Questions - For When in the Ukraine

Eric, Why don't you post the questions here on the forum? I have adopted in Ukraine. I am sure your questions are ones we have all asked, but everyones adoption journey is somewhat different (agency or independent, healthy as possible or special needs, toddler or older child, does agency arrange your flights or are you on your own,etc.) We had a wonderful experience, but the travel is hard, not impossible. We stayed with a host family and they were wonderful. The apartment was clean but it was a 9th floor walk-up. The water was turned off on a schedule that was posted on the wall for us. Any water you drank or was used in cooking was bottled water. The lady of the house was an excellent cook. We had a train ride to our region that made us think of the movie Dr. Zhavago, but the train ride leaving was not bad at all. Please post your questions here you will get so much more feed back.

My husband and I are waiting for our travel date. In the mean time we are going to a support group. We are meeting this weekend to spend some time with the families that are back from Ukraine as well as those of us awaiting travel. Please post your questions and perhaps I can get several answers based on their individual :rolleyes: :rolleyes: experiences.

I'm leaving for the Ukraine in a few months :) and I have so many questions about what to expect and my experience while out there. I have sent these questions to my agency to forward on to recent parents that have adopted but I have not heard anything back for a couple of months now. I'm just wondering if anyone would be willing to answer my questions (About 25 in total - ranging from Flight experience to Completing of Paper work while out there) 1) What airline did you use? Which airport did you fly into? How was the flight? How long did it take? Did you have any issues with your luggage? Were you limited on the number of bags you could bring? How many bags could you bring? Do you recommend duffle bags/suitcases? Was there any language issues while on the flight? Once you arrived, did you have any issues getting your bags/finding the baggage pick up? Was there someone there to pick you up and take you to the apartment? 2) How was the drive to the apartment? Was it a far commute? How was the living condition in the apartment? Did you go out for your meals/cook inside? How safe did you feel there? Was there anything that you needed to buy while there (besides food) i.e. Toilet paper, towels, etc.? How was the water / Heat there? 3) When you went to your appointment, how long did you wait? Are there any suggestions you can give me to make my experience at the appointment easier? How many different orphanages did you visit? What kind of items did you bring as gifts for the orphanages? How many children did you visit? Once you found your child, what happens next? Where you able to leave the orphanage with your child? What kind of gifts did you bring for the host families/agency workers? 4) How long did the adoption process take? During your wait, did you do any site seeing? How were the local people? Restaurants? Stores? Was there anything that you wished you had brought with you? Anything you would recommend not to bring? Did you bring a phone with you? Did it work? Were there internet cafes near by? Any help would be appreciated. Thank you, Eric Turnquist ericturnquist@comcast.net

Eric, I know I sent you this as a pm, but I thought I'd post it for anyone else who was interested. [font=Arial]On everything, bear in mind that I am originally from [/font][font=Arial]England[/font][font=Arial], I am used to flying and traveling Internationally. My husband was in the Navy, so we were probably better equipped and more realistic about what to expect than most people are. We traveled in Sept 2001[/font][font=Arial] [/font][font=Arial]1) What airline did you use? [/font][font=Arial][font='Comic Sans MS']OK, we are in [/font][font='Comic Sans MS']St Louis[/font][font='Comic Sans MS'], I think we used Northwest[/font][/font][font=Arial] Which airport did you fly into? [/font][font=Arial][font='Comic Sans MS']We went [/font][font='Comic Sans MS']Detroit[/font][font='Comic Sans MS'], [/font][font='Comic Sans MS']Frankfurt[/font][font='Comic Sans MS'], [/font][font='Comic Sans MS']Kiev[/font][/font][font=Arial] How was the flight? [/font][font=Arial][font='Comic Sans MS']We flew on [/font][font='Comic Sans MS']Sept 29, 2001[/font][font='Comic Sans MS']!!!! As you can imagine, every flight was extremely empty, we had plenty of room to stretch out and sleep.[/font][/font][font=Arial] How long did it take? [/font][font=Arial][font='Comic Sans MS']A very long time, but I cant remember exactly. I think we left Saturday afternoon for Detroit, flew through the night and got to Frankfurt in the morning and then waited maybe a couple of hours to fly to Kiev. From what I remember, the flight to [/font][font='Comic Sans MS']Kiev[/font][font='Comic Sans MS'] was much shorter than I thought it would be. I think we got to [/font][font='Comic Sans MS']Kiev[/font][font='Comic Sans MS'] around lunch/early afternoon on Sunday[/font][/font][font=Arial] Did you have any issues with your luggage? Were you limited on the number of bags you could bring? [/font][font=Arial][font='Comic Sans MS']No, we didnҒt. We were told not to take too much as the cars over there are small, but our facilitator had a huge van!!! Actually, we borrowed two long bags from our neighbours, cant remember who makes them, but they were soft sided and had a top and bottom compartment. They also had wheels and when you stand them up, they were at a good and easy height to roll them. They double as back packs, if youҒre strong enough to get them on your back (I am not!!) Dont forget that when you return, youҒll have your child/children with you and so one of you wont be able to help with luggage at all. If youҒre going to take a bunch of stuff for the orphanage etc, take it in either a box that you can get rid of or some kind of bag that you can roll up and stuff inside something else.[/font][/font][font=Arial] How many bags could you bring? [/font][font=Arial][font='Comic Sans MS']I think youll find that you can bring more than you are used to when flying in country over here. But, see above, Be Careful about bringing too much. DonҒt bring a bunch of clothes for yourself. Bring something pretty decent for NAC and court, but something you can use again. My husband took a suit and it was a waste of time and took up WAY too much space[/font][/font][font=Arial] Do you recommend duffle bags/suitcases? [/font][font=Arial][font='Comic Sans MS']I think I answered this one above. I dont know how you plan to get around, but cars can be smaller and so something that can be squished might be better. Prime consideration is how easy it is to lift around. [/font][/font][font=Arial] Was there any language issues while on the flight?[/font][font=Arial][font='Comic Sans MS']None at all [/font][/font][font=Arial] Once you arrived, did you have any issues getting your bags/finding the baggage pick up? [/font][font=Arial][font='Comic Sans MS']Not at all and we had someone meet us at the airport. Beware of being inundated by cab drivers when you get out of the entrance.[/font][/font][font=Arial] Was there someone there to pick you up and take you to the apartment?[/font][font=Arial][font='Comic Sans MS']Yes there was. One of the advantages of using an agency over here. They were absolutely brilliant.[/font][/font][font=Arial][font='Comic Sans MS'] [/font][/font][font=Arial][font='Comic Sans MS'] [/font][/font][font=Arial]2) How was the drive to the apartment? [/font][font=Arial][font='Comic Sans MS']It was OK[/font][/font][font=Arial] Was it a far commute? [/font][font=Arial][font='Comic Sans MS']We stayed in a hotel the first night, it wasnҒt too far a drive at all. We went to NAC the next day (Monday) and took a train to region Monday night.[/font][/font][font=Arial] How was the living condition in the apartment?[/font][font=Arial][font='Comic Sans MS']We ended up in an apartment for almost 2 months in [/font][font='Comic Sans MS']Kiev[/font][font='Comic Sans MS']. It was great, was right opposite the Opera House, you could watch the ballerinas practicing from our front window (although my husband reckons he never noticed!!) We learned how to get around everywhere and walked for miles. [/font][font='Comic Sans MS']Ukraine[/font][font='Comic Sans MS'] is a beautiful country and the people are great. We are looking forward to being back in [/font][font='Comic Sans MS']Kiev[/font][font='Comic Sans MS'].[/font][/font][font=Arial][font='Comic Sans MS'] [/font][/font][font=Arial] Did you go out for your meals/cook inside? [/font][font=Arial][font='Comic Sans MS']Weve done both. We had someone come and cook for us when we were in [/font][font='Comic Sans MS']Kiev[/font][font='Comic Sans MS'] and we stayed with a family when we were in region. Now there are plenty of Western places to eat in [/font][font='Comic Sans MS']Kiev[/font][font='Comic Sans MS'], McDҒs (yuk) I think theres a TGIF in the square and we had a pizza place round the corner from us. They have ice cream thatҒs like Dove bars and ALMOST as good!!!![/font][/font][font=Arial] How safe did you feel there? [/font][font=Arial][font='Comic Sans MS']Very [/font][/font][font=Arial] Was there anything that you needed to buy while there (besides food) i.e. Toilet paper, towels, etc.?[/font][font=Arial][font='Comic Sans MS']Because we were there 2 months and we had a 6 month old with us at the time, we had to buy diapers/formula for him. Plus, our 2 weekӔ trip was 2 months, so everything like shampoo etc. There are stores everywhere though. They have really good food as well and its easy to pick up what you need.[/font][/font][font=Arial] How was the water / Heat there?[/font][font=Arial][font='Comic Sans MS']No problem with either. In region, water was off for 2 hours every day (we filled jugs to flush the toilet), we had a shower every day though. In [/font][font='Comic Sans MS']Kiev[/font][font='Comic Sans MS'], no problem with either. Although, beware, laundry comes out grey after a while, my husband thinks the water is very dirty. All the building usually have a common heating system run by the Govt, so itҒs usually so hot you have to open the windows in Winter!!!![/font][/font][font=Arial]3) When you went to your appointment, how long did you wait? [/font][font=Arial][font='Comic Sans MS']We walked straight in past people lining both sides of the corridor walls. Another perk of a very well connected agency at the time[/font][/font][font=Arial] Are there any suggestions you can give me to make my experience at the appointment easier? [/font][font=Arial][font='Comic Sans MS']All I can say is that back when we traveled, they tended to show you unsuitable children at first and you have to be firm, but very polite and ask if you can see others more suitable to what you want. Dont offend them by letting them think that those children are not good enough. I think they will allow you about an hour. Definitely get a doctor to go with you to the orphanage and evaluate the child and donҒt be afraid to go back if there is anything you are unhappy about.[/font][/font][font=Arial] How many different orphanages did you visit? [/font][font=Arial][font='Comic Sans MS']1[/font][/font][font=Arial] What kind of items did you bring as gifts for the orphanages? [/font][font=Arial][font='Comic Sans MS']They have loads of toys never played with, so definitely dont bring. I would say things like pain reliever (they donҒt often have money for drugs), diapers (I dont know if they would use them much, we had to give them a bunch and they changed our child into them when we went to visit). They usually have clothes, but could probably do with new ones. They dress boys & girls in tights, they would be good. You can buy things like a box of bananas in country. Be careful though because you donҒt want to change the childrens diet too much.[/font][/font][font=Arial] How many children did you visit?[/font][font=Arial][font='Comic Sans MS']Ours!!!![/font][/font][font=Arial] Once you found your child, what happens next? Where you able to leave the orphanage with your child?[/font][font=Arial][font='Comic Sans MS']Yes. we saw Ben on Tuesday, went every day to the orphanage to see him after that. Court date was the next Monday, we got him on the Tuesday. You canҒt take them out of the orphanage before they are yours, but we were allowed to take him out in the sun.[/font][/font][font=Arial][font='Comic Sans MS'] [/font][/font][font=Arial]4) How long did the adoption process take? [/font][font=Arial][font='Comic Sans MS']Should have been 2 weeks, was 2 months. We had our child but could not get his passport. [/font][/font][font=Arial] During your wait, did you do any site seeing?[/font][font=Arial][font='Comic Sans MS']Yes, [/font][font='Comic Sans MS']Kiev[/font][font='Comic Sans MS'] is fantastic. I love it.[/font][/font][font=Arial][font='Comic Sans MS'] [/font][/font][font=Arial] How were the local people? Restaurants? Stores? [/font][font=Arial][font='Comic Sans MS']Great. Didnt go. Good[/font][/font][font=Arial] Was there anything that you wished you had brought with you?[/font][font=Arial][font='Comic Sans MS']More Winter clothes because we left in Sept and should have been back while it was still warm. I came back early and had to send Winter clothes to my husband.[/font][/font][font=Arial] Anything you would recommend not to bring?[/font][font=Arial][font='Comic Sans MS']Anything electrical, wonҒt work. Suit for court!!!! Shoes you cant walk around in much.[/font][/font][font=Arial] Did you bring a phone with you? Did it work? [/font][font=Arial][font='Comic Sans MS']No, but we probably didnҒt even have cell phones then!!! I think you can get plans that work now though.[/font][/font][font=Arial][font='Comic Sans MS'] [/font][/font][font=Arial] Were there internet cafes near by? [/font][font=Arial][font='Comic Sans MS']Yes right down the road. Will be full of smoke though as people smoke and drink in there!!!![/font][/font][font=Arial][font='Comic Sans MS'] [/font][/font][font='Comic Sans MS'][font=Arial]No problem. Honestly, every situation will be different.[/font][/font][font=Arial][/font]

Eric, I have adopted 4 children...3 adoptions...2 orphanages...2001, 2002, 2003. 1) What airline did you use? NW/KLM and LOT Polish Air. LOT is more expensive, but I liked them much better. Especially when we were stranded in Warsaw at the end of the first adoption during 9/11. NW/KLM said they couldn't get us a flight home on our scheduled return date of 9/22 and we would have to wait until 9/29. LOT rearranged seating and flew us home on 9/17. Which airport did you fly into? Detroit...Amsterdam...Kiev Chicago...Warsaw...Kiev Detroit...Frankfurt...Kiev How was the flight? long...especially since the bathrooms are made for size 10 people and I am large. How long did it take? about 14-16 hours total Did you have any issues with your luggage? no. Were you limited on the number of bags you could bring? 2 check-in and 1 carry-on How many bags could you bring? 1 check-in with donations, 1 checkin with personal stuff, 1 laptop backpack that was loaded Do you recommend duffle bags/suitcases? rolling duffles...the more pockets the better...also triple ziploc anything that is liquid no matter how well you think it is padded. Was there any language issues while on the flight?no Once you arrived, did you have any issues getting your bags/finding the baggage pick up? no Was there someone there to pick you up and take you to the apartment? my facilitator met me all 3 trips just past customs. took 30-40 minutes each trip to proceed through passport control, baggage, and customs. The last trip I paid for VIP service and was escorted to my facilitator within 10 minutes. 2) How was the drive to the apartment? great...it wasn't a plane Was it a far commute? maybe 30 minutes How was the living condition in the apartment? fine. small studio style apartment once, 1br the next 2 times. In region I stayed in a private hotel in Odessa region both times and in a larger hotel in Kerch the last time. All were comfortable and clean. Did you go out for your meals/cook inside? In Kiev I cooked. In region meals were included with the private hotel. Breakfast with the public hotel. In Kerch, we usually had lunch out and had bread, meat, cheese, fruit, etc for dinner. How safe did you feel there? very Was there anything that you needed to buy while there (besides food) i.e. Toilet paper, towels, etc.? I took an older body pillow with me as well as 2 Xlg bath towels which I left at the apartment in Kiev on my way home. I bought toilet paper, feminine products, phone cards, etc How was the water / Heat there? Kiev was fine on both all the time. Odessa region...water ran 6-9am and 6-9pm...heat would run you out of your room in winter...no one has air conditioning and electric fans are few. Kerch, Crimea region...water ran every other day, but hotel had its own holding system so had water all the time...same with heat 3) When you went to your appointment, how long did you wait? not at all for any of the 3 times Are there any suggestions you can give me to make my experience at the appointment easier? Go with an open heart, open eyes, and determination to find your child. Be politely persistent until you receive a referral that you are comfortable with. How many different orphanages did you visit? 1 each adoption, 2 different orphanages. returned the 2nd adoption for a child I met the first time. What kind of items did you bring as gifts for the orphanages? children's vitamins and children's tylenol and allergy meds. I then asked for a shopping list and purchased other needs locally. Both times these included Ukrainian children's tights (trust me, purchase these there. not only are they cheaper, but they are very very thick and nothing like American children's tights), pajamas, house slippers, school supplies, light bulbs, some cooking supplies (huge pans, spoons, spices) How many children did you visit? just mine. although I interacted a lot with the other children of my children's groupas. Once you found your child, what happens next? you start the adoption process...kind of like being in the army here...everything is hurry up and wait. Where you able to leave the orphanage with your child? Not until after court with the first adoption. However, when I returned the 2nd time, the orphanage director knew and trusted us and allowed me to pick up my son in the morning and return with him at dinner time. My latest adoption was also a little unusual in that the orphanage director (a different one) allowed me to pick up not only my daughter, but also her 2 older siblings each morning and spend the entire day with them outside the orphanage. This is almost unheard of, but the director, my facilitator, and I wanted the children to spend time together before I took my daughter away and have happy memories to hold onto. It was both the hardest and greatest thing I have ever done. What kind of gifts did you bring for the host families/agency workers? orphanage directors: cambridge briefcase & matching dayplanner & portfolio caregivers: modest box of chocolates and $10 host families: at the private hotel I have the hostess and owner a combined gift of an electric meat slicer and grinder after seeing them spend 1-2 hours every day grinding by a hand-operated one. at the public hotel I gave my maid, the cooks, and the hostess party stuff, a cake, chocolates, and bottle of champaigne. my drivers each received a carton of their favorite cigarettes and bottle of vodka. for the host families in Kiev I purchased what I observed they needed...heavy towels...new pillows. My favorite host family was an elderly lady who spoilt my new children rotten every chance she got...all 3 adoption trips. For Baba Olga, I bought several photo albums, a camera & film, prepaid film processing certificates, and left her a card with $100 in it each trip. 4) How long did the adoption process take? about 3 weeks each time During your wait, did you do any site seeing? nope...the only sights I was interested in was my kids How were the local people? awesome Restaurants? the few I visited were good Stores? packed Was there anything that you wished you had brought with you? more books and DVDs for evenings. more peanut butter. there is no such thing in Ukraine and my kids, the facilitator, and translator fell in love with the stuff! anti-bacterial wipes and hand sanitizer Anything you would recommend not to bring? too much of anything. I brought bunches of snack type food the first trip and my Dad ate the peanut butter crackers and a few of the granola bars. I gave the rest to the kids' groupas the last few days just to get rid of it. Did you bring a phone with you? no. I purchased a few SimmSimm cards for my translators phone and used it when I needed to. Did it work? Were there internet cafes near by? yes. although sometimes you have to wait because they are crowded with young people smoking and playing online video games.

Eric, We flew from Chicago to Frankfurt, Germany on Luftansia from Frankfurt to Kiev I do not remember what airline it was. All airlines were fine, just the whole trip was LONG. From the time we got up until the time we were able to put our down in a bed was between 26-30 hours. We each took 1 carry-on and 1 large suitcase. We had no language issues on the flights. We had no problems getting our bags. The agency made arrangement for someone to meet us right after we went thru customs. We had a driver, a van and a translator at our disposal. We had no problems getting to an apartment. Someone lived there, it was clean and neat. The woman cooked for us. We slept about 12 hours and got up and were taken to the NAC appt. Maybe an hour in length. We chose our child. Then in the afternoon we went on a sightseeing tour of Kiev. We were able to purchase souveniors, and take pictures That evening we were taken to the train station and put on the train, right to our compartment. I believe it was a 8+ hour trip. We were met at the train station and taken to the apartment where we would stay. We were then taken to the orphanage and met our child. That was the only child we looked at but we did interact with many of the children at different time during our visits. We were allowed to visit our child everyday for 2 hours. More paperwork was handled. We were able to sightsee in the region of our child's birth and take pictures, pictures, pictures, I want to be able to show my child everything. We also kept a daily journal/diary. The gift for the orphanage was medicines. The gifts for the caretakers and Doctors and Director and the judge, was items like Stationary, pen and pencil sets, hair ornaments, gloves, jewelry, make-up, coffee, tea, For the facilitators, translator, driver, cook we give gifts plus money. After our court date we were able to bring our child to the apartment to wait the 10 day appeals period. The entire adoptions process take 8 months, the court time took 15 minutes and the whole trip took 21 days. We had know problem with the locals, we felt welcome and safe. We ate out sometimes. The shopping was mostly open air markets. The one thing I wish I had done differently is pack lighter. We did not take a phone. We called home 2 times while we were gone from the apartment. The internet cafes were close. Take tissues and t.p. with you. Hand Sanitizers, carry the small bottles with you and use it when ever you think about it. We would use this after contact with our child (scabies). We did not catch scabies and we did not get colds or sniffles and I am convinced the hand sanitizer is the reason. Don't drink the tap water, you can buy bottles water there. We were there in Feb and it was plenty warm inside the apartment. We used an agency that practically held our hand through the process. Even though the preceeding is a pretty good review of OUR trip, keep in mind that our trip was in Feb. 2001. YOUR experience may be somewhat different. The only constant over there is CHANGE. Your need to keep focused on the basic goal (i.e., you are going to get a child), and don't worry about all the related details. Things will work out, whether you worry or not, so at least try not to worry. We tell other adoptive parents to be positive, and to travel with a positive attitude. We felt prayer also was a big help to us. In fact, we were able to attend Mass on 2 of the 3 Sundays we were oversees. Good Luck on your journey...

Hi-- I have a Great Adoption Journal on Ukraine at my web-site. Go to: [url="http://www.russianfamilysearch.com"]http://www.russianfamilysearch.com[/url] the link is Liz-G-orphanage, Nellie's story Also--Great Charity link BF--Adopt_an-Angel Go to trips...and there are lots of photos...of kids,orphanages, countryside!

My wife and I adopted a little over a year ago, and we were there in the middle of winter, so some things might be different, but here is my recommendations: 1) What airline did you use? We flew Delta to Paris and Air France to Kiev (I travel frequently and had points). However, it depends on where you are flying from. My wife and I also spent a long weekend in Paris on the way out, a sort of final vacation for the 2 of us. If you can swing something like that, I would recommend it. How was the flight? About 8 hours to Paris and a couple hours to Kiev Baggage: This depends on the airline. Typically, it is 2 per person weighing less than 50 pounds each for checked baggage and 2 carry-on items. My wife and I shared a large checked bag and had wheeled carry on bags. I recommend a large suitcase (maybe 2 at most) with a good bit of space left. You should also bring a duffle. When we went to the region, we left our large case in Kiev and took our carry-on and a duffle. Was there any language issues while on the flight? I have never been on an international flight where there wasn't an english speaking flight attendant. Once you arrived, did you have any issues getting your bags/finding the baggage pick up? Was there someone there to pick you up and take you to the apartment? The agency we used arranged to meet us at the airport. 2) How was the drive to the apartment? Was it a far commute? The drive to our apartment, which was near downtown Kiev was about 45 minuts to an hour How was the living condition in the apartment? Obivously this can vary, but our apartment was a nice little 1 bedroom. Did you go out for your meals/cook inside? We went out for most meals, but there was a little shop that we picked up stuff from and had in the apartment. How safe did you feel there? Safety was never an issue Was there anything that you needed to buy while there (besides food) i.e. Toilet paper, towels, etc.? We were there in winter, and live in South Florida. I had to buy a hat, scarf and gloves but other than that, nothing we had to buy, and anything we wanted was available. How was the water / Heat there? Our apartment had hot water and pleanty of heat. 3) When you went to your appointment, how long did you wait? We waited about an half hour and the whole thing took about 1 hour the first time and the same the second time (we said no to the first children we were referred to) Are there any suggestions you can give me to make my experience at the appointment easier? Keep an open mind. Remember that the adoption center folks want what's best for you and the children, and they don't always get the full information from the orphanages. How many different orphanages did you visit? We visited 2, the first one was for infants and the second was for 2-3 year olds. We adopted Sarah from the second. What kind of items did you bring as gifts for the orphanages? We bought an industrial washing machine for the orphanage (about $700 US) and gave cash to the workers (soaps and nice smellling stuff is ok, but I prefer cash) How many children did you visit? first we were referred to Twins which were not very healthy, and then we met Sarah. Once you found your child, what happens next? Where you able to leave the orphanage with your child? We had a bad timing. We arrived on Dec 23, and the courts would not schedule anything for the rest of the year, then the government was closed from New Years to Christman (they are on the Julian calandar). So we were there quite a while. Anyway, we visited her twice a day. when the court was scheduled, we went to court, got the decree and got the 30 day waiting period waived. We left with Sarah and got her passport and went back to Kiev. There we got her medical check finished and got her documents to go to Poland (not necessary anymore). After the court hearing total time was about 1 week or less to get home. What kind of gifts did you bring for the host families/agency workers? None, we ended up taking the workers out for most meals, but didn't bring them gifts (we were paying for their time) 4) How long did the adoption process take? Ours lasted an extra month due to rejecting the first referral and the end of year problems During your wait, did you do any site seeing? In Kiev we did sightseeing. I recommend it. I recommend the Lonely Planet guide books. They are very good. How were the local people? everyone we met was very nice Restaurants? Stores? There are some very nice restaurants and stores in downtown. Was there anything that you wished you had brought with you? We were there a long time, and ran out of books to read. we were in a very small village in the far west of Ukraine and ended up having to return to Kiev and get some books. If you have a DVD player (or laptop) bring it with some DVD's. Also Childrens stuff might be a good idea. I also wish I had 1 nice outfit (not a suit, but slacks, shirt and tie for our court date) Anything you would recommend not to bring? Don't overpack. Anything you need, you can get there. don't pack a months worth of clothing. You can was there. We had a washing machine, but even if not, we could have hand washed our stuff. Did you bring a phone with you? Did it work? I have a GSM phone with service from T-mobile. I made sure that international was turned on. However, it was EXTREMELY expensive. I bought a new Chip for my phone and used that. Anyone who called me got charged standard international rates and I was only charged low Ukrainian rates. I could also text message (very popular there) and make local calls. I would recommend that you tell friends and family to get a calling card to call you. Rates to call Ukraine from the US can be very expensive if they don't watch out. My family got down to about 5 cents a minute. Were there internet cafes near by? There were pleanty of them. Also, AOL and some of the other carriers have international numbers. I hope that answers your questions Adam