The Trip to Kolomyya
So for Orthodox Xmas all of us were able to spend the dinner with our Ukrainian counterparts. Misha lives in Kolomyya which is 8 or 16 hours away depending on what route you take. It's a beautiful city close to the Carpathian mountains.
However, for some unexplained reason (the ticket system in Ukraine not always the most reliable) Misha and I were utterly unsuccessful in buying a ticket in our numerous attempts in the weeks prior. But Misha promised me we would go to Kolomyya and we did...
Basically, the day of we tried to buy a ticket in Zdolbuniv to Kolomyya. Of course there were none, but we talked to one of the railcar managers to try to get on without a ticket (almost a bribe actually!). At first he wanted 100 grynyas each but after some pleading by Misha (please we're students, it's Xmas, etc) he knocked it down to 70 for both of us. This is called riding 'rabbit' and is actually quite a risk for the manager because if the director of the train happens to inspect our car he (and we) could get into some trouble.
The trains in Ukraine seem to all have sleeping bunks. Somehow Misha and I scored two of these. The conditions were pretty cramped, and because we were riding rabbit we had no access to covers for our disgustingly grimy mattress and pillows. Also the toilet had no paper. Luckily Misha rescued me with his stack of receipts in his wallet. (Yes receipts). But hey who's complanining! We were on our way and reasonably comfortable!
Here is a short clip of what the trains in Ukraine are like.
But, in Ivano-Frankivst we were kicked off the train because the director was coming to inspect. So we took the bus (the last two tickets!) from there to Kolomyya.
Kolomyya = fantastic (see my other post)
Not surprisingly, getting back to Ostroh proved difficult as well. Because all tickets were sold out, Misha and I had to purchase tickets for a longer route home. This time a train ride from Kolomyya to Ternopil and the a bus ride from Ternopil to Ostroh. We left at 8 PM and arrived at 11 AM.
Since we weren't riding rabbit our train ride was more comfortable this time around. Misha managed to score two sets of blankets for half the price (please I am a student, no money, etc.). Naturally, when the manager came back I absent mindedly paid for two coffees with a one hundred grynya bill. Misha could have killed me.
Ternopil is the one of the poorest regions in Ukraine. The bus station was infested with grimy dogs (one of them tried to cuddle with me) and full of people down on their luck. One poor man (I believe he pickled himself with alcohol) systematically stood in front of every single group of waiting travellers and just stared at them. When finally asked what he wanted he just said sorry and moved on to the next group. You see this sort of thing in Canada too, and I always feel bad...
Also, it was damn cold waiting for the bus to move.
It was a great trip as I actually saw quite a bit of the Western part of the country. Misha was fantastic always making sure everything was ok. I dearly hope I can be as good to him as he's been to me.
However, for some unexplained reason (the ticket system in Ukraine not always the most reliable) Misha and I were utterly unsuccessful in buying a ticket in our numerous attempts in the weeks prior. But Misha promised me we would go to Kolomyya and we did...
Basically, the day of we tried to buy a ticket in Zdolbuniv to Kolomyya. Of course there were none, but we talked to one of the railcar managers to try to get on without a ticket (almost a bribe actually!). At first he wanted 100 grynyas each but after some pleading by Misha (please we're students, it's Xmas, etc) he knocked it down to 70 for both of us. This is called riding 'rabbit' and is actually quite a risk for the manager because if the director of the train happens to inspect our car he (and we) could get into some trouble.
The trains in Ukraine seem to all have sleeping bunks. Somehow Misha and I scored two of these. The conditions were pretty cramped, and because we were riding rabbit we had no access to covers for our disgustingly grimy mattress and pillows. Also the toilet had no paper. Luckily Misha rescued me with his stack of receipts in his wallet. (Yes receipts). But hey who's complanining! We were on our way and reasonably comfortable!
Here is a short clip of what the trains in Ukraine are like.
But, in Ivano-Frankivst we were kicked off the train because the director was coming to inspect. So we took the bus (the last two tickets!) from there to Kolomyya.
Kolomyya = fantastic (see my other post)
Not surprisingly, getting back to Ostroh proved difficult as well. Because all tickets were sold out, Misha and I had to purchase tickets for a longer route home. This time a train ride from Kolomyya to Ternopil and the a bus ride from Ternopil to Ostroh. We left at 8 PM and arrived at 11 AM.
Since we weren't riding rabbit our train ride was more comfortable this time around. Misha managed to score two sets of blankets for half the price (please I am a student, no money, etc.). Naturally, when the manager came back I absent mindedly paid for two coffees with a one hundred grynya bill. Misha could have killed me.
Ternopil is the one of the poorest regions in Ukraine. The bus station was infested with grimy dogs (one of them tried to cuddle with me) and full of people down on their luck. One poor man (I believe he pickled himself with alcohol) systematically stood in front of every single group of waiting travellers and just stared at them. When finally asked what he wanted he just said sorry and moved on to the next group. You see this sort of thing in Canada too, and I always feel bad...
Also, it was damn cold waiting for the bus to move.
It was a great trip as I actually saw quite a bit of the Western part of the country. Misha was fantastic always making sure everything was ok. I dearly hope I can be as good to him as he's been to me.