Waking Up
Touring Chernobyl was really exhausting, so I slept late late...until about 11am. I had no set agenda for the day, but there were plenty of ideas of things to do.
Getting Food
After leaving the hotel we walked around the city center looking for a place to eat. We passed by a Soviet Diner and decided to eat there. Surprisingly, the menu was in English. The place offered free WiFi, so we were both able to search for ideas on how to spend the day. We had a list of ideas: Chernobyl Museum, World War II Museum, Aquatic Museum, etc. We settled on the Chernobyl Museum. The Ukrainian also suggested a 3d gallery that was wrapping up today.
The meal was pretty good and not very expensive. We both got full entrees, deserts, and fruit smoothie drinks and the total was under $19 USD. The chicken fillet I had was shaped like a steak, but tasted pretty good. The desert was traditional Ukrainian and also tasty.
City Center
After leaving the diner we walked around a tip. I turned to TripAdvisor for advice on what was close and worth checking out. One of the suggestions was the Oprah house, so off we went. Apparently the Oprah only runs a couple of times a month. The ballet on the other hand runs very frequently. I could tell the Ukrainian really wanted to go, so I suggested seeing if tickets were available. Tickets were only available the next day, so we up some tickets (around $20 each) and made our way to the Chernobyl Museum.
Chernobyl Museum
The Chernobyl Museum was not close, so we took a cab transportation to the other side of town. We made it to the museum before closing time, but what we didn't know was that they stop admitting people in 1 hour before close. D'oh! We ventured all that way over here for nothing. We stopped by a pizza & coffee place that had WiFi and went back to the drawing board for ideas. In the end we decided to head to the 3d exhibit.
Shopping Mall
The shopping mall the 3d exhibit was at was on the other side of town. Since we had a lot of time and the weather was very nice, we opted to take public transporation. Unlike Chicago, the bus and metro trains use two different currencies. Tickets are 1.50 UAH, or about 18 cents. I believe the metro was 3 UAH, or about 25 cents. You can purchase a ticket on the bus. I found it odd the driver didn't sell tickets, a separate person on the bus did. We got tickets and at the next stop an inspector boarded and verified we had tickets. I gather he boards random buses and checks to make sure people have validated tickets. The Berlin and Munich metro trains in Germany worked similarly. No turnstiles, just random verification. If you get caught without a validated ticket the fine is steep.
Since the exhibit ran late we walked around the mall a bit. The mall had many of the shops I've come to see just about everywhere in the world (e.g., H&M) except Starbucks. There was an independent game shop with many classics I've seen back home. I couldn't find a copy of Pandemic though!
3D Photo Gallery
I didn't know what to expect with the 3D gallery. Going was entirely the Ukrainian's suggestion, but ti sounded cool. All I really knew going into it was that the gallery was the largest exhibit of 3d type pictures in the world. What I didn't know was that I we'd be posing and taking pictures. The Ukrainian really isn't into photography, so I'm not sure why she suggested it. It was a fantastic idea though. The exhibit was at the top floor of the mall. There were about 20-30 different scenes. Each scene was comprised of three photos. If you think of a three dimensional cube, the subject (model) was placed in the middle. Each photo was the same. One photo was on the floor and two others formed the incomplete cube. The three pictures create an optical illusion, putting the subject in the picture. It's a creative idea I hadn't seen before. Aside from the different angles the three pictures are directed, everything is flat. I was impressed with how everything came out. I was more impressed with how helpful the staff was. From time to time the staff member showing us around would take the camera and snap pics for us. She was good with the camera, too. She'd also offer advice on how to stage the scene and hold the camera. At the end I tried to tip her, but she gave me the money back. The staff member told the Ukrainian tipping was allowed, but she wasn't comfortable taking the money. In any case I was very impressed with both the exhibit and service.
Dinner
By the time we finished the exhibit it was pretty late, almost 10pm. The mall had a food court, but I didn't want fast food. In addition to the food court there were several stand alone restaurants. We found an Italian place and we both got pizza. Ukrainian pizza isn't bad!
Tomorrow
Tomorrow would be the last full day in the Ukraine, so we had a lot to do still. The ballet was at 7pm, but I still wanted to visit the Chernobyl and the World War II Museum. Both museums were on separate parts of town. The Ukrainian wanted to visit the Aquatic Museum, but that was closed on Wednesdays.
Touring Chernobyl was really exhausting, so I slept late late...until about 11am. I had no set agenda for the day, but there were plenty of ideas of things to do.
Getting Food
After leaving the hotel we walked around the city center looking for a place to eat. We passed by a Soviet Diner and decided to eat there. Surprisingly, the menu was in English. The place offered free WiFi, so we were both able to search for ideas on how to spend the day. We had a list of ideas: Chernobyl Museum, World War II Museum, Aquatic Museum, etc. We settled on the Chernobyl Museum. The Ukrainian also suggested a 3d gallery that was wrapping up today.
The meal was pretty good and not very expensive. We both got full entrees, deserts, and fruit smoothie drinks and the total was under $19 USD. The chicken fillet I had was shaped like a steak, but tasted pretty good. The desert was traditional Ukrainian and also tasty.
Diner
They charged me for the gum!
.01 UAH = less than 1 cent
After leaving the diner we walked around a tip. I turned to TripAdvisor for advice on what was close and worth checking out. One of the suggestions was the Oprah house, so off we went. Apparently the Oprah only runs a couple of times a month. The ballet on the other hand runs very frequently. I could tell the Ukrainian really wanted to go, so I suggested seeing if tickets were available. Tickets were only available the next day, so we up some tickets (around $20 each) and made our way to the Chernobyl Museum.
Chernobyl Museum
The Chernobyl Museum was not close, so we took a cab transportation to the other side of town. We made it to the museum before closing time, but what we didn't know was that they stop admitting people in 1 hour before close. D'oh! We ventured all that way over here for nothing. We stopped by a pizza & coffee place that had WiFi and went back to the drawing board for ideas. In the end we decided to head to the 3d exhibit.
Shopping Mall
The shopping mall the 3d exhibit was at was on the other side of town. Since we had a lot of time and the weather was very nice, we opted to take public transporation. Unlike Chicago, the bus and metro trains use two different currencies. Tickets are 1.50 UAH, or about 18 cents. I believe the metro was 3 UAH, or about 25 cents. You can purchase a ticket on the bus. I found it odd the driver didn't sell tickets, a separate person on the bus did. We got tickets and at the next stop an inspector boarded and verified we had tickets. I gather he boards random buses and checks to make sure people have validated tickets. The Berlin and Munich metro trains in Germany worked similarly. No turnstiles, just random verification. If you get caught without a validated ticket the fine is steep.
Since the exhibit ran late we walked around the mall a bit. The mall had many of the shops I've come to see just about everywhere in the world (e.g., H&M) except Starbucks. There was an independent game shop with many classics I've seen back home. I couldn't find a copy of Pandemic though!
Game Shop! They have Settlers of Catan in Ukraine!
Theme throughout the multi-level shopping center. Pretty well done.
Apple Store...NOT
Return of McFoxy
3D Photo Gallery
I didn't know what to expect with the 3D gallery. Going was entirely the Ukrainian's suggestion, but ti sounded cool. All I really knew going into it was that the gallery was the largest exhibit of 3d type pictures in the world. What I didn't know was that I we'd be posing and taking pictures. The Ukrainian really isn't into photography, so I'm not sure why she suggested it. It was a fantastic idea though. The exhibit was at the top floor of the mall. There were about 20-30 different scenes. Each scene was comprised of three photos. If you think of a three dimensional cube, the subject (model) was placed in the middle. Each photo was the same. One photo was on the floor and two others formed the incomplete cube. The three pictures create an optical illusion, putting the subject in the picture. It's a creative idea I hadn't seen before. Aside from the different angles the three pictures are directed, everything is flat. I was impressed with how everything came out. I was more impressed with how helpful the staff was. From time to time the staff member showing us around would take the camera and snap pics for us. She was good with the camera, too. She'd also offer advice on how to stage the scene and hold the camera. At the end I tried to tip her, but she gave me the money back. The staff member told the Ukrainian tipping was allowed, but she wasn't comfortable taking the money. In any case I was very impressed with both the exhibit and service.
Putting out the fire
Marilyn!
Hide Ukrainian, Hide!
Back in Chicago
River is wild!
In fairness to the Ukrainian, I made her pose for this one.
1, 2, 3, jump!
Dinner
By the time we finished the exhibit it was pretty late, almost 10pm. The mall had a food court, but I didn't want fast food. In addition to the food court there were several stand alone restaurants. We found an Italian place and we both got pizza. Ukrainian pizza isn't bad!
Tomorrow
Tomorrow would be the last full day in the Ukraine, so we had a lot to do still. The ballet was at 7pm, but I still wanted to visit the Chernobyl and the World War II Museum. Both museums were on separate parts of town. The Ukrainian wanted to visit the Aquatic Museum, but that was closed on Wednesdays.
Why do you keep calling her "the Ukrainian"?
ReplyDeleteHe doesn't know my name :(
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