Tuesday November 20, 2007

This morning I went for a run – it has been four days. It was exhilarating! Was it was just the newness of running along the banks of a canal which joined the Dnepro river, or the cold, crisp frosty air which filled my lungs with each stride? Perhaps it was the beautiful sunlit skyline I was able to observe, or the pride of being a crazy American running with gusto in his white underwear top and bright blue and yellow t-shirt past the drab, dreary-dressed pedestrians on their way to work. Maybe it was trying to get my arms around the reality of being in Kiev, Ukraine. I’ve run on the island of Oahu on the rich red dirt trails in the humid ‘jungle’ or on the beautiful beaches of Waikiki. I’ll have to confess, the times I have run when visiting places have made me feel more at one with a place, or culture, than most any other experience.



Outside Our Apartment Window, Kiev, Ukraine



Morning Run, Kieve, Ukraine



Morning Run, Kiev, Ukraine



Morning Run, Kiev, Ukraine



Morning Run, Kiev, Ukraine



Morning Run With WW II Memorial in Background, Kiev, Ukraine

Today Vladimir showed up to our apartment at 10:00 a.m. sharp to take us to the US Embassy/Consulate to file all our paperwork with the US Department of Home Land Security. When we arrived, there were about 30 or so people waiting outside for their appointments. Natalie told us that because we were American citizens, we did not need an appointment. We just marched to the front of the line and went into the Embassy/Consulate. Only Cheryl, myself and our new children were allowed in the consulate.

In the building, we were checked by security; much like any government buildings conduct security searches, subsequent to “9/11”. After going through the familiar metal detector, we were directed into another building and down a long hallway to an area that handles adoptions and visas. We were helped by a Ukrainian lady who spoke wonderful English. We were separated by a glass window. I had to slide my documents under the window through a metal-lined opening, crafted to allow the passage of documents. The room was small, but had such a distinct flavor of the United States of America with an American flag posted in the corner and a sign that said “Maxim Occupancy Load 13 People”. I felt like I was home for a minute and got a lump in my throat as I gazed upon our beautiful American flag. The lady helping us was very complementary of how organized our documents were. She indicated some facilitators just send their clients in with a pile of papers.

After a while, the lady said everything was in order, except for the document indicating Nadia had no criminal record in Ukraine (due to her age). We had only a copy of the document of her criminal record search for the Sumy region. Vladimir said the document should be here in Kiev today or tomorrow. Nadia was then escorted back and had her finger prints taken. These were to be sent electronically to the US where they would be compared to a national database, to insure we were not adopting a convicted felon. A gentleman from America (it was great to hear a thick American accent) helped conclude the balance of our interview. He indicated that most of the time the database searches come back the next day, yet a priority was given to people adopting small children. He told us to come back tomorrow for our interview – and that our visa for Roman and Nadia would be issued (subject to the database search and the document regarding Nadia’s criminal record for Ukraine).



WW II Memorial, Driving to US Embassy/Consulate



Church, Outside US Embassy/Consulate


Church, Outside US Embassy/Consulate


Cheryl, who was sicker than a dog, had Vladimir take her home to the apartment so she could crawl in bed and sleep. Me, Natalie, and the kids went shopping to a ‘Walmart’ type hyper-mall (pronounced “OK” store) where we were able to shop for Serge, Nadia and Roman’s older brother. We then went to the post office where we purchased 10 international letters which I addressed to both Nadia and Roman Wendelboe, at their new home address. We packed these, with the contents we purchased at the store, to his address in the prison at Donesk.

Not feeling like trying to get a meal together for four people and a wife who was sick in bed, we decided to let Cheryl sleep. The four of us – me, Natalie and the children – took the metro into Kiev from our apartment. We ate at the same restaurant (translated ‘big belly’) which we ate on Monday, after the kids’ medical examinations. It was the same restaurant, but at a different location. After dinner, we walked to the cinema to see a movie. On the way to the movie, I was shocked when right in the middle of down town Kiev; I saw an office building with a large “Ernst & Young” sign on it (one of the big four accounting firms). I wondered if most of their business was consulting, or if there are any auditing and accounting standards in Ukraine, or if there are public companies based in Ukraine. I believe they have a stock market here with publically traded companies. I wondered about the restaurant we just ate. I don’t know if it was owned by the same owners, or they have franchises here in Kiev. Natalie told me earlier there are 24 McDonalds just in Kiev (6 million people). I see a ton of new building going on here with residential apartments. There is definitely an infusion of capital here in Kiev – whether it is local or foreign money would be an interesting bit of trivia for this bean counter to delve into. Anyway, the kids and Natalie ended up going to a 3-D cartoon movie while I sat in the Internet café (upstairs from the movie) where I was able to read and answer some email. The movie was only 1 hour and apparently pretty lame, even by Ukraine standards. I guess the 3-D effect was barely enough to hold their interest for the entire hour.



Downtown Kiev, Nightime



Ernst and Young, Downtown Kiev, Ukraine



Billboard, Downtown Kiev, Ukraine (Roman's Favorite Ukranian Soccer Player)



When we got home, Cheryl and I had to make a decision. Our scheduled flight to leave Ukraine was for Thursday, November 29th. Based on what the gentleman said to us at the US Embassy/Consulate, there was a good chance we could get our visa’s tomorrow, on Wednesday. On Thursday, the Consulate would be closed in observance of the Thanksgiving holiday. In fact, a worker at the Consulate informed us that they observe both US and Ukrainian holidays and because of that fact alone, made it a great place to work. I got on the phone and called BYU travel to look at the possibility of moving our flights to an earlier date. According to Nancy Bean (BYU travel), the only flights available were on Thursday (Thanksgiving) and the following Tuesday, a mere two days prior to our scheduled flight. If we scheduled a Thanksgiving flight, incurred the extra costs, and did not get our visas tomorrow (Wednesday), we would have to inure the extra costs once again to change our flight until next Tuesday. There were only four seats available on the Thursday flight. I hung up the phone and told Nancy I’d call her back in 5-10 minutes after we had discussed the issue. Cheryl and I discussed this, along with Natalie (our translator). We weighed the pros and cons – extra costs incurred each day for staying in Kiev, Calvin on leave without pay from work, away from our family, etc. Cheryl said that perhaps it was not a coincidence that there were only four seats on the flight home. Of course prayers were offered and I wish I could say I had a feeling or prompting which made me say “yes” to Nancy when I called her back in about 10 minutes. A bit of panic hit me when she repeated the large amount of money she would be charging my credit card for the price associated with Roman and Nadia’s ticket, inclusive of the extra costs incurred for changing our previously arranged flight. We went to bed that night, praying very hard that we would receive our visas tomorrow.