Found wi fi

Day 1
The only thing to say about the 10-hour plane ride is that it was just long. We arrived an hour early. Immigration and customs went well thanks to Lonnie’s VIP service. We were tired and disoriented, so the extra $ was worth it. We’re typically proud of the fact that we’re good travelers, so we absolutely hated bringing so much luggage. Two whole bags were filled with food and gifts for the kids at the orphanage. Sergei, a very friendly driver took us to the apartment in the sleety ice. Our adoption facilitators met us there, let us in, gave us a cell phone, told us the general direction of the market, and were out the door in 5 minutes. If I had a remaining working neuron in my head, I would’ve asked a hundred questions, but I didn’t. So, we had an hour of total panic/nervousness trying to think of what we needed to do next. We reminded ourselves that Laurel said that everyone feels this the first few days. After a shower and a short nap, we met up with our faciltiator,and the other family here for tea, and everything seemed totally fine.
It’s a nice apartment, but it felt like a maze of buildings from the main street at first. Now we know how to find the grocery store, and we have landmarks so we can find it. Kyiv has just thousands and thousands of huge apartment complexes, rows and rows of buildings that are similar to our housing projects. Around 3 million people live in Kyiv. There is a lot of new construction underway, but it’s at a freeze at the moment. The Dnipro river that flows through the city is beautiful, and our apartment bldg is right on the river.
I hate not knowing the language. I’ve always been ashamed of stupid American tourists, and now I am one of them. So far, muttering spaseebo (thank you) a lot and smiling apologetically has kept anyone from getting overtly annoyed at me. Knowing the alphabet though is key.
Day 2
What a difference a good night’s sleep makes! Today started with a disappointment. We thought we would have V with us for sightseeing, but it was not the case. We had a nice tour guide and a driver who showed us the Lavre--the famous, beautiful monastery in Kyiv for a few hours. We had coffee at a traditional restaurant. Restaurants are somewhat more expensive here than in the US.
Fortunately, we got to see V at the orphanage for an hour today. His orphanage was large and a bit run-down but comfortable. V was all dressed up waiting for us. He may well have been waiting all day until we arrived around 2:30. He was just adorable in every way and so happy to see us. Lots of hugs and some tears. It’s been a hard 5 months away from each other. We gave him a new coat and shoes and some trinkets. He beat Todd at chess (big surprise), and hugged and smiled a lot. He has been learning English. I was surprised to hear many words that he didn’t know this summer. He looked lonely and vulnerable and sad. Just like this summer, he gave us gifts--stamped clay disks he made for necklaces and a coffee coaster. He is so anxious to return with us. I hate being in the same city with him and not being around him more. It’s expensive to hire a driver to go to the orphanage. We’re tied up with paperwork things Monday and Tuesday, but hope to go back to visit again on Wed. and to get extended time with him this weekend. We explained this to him, but he just called our cell phone a few minutes ago asking if we can come back tomorrow. That kid is ready to go HOME!
Since we started this process, sometimes I have waves of feeling like, “what the &^%$#@ are we doing?” when I think about where we are, and for how long, and about the money. Seeing that boy today wipes away any iota of doubt. He does not just need a better life, he needs a family. He loves us already, and we love him, and I cannot wait to all be home together.
We are much more comfortable and settled today. We found a second market that sells hot food. We bought what looked like chicken cutlets (kotleta), but it turned out to be a crab-cake tasting thing. It was good anyway. We found a microwavable Tupperware that lets us cook the rice we bought in our microwave. In a few weeks I will really miss having a kitchen, but this is working out fine for now. We like and trust our facilitators. They seem very competent and trustworthy and responsive to our requests. We’re figuring out our cell phone.

Day 3
First we slept in late. I don’t know how long Robin slept but I did not get up until 1100. We had some instant coffee and a zone bar. Then we decide to take a walk around since it was sunny and we had some time before our SDA appointment at 3:00. We also decided to take our computer and find an internet café, which we were told was close by. About 15mins later our path did not cross with an internet café, but we did find a beautiful church being restored. We then went to the market to pick up some more water and cheese. While walking out of the store our phone rang and it was Igor saying the taxi driver would be at our place in 5 minutes to pick us up. Please understand it was only 12:45, we thought we had until 2:00 to be ready. So, we scrambled back to the flat and started to change, as we negotiated an additional 20 minutes from Igor….or so we thought. In the midst of changing we heard a car horn, Robin looked out the window and it was our taxi….ugh. There were a few moments of craziness, as we thought to ourselves, we flew 5,000 miles to look like crap at our first appointment. We got ready in less than 10 minutes and we were in the cab. Robin said the driver looked like a killer, it didn’t phase me a bit, as I am acting like 007 at this point on the trip. The trip was exciting, just like a NYC taxi ride, and someone almost died. The driver just about creamed a lady on the street….wow. We finally got to the SDA and met with Igor. I asked him about the money we still owed him and offered to give it to him, but he requested it would not be wise in front of the SDA. I could tell at that point that my 007 senses were weak. We went inside the SDA at 2:00, a whole hour early. Robin & I sat on a couch in a dimly lit hallway…007 senses were back in action. Igor left the building to take a phone call, and Robin & I just said “where did he go”. Moments later a young lady came out with our folder and we fetched Igor. Being the master of no languages’ but English, I decided that I should be the one to speak. We were asked a few very straight forwarded questions about V and our family. It lasted no more than 5 minutes..5,000 miles for 5 minutes. Crazy. After the appointment we headed back to the flat and took another walk. I hate to admit this, but we ate a big mac for dinner. Man was it good. After that we went back to the flat to play cards and watch a movie. All in all, a good day….another step achieved