behind again

Have been fairly lucky to have an internet in a couple of places in the Ukraine but in Yalta, no such luck. finally found an internet cafe but the "boys" (ok, men in their late 20's but hey, that is a boy to me now, I am that old!) couldn't figure out how to get my flash drive so that I could read it and use it. Not knowing the language sometimes is really the pits. Figure it's good enough that I managed to figure out how to type in English rather than Russian. So I have three blogs to post and won't be able to post them until tonight in Istanbul or tomorrow in Qatar. They will be posted though, with the right date so just wait for it please.

mountains around Yalta
Yalta is quite lovely. I have enjoyed my very short stay here. I think it would be nice to visit in warmer months but I can also imagine it is quite a zoo in the high tourist times and expensive. Last night I went to McDonald's to get dinner and there was a DJ in the large square by the promenade. There were a lot of people dancing. When I got there, it was a slow dance and older couples, younger couples, parents dancing with their toddlers, everyone was enjoying it. Then it got lively with everyone just doing their own thing including this lady who I would swear was older than me and still I saw her do a squat and jump up like a classic Russian Nutcracker Ballet dancer. I would break myself trying to do that. It was a full moon and they were dancing under the moon and under Lenin's statue and enjoying life. So good to see that.

cat in the window
This morning, I went out early and walked around and followed the church bells to Nevsky Cathedral where ladies were rushing to enter. Then walked along the promenade where fishermen were already reeling in some small fish and waves were washing up on the breakwater. The sidewalk kiosks were already beginning to open and the ladies were under the pedestrian underpass selling flowers and the fruit stands were open. How can these people stand to be outside in the cold all the time? They are all bundled up against the cold but they sit there day after day. Last night, the drink vender was holding a hot water kettle in her hands to keep warm. This morning, one of the flower ladies was standing on a cardboard box to keep her feet off the cold concrete. The internet cafe boys asked how I liked the weather and I said it was cold and they had the biggest laugh! The city heating system does not even turn on until November 15. I guess you do get used to it and then do what you need to do to stay warm or cool, depending on the season.

lion statue
Anyway, I would come back to Yalta and I hope to so do someday when my husband can accompany me. Now I need to go back to my apartment and get packed and ready to leave. it's at least a 2 hour drive from here to Simferopol where I will get the Turkish Airlines back to Istanbul.
More thumbnails ...

church on a cliff

Swallows Nest Castle