Week three for me in Ukraine, and the unfamiliar is finally really giving way to "home, sweet, home" (which, I guess for a gal who doesn't really have a permanent home anywhere else at the moment anyway, that isn't such a feat)! My home now is located on the fringes of the city (which I'm no stranger to...it's just like when we were living in Sapporo, Japan), so there's a bit of a different vibe than in downtown Lugansk, which has become more of a weekend or occasional weeknight excursion; my daily reality takes place in my rockin' neighborhood instead:
I live in what can only be described as an "apartment commune," which seems to be the housing choice of preference. In these little concrete biospheres there exists perhaps 4 to 6 large apartment complexes. In front of each one are usually little parks of well-worn, heavy-metal equipment for kids to play (fight?) within eye-sight of their babushkas, fire-pits and BBQs for light grilling, an array of laundry lines, wildflowers amidst little gardens and overgrowth, benches with gossiping grannies and beer-drinking gramps, and lots of well-worn dirt paths connecting all of this hoopla together:
As you venture out of my quiet community and up onto the main street, the pulse of the area can really be seen...and felt, especially if you're not careful crossing the street (even on green...it's a walking jungle out there!). See all of those old-skool wires in the sky? They're for the electric buses and trams:
Of course, the best way to get around is on the super cheap marshrutki, which are somewhere between a mini-bus and a large van. You hop on the number that you want, and then yell out to the driver when you want to get off...easy peasy:
Marshrutki stop near my place:
There seems to be a pretty huge grocery store and a good-sized outdoor market on almost every block around here (mine in particular is pretty awesome), but incase you can't be bothered with all of that pomp and circumstance, there are a ton of snack shacks and little huts selling everything from beers and cigs to pizza, coffee, and ice cream. The sheer number of them can be compared to all of the Lawsons and 7-Elevens in Japan; or payday loan shops in America:
And if you need to add minutes to your cell phone, it's not terribly difficult to find out where to go...
The most happening place in the neighborhood is, without a doubt, the newly built Mickey Ds. It is the one and only McDonalds in all of Lugansk, and I am told that the city nearly had a holiday the day it was opened:
The Wi-Fi advertised on the sign is a big, fat lie, however:
Right next to the Mac, and about an 8-minute walk from my house, is the Volodymyr Dahl East Ukrainian National University, aka my place of work:
Built in the 1920s as a mechanical college and used heavily during Soviet times, the campus buildings themselves definitely show their wear and age, as does the track (which pales in comparison to the new flashy apartment buildings built behind it):
Nevertheless, there are some good, rocky running trails circling the track, which I have found myself on almost every night since I've been here. The sunset-view from here is drop-dead gorgeous as well, even rivaling those pretty prairie sunsets that I love back in Kansas:
The university church: another site along my bumpy run:
It's nice living in an area where so many people always seem to be out and about on the streets, AND where there are shops dedicated entirely to meat and cheese:
Loving the retro Soviet-rides that seem to be everywhere. Quintessentially Eastern European/Russian:
But given the state of driving here, I think I'll just prefer to walk.
And that's the grandiose tour! Welcome to the neighborhood!
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