Dinner At Bujara

Today, Saturday, was a real scorcher - so hot that Kharkiv actually made the CNN International weather report!!! It was 35 C at 6:30 p.m., but much much hotter when we went out earlier in the day. I thought I would faint, and poor Belle was panting and drank a whole bottle of water when we got home, before she collapsed on the bed in the "cool room"! But I digress - I must go back and tell about Thursday and Friday - I've been very lax about the Blog.

On Thursday Ed went to the office and they got their first case, even though they have no phones yet, no working computers, and the place still has to be painted, among other things. It was a "walk-in" by a private security guard who knows one of the office lawyers. He had been picked up by the police, and he told the lawyer that they had beaten him badly - he lifted his shirt and showed multiple bruises, and apparently his face was pretty messed up too. So the office is going to try and pursue a "police abuse" attack, and Ed discussed with the lawyers how they could try to get an "independent" medical exam and photos admitted into evidence (probably impossible under the Ukrainian system, where all exams and photos must be taken by the police or their agents). In any event, they have arranged for the exam, and pictures were taken, so at least they can establish for the record that they tried to get these admitted into evidence when the time comes.

Later that night I asked Ed why the guy had been picked up by the police and whether he had been charged with a crime. Ed say he had been picked up for fighting. Uh oh, I said - I see some big holes in your "police abuse" case!!! Who's to say that he didn't get these bruises from the fight???? I don't think this is going to get very far, but it was a good learning experience for the lawyers - they were introduced to the concept of "independent medical exams" and "independent photos" and began to think about ways to get them admitted into evidence.

This is actually a big deal here - people here grew up in an environment where everyone is very passive, no one makes waves, and you do as your told. I noticed this in Moscow, and Riga and Vilnius as well. For example, on the bus to Vilnius from Riga, the driver (who looked like he just walked on the bus off the street - no uniform or corporate identification), who didn't even know how to get out of Riga (he drove in the opposite direction for a half hour before he asked people where he should go), didn't have the air conditioning turned on. I had confirmed before we left, at the Eurolines ticket counter, that the bus was air conditioned. It was hot as hell, especially on the sunny side. Fortunately the bus was half empty and there were plenty of seats on the other side of the bus, but still it was HOT. AND NO ONE SAID ANYTHING!! The driver only spoke Russian, but I went up and asked him, in my usual pantomime, to turn on the air conditioning. Well, of course, he refused to understand, or even try to understand. Everyone in the bus was very uncomfortable in the heat - I could see them discussing it among themselves - and it was clear that I didn't speak the language. But still, no one said anything. I couldn't believe it. I think the driver must pay for the petrol and he didn't want to use it up with air conditioning - after all, he had a window which he could open - none of the passengers did. Finally I asked a guy on the bus, whom we had met the day before at the Museum of Occupation in Riga (he sold us our audio tour), if he spoke Russian (of course), and if he would ask the driver to turn on the AC. He did, but the driver just refused, and he dropped it.

I also noticed this quiescent behavior when we first arrived in Kharkiv with Sasha. When we boarded the train in Kyiv with tons of luggage, and the woman in charge of our car demanded 300 Hryvnas to let us on with the bags, Sasha merely translated that the woman demanded the bribe. I told Sasha that this was outrageous and that she should tell the woman that I wouldn't pay more than 50 Hryvna. Sasha wouldn't do that - she just said that this was the price the woman demanded and that we would have to pay it. I was astonished! And this happened more than once. The latest instance was at the train station yesterday. I went to buy our tickets to Kyiv next weekend. I arrived at the non-citizen purchase booth at 12:15 (they close for lunch between 1 and 2). There were about three people ahead of me, and one was already involved in a purchase of several tickets for different people (she had a stack of about 10 passports). It was obvious that this would take a little time, but I was sure I would make it by 1 p.m. Meanwhile people kept arriving and going to the end of the line, until one young woman arrived, went to the end of the line, decided it was too long, and just went right up to the window and asked for the tickets she wanted!! AND NO ONE SAID ANYTHING!! And we were all talking about how this was outrageous - me in my pigeon Ukrainian/Russian, they in their perfect Russian and pretty good English. BUT NO ONE SAID ANYTHING TO THE LINE BUTTINSKY!! I asked why, and they all shrugged their shoulders. When I said that this would not be permitted in the U.S. they said they knew that we didn't have lines in the U.S. I told them that we have plenty of lines, and plenty of people who try to butt in, but other people on the line get very worked up and they rarely allow it to happen. This surprised them. To make matters worse, he woman who butt into the line took 25 minutes to complete her transaction. Fortunately the two other people in front of me took about 1 minute each and I managed to get my tickets before 1 p.m.

This will be an interesting trip because I couldn't get first class tickets back (they cost $20 each), and had to settle for 2nd class ($6 each). I'm curious about the difference - we have assigned seats in 2nd class, and I believe there is no smoking on the train now, so it might not be too bad, although I've always been told that the difference between first and second class train fares throughout Europe (and I would think this would be doubly true in Eastern Europe) is not very great, but the difference in comfort and service is enormous. We shall see.

Friday night we had dinner with Gennady and his family. I had gone over to Bujara (it's Bujara, not Buchara afterall) on Thursday to try and make a reservation, because there were 6 of us and I wanted to eat outside. I really had fun - the waiters and waitresses are quite young and lively and very anxious to try and help. One in particular, Olga, was adorable. I finally managed to get it across that I wanted a table for "shees" on "Piatnetstya" 05/08/06 "o voyseem hodini" - that's a table for 6 on Friday August 8 at 7 p.m. for all of you guys who don't speak the lingo. I got the "outside" part through to them too. Then I described "mi choloveek" (husband) as "bolshoi" (big - but in the tall sense because I held my arm up high as I said it), and I told them, using the universal money sign by rubbing my thumb and other 4 fingers together, that only he could pay, not to let the other people pay anything. We were laughing the whole time, but it's all set - I wrote my name as сусан рукер adopting my choloveek's last name for the occasion. Later that day, on my way back from the market, I stopped by to ask if "moya malika sobaka mojena" I was told (by someone who had not been part of the reservation dramedy) Neh Mojena - so we won't be able to bring Belle to dinner.

Friday afternoon Ed called to tell me that Gennady had said that Bujara was way too expensive, that Yrena knows lots of restaurants, and that she would pick us up up at 7:15 and we would go somewhere else. I told Ed that he would have to go over to Bujara and cancel the reservation because I was already on my way to the train station to get our tickets to Kyiv. Later on, when I asked if he had any trouble with this and did they know who he was, he said the minute he walked in the door they knew who he was (so I guess I did a pretty good job describing him). He somehow explained to them that our friends couldn't come tonight so we would cancel the reservation, but that we like the restaurant and would be coming soon.

We went down to meet Yrena at the appointed time and found Marina and Nella there too - and they were all waiting for Gennady. While we waited Ed took some pictures of "the girls" so that everyone could see the mode of dress here for young girls. The girl on the left with the VERY short skirt is Yrena, the 25 year old dentist who is studying to be an oral surgeon. She had come directly from work (around the corner from our apartment), so this is how she dresses for business! The woman in pants is Nella, their mother, and then there's me and Marina on the extreme right. Her skirt is quite long, but the dress is very sexy, with cut outs on the side (it doesn't compare with Yrena's bare midriff though). They are both wearing very high heels. Thank god Nella was dressed as she was, otherwise I would have felt even more matronly than I already did.

When we asked where we were going for dinner, Yrena said "Bujara" - apparently Gennady had been overruled! We laughed and told them about the reservation and canceling the reservation, but that we were pretty sure we would be able to get our table. The minute we turned into the little park where the restaurant is situated (about two buildings down from our apartment entrance on Pushkinskaya), they ran over to greet us and laugh about the reservation, and gave us our table. Ed and Gennady were sitting opposite one another at the end of the table, and Gennady just started right in talking non-stop about office stuff. It was clear that Nella and the two girls were used to this, but very annoyed. I just butted in and said "no more office stuff." It was still pretty hard to control Gennady, but we managed to talk about other things, including our planned excursion to the monastery in the caves (a day trip from Kharkiv). We also talked about the current political situation (Yunshenko's alliance with his bitter foe in the Orange Revolution, Yanokovich - the one who rigged the election and whose agents poisoned Yushenko), and Yulia Temeshenko's decision not to join the alliance, but to instead act as the opposition. The Russian press reports this as "Ukraine's 1993" referring to the year in which Yeltsen shelled the Parliament and Putin replaced Yeltsen - halting the headlong rush to democracy. They say Russia's revolution lasted 24 months, Ukraine's only 20. It's so sad. These people (Gennady and his family) had marched in the streets and Lenin Square to help support and secure Yushenko's election less than 2 years ago, and now he is betraying them and their hopes so that he can maintain his post and his power. It feels like the whole world is falling apart - the middle east especially. Even the current heat wave seems to have political overtones - but I guess we can all rest easy because President Bush assures us that we are "winning" in Iraq (as 100,000 Shiites gathered in Baghdad to support Hezbellah and burn the Israeli and American flags - was that even reported on in the US? - we saw it on BBC World, but I don't think I heard it on NPR or even saw it on the NY Times website), that we will be a "good friend" to Cuba (after making sure that all Cubans are unable to get any of the goods people need to make their lives better!), and that there is no such thing as global warming. It's times like this that reading books like War and Peace really is comforting - I remember reading how Anna Pavlovna, in 1805, thinks the whole world has gone mad and that Bonaparte will destroy the civilized world - and somehow the world and so called "civilization" survived.

But I digress again! Back to our dinner. Nella told me that she called Marina the last night she stayed at our apartment with Belle and that Marina started crying because she wouldn't have Belle with her after that night!! It's great how people everywhere just flip for Belle. She, of course, expects no less. It's great to know that we have someone to leave her with who really enjoys her. We're even thinking about bringing Belle to Kharkiv before our trip to the States in late September so that Belle can stay with Marina while we are away. She is such a sweet and responsible girl (Marina, not Belle!).

Nella invited us to have dinner at their apartment when we get back from our weekend in Kyiv - we were delighted and told her so. But Marina added that the invitation was conditioned on our bringing Belle with us!!

The meal at Bujara was delicious and Ed seemed to enjoy the belly dancing! Yrena did all the ordering and, as I had feared, she was really careful not to spend too much money - there was much less food than when she ordered the last time, and the wine she picked was the least expensive and so not very good! The entire dinner with a bottle of wine and 4 beers, mineral water, and tea, cost us $110 for 6 people. Marina got tired at about 9 p.m. and decided to take a taxi home. It was so sweet - Yrena walked her out to the street and saw her into a taxi to make sure "she wasn't abducted" - and then Marina called her mother as soon as she got home. Well, she is only 19 - 6 years younger than Yrena, so it's natural that big sister would want to take care of her. We stayed on until about 9:30 before going our separate ways and agreeing to meet again for dinner at their apartment after August 13th when we get back. We also agreed that from now on, when we go out, we will "split the bill," as good friends do.

As I said, today was a real scorcher - it was well over 100 degrees F in the sun. Why we chose this day, of all days, to go to the "street of books" is still a mystery to me, but we did. And we took Belle, poor girl. But first we stopped at the Poshta (I am mailing my first check to pay a U.S. bill - we'll see if it ever arrives) - it was closed for lunch (13:00 to 14:00). So we went back down Sumskaya to the turn for the book street, which happens to be the exact location of my favorite perogie store, and we had to go in and get a couple of mesom perogies (meat filled) and eat them on the street like a native. We walked down the street to find the guy who was selling the banners Ed liked, and who speaks French (which is why my presence was required for this purchase). We found him right away, and of course he immediately recognized us. That's one thing about living in Kharkiv, where NO AMERICAN ever comes - the minute we go somewhere we make an indelible impression!! And we are never forgotten by anyone!! These banners, which are quite cheesy, maroon colored satin with gold fringe, were, during the Soviet era, awarded to the most productive collective - one for "fowl" and the other for "farm produce" - along with the pins that were then awarded to the most productive individual in that collective. He wanted 50 HVA for one of them and 40 for the other - there was a third (for sugar) and he offered the lot for 120 HVA. Ed didn't want the third (it didn't meet his standards, whatever they are!), and we tried to bargain, but all we got was a 10 HVA reduction. It was clear that Ed really wanted them, so he bought them for a total of 80 HVA. What he intends to do with them is one of God's little mysteries. They are certainly NOT going to be anywhere visible at 217 Sherman Canal!!! Maybe we can put them in his closet!

Meanwhile, the second we got back to the apartment he hung them up - one (for farm produce) in the living room (against the orange wall - a great combo! NOT!)
and one (for "fowl") in the bedroom over our bed (okay, okay, I admit, it's a big improvement over the "print" of the lovers that was hanging there before). I'm glad he got them though, because they gave me a great idea for hanging up my "Dog Park Friends" collage. I took out one of my sewing kits (which Ed hadn't wanted me to bring with us, of course) and put the needle and thread through one corner, left a big loop before putting the needle and thread through the other corner and tying it off. I now have a great string hanger device!! Judge for yourselves.

Despite the heat we browsed the bookstalls and ended up buying one Ruth Rendell (Harm Done) that I think I haven't read (it's so hard to remember) for 8 HVA - it's a paperback. We also found, and bought, Dr. Zhivago (paperback), Gogol short stories (Hard Cover), Pride and Prejudice (Hard Cover), Animal Farm (Hard Cover), Heart of a Dog by Bulgakov (paperback), Angel on the Roof (short stories by Russell Banks, one of my favorite authors). The last bunch cost a total 70 HVA ($14). And there are lots more books in English. Also, we will probably be able to bring these back and resell them to this guy or another street vendor - we will no doubt take a loss but, after all, we will have read the books. A small price to pay. Ed of course refuses to resell the hard cover books, but I'll just take them back one day when he's at the office!!!

We passed by Mirror Fountain across from the Opera House where all the wedding parties were congregating to have their photos taken. There must have been at least 10 wedding parties, with more on the way (and no doubt some that had already left). They jockey for spots for their photos, and often have to pay the boys who are swimming in the fountain to get out of the way of the picture. The groomsmen wear red satin, and the brides all wear very elaborate satin gowns, most of which are probably rented. Most of the grooms wear tan suits, but there were some in black or dark blue suits too. I just felt so sorry for all of them having to endure this heat in those clothes!! I also don't understand this tradition of going to Mirror Fountain for your wedding photos. If I were a blushing bride in a white silk wedding gown, I would want to be the only bride in view - I don't think I'd like to be in a position where I could be compared and contrasted with all the other girls or women who were marrying that day!!

As we continued our walk home (after stopping at the Poshta, where I confirmed that I had enough postage on my envelope and sent my check off) we noticed that the police were diverting traffic and were basically closing down Sumskaya. If it hadn't been so hot we would have hung around to see what was going on - maybe there were going to be some protests about the new government - but by now I was really wilting (and Belle was panting away). So we went straight back home, where I collapsed - but not before making our chicken shashlik, a ratatouille, and a delicious bread, like challah, finished off with nectarines, peaches and bananas in sour cream and our bedtime morosivo (ice cream, in case you've forgotten - vanilla with chocolate covering).