Vacation to Odessa!

Vacation all I ever wanted! Vacation had to get away!

My group went to Odessa. I want to tell everyone that it is a terrible, ugly place and no one should ever go there but that would be selfish of me and I would be lying. I want to keep this town secret because it is wonderful and I want to keep it all to myself. Odessa is a beach town. It is so laid back and relaxing. I couldn’t imagine a better place to vacation.

The train station

We left Wednesday night and spent all night on a sleeper train. It was the first time I have ever been on a train and I spent pretty much all night sleep. Samantha and I had to share a little compartment with a man and an old lady. It was awkward but we made do.

The park in Odessa

We arrived early Thursday morning and we immediately checked into the hostel. A hostel is not a hotel. Hostels have a lot of beds in one room and you only pay for a bed unlike hotels where you pay for a room. So when you go into a hostel, you are sharing a room with people you don’t know. Luckily, we had a room all to ourselves, which means 12 girls in one room. I glad that we didn’t have to share a room with any strangers. If we had to, it would have been very awkward.

At the Black Sea!

The people who worked there were like all the other Ukrainians, they didn’t appear very friendly. One worker however was so nice. She was interested in everything we did and wanted to know if we enjoyed it. I even found out that she is a teacher and working at the hostel is just a part time job. It was nice talking to her about teaching. She thought it was great that I was teaching English. She stuck out from the other hostel workers because she actually talked to me and she had a smile on her face. She made my experience at the hostel great.

Later that day, half of us went to the Black Sea. The walk was a little long but it was good exercise and once we got to the beach, it was fun! It was great to be in the Black Sea. Not very many Americans can say that they have been to the Black Sea. Then we had dinner at a Mexican restaurant. I have been wanting Mexican for a really long time. And now if I can get some Chinese food in me…I will be even happier!

Outside the Opera House

Friday: I want to start this portion of my day telling you about the delicious meal I had. I had the best chicken wrap I have had in a long time. I think it was good because it was something that I hadn’t had in a long time and it wasn’t soup. In the evening, we went to a ballet. I have never been to a ballet and it was beautiful. We saw Sleeping Beauty. Even though I knew the story line (thank you Disney) I still had a hard time following it because some parts were drawn out and I felt that the important parts was rushed. And it seemed like the fairy was the main character not the princess. My favorite part of everything was the Opera House. It was exquisite. It was nothing I have ever seen before and unfortunately pictures cannot capture its beauty. After the play was over, we went over to Bro. and Sis. Colvin’s apartment for desserts. It was very nice that they invited all 12 of us over for desserts. The great thing was that we didn’t know them until a week before when we ran into them at FHE and they told us that they live in Odessa. And when I told them that we were going there they immediately invited us over. It was very hospitable of them and I am very grateful for them.

Inside the Opera House

Saturday was so fun! We spent the afternoon at the Black Sea. I love being at the beach. It is so relaxing. Jenna, Cherish, Hanna, and I went back to the hostel while the other girls stayed at the beach. At the hostel, we had a special dance video and Hanna and I tried to dance ghetto…but it just wasn’t happening. We are too white to even pretend to be ghetto. But it was funny when Cherish started choking on water. after getting lost the other girls joined us at the hostel. We went out for pizza and it was pretty good. I really love pizza. Then the group split for ice cream. Some of us wanted ice cream from Baskin Robbins until we found out that it was expensive. But some crazy things happened. We were taking pictures by the gazebo when some ladies came up to us and asked us to play a game with them. I didn’t really know what was going on but when they started running I was compelled to join them so we all starting running after them. It was a good thing that we did because played a game in the park with a bunch of Ukrainians and we were all laughing. We stood in two lines and with one hand we had to hold the hand of the person in front of us. Then the people at the end of the line ran through the open space grabbing the arms of the people next to them and repeated until the last person ran through. We played a couple of rounds of this. None of us knew what was going on because the instructions were given in Russian but we quickly caught on. Then Jenna was almost attacked by a giant ice cream cone! That is right. We saw three men running across us and one of them was holding a giant cone (it looked as if they stole it). He ran up to us and swung the cone in Jenna’s direction. It was so random and funny. Saturday night was so much fun! I loved walking around Odessa.

Sunday: We came back to Kiev. It was strange going home because it wasn’t really home. I was going back to Kiev not Boise. But it was good to be back. On the way to the train, I popped my ankle. It was so scary because I couldn’t stand up and my whole body went into shock. Four girls had to carry me to the train station. I was in so much pain and I was completely out of it. I am thankful for these ladies. They took such good care of me. And I am grateful that I hurt my ankle after the vacation was over so I didn’t miss out on any of the fun.

So this is pretty much the gist of my vacation in Odessa. When can I go back?