is an extreme alternative, but after seeing firsthand the effects of alcohol on so many people- it totally makes sense and I have a great respect for the followers of Jesus here who have conformed to this alternative.
Everyday, it is not uncommon to pass by people that are laying down on the ground where they passed out, to pass by people swaggering down the sidewalk, barely keeping themselves upright, as they walk home. To see people attempting to cross the street and watching cars and buses swerving to avoid them. To have random people come up to you (on the street, on the bus, in the store) and start talking to you, put their hands on your shoulders like they are getting into a deep, philosophical discussion (and then you smell it heavy on their breath).
I was walking with a friend today and as we passed a certain section of sidewalk in front of a store, I commented that there are always interesting things for sale here. There are always maybe 4-5 different people with random things set out for sale: old shoes, old books, old bags, etc...). My friend said that the people selling there were usually alcoholics looking to make some extra money; selling whatever they could find around their house.
A few months ago, Solomiya and I were walking home from town and we saw a heart-wrenching scene: a young woman, maybe 24 years old, disheveled clothing, messy hair, barefoot, running (or trying to run) down the sidewalk, falling, picking herself back up again, yelling a name, clearly plastered. I looked ahead of her and saw a young man calmly leading a little girl (maybe 4 years old) away from this woman.
Our fellow American friends passed an old woman on the side of the road while driving. The woman was lying there, not moving. They pull over, get out, try to see if she is alive. Another person walks by and says for them to not worry, because the woman only passed out from being drunk; she does this all the time; leave her outside and her family will take care of her when they come home.

Crazy stuff. Maybe this is why the average life expectancy of a person is 65 years old. 65 years.

Holidays

December 1st was officially the first day of winter here in Transcarpathia. One thing I have noticed about the seasons here, is that they seem to adhere to a strict schedule (more so than in NY).
December 1st: Winter. The temperature turned super cold and we have had flurries or light snow every day since.
September 1st: Fall. The leaves began turning yellow shortly after.
June 1st: Summer. It became HOT.
March 1st: Spring. The trees actually started blooming at this time.
The seasons are definitely on a strict schedule. I like it.
And- We are looking forward to another frosty, ice-covering-everything winter. Seriously. The air has become cold, but fresh, and there is a lovely covering of white on the ground.

We are also looking forward to experiencing the Ukrainian winter holidays. This is what we have to look forward to:

19 December - St. Nicolas Day

"This day opens the chain of winter holidays. Every child who behaved during the year will receive a present from St. Nicolas on this day. Nowadays it has become traditional to present gifts to every child."*

25 December - Christmas

"Catholic Christmas is also celebrated in Ukraine, especially in her Western regions."*

 

1 January - New Year's Day

"It is one of the most favorite of all holidays in Ukraine. As in Western countries on Christmas Eve, Ukrainians give "New Year" presents, Children receive their presents under the New Year Tree on the morning of the 1st of January. Traditionally just prior to midnight there's a Presidential speech broadcast nationally. When the clock strikes Midnight, people pop open their champagne bottles and raise a toast. With the first glass they congratulate each other as the clock strikes 12 times and fireworks fill the sky. [woo hoo] The week before the New Year is a busy one with shopping, parties at work, decorating pine and fir-trees, and cooking the years most delicious meals. The main folk heroes of this holiday are Father Frost (Did Moroz) and his grand-daughter "Sniguron'ka" (The Snow Girl). Nearly all businesses remain closed from December 31st to January 8th."*

7 January - Orthodox Christmas

"The period from the 7th until the 14th of January is Saint Christmas week. During this week people go from one house to another, singing songs and wishing good wishes to health, prosperity, etc. and just having a good time. Most usually are dressed in folksy or carnival type costumes. Such activity is called "Kolyaduvannya" and "Schedruvannya". The songs are called "kolyadky" and "schedrivky". When somebody is singing these songs and greeting you, as a rule you should give them sweets or food or drinks or whatever you have as a token of appreciation. It is believed that everything that the people have sung in their Kolyadka and Schedrivka will come true.

Also during the new year holidays, up to the 14th of January it is common for kids (and sometimes adults-in the villages) to go from one house to another wishing the owner of the house new year wishes, new happiness, health, etc. All those wishes are usually said in rhymes and with the spreading of seeds, such as wheat or other grains. This shows a wish of prosperity for the house. This practice is called "Posivannya". Some token, usually food, drink, sweets, or money, is usually given in return."*

 

14 January - Old Calendar New Year

"Celebrated as a family holiday. See more above under 7 January - Orthodox Christmas."*

 

*http://bestofukraine.com/culture/holidays-in-ukraine.html

 

So if you read through all that, you might be surprised to find out that New Year's is actually the big holiday here with tree decorating, gift buying, fancy meals, parties and fireworks. I found an interesting explanation online:

"Christmas in Ukraine is celebrated January 7 according to the Gregorian calendar as in most of other Orthodox Christian countries. During the Soviet time it was not officially celebrated in Ukraine. Instead communist government tried to substitute Christmas with the holiday of New Year. But people did not forget their traditions. After gaining it’s independence in 1991 Ukraine started to celebrate Christmas officially as well."*
*http://www.uazone.net/holidays/christmas.html

You may enjoy this video that further explains New Year's celebrations:
Маша и Медведь: Раз, два, три! Ёлочка, гори!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qd6OtRox9V8&list=PL73E786B499A54A18&index=3

I highly recommend it.

I took this photo from a Facebook page- I Love Uzhhorod-. This is the walkway along the river (not now, but some other winter).

 

Ukrainian New Year

 

 

The First Snowfall

The first snowfall! I'm not surprised- on Sunday the weather tuned frigid! And yesterday (Monday) was again frigid, cloudy and flurries were in the air. When Mike came home last night from the coffee house, he said it was lightly snowing outside. Looks like there is about an inch or two out there.

The snow came just in time because I bought Solomiya snow boots last week from a guy named Abdul for 15r (less than $2).

Used, Italian-made snowboots. I bought them at a second-hand store that sells used clothing from Western Europe. This store kinda popped up overnnight a few weeks ago. There are a few other places like this in town also- and you can find some really nice stuff, super cheap.

I went up to pay for them and the guy was telling me how much he would charge for each item (I also found S snowpants for $2 and a winter vest for $2) and I was saying I agreed with him, and then he said- You're not Ukrainian? Where are you from? (darn, this accent) and I told him- America. And then he started speaking in English, interesting. So he's telling me- he's Abdul from some Middle Eastern country and this was his store, and he gave me a discount off the total price of everything and invited me to come back and speak English with him.

The last of the brown sugar...

Nothing too interesting went on last week- just normal 'life stuff'. Spent the beginning of the week trying to get Solomiya in for her check-up with the doctor. Got an appointment on Monday, went to the clinic only to find out that we had left Solomiya's chart at home. (Interesting fact: The patient is responsible for keeping their own chart and bringing it to each appointment). So, we went back on Tuesday, with her chart = mission accomplished. Went out for coffee afterwards to recover (Solomiya does not like medical workers).
Mike taught his own classes last week and also filled in for one of the other teachers, so he was quite busy every evening. I cancelled my OT sessions for Tuesday, but did see everyone on Friday and Saturday.
We were invited over to friend's houses for dinner on Saturday and on Sunday (dinner invites are awesome because we know that we'll be eating some good food and Mike knows that he will actually be able to eat some meat for a change!).
I went back to the dentist today for her to work on another tooth and to have a cleaning done. (My teeth are super clean- at one point the hygenist was "sand blasting" them with calcium carbonite). I still cannot believe how amazing this dentist is and how incredibly cheap the services are. Thank God!
After Solomiya went to sleep for the night, I decided to make a pineapple upside-down cake with the last of the brown sugar. I'm experimenting because we would like to have some people over for dinner this weekend.

Yum... that looks appetizing. I blame it on our oven. And on the brown sugar sauce that burned. I'm glad I did a trial run first. oi.

That looks better and slightly more appetizing.

Maybe Mike will clean this pan for me...

We have on our hands here a little girl who likes to play dress-up. She was so excited when she saw this dress (I believe her reaction was something like this, "ooooOOOOooooo"), we had to put it on her over her clothes. She wore it the rest of the evening.

No outfit is complete without a hat.

She also does this quite often- finds an article of clothing and wraps it around her waist or her shoulders. When I came home from the dentist today, she was wearing one of my tank tops around her neck like a cape.