Chernihiv: The Return

So this weekend I went back to Chernihiv to visit my host family. Now this is where it really started. It is cold now which is not how it felt when I left but it was certainly cold when we arrived. I rolled into the train station around 1pm on Saturday. I took the electrichka into Chernihiv because it was the cheapest and fastest option. Not bad either it only took 4 hours to get there and I didn't have to change trains. Score!

So I roll into the Vokzal (train station) and take a picture of the Chernihiv sign because I have never been to this train station. I didn't visit it while I lived here. Not sure why really. I am certain that was one of our assignments. I remember passing it all the time when I rolled by it on bus number 1 on the way to the city but I never went there.

I met Polina at the train station, bought my ticket for my return to Konotop and then we waited down the street for bus number 1 to take me back to Stari Bilous! Oh Stari! Polina is my mom's friend and co-worker. Funny thing she lives here but doesn't know where the bus stop is or which bus to take to Stari nor does she know where to get off the bus and where Ira's house is (Ira is my host mother). So I lead us on which is fine because I like to do that. It is so fun being in Chernihiv. It is nice knowing my way around and it is even nicer that nothin has changed in the three (almost) months since I left. The trees and the grass are overgrown but all in all it is still the same Chernihiv. It is kind of weird being alone in Chernihiv without the group but it was so nice to see my mom!

I arrive in her korridor and she is so happy to see me and I am so happy to see her! Katia and Yana are there too. It is like I never left. My Russian is definitely better now though. I can understand her better too. I ask where Kolia is (yana's boyfriend) and he is working and then he has a soccer game. I am not here long enough to go see his game and spend time with my mom but I will be back soon.

So the first thing we do is EAT. She is mad at me that I am so skinny. She doesn't think that I am eating. I am eating but not like she feeds me. I can't believe all the food that woman makes me. I eat it too. We had a lot of tea, olivie (an egg salad with mayonaise - the only thing I like mayonaise on), blinchiki (crepes), baked chicken, grechka (buckwheat), mashed potatoes, and I think that was it for yesterday. Of course today is all the leftovers. She has pigs now...as you can see in the picture above.

Everyone is doing real good. Yana started at technical school. She is studying hotel management. She is taking English and German language class as well and she was talking to me with her new words. Finally, she speaks to me in English! She had a bad English teacher in high school. I met this teacher and she is horrible. It's too bad because her town is only 2500 and they only have 2 English teachers.

I definitely appreciated my experience more so this time around. Something about leaving and coming back. I know my mom really cares for me and she is concerned about me which is really nice to have. I certainly appreciated her at the time but now it is even more. They are definitely my Ukrainian family! They will be in my life forever.

Tomorrow is "City Day" in my town. I need to be at work early tomorrow morning. There will be festivities to participate in. I will write soon about them.

On another note...as my emotions continue to spiral around and all over the place someone told me recently that..."You are writing a story right now and you can write a positive one or you can write a negative one". This is something I think about all the time and when I am down and out in Beverly Hills I think about how I want to write a positive one.