Windows To Russia: 200 posts!

"200th Post!"Hello,

We have reached 200 posts and 603 comments!

I want to thank everyone who reads: "Windows to Russia"

I want to send a special thanks to my Wife- She is my biggest supporter and she tries to help were she can. She loves to answer comments and I let her answer all she wants to.

So keep the comments coming.

Kyle

comments always welcome.

What Was Needed To Get Russian Visa In Ukraine?

Hello,

I promised earlier that I would give the information on getting a Russian Visa in Ukraine. This information will help you but by no means will solve all problems. The rules to get a Visa for Russia change as fast as you can write them down! (Always call first!!!!!)

===============================

Basics:(For Multi entry Business Visa)

Russian Consulate in Kiev, Ukraine

Country:	Ukraine
City:	Kiev
Address:	Ukraine, UKR-252000, Kiev, Kutuzov St. 8(phone +38 (044) 294-6701, 294-6816; fax +38 (044) 294-6816; (email visa@rucons.kiev.ua), (citizen@rucons.kiev.ua)
Web:	http://www.embrus.org.ua

Please note, that the Consular Division is closed on Russian National holidays:

January 1-2 - New Year Holiday;
January 7 - Russian Orthodox Christmas;
February 23 - The Motherland Defender’s Day;
March 8 - International Women’s Day;
May 1 - Spring and Labour Holiday;
May 9 - Victory Day;
June 12 - Independence Day;
November 7 - Day of Accord and Consolidation;
December 12 - Constitution Day.

===============================

What you need to take?

1. Two Russian sized passport pictures.(35mm x 45mm)
2. Letter of Invitation!
3. Letter from your business sending you to Russia!(On business letterhead.)
4. HIV certificate. (doctor or lab results that say you are HIV free)
5. Valid Passport (at least 6 months left of validity)
6. Copy of immigration card from Ukraine Boarder.
7. Money :)
===============================

We had a good Visa experience and hope that all you do also. The cost varies from around $100.00 to $500.00, according to how fast you want the Visa. (By the way the Consulate seemed to be much happier to make copies for you).

The city of Kiev has lots to do and you can sightsee while visa is being processed. Just look at theses articles and see what we did while in Kiev!
http://kylekeeton.com/2007/10/part-1
http://kylekeeton.com/2007/10/part-2
http://kylekeeton.com/2007/10/part-3
http://kylekeeton.com/2007/10/part-4
http://kylekeeton.com/2007/10/part-5

===============================

Any questions just ask. We are glad to answer any and all.

Kyle

comments always welcome.

Russia: No Bribery- Just Ticket!

Here is a copy of our ticket!
Hello,

I was drinking my morning cup of coffee and thinking about the ticket I received on the Vacation trip.

We were leaving the little town of Petrozavodsk! We went through a Road Police Station. Then we were pulled over for the umpteenth time. (In Russia if you have out of area license plates, they target you to pull over.)

Most of the times when they pull you over they look for any excuse to try to get a bribe out of you.

Not this time! They gave us a ticket, for no seat belts.

(After having been stopped a dozen times you would think that we would have been told about seat belts. You would have thought, some one in Russia would have wanted money for no seat belts.)

The Road Police Officer was looking at our paper work, then he got a confused look on his face and took all papers into the office to his superiors. (He did not know what to do) The officers inside decided to give us a ticket.

(The issue with Bribes is becoming an important issue! More and more people are talking about how the police just pull you over for money.)

Well this American has a ticket to prove that not all Road Police in Russia beg for money!

My wife and I are proud owners of a Ticket, for a fine of 100 Rubles.

(The fine was much cheaper than the Bribe would have been.) :)))

Kyle

comments always welcome.

PS:
The one thing that did upset me about the whole issue! I could see all the local cars and trucks driving by with no seat belts on. I counted 25 cars in a row with no belts. I guess it is just like America, pick on the out of town people. :))))

Russia: Maple Syrup & Peanut Butter!

Hello,

I was drinking my cup of delicious coffee and thinking about Maple Syrup and Peanut butter!

Maple Syrup and Peanut butter? You ask?

In Russia these two items are very very rare! They are also very expensive if you do find them. A small 12 oz jar of Maple syrup runs 510 Rubles ($20.00). A small jar (100 grams) of Peanut butter runs 285 Rubles. ($11.50)

I do not think, that you would feed your kids much of these items in America at that cost.

(I can not find imitation maple syrup at all.)

My wife had never had Peanut butter and Maple Syrup until she met me. Now she loves them! In fact I had to protect our precious supply of Maple Syrup this morning. She wanted to just pour it on plain toast. I had to explain that we make French Toast and use Maple Syrup. She was not really happy about my explanation and I could see that she did not accept my story about only using it on French Toast. :))

But I am promising her that I will make French Toast with cinnamon this weekend! I hope She will be happy now!

Kyle

comments always welcome.

Svet Sundays: Back, 4th of November!

Hello,

Svet will have an article this Sunday. 4th of November. So come back to see what she has to write about. :)

Kyle

Russia: Stepping Back In Time!

Hello,

I call this picture Stepping Back in Time.

I look at it and go back to my childhood. I can remember the wooden gates and the wooden fences.

The dog running looking for tracks and smells of the animals that invaded his territory as he slept.

The frost from the early morning dew sparkles as the sun comes up.

I remember how much I love the farm I grew up on.

I miss it.

Kyle

comments always welcome.

Russian Visa getting harder to get?

Hello,

My morning cup of coffee did not help when I read about the Visa problems for people working in Russia!

Here is the nitty gritty of the situation.

Americans & EU businessmen, face a 10-Day Wait for New Visas! The wait time for a new Russian visa has risen to 10 days at many embassies in Europe where we previously could get them in just a day.

The longer waiting times stem from an agreement between Russia and the European Union that was meant to simplify visa procedures and went into effect in June. The agreement says, consulates have up to 10 days to issue the visa, (But many consulates have taken that to mean a set period of 10 days.)

The agreement also has lengthened waits because of a provision that has changed the process for issuing invitations. According to that provision, Any Russian company can now write a letter of invitation!

This document has always been required for a foreigner to obtain a visa. In the past such invitations could only be issued by the Federal Migration Service after the service got a request from an organization authorized to invite foreigners. Now the Consulate is responsible for verifying the letter of invitation.

The EU-Russia visa agreement is the reason behind another change that has caused anxiety in the world community: a new requirement that foreigners who enter Russia on multiple-entry business visas stay for no longer than 90 days at a time, and for no more than 180 days out of one year. In the past, such visas could be used to stay in Russia year-round.

The EU-Russian agreement is a whole can of worms that has been opened up, and you know what that means?

Worms wiggle and squirm until the mess is huge!

We were very lucky, The rules are changing as of now slowly but surely!

Kyle

comments always welcome.

Russia: Sunrise to Freedom!

1st picture- The Church! 2nd picture- Inside the Church! 3rd picture- Outside the Church! 4th picture- Frozen Mourning! 5th picture- The Bell Tower! 6th picture- Bell Tower! 7th picture- Cross that was on Church! 8th picture- New Doors to Church! 9th picture- Path from Church! 10th picture- Old clock face in Bell Tower!

Hello,

I was sipping my morning cup of coffee and thinking about the Village.(Called: Sunrise To Freedom)

Svets Mother owns a home in the Village and we are very privileged to be able to spend time there.

I have written before about a church being built at the Monastery at the Village. The Village is have a slight growth in population from about 12 people to around 20 people now.

That is great!

These are links to the past village articles.
http://kylekeeton.com/2007/05/
http://kylekeeton.com/2007/05/
http://kylekeeton.com/2007/06/
http://kylekeeton.com/2007/06/
http://kylekeeton.com/2007/07/
http://kylekeeton.com/2007/07/
http://kylekeeton.com/2007/08/

The Village was fantastic. The air was crisp and cold. The sun was shining in daytime and the moon was full at night.

The Church in the Village is actually starting to show progress. My wife and I were impressed. There are three men doing all the work and they are really starting to make progress.

So enjoy the pictures and any questions just ask.

Kyle

comments always welcome.

Russian Ruble Growing Stronger Everyday!

Hello,

The Russian Ruble is growing stronger everyday. The dollar is getting weaker everyday.

I hate to see this, but it is what I have been predicting all along.

The dollar is going to go down & thump & thump hard! (my last article)

Just watch! The chart is what the world is doing as the dollar falls.

Kyle

comments are always welcome.

Chicken War!

October 21, 2007 -- Americans may be paying less for poultry this winter thanks to a chicken war that has broken out between the U.S. and Russia.

Russia, the largest customer for U.S. chicken producers, buying 30 percent of all exports, has de-listed 17 U.S. poultry plants - meaning that as of Nov. 1 those plants will no longer be able to export to Russia. The drop in exports is expected to create a glut of chicken and drive down prices.

The price drop is expected to hit chicken legs the most, according to Kenneth Zaslow, an analyst with BMO Capital Markets, who in a report Friday noted that Russians are partial to chicken legs.

As wholesale and retail prices drop, profits of chicken producers - like Tyson Foods, Pilgrim's Pride and Sanderson Farms - could see some downward pressure, Zaslow said in his report.

Zaslow said the move by Russia to de-list the plants - which comprise 17 percent of the U.S. poultry plants- appears to be a swipe at the Bush administration and made in hopes of bringing down the price of chicken in Russia, which have hit 45 cents a pound .(API News)

Kyle

Russia: Petrozavodsk

Hello,

I was drinking my second cup of coffee and was thinking about the little city of Petrozavodsk. We went there after Novgorod and really enjoyed the wonderful fresh air of the North.

We found the best Farmers market, people were loading their cars down with cabbages, potatoes and onions. Some cars we saw were almost dragging the ground they had so many vegetables in them.

Anything in a town that you could ask for was in Petrozavodsk. Except McDonald's :))

Kyle

comments always welcome.

Russia: Village Time!

Hello,

I was drinking my morning cup of coffee and getting woke enough to go to the Village.

http://kylekeeton.com/2007/05/sunrise-to-freedom-russian-village.html

We are looking forward to this trip because we have not been to the village for months.

Boza loves this trip as much as Svet and I do.

Kyle

Novgorod: Russia is Really Beautiful!(Part 2)

Hello,

I was drinking my morning cup of coffee and was thinking about what pictures to post today. "Yes, I know it is a terrible problem. :)"

I took thousands and thousands of pictures and really want to print all. Only about 5 gigs of pictures.

So I am just going to put some in and hope that you like them.

They are from the Novgorod area. We found that we could have spent a week just looking at Novgorod, much less the surrounding area. If you have any questions on the pictures just leave a comment. We will answer very quickly.

Tomorrow we will visit Petrozavodsk. A city farther North and it was very Beautiful.

Kyle

comments always welcome.

"Millennium of Russia": The 1000 Years Monument!

Hello,

I wanted to let the world see this Monument that we found at the Kremlin in Novgorod.

It is called the Millennium Monument!

I took about 1000 pictures of this Marvel. This is one of the most fantastic Works of art that I have seen.

"A rich and heavy monument dedicated to the millennium of Russia: it's the second most popular sight in Novgorod. The first legendary prince of Russia -- Rurik began to rule in 862. So, in 1862, the Russian emperor Alexander II decided to build a monument to celebrate the 1000 years of Russia. There was a contest and the young Russian architect Mikeshin won. In 1867 the monument was opened. It has the form of a bell with many bronze figures all around it. There are the 128 figures of the famous Russians, who were chosen by the emperor Alexander II himself. The monument is crowned by a cross - the symbol of the orthodox religion in Russia, with an angel on it and a woman (who symbolises Russia) in a traditional dress. There are several groups in the monument: founders of Russia, the first rulers, Romanov family, authors and artists, enlighteners, officials, generals, and war heroes.(Way To Russia)"

http://www.waytorussia.net/CentralRussia/Novgorod/History.html
http://www.novgorod.ru/english/read/information/architecture/millennium-russia/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Millennium_of_Russia

I have included links so that you can get the history stuff.

Look at the pictures carefully. The Art work is fabulous.

I was speechless and that takes a lot!

Kyle

PS:
Here I want to put a link for our readers who can read Russian. It's a lesson of History for schools about this monument. I found it's very interesting!
Благовест на всю Россию.
Svet

comments always welcome.

Novgorod: Russia is Really Beautiful!(Part 1)

Hello,

I was drinking my second cup of coffee and was thinking about Novgorod.

So let me give you some pictures of a beautiful quiet city.

If you have any questions about the pictures just ask. We will give you an answer. These are pictures of the Kremlin in Novgorod.

Come back tomorrow, I have more pictures to show you.

Kyle

comments always welcome.

Russia: Just Having Some Thinking's!

picture from rattlesnakesforsale.com


Hello,

I was drinking my morning cup of coffee and thinking about the Chestnut trees that I found in Ukraine. I have seen Chestnut trees in Russia but my wife and I have yet to find any Chestnuts. In Kiev we found a jackpot full of Buckeyes. (Form of Chestnuts.) This is also referred to as a Horse Chestnut in England. (I think?)

I grew up under the old superstition that you carry a Buckeye for good luck.

I was so happy that I was like a kid in a candy store. I grabbed about 20 Buckeyes and kept one for my pocket and my Wife has hers to carry.

I have lots of back up Buckeyes. :)

If you polish the Buckeyes everyday for a month with oil , they will last a life time.

The Buckeye that I found should not be eaten. They are poisonous. The Chestnut that you roast over a fire is a different type.

So This winter I will polish Buckeyes on those snowy nights and have lots of good luck. :))

Kyle

comments always welcome.

Part 5: End of Visa Trip & Start of Vacation! :)

1st picture- Me and My Bears! 2nd picture- road to the north. byway 10. 3rd picture- church in Novgorod. 4th picture- Kremlin in Novgorod.

Hello,

I was drinking my morning cup of coffee and thinking about how well the visa situation went. I was thinking about the second half of our two weeks.

We enjoyed Ukraine immensely. The city was fun and exciting but we were ready to come home to Russia on the 5th of October.

When we got home we grabbed our car and took off for Northern Russia. Over the next few days I will show the pictures from that trip. We found a town called Novgorod. The city was beautiful, very quiet and peaceful.

We also drove much farther north to Petrozavodsk, A great town! I wanted to go to Murmansk but it was to far and we could never make it home in time.

So come back to see the second week of the Visa trip. This is the fun week, well almost?

Kyle

comments always welcome.

Svet Sunday: Russia - Everybody Chooses for Himself!

Hello!

Today I am going to share with you, maybe my most favorite poem.
This poem was written by Soviet poet Yury Levitansky (1922-1996).

Everybody Chooses for Himself.

Everybody chooses for himself
His religion, loyalties and women.
Service to a prophet, or a demon,
Everybody chooses for himself.

Everybody chooses on his own
The word for loving and the word for praying,
A dueling foil, a sword for dragon slaying.
Everybody chooses on his own.

Everybody takes what fits him best
In shield and armor, walking staff and sandals,
In the final jury, judge and sentence,
Everybody takes what fits him best.

Everybody chooses for himself,
I, too, try the best I can envision.
I blame no-one else for my decisions.
Everybody chooses for himself.

Yury Levitansky (Translated by Tanya Wolfson)

For me these words are very true. Because everybody chooses for himself: to be saint or sinner, to be honest or betray, to act nobly or sink, to put high goals in life and what price you would pay for it; and even to live happily or not - everybody chooses for himself! Because, how old wisdom tells "It's difficult to find happiness inside yourself, but it's impossible to find happiness anywhere else" (But that is already another story.) And even if someone disagree with me I just tell: "Everybody chooses for himself..." :)

I met this poem when I was 14 years old and we were sitting by fire(before sleep in our hike trips) and singing wonderful songs of Soviet bards. This poem was words of one of these songs and this wisdom came into our souls forever!

And for our Russian readers that is original text of this poem:

Каждый выбирает для себя

Музыка Виктора Берковского
Стихи Юрия Левитанского

Каждый выбирает для себя
Женщину, религию, дорогу.
Дьяволу служить или пророку -
Каждый выбирает для себя.

Каждый выбирает по себе
Слово для любви и для молитвы.
Шпагу для дуэли, меч для битвы
Каждый выбирает по себе.

Каждый выбирает по себе.
Щит и латы, посох и заплаты,
Меру окончательной расплаты
Каждый выбирает по себе.

Каждый выбирает для себя.
Выбираю тоже, как умею.
Ни к кому претензий не имею:
Каждый выбирает для себя.

Be happy!

Svetlana

PS:
When I worked on this article I could not find this translation (what I had in my archive) in Internet again I don't know why... So who knows maybe this article will help some one who looks for good translation this wonderful and wise words :).

Comments are always welcome

Russia: Average Salary!

Hello,

I was drinking my morning cup of coffee and thinking about what does the Average Russian make? Then compare that to what does the Average American make? So I did some search on the subject.

The average salary in Russia in 2007 has just reached $545 per month! $6540.00 per year!
The average salary in America in 2007 was at $48,409 per year or $4034.08 per month!
http://www.consumeraffairs.com, also http://www.wikip.com.

The average American almost makes as much per month as the Russian does per year. I know this is true because I was the average American at one time. I made with in a few dollars the same exact salary.
========================================
"The average salary in Russia stood at 13,800 rubles ($545) in September, 25 percent more than last year, the Federal Statistics Agency reported on Friday. Analysts warn that the growth of incomes will slow down in the next few years.
Incomes and salaries in Russia are still growing fast, the Federal Statistics Agency said in a report on Friday. The average wages went up 24.7 percent over the past year following a 25-percent hike a year earlier. The inflation-adjusted real salary went up 14 percent in the past twelve months. Disposable income rose 13.5 percent this year compared to 8.5 percent a year before.
Experts note that this year has not seen any dramatic economic changes in salaries. Incomes are rising mainly because of growing wages which make up 40 to 42 percent of the overall income.
Analysts note that the salary growth is pushed by the private sector. Pensions are still growing nowhere as fast as salaries. In 2004, the average pension amounted to 28 percent of the average salary and as little as 23 percent in 2007.
Director of Rosgosstrakh’s Center for Strategic Research Alexey Zubets predicts that the GDP growth will drop to 5 percent and income growth will go down to 6 percent in Russia.
Meanwhile, the Economic Development and Trade Ministry is concerned that the income growth is much higher that the growth of labor productivity. Low competitiveness means that both economy and living standards are not growing fast enough, the government says. www.kommersant.com"
================================

I find it interesting the huge wage gap between countries. I am here in Russia and the costs of material items are the same as in America. The cost of food is the same.

How many Americans could live on nothing?

Kyle

comments always welcome.

Part 4: Ukraine Visa Trip (The Museum Of Wooden Architecture!)

Hello,

On the second day we decided to try out another Ukraine landmark. The Museum of Wooden Architecture.

It was a good choice! My wife and I enjoyed every minute of the all day excursion.

As you can see not all is wooden, they have a newer section that is all stone buildings.
pictures:
1. Windmills
2. Stone Village
3. My Sweetie
4. Stone Village
5. Stone home
6. Men making roof bundles for new home roofs.
7. center point of complex, the wooden church
8. 17th century Ukraine home
9. work in progress
10. roof bundles
11. Shed
12. Man playing Cimbala, he was very good!
13. pathway
14. Barn
15. How they roof the homes.
16. Another shed, barn
17. School
18. House (very tiny)
19. Barn
20. 18th century Ukraine Home

The complex was easy to get to by trolley from Kiev. They had a wonderful restaurant to eat at with traditional foods.

So far we are batting a 1000% for fun things to do on a Visa trip.

Kiev is an fantastic city!

Kyle

PS: Compare these grass roofs in Ukraine to the grass roofs in Batanes, Philippines.
http://tsl8.blogspot.com/2007/10/batanes-philippines.html


comments always welcome.

Part 3: Ukraine Visa Trip. (Kyivan Cave Monastery)

Hello,

These are just a very few of the pictures we took at the Cave Monasteries of Kiev.

We decided to tour the city of Kiev, after obtaining a Visa in Record time. I could not reenter Russia until the 5th of October. It was just the 2nd of October and we could not believe that the pressure of the Visa was off our shoulders.

So we went to the Cave Monasteries of Kiev, also known as the Kiev Monastery of the Caves, it is a historic Orthodox Christian monastery in Kiev, Ukraine. Since its foundation as the cave monastery in 1051 the Monastery has been a preeminent center of the Eastern Orthodox Christianity in Eastern Europe. It is also one of the four UNESCO World Heritage Sites within Ukraine. Currently, the jurisdiction over the site is divided between the state museum, National Kyiv-Pechersk Historico-Cultural Preserve, and the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (Moscow Patriarchy) as the site of the chief monastery of that Church and the residence of its leader, Metropolitan Volodymyr.

Other words in simple language, "It is very old and really a COOL place to visit!

Link to The Cave Monasteries, History site.

We walked the caves where they house the 123+ Saints. I hardly fit in the caves, but it was great. The only light allowed was candle light and there are Monks everywhere to make sure you did not do anything wrong. This is a very sacred place, They are serious about the preservation of these Saints.

The caskets are at the best 4 to 5 feet long. So either they have altered the bodies in some way to make them smaller or man was really tiny back in the old days. The caskets all have glass tops and all the bodies are covered in a robe and other cloths. You do not get to see the actual body. They say that the caves are a natural preservation of remains. (mummified)

If you ever go to Kiev, Ukraine. You must see this landmark. You ever want to feel the presence of God? You will feel it at the Cave Monasteries!!!

Kyle

comments always welcome, any questions on the pictures just ask. We will give as much information as we know.

Part 2: Ukraine Visa Trip (Russian Consulate)

Hello,

I was drinking my morning cup of coffee and was thinking about the Russian Consulate in Ukraine.

You read all over the Internet about how terrible it is to work with Consulates! It seems that the people hate their jobs and take it out on the customer. (You)

Well, this is a story about a Consulate that treated us with respect and worked hard to help us.

The day before we had arrived in Ukraine and got ourselves settled in for the night. We had a pile of paperwork that encompassed any foreseen disaster. We even had a electronic backup of all documents. We were ready for anything, our past experiences have made us to go overboard with documentation.

We got up early on Monday the 1st of October and took the Metro of Kiev to the center of Kiev. My Wife asked some passerby for directions to the Consulate. We found the Consulate very quickly and stood before the doors thinking, "Here we go through Hades it self"

We were stressed for nothing, It was the most pleasant Visa experience that I have ever had. The staff of the Consulate were the nicest and most pleasant employees that I have ever met. The smiles were genuine and sincere. You ask a question and you received an answer. (not a blank stare or eyes rolling)

The process was fast and efficient. The Visa was picked up same day and I am going to be posting an article on what is needed and processing procedures. (So I am not going into details now.) Link:-----

Pictures were not allowed so we have no photos of the people that helped us. Tomorrow I will have Part 3 of the Ukraine Visa Trip. (What to do in Kiev when your Visa took too short of a time to get :) ?)


Kyle

comments always welcome.

Russia!

Hello,

Some pictures of Northern Russia, near the Novgorod area, on the way to St. Petersburg.

pic 1- Monument near the Kremlin of Novgorod.
pic 2- Another monument to world war II.
pic 3- Old ships we found being worked on.
pic 4- Babushkas taking a walk near the Kremlin of Novgorod.
pic 5- My Sweetie!!

Just a few pictures to see what Russia looks like this time of the year.

Russia has a lot of World War II monuments. From what I understand they lost 20,000,000 million people in that war.

Kyle

comments always welcome.

Part 1: Ukraine Visa Trip!(Border Crossing)

Hello,

I was drinking my morning cup of coffee and reflecting about how nice the Visa trip went. It was nothing short of fabulous.

1st picture, inside train.
2nd picture, morning after an all night train ride.
3rd picture, train station in Kiev.
4th picture, train station terminal in Kiev.
5th picture, metro station in Kiev.

The train trip was an all night affair, which meant we crossed the border in the middle of the night. We had no idea what to expect with a train border crossing and me being American.

No, worry!

The border patrol was fabulous. They were excited to have an American to deal with. The Russian border was very polite and efficient and about 6 to 7 border patrol came to have a look at me. ( I guess that they do not have too many Americans crossing their border by train?)

The Ukraine border was no less polite and efficient. They also had to come and see the American!!! Maybe 10 to 12 showed up this time.

After the borders were satisfied, We could settle down to sleep. When we woke, the day was beautiful and the world was great!

Kiev was a very vibrant city. We found accommodation's in a hotel called, Tourist. It was nice and right next to the metro system.

Tomorrow, I will tell about Russian consulate in Ukraine. Part 2 Visa Trip.

Kyle

comments always welcome.

Kiev: Ukraine Visa Trip!

Hello,

I was drinking my morning cup of coffee and thinking about the train trip to Kiev. I took lots of pictures and videos. Blogger now allows us to use home videos on the website. I will try this new toy out. This is a video of the train entering Kiev.



Next on the agenda is Part 1: Visa Trip!

Kyle

comments always welcome.

Russia & Reflections!

Hello,

I was drinking my morning cup of coffee and was thinking about the last two weeks.

My wife and I have just come back from an adventure!

1st picture: The train cabin we stayed in.
2nd picture: My Sweetie and the train we rode on.
3rd picture: What you see as you get off the train in Kiev
4th picture: Kiev (Kyiv)

As you can see McDonald's is everywhere, I laughed so hard I cried when I got off the train in a new world and McDonald's is staring you in the face!

What you will not laugh about is that, The food and prices are so much better than what you get in the USA McDonald's?????

Over the next week We are going to post pictures and stories of the trip. We will also post a article on getting the Russian Visa, the best way.

So tomorrow the part one of : The Visa Trip, will be posted.

Kyle

comments always welcome

Moscow: Home At Last!!!!!

Home and no Coffee!!!

My wife and I will sleep and Monday is the start of a new day.

We just drove 11 hours today and had a wonderful trip.

We will see everyone Monday and we are looking forward to some good posts!

Kyle