Si tacuisses, philosophus mansisses…
Had a meal at a little Georgian restaurant called Alaverde – to try the cuisine and to show a little solidarity with that beleaguered land. Georgian food is hearty stuff – bubbling cheese, dolmas (grape leaves – just like Greek dolmades, wouldn’t you know), and plates of meats. Unfortunately, my efforts did little to relieve Georgia – Russia seems determined to play the hard guy there, and have since officially recognized South Ossetia and Abkhazia as independent nations. Hmmm…do you think anyone will second that motion??
Exchanged emails with fraternity brother Arthur, who recently relocated from Manhattan to Budapest. I would soon be moving west to Lviv…which, as it turns out, isn’t that far from the Hungarian border. Decided to take a side trip – as if I’m on a fully predetermined journey – and visit Art in Budapest. The last time I saw him he was playing piano at the Empire Diner on 22nd and 10th in NYC – I still don’t know the story of how he moved to Hungary, except that there’s a woman involved. Anyway, I’ll get his story soon and perhaps share it here…
As soon as I decided to visit Art, I got on the web and downloaded a Lonely Planet chapter on Hungary, and a language guide as well. The lobby of my hotel in Kyiv – Express Hotel – has wireless, and an incredibly fast network at that. The only issue is that you need to buy a card with username and login info, and the reception almost never has these. Typical Eastern European situation…anyway, one afternoon I noticed about 15 people surfing the net in the lobby – sure enough, they had just gotten a load of cards in. I got one and swear their network is the fastest I’ve ever seen, I downloaded some fat podcasts in under a minute.
Also recalled that another fraternity brother, TC, is in Warsaw, emailed him and heard back right away. Turns out he was just in Budapest, he didn’t know Art had moved there. Typical Zete Psi confusion and apathy…probably won’t get to see TC this trip.
Have been behind the curve on reading books with local relevance. Haven’t been able to find ‘The Great Game’ by Peter Hopkirk, about the geopolitical competition between Britain and Russia in Central Asia in the 19th century. Finally ordered that, and a few other Central Asia-themed books, on Amazon.con. I did troll the few bookstores with English books in Kyiv and found ‘Everything Is Illuminated’ by Jonathan Safran Foer, a novel about a young man’s search for his roots in postwar Ukraine. Now that I’m done watching ‘Rome’ I can get back to reading.
Last night in Kyiv. Went to Viola’s Bierstube for dinner and a beer. Nice little place, not too exciting. Have gotten a bit sick of FSU nightlife, at least as it plays out in big cities here. There are tons of casinos and huge nightclubs, catering to the elite and wanna-be’s. I’m only in the mood for these places once in a while, I prefer smaller pubs and the like. Went over to Blindazh, the Red Army bunker-kitted place near Independence Square, and sat at the bar watching the Olympics. The women’s 5K race was on – long race, the Canadian woman got way out in front, so much so that she was off the screen as the broadcast focused more on the pack. The Ethiopian hung way back, conversely, and made her move with about 1.5K left. She edged by the pack, and easily caught the exhausted Canadian with plenty to spare. Left me wondering about the Canadian’s strategy – this was the final, so she couldn’t just have been a rabbit. How could she have thought she’d be able to maintain her blistering, probably world-record pace? Weird.
Got into a conversation with a local guy sitting next to me. He was good and drunk, and insisted on buying me a shot (‘only 15 grams’) of vodka, which I accepted and drank. Funny dude – a heavy metal fiend, he sang along drunkenly with a song about ‘angels fearing to die’ which I guess was a Metallica number. I’m sure one of my readers here will correct me if it’s not…
Lots of sushi places here, seems to be the latest craze. Not sure if the fish is actually any good…Kyiv is pretty far from the sea, I might wait till I get to Odesa or Crimea to try some.
Good to see that Robert Mugabe is still lashing at out Britain and the international community. The end is, finally, nigh…especially now that the opposition MDC Party has its own man in the position of Parliament Speaker. His name? Lovemore Moyo. You gotta love Africa.
A slew of young Americans were staying at my hotel while waiting for Russian visas to come through. I think they were on a Fulbright program. They didn’t seem particularly bright or scholarly, though, and spent most of their free time in the lobby surfing the web. That, while the locals were out in the parks drinking and relaxing. Americans need to learn how to enjoy life.
Next day, went to Lviv on the slow train. While waiting at the train station I saw a fellow with an impressive unibrow (single eyebrow). Some people have two eyebrows with a few hairs linking them – this guy truly had a single eyebrow. Tragic…
My train compartment was blessedly empty, except for a young Ukrainian fellow across from me named Sergei. He’s a SAP consultant and speaks some English, so we had a good chat and shared a few beers. Super-nice guy – I wish all train rides were as enjoyable. He had come all the way from Moscow to Kyiv, then was on the train to Lviv, and would finally take a bus or minivan to his home a couple hours from there. He had been in Moscow for a week or so and wanted to get home and see his wife and baby daughter. Moscow is where the money is, so he was heading back that way after just a day or two at home. These Easterners (and Asians) really aren’t prima donnas…Westerners would insist on flying, and not spending 24 hours in demanding transit. Sergei wasn’t complaining at all, he has a good job and is putting away some cash.
He and I have similar political views – he can’t stand Putin, feels for Georgia, and is pretty liberal. That said, he seemed against the notion of Ukraine joining NATO, and he voted for Viktor Yanukovich, the politician backed by the Kremlin in the 2004 presidential elections – the politican who eventually was defeated in the re-run. The pro-Western camp here is divided, it seems. And Sergei feels that the Ukrainian government – democratic as it is – has performed poorly and needs to be turned over. I told him I knew exactly how he feels…
Napped for a couple hours, but it was steamy out and I mostly sat around talking to Sergei and drinking beer. The journey took about 10 hours, but it went pretty fast and we pulled into Lviv station around 9 p.m.
Took a taxi to Hotel George, a place recommended by Halifaxian Jeff, the fellow I met at Lenin Hostel in Moscow. Jeff insisted that I check this place out, it’s a classic old facility with faded grandeur. He was spot on – I liked the hotel the moment I saw it. My room was under US$40 and was perfectly comfortable. No shower/toilet, OK, but that was just down the hall and I can stomach that for a few days. I love these non-chain places, they’re quirky and have a real personality that even the most incredible Four Seasons property seems to lack.
It was Saturday night, I was in the mood to stretch my legs (and stomach) after the long train ride. But it started to rain pretty hard, and after a couple drinks I bailed around midnight. I checked out Korzo Pub – a nice woody place, with less-than-friendly staff. Hmmm. Also went to Kryjivska, a pub on the old market square recommended by TC, who had recently been here. You walk in, and a guy dressed as a soldier hands you a shot – I downed mine, which turned out to be mead. Not too bad. The ‘soldier’ then turns a fake bookcase on the wall and reveals stairs leading down. I went down and found a cavernous room with long tables. Sat at one and had a beer – didn’t manage to strike up any good conversations, but still enjoyed the atmosphere of the place.
Went back to my room, switched on the ancient Soviet-era TV, which still works just fine. No fireball emerging from the screen, at least not yet. The remote control is, however, insane – it took me 30 minutes to figure out how to get to channels above #10. I would describe the procedure here but you wouldn’t believe me.
Slept great – the sound of rain, the cool air, the lack of insects, my exhaustion from the train ride, the drinks – a nearly perfect storm. The only issue was that the bed was a bit saggy – I guess you just don’t get the value here that you’d get in Asia, where even the cheapest places (with a few exceptions) have solid beds.
Sunday was also rainy. Walked around for much of the day, loosely following my guidebook’s suggested ‘walking trail.’ When I follow these trails I tend to lose my way, but no matter – no hurry. Walked up Castle Hill, the high point in the city and the signature Lviv site. Very nice view from here:
So peaceful up there – it’s in the middle of a park and because it was a weekday, there were very few tourists there. Sight-seeing during the week is the way to go – I’ve been to some places where you would be absolutely screwed were you to visit on a Saturday or Sunday.
Lots of nice churches and random buildings in Lviv, it was named a UNESCO World Heritage sight in 1998 as a result. Lots of Jewish sites as well – there used to be well over 100,000 Jews here before the war. Simon Wiesenthal survived the death camp Janowska that the Nazis put up just outside the city…Shalom Aleicham lived in Lviv at the turn of the century. I love this sort of trivia…
Lviv’s old market square is a terrific place to walk around. It’s not as awe-inspiring as Krakow’s old market square, Lviv’s has a fairly bland central building that serves to limit the views across the square, whereas Krakow’s square is 1) much larger and 2) the central market building is less impressive and less intrusive. Still, this is one of Lviv’s best features and you can spend hours wandering the stalls and cafes. Which I did…I have to force myself to slow down and become a café creature, but I’m eventually able to do it. But I have to leave my Treo behind at the hotel, otherwise I find myself planning and doing too much.
Another fine feature of Lviv: Lvivskie Pivo, the locally-brewed beer. The factory is on the outskirts of the city, I went there to try to get a tour, but it was a holiday and there was nothing on. They have a beer hall downstairs, called Robert Doms, and it’s very cool. Lvivskie Pivo tastes good, and it’s dirt-cheap – less than a buck a beer in many places.
The weather was cool, and I noticed how much less water I was drinking. When it’s hot, I drink maybe 3-4 liters a day – when it’s cool, 2 liters at most, sometimes less.
Watched the Olympics Closing Ceremony – impressive show, went without a hitch. Good for China – as I’ve written in previous posts, I’d hate to see a disappointed, angry China lashing out at the world after the Games. We all have issues with the Chinese gov, but disrupting their coming-out party would have been a bad way to make a point – better to do so behind closed doors and with more subtle means.
Loved the Jimmy Page/Led Zep ‘Whole Lotta Love’ bit that London put on. The Londom Games will be very different – less awesome, but probably a lot more fun. The Chinese Olympics did seem very serious…
Ukrainian Independence Day was August 25th. It was a Sunday, the parks and streets were mobbed and people were letting their hair down. I woke up that day and thought I heard the chambermaids singing, perhaps it was the national anthem.
Meanwhile, back in Kyiv, they were having their first military parade for Independence Day in 7 years. Not sure if that was planned all along, or if it was put in place after the recent Caucasus trouble – but as I wrote last week, the Ukrainians have quite a few tanks and it was something to see them roll down the main drag in Kyiv. Lviv’s version of the celebration was much more low-key, but it was still energetic and fun. Lviv considers itself the birthplace of Ukrainian patriotism and independence – not sure how many grains of salt to throw on that notion, but in any case there were lots of Ukrainian flags (and a few Georgian flags too – excellent) flying around and I felt some shared joy at the idea of Ukraine’s hard-won independence. Talk about a hard history…
Got a terrific ‘happy Independence Day’ kiss smack on the lips from a cute drunk girl – then she vanished back into the crowd. I really should be timing my travels to coincide with national Independence Day celebrations…
Have been continuing my efforts to stay fit. Lviv, like many old cities, is terrible for a runner – narrow streets, staring locals, few spacious parks. Still, I found a park some ways from the hotel, and visited it a couple times. The first was during Aug. 25th, when it was packed with festive locals, so I didn’t have much room to run. There is a decrepit oval in the park…I thought about going down to it and running there, that would certainly do the trick – but I noticed that the stands were half-full of drunken locals and I didn’t want to break the streak of 50-odd years in Ukraine without a pogrom…
Kiosks are big here – you find more of them than traditional convenience-type stores (known as ‘produkti’). The kiosks are well-placed, and cheap enough, but the windows you use to deal with the clerk are tiny and you need to bend down to converse. Also, the clerks are snarly and seem some of the more miserable people I’ve met anywhere in the world. The entire experience is unpleasant, at least for someone like me who only knows a few words in the local language. After a couple bad transactions I felt like coming with with some 7-11 franchises (or better yet, real Japanese-style ‘combini’ like Famima (Family Mart)), and driving these kiosks to their knees. Of course, I’d need to find some pleasant staff – not easy in the FSU. There is an initial hardness/coldness in many people here which is offputting – you get lots of grin-fucks while traveling in Asia, but rarely do you find people who make you feel unwelcome/stupid. Anyone in for some 7-11s in Ukraine/Russia??
Walked around the old market square some more. Saw a Georgia t-shirt (the nation, not the state), thought about buying it for my brother-in-law, who likes exotic t-shirts. But the largest size was way too small. They also had a ‘Lviv – Open to the World’ t-shirt, but that also wouldn’t fit him. Oh well.
Walked by a huge statue of national hero/writer Taras Shevchenko. A group of revelers were gathered round, singing local tunes. I came by there again a couple hours later, the group was still there, singing and laughing. Very cool.
Read somewhere that Igor Sikorsky, of helicopter fame, came from Lviv, or somewhere in Ukraine. Random.
Heard that a plane went down just outside Bishkek in Kyrgyzstan. Many died and it was bad all round. As fraternity brother Ari later counseled, best to take the train (or minivan). I sent an email to the Djumasheve family in Bishkek – my ‘host family’ there – checking in and seeing whether they knew anyone on the flight. No reply yet. Kyrgyz people don’t seem quite as anal about emails as we are…
Fraternity brother Bryan also touched base with me about this air crash. Too bad Kyrgyzstan only seems to make the news when its bad news, or something chaotic like its 2004 revolution. Meanwhile, the BBC called Kyrgyzstan a ‘poor country west of China,’ which is technically accurate to be sure, but there were more Mercedes in Bishkek than there are in Manhattan or in LA…
Had lunch on Tuesday, after the Indie Day celebrations were over, at a ‘caverna’ called something like Pid Synou Flazkoju. You walk through an archway and some ways into an alley, and there’s the place, just a couple small rooms. I love these little passageways and the things you find at the end of them – Paris has lots of ‘bis’ which are similar, friend Dri used to live in one of these.
Had a couple beers at lunch, for no good reason. Went to take a look at the city’s Holocaust Memorial, a few minutes’ walk. The beers must have been stronger than expected, because I was a little woozy. I looked across the road at one point, and must have had both beer and Jewishness on the brain, because I saw a sign which was in Cyrilic but I thought for a minute it was Yiddish written in Latin characters. Here’s what I was looking at:
Gotta take it easy at lunch from now on.
The Holocaust Memorial was moving enough…a large sculpture of a tormented figure seemingly reaching out for help. The area around the memorial was the Lviv Jewish Ghetto, where Simon Wiesenthal was trapped and from where they took the Jews to Janowska death camp starting in 1942. The Nazis also leveled several synagogues in Lviv – they’re now marked with simple plaques. So much of the old world and culture destroyed by madmen…
The US Democratic Convention was kicking off, finally. Feels like the current election cycle is about as long as a Presidential term. Heard that Obama picked Joe Biden as his running mate. Pretty solid choice – I prefer Bill Richardson, but I guess that a black Pres. candidate and a Hispanic Veep candidate might be too ethnic for many voters. Not that Richardson comes across as strikingly ethnic, but still…
Walked by a guy asleep on the street, probably still working off his Indie Day drunk. His cap was a meter or so away from him, while he was sleeping in the oddest position, he was squatting with his upper body down on the ground. There must be a yoga position something like that one…
Couldn’t sleep well that night, probably the crappy bed. But was able to arise and watch the speeches by Ted Kennedy and Michelle Obama at the DemConv. Both quite rousing. I’m impressed by Michelle Obama – I mean, can you imagine Laura Bush, the epitome of blandness, doing anything similar?
The consequences of Obama not winning the election are nearly unthinkable. I hope subsequent speakers bash the living shit out of McCain and the GOP – and I hope Obama is liberally (no pun intended) spending his ample cash on local organizations and teeing up plenty of negative ads. No more kid gloves treatment of the Republicans this time – the Dems have more money and I hope they have enough piss and vinegar.
The waitress in the hotel restaurant was shaking her little hips to a folk tune on the radio when I went in for breakfast. I love it.
Went outside for some air – these Ukrainian hotels are incredibly stuffy. Walked by a little café/bar where an old geezer was putting a shot glass to his lips. It was 9:45 a.m. And I don’t think it was water…I love these little scenes of Lviv life.
Got a haircut – very solid job. Cost: US$7. Not as cheap as, say, Uzbekistan, but easily digestable. Now I’m set for, say, another 6 months…
Checked my investments. Supposedly I had a decent month, at least in terms of exchange rates. The dollar had its best month in something like 35 years, up 10% vs. the euro and pound sterling. But I can’t really feel it, at least not here and not yet. My investments had a crappy month, like pretty much everyone else’s…and I’m wondering if I should take steps to get my hands on some more cash to make up for my recent losses. That means, most likely, doing a bit of work – which is available, if I can get myself to shift gears and dramatically change my lifestyle. I can probably do that if I really want to…
Walked by the birthplace of Count Leopold von Sacher-Masoch, whose name gave birth to the wonderful term ‘masochism’ and who wrote the classic ‘Venus in Furs.’ No plaque to mark the spot…perhaps the Lvivians aren’t proud of him? Or maybe it’s because he moved on to Austria and Italy for most of his life…
Visited Lychakivske Cemetery just outside of town. This place, as the guidebook mentions, is the Pere Lachaise of Eastern Europe. Incredible Gothic tombs and detailed gravestones…leafy walkways…and odd bits, like the section of the cemetery set aside for about 2,000 Poles who died around 1918-1920 or so fighting Bolsheviks and Ukrainians. One forgets all the turnoil in this part of the world ‘after’ WWI was concluded – newly emergent Poland fought Ukraine and Russia for territory, the Russians had their civil war, etc.
Ever since my trip to Novodevichy in Moscow, I’ve come to see that you can pick up a lot about a culture from its cemeteries. Take a peek…
Took a nap, was tired from lack of sleep the night before. Had a funny dream – I was in the Olympics, my event was an eating competition involving meat on the bone. I was testing the meat with my teeth, to estimate how hard I’d have to pull it from the bone, when a judge spotted me and instantly disqualified me. I slunk back to the bench, all eyes on me. How humiliating. Now I’ll never get my gold medal, even in my dreams…
A couple streets from Hotel George is Kopernicus Street. Pretty cool.
Heard that Grand Hotel had wifi in the Lobby Bar, went there and got on pronto. Didn’t even have to order anything, I just acted like a hotel guest and no one bothered me. I am pretty skilled at verminating wifi in top-end hotels. Think I’ll return later today to post this – I’ve heard they have pretty reasonably-priced Lvivskie Pivos and decent food.
Went for a run, back at the park. Noticed on the way that my iPod Shuffle was out of juice, or perhaps worse. Torture – I hate running without music, I’m forced to listen to my heavy breathing. Sometimes I manage to get into a decent breathing cadence, almost like yogic breathing, and was able to do so this time, but it gets old quickly and I didn’t make it more than 20 minutes before quitting. Sometimes I forget to turn off the Shuffle after running, I often just pause it, but the device shuts itself off if its paused for more than a few minutes. I think this time, for once, I didn’t even pause it, I just left it on and it ran down. Annoying.
The Red Sox are playing their final series at old Yankee Stadium. Let’s see how they do – the race is very tight and they’ll have to play well this month to make the playoffs. I’m optimistic, but had hoped they’d have caught Tampa Bay (I can’t believe I’m writing these words) by this point…I just noticed that we won the first game. And 20 of our last 29 games are at Fenway…and Josh Beckett is coming back soon. Fingers are crossed…
Had a couple Lvivskie Pivos at Korzo Pub last night. Same unfriendly bartender there…too bad. These little pubs are terrific when there’s a smiling face behind the counter, and depressing when there’s not. Went to a little Greek place for some dolmades and a souvlaki. Terrific…just blissful.
Meanwhile, I found a pub, Dublin Pub, which has wifi and decent beers. I came across it at first by accident, and every time I want to return I forget where it is. I always eventually track it down, and have now recorded the street address just in case. Lviv is a bit confusing and I do seem to get lost a lot here for a smallish city.
Soviet hotels are weird – I noticed that my hotel has all sorts of classes of rooms, there are budget cheapies (like mine) for under US$40, and super-luxe suites for well over US$120 or so. Much unlike Western hotels, but not a bad notion – one size fits all here.
Have been struck lately by how much seems to be going on in the world – the Olympics, the Georgian conflict, the US Democratic (and soon GOP) Convention. I do wish someone would hand me a NY Times or Economist magazine…
Got up at 3 a.m. last night to take a piss. The Hotel George is a big, classic old place, and as I walked down the hallway to the toilet I heard some humming coming up from downstairs, probably the lobby. A bit eerie, that – reminded me of ‘The Shining.’ I was fairly quick getting back to my room and locking the door…
Again, didn’t sleep that well, but was able to catch the Hillary Clinton speech live. Nicely done on her part – I can’t think of anything she could have done better to sponsor party unity and enthusiasm for Obama. I’m pretty sure she’s gritting her teeth while saying these nice words, but the Clintons are exceptionally skilled at putting a brave face on things. And Hillary’s by no means through, either – I think she’ll be back in 4-8 years for another go. So she needs to behave herself and stay on good terms with the Dem Party, and she’s doing just that. I wonder what hubby Bill will say tomorrow – I’ll be on my train to Budapest so won’t be able to see that live. I’m sure he’ll do his best acting job too. The election will be hard-fought and close and we need every weapon we can get…this will be a real test, in my mind, of how well Americans have learned the lessons of the past 8 years. If they haven’t learned much/enough, then we’re in for more of the same, and that might prove more than the republic can handle. Not to be a doomsayer, but I do think we’re at a crossroads (we were in 2004, too, and chose poorly), and I pray we think carefully and choose wisely. Over and out.
Tags: Travel
mbsloney
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