So, Kyiv

And yes, that is how I'll be spelling Kiev from now on as it has been thus ordered from on high that the official name of the city in which we now live, the city that has welcomed us to her bosom, the city that seems to have fireworks displays nightly, the city in which motorists routinely drive on the sidewalk then honk testily if you don't run screaming out of their way fast enough, the city full of beautiful tree-lined boulevards, 19th century buildings, and home to a walking 10-month old American kid, is Kyiv. Not Kiev...Kyiv. Got that?

Okay.

So here's Kyiv. On our first Saturday we went for a little tour of the city. Jack seems to enjoy the cold, although we are having trouble getting him to keep his hat on. He turns it into a kind of game, albeit a game that only one player likes playing, and it ain't me or Katherine.

So the tour. We are in Mikhailovsky Square, with the entrance to St. Sofia's Cathedral (and the Cathedral itself) in the background.

Mikhailovsky Monastery. We've enjoyed relatively warm weather since our arrival. Smart of us to come a month earlier than initially planned, even if it meant missing my cousin Brit's wedding, which we heard was wonderful and she was relaxed and lovely throughout. Congratulations Mike and Brit.

Our abode. Well, on our way to our abode. We are about a five minute walk from a great park. Shevchenko Park. Everything in this place is Shevchenko something, Taras Shevchenko being Ukraine's greatest poet, writer, artist, something. Anyway, we are on the fifth (and sixth) floor of a five floor building. But it has an elevator, which is great.

But this is the elevator....

Which doesn't allow for alot of stuff, people, or an uncollapsed stroller. But, we just heard from a colleague about their 5th floor apartment sans elevator + 2 kids and a dog, so we've stopped bellyaching about our small but fully functioning elevator.

As previously reported, Jack has now evolved to a fully erect bi-pedal creature. No more crawling around on the floor like some sort of animal. Well, okay, when he really wants to get somewhere fast he drops to all fours and motors, but he increasingly looks a bit more like this.

He don't need no stinking walker...although from the looks of it he went down right after this photo was taken.

He's also decided he likes talking on the phone. Katherine on the home phone, Jack on my cell.

So loading pictures on dialup is just as I remember it from our early days in Laos. No damn fun, and very time consuming.

But, glory be, Monday is a US holiday, so I will strike out into the forbidding city in search of Volia, the high speed internet provider in our area. Then maybe you'll see video of our boy walking. Bet you can't wait for that!

Katherine and Jack are going to a play group this morning and I'm going back to bed (having taken the early shift this morning). This afternoon a few potential new Vone's are coming over, and tonight a birthday party at a colleague's house. Tomorrow a long walk through the city and lunch with another colleague and his wife. Such a full life we lead.

But our home life is still a stark white, our stuff all being somewhere between DC, Belgium, and here. Living out of suitcases gets old, especially when all we have are light jackets and the weather is starting to turn.

But do take note. We've figured out how the guest bedroom will be set up, and it will be ready to receive guests in about two weeks, which is just one week late for our first guests, Diana and Alan, who arrive on the 18th.