1st Day of School

Monday, Sept. 1, 2014--Lviv

We unexpectedly got a heavy rain for about 3 hours last night between 20:00 and 23:00.  It wasn't in the forecast.  And by this morning, everything was dry and sunny again.  It sure caused a lot of clatter on the roof when it was falling.

As I left the apartment this morning, I was surprised by huge crowds of young people on the sidewalks.  The main university campus is only 2 blocks away, and these looked like university students.  Then I noticed that parents were also out walking with young children.  Apparently today is the first day of school and Lviv was buzzing with activity.

Maybe it is traditional, or maybe it is a result of the present war, but many of the students were dressed in native costumes today.  They looked nice in their embroidered shirts, blouses, etc.  Many of the girls had their hair braided, and some had flowers in their hair or in their hands.  The atmosphere was festive rather than serious.  It reminded me of the times before pre-registration by computer, when everyone would show up at campus to register with no class responsibilities for 3-4 days.  Even with the young ones, they seemed to be getting registered and then going to the stores to buy their school supplies.  Parents often held large envelopes (x-rays, vaccination records?).

I needed to exchange more Euros for local currency today.  So far, the value of the Ukrainian currency has gone UP every day that I have been in the country.  That means that the amount that I get per Euro has gone down--from 18.1 per Euro the day I arrived to 17.1 today.  The same has happened in relation to its value to the dollar,  I wonder why it is going up rather than down in the current political circumstances with Russia?

Cafes, parks, squares, etc., were all crowded with the students today.  Still, I managed to find places where I could sit and read while enjoying the atmosphere.  I also explored a few streets behind the Hotel George--one of the fancier parts of town.  (By the way, "George" is a beautiful word in the Ukrainian written language as signed on the hotel:  жордж.)  This is the classiest part of town I have found so far--large, fancy apartment buildings, expensive and exclusive stores and restaurants, etc.  

I bought my ticket for the train I will take in two days.  It's an overnight train to Odesa, and I was still too late to get a lower birth.  I will have to sleep in an upper birth, but there are only two levels in the sleeper cars here.  It's not like being in the third level in India, thank goodness!  

In the early afternoon, I went to the deli section of the supermarket I found near here.  I bought two pre-cooked meatballs,  a package of pre-cooked chunks of potatoes (seasoned and fried), some mustard, and a beer.  I heated the meatballs in the microwave and heated the potatoes in a skillet on the stove top.  It made a great dinner.

Tomorrow is a travel day, so, I must get things organized.  Then I'll watch the news on TV and go to bed early.