Happily Sharing Space

After returning from my travels with Mal and David, I returned to Novoukrainka to a new site mate! Another Peace Corps volunteer was assigned to the community I live in, so we met as soon as I returned. We have spent three weeks and I've definitely enjoyed sharing space with Lynae! We are both helping each other transition in different ways - I'm showing her around, introducing her to my support network, familiarizing her with life in Novoukrainka, and offering encouragement. On the other hand, she has been a tremendous support as I'm preparing to end my Peace Corps service - she has provided insight into life back in the states (it really has been two years since I lived there), a listening ear as I cope with the upcoming goodbyes, and her refreshing enthusiasm and new energy! She has quickly become a friend (and she's from Seattle, so it'll be easy to continue our friendship post-Peace Corps, too!). Here is a picture of Lynae (left) and Vaila (a dear friend in Novoukrainka).

Lynae and I went to Vaila's dacha (garden) to help harvest fruit and vegetables - well, we tried to harvest, but I think we actually ate most of the harvest!

Here is Vaila preparing me for a photo in the flowers, the photo which would surely trap my future-husband! Oh, we have so much fun...

Below is a picture of the finished product! In Ukriane, it is typical for people to get married earlier in life (compared to people in the states), so many of my Ukrainian friends worry that I will not find a husband at my age. I appreciate their concern and usually let them know that I'm not in a hurry to find a life-partner and that I'm enjoying the opportunity to travel and explore the world on my own! Just one example of a cultural difference...

Picture of us on the bus from the Kyiv airport, just after Mal and David arrived!

After school, we met with some students and played soccer and ultimate frisbee. My students really enjoyed meeting Mal and David - here's a picture of all the sweaty kids :)

I treated Mal and David to lunch in our school cafeteria!

Mal and David with my 5th grade students

David needed to do some laundry, so he had to adapt and use my washing machine. I'm such a lucky volunteer to have a washing machine... not sure if David thought I was lucky to deal with this machine.

Before we left for Egypt, we spent some time in Kyiv with Sarah and David, other Peace Corps volunteers in Ukraine. Time for an ice cream break outside the Peace Corps office!

Another experience I was happy to share with David and Mal was riding trains in Ukraine. The local train station near me is tiny, just a one-room train station without any emplyees. Here's a picture of David and I at 2am, waiting for our train to Kyiv.

While Mal and David were here, we celebrated the "Last Bell" (end of the school year) as well as the "School-Leavers" party (11th graders who graduated). Traditionally, the 11th grade students have a party with their parents and teachers, dance, then find somewhere in town to watch the sunrise "on their new life." This is a picture of me with two of my 11th grade students who graduated, Lena and Yulya. So sad to see these girls leave school, but I'm also excited to see what their future holds.

I posted quite a few pictures from Egypt in my previous blog post, but Mal and David had some additional photos that I wanted to share. Here's a picture of us at our resort, where we could eat pizza in the pool! Yeah, I get excited about the small things...

Jessy (my sister's husband) also came on the trip - but in a new form! Poor Jessy had to pose for pictures throughout all our travels!

In Barcelona, at the aquarium... yes, we did see aquatic life, but this picture is so much more interesting ;)

We all spent A LOT of time together - it was great to share space with David and Mal, but sometimes we drove each other crazy... :)

As we were leaving Barcelona, trying to make our way to the airport, we realized that our lack of planning caught up to us. We didn't realize transportation was so infrequent to our airport (located about an hour outside the city). Finally, after subway, a long walk, a train ride, then followed by a taxi ride, we finally arrived to the airport about 15 minutes before departure time... it was too close for comfort. Here we are, exhausted and disheveled, after finding out we had to wait an hour for the next train. We decided ice cream was deserved and necessary to cope.

Traveling with David and Mal was amazing. I'd like to think they feel the same way ;)

We had so many adventures, really got to know each other in a new way, and depended on one another like never before. So happy I was able to share my stomping grounds in Ukraine with them, too. I'm not sure if they'll ever know how much it meant to me.

One more picture to wrap this blogpost up! One weekend with Lynae, I took her into Kirovohrad to meet some other volunteers from our oblast. Donna (left), Lynae (right), and I decided to celebrate Donna's birthday by seeing Toy Story 3 in the theatre! So with our sweet popcorn and cold beers, we laughed and cried to the tune of "You've Got A Friend In Me"...

Life is good when space is shared.

Love Natalie