As Erik has been working assiduously on his book, he has also been watching the Ukrainian parliament sessions on television. As you may recall, the election in September gave the Orange Revolution forces a bare majority in parliament (assuming that they could keep their deputies in line). The new parliament opened and began its work to set up committees, elect a speaker, and choose the prime minister. All of these decisions have been controversial, none more so than the selection of the prime minister.
Over the last few days, the debate has heated up and boiled over. In the initial vote on Yuliya Tymoshenko's candidacy as prime minister, she received only 225 votes - one short of the required majority. As the vote was taking place, the speaker of parliament's card for recording his vote was taken by another member of parliament, preventing him from voting. Tymoshenko's party also alleged that the electronic voting system was rigged. The parliament is now debating the appropriateness of a re-vote based on existing laws and regulations, and whether or not this may be done by voice rather than using the electronic voting equipment. The proposed re-vote was delayed by a blockade of the dais, preventing the speaker from taking his place yesterday. Today, while a member of parliament was charging the speaker with violations of the law and regulations, his time ran out and the mic turned off (the speaker has been cutting off long-winded people all morning, with a 1-minute time limit on speeches). The deputy refused to leave the podium without a chance to finish his speech, and almost came to blows with another member of parliament who tried to physically remove him. Some photos of the drama are available on the Korrespondent.net site.
While the goings-on are chaotic and sometimes childish, the debate over procedures is actually refreshing. The idea that proper procedure should be followed seems basic, but the rule of law is a concept that is slowly catching on.
Thursday, December 13, 2007
Tuesday, December 11, 2007
Героям Слава!
With these words, you too can gain entry to the fairly new, hip underground cafe in L'viv - Kriyivka. The vice rector's son clued us in on the cafe's whereabouts, but it was full when we tried to go with Carter (or, we were rejected because Carter was in tow). Erik made plans to go with Ewa, another Fulbright scholar in L'viv, and they trekked out in the cold rain to check the place out today.
The entrance is unmarked, in a building on Rynok Square. As you approach the darkened doorway, a motion-sensor trips and a small floodlight turns on. You tap the door and a small hole opens, with a rifle-muzzle pointed through. The guard prompts you to deliver the password, and lets you in. After assuring the guards that there are no Russians with you, each visitor takes a complementary shot of vodka, then descends into the basement. The cafe is designed to look like a bunker used by UPA (the Ukrainian partisan army that we wrote about previously), complete with real decommissioned weapons (at least I hope they are decommissioned - the pistol had blank rounds in it). It also has many photos of UPA soldiers, like the one above. The cafe is controversial on both sides of the UPA debate. It glorifies a group that some Ukrainians think was villainous, and it trivializes an era that many locals think was a glorious, but doomed, fight for freedom.We found a table in a room that was not too smoky (one of the hazards of being in a popular club) and sat down. As we got settled, some young men came in and asked us to move to an adjacent table so that they could accommodate their friends. We moved, but were then told by staff that our new table was reserved. So, we struck a few poses, chatted with some of the patrons (including the young men who evicted us from our table), and then eventually sauntered off without snacking.
Sunday, December 9, 2007
The More Things Change...
Erik has collected a few historic photos of our neighborhood that are prints developed from the original negatives (taken from 1900-1915). What is quite astonishing is how little the center of L'viv has changed in 100 years.
The first photo above features our apartment building in 1905, and the second photo shows it in 2007. Aside from having an extra floor on top and an alley where there was a storefront, the building has not changed much in over a century. The angle on the contemporary photo is different because a tree now blocks the view of the original photographer.
Taking a left out of our apartment entrance, and walking 2-3 blocks on Prospekt Svobody, leads you to the gem of our street: the L'viv Opera House. As you can see from the photos above, the Opera House has undergone some renovation over the last 100 years (note how smooth parts of the building are now), but the basic features of the facade remain the same. The tramvai line on our street is long gone, however, and smoke no longer billows out of the chimney (barely visible to the left and rear of the building).
If you were to turn right out of the apartment entrance, you would be heading in the direction of the market that we frequent: the Halitskiy Rynok. This market is the home of the Cheese Lady and the Ham Lady, and the Bread Lady has a kiosk nearby. The market is not visible in this photo, but it is just to the right as you approach the church. The large streetlight is gone, replaced by ugly overhead wiring, and modern autos (even a marshrutka) are visible in the contemporary photo. In many ways, though, L'viv is as it was at the turn of the last century.
The first photo above features our apartment building in 1905, and the second photo shows it in 2007. Aside from having an extra floor on top and an alley where there was a storefront, the building has not changed much in over a century. The angle on the contemporary photo is different because a tree now blocks the view of the original photographer.
Taking a left out of our apartment entrance, and walking 2-3 blocks on Prospekt Svobody, leads you to the gem of our street: the L'viv Opera House. As you can see from the photos above, the Opera House has undergone some renovation over the last 100 years (note how smooth parts of the building are now), but the basic features of the facade remain the same. The tramvai line on our street is long gone, however, and smoke no longer billows out of the chimney (barely visible to the left and rear of the building).
If you were to turn right out of the apartment entrance, you would be heading in the direction of the market that we frequent: the Halitskiy Rynok. This market is the home of the Cheese Lady and the Ham Lady, and the Bread Lady has a kiosk nearby. The market is not visible in this photo, but it is just to the right as you approach the church. The large streetlight is gone, replaced by ugly overhead wiring, and modern autos (even a marshrutka) are visible in the contemporary photo. In many ways, though, L'viv is as it was at the turn of the last century.
Friday, December 7, 2007
One More Stroll Through Town
On the last day of Lea and Carter's visit to L'viv, we decided to do some of our favorite things one more time. We strolled through the old town, pausing on Rynok Square to feed the birds, and attended a puppet show. Appropriately, the show was a fantasy history of L'viv, starring the royal for whom the city was named and a real lion. The "Dva Levi [Two Lions]" duked it out, then united to beat a common foe. They decided to become friends and allies, with one serving as king of the humans and the other as king of the animals. Also on the last day, Carter decided to learn the Ukrainian alphabet. Why he waited until the last day, we will never know. He spent time finding the letters in the dictionary, and writing out Ukrainian letters. He now knows several letters, comparing the "Ukrainian" letters with "our" letters.
Erik picked up some cheese for syrniki and made them for dinner. While they are typically a breakfast item, it was a perfect final meal in L'viv. This morning, we loaded everything up in the university van and headed to the airport. Lea and Carter are now on their long journey home.
What We Will Not Miss
While we have enjoyed our time in L'viv, certain inconveniences make daily life challenging. When reflecting back on our trip, we will not wax nostalgic about:
1. Marshrutkas. We have described these run-down, jam-packed, privately-run buses in other posts. We try to avoid travel on them at all costs. Nothing has been more frustrating and uncomfortable than getting around town on a marshrutka. Erik's foot has been closed in the door, he has performed a sort of game of twister while careening through traffic in order to try to stand up, and a driver refused his calls to let us off, requiring all three of us to walk nearly a mile to get to our destination. Thankfully, living downtown, we have not used them as often as most L'viv residents must.
2. Crazy Products. Imagine, if you will, lemon-scented, pre-yellowed toilet paper. Finding a plain white, non-scented variety has been a challenge. Or, perhaps Bobos - you know what you have left when you have sucked the orange powder off a cheese puff (come on, you have all done it)? Add a sickly sweet flavor, and you have plain Bobos. If you prefer, try the bacon or chocolate flavors. How about prune yogurt? Another "favorite" was unsweetened cranberry spice pop (made by Schweppes). Finally, who could forget water-resistant paper towel?
3. Arbitrary Decisions. As we have noted before, everything is negotiable. This means that few if any decisions are firm, complicating planning and leading to head-spinning results (for an example, read our previous post about traveling back to Ukraine from Poland via the train). We have learned to just roll with this inconvenience, but it constantly invades daily life.
4. Outlandish Theories. Kansans with nightmare visions of a UN-led One World Government operating black helicopters for nefarious purposes have nothing on many of the locals. We have heard explanations of events - both big and small - that make the DaVinci Code seem like a documentary (for an example, read our previous post about our Tustan host's view of the world).
5. Unsolicited Parenting Advice. This usually comes from old ladies, not from the other responsible parents who are smoking in front of their kids and letting them ride in the front seat of cars unbelted (and are NOT subjected to criticism). We and Carter are regularly berated because he is not dressed warmly enough (where are his snow pants? where is his hat?), or he is sucking his thumb (accompanied by their efforts to physically remove his thumb from his mouth). Carter is by no means a constant thumb-sucker, but any time he even attempts to do it in public, he encounters the wrath of old women, who otherwise would likely be offering him candy. The other day, Lea and Carter fell while crossing the street and Erik scooped Carter up, held him on his lap crouching and was trying to console him (fortunately, he was crying to clean his hands, as they got dirt on them) when an old lady approached and started talking to Erik. No, she did not offer to call a doctor or otherwise help, rather, she loomed over Erik telling him that he was not properly consoling Carter.
6. Lack of Automation. Washing all dishes by hand and hanging all laundry in the shower makes us appreciate the great convenience of dishwashers and clothes dryers even more.
Despite the negative tone of this post, our time in L'viv has been quite nice, especially due to our good friends in town. But, we are also looking forward to the return home.
1. Marshrutkas. We have described these run-down, jam-packed, privately-run buses in other posts. We try to avoid travel on them at all costs. Nothing has been more frustrating and uncomfortable than getting around town on a marshrutka. Erik's foot has been closed in the door, he has performed a sort of game of twister while careening through traffic in order to try to stand up, and a driver refused his calls to let us off, requiring all three of us to walk nearly a mile to get to our destination. Thankfully, living downtown, we have not used them as often as most L'viv residents must.
2. Crazy Products. Imagine, if you will, lemon-scented, pre-yellowed toilet paper. Finding a plain white, non-scented variety has been a challenge. Or, perhaps Bobos - you know what you have left when you have sucked the orange powder off a cheese puff (come on, you have all done it)? Add a sickly sweet flavor, and you have plain Bobos. If you prefer, try the bacon or chocolate flavors. How about prune yogurt? Another "favorite" was unsweetened cranberry spice pop (made by Schweppes). Finally, who could forget water-resistant paper towel?
3. Arbitrary Decisions. As we have noted before, everything is negotiable. This means that few if any decisions are firm, complicating planning and leading to head-spinning results (for an example, read our previous post about traveling back to Ukraine from Poland via the train). We have learned to just roll with this inconvenience, but it constantly invades daily life.
4. Outlandish Theories. Kansans with nightmare visions of a UN-led One World Government operating black helicopters for nefarious purposes have nothing on many of the locals. We have heard explanations of events - both big and small - that make the DaVinci Code seem like a documentary (for an example, read our previous post about our Tustan host's view of the world).
5. Unsolicited Parenting Advice. This usually comes from old ladies, not from the other responsible parents who are smoking in front of their kids and letting them ride in the front seat of cars unbelted (and are NOT subjected to criticism). We and Carter are regularly berated because he is not dressed warmly enough (where are his snow pants? where is his hat?), or he is sucking his thumb (accompanied by their efforts to physically remove his thumb from his mouth). Carter is by no means a constant thumb-sucker, but any time he even attempts to do it in public, he encounters the wrath of old women, who otherwise would likely be offering him candy. The other day, Lea and Carter fell while crossing the street and Erik scooped Carter up, held him on his lap crouching and was trying to console him (fortunately, he was crying to clean his hands, as they got dirt on them) when an old lady approached and started talking to Erik. No, she did not offer to call a doctor or otherwise help, rather, she loomed over Erik telling him that he was not properly consoling Carter.
6. Lack of Automation. Washing all dishes by hand and hanging all laundry in the shower makes us appreciate the great convenience of dishwashers and clothes dryers even more.
Despite the negative tone of this post, our time in L'viv has been quite nice, especially due to our good friends in town. But, we are also looking forward to the return home.
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