I visited the museum of the chernobyl tragedy in KIev. Chernobyl is situated at 120 km north of KIev. Unfortunately I couldn t make a tour in the ghost city of chernobyl because of the aviability of the guide. I ve met an ausatalian boy in Lviv he ve done it. I saw the picture.... it s completly ashtonishable. In August we knew that a big French company won the tender for the next chernobyl works. The contract was firmed this week. They gonna make a sarcofage under the nuclear power plant of chernobyl as a kind of protection.

In kiev visited the caves monastery, several monks are burried in a labyrinth of caves. It was interesting also to meet a girl that her father belonged to the eastern ukrainian mafia!!! She said me that my black leather jacket was tipical from the mafia.

Fidji  has gone this morning, he stayed 5 days. I gonna take the night train to Odessa...the second biggest city in Ukrain...this city is the country s gateway to the black sea. 

On tuesday I hope to reach moldova, more eactly chisinau the capital.

Most of you don t known Nishym, It s normal. It s an untouristic city situated in the center of Ukraine.

Fidji a friend of mine came 5 days to give me a visit in KIev. After having few days in the capital, we decided to adventure us in a small city in the middle of nowhere. We went to the railway station and we took the first train leaving.

We wanted to go to an untouristic place. Someone helped us to get the ticket, we took a train running towards moscow.

On the train we was with two old russian ladies, they brought lot of food, it smelt chicken in all the tren carriage. I ll try to load the picture on the blog. It s worth seeing it.

In the middle of the countryside, the tren stop at least half hour (we didnt t know the reason) ...Anyway..tren s controlers  went in the forest beside the tren track to bring back wood....people from the tren help them..the heating system of each carriage works with coal and wood..Controlers have in charge to put wood and coal in the different fire place of the tren during the journey.

 We got off the train at the first stop. Nizhym is at 150 km from Kviv, on the northeast direction.

Fortunately , there was an hotel, with the view on the Lenine Statue, on the main square. People said to uis that we was the first tourist in this city. The hotel is for the student or the workers who are not from this city.

It was exotic for most of them to meet foreigners. The problem was to communicate with people. Wew was really hungry, we went to the restaurant and fidji ordered the most expensive dish and orange juice.  Instead of to carry 2 dishes, the waitress carried us two bottles of champagne. Unfortunately we ordered drinks instead of food. Russian language is so misunderstable for us. We could explain with some difficulties to the girl that we wanted to eat.

At the time to go out , we didn t find out a club to go out, so as the local people we bought a bottle of vodka and we drank it below the bus stop with the young of the city. We received a really nice welcome. We didn t finish the bottles, but homeless remated them as soon as we left.

I got  in at lastthe bus station of Lviv, after some taxis offers, i risked to take a city bus to reach the down town. A nice girl  took me to the entrance of my hotel. Hotel LVIV, a huge hotel, with at least 300 gloomys rooms, well I risked again to enter in that grey building.

Lviv has a dense and complex history (ex capital, ex trade center of eastern europe in the middle ages). Well the center was preserved from the war and even if it not so well kept, it s elegant.

When I asked for information at the hotel reception, I had the impression that I was in a big railway statiion. The welcome was really impersonnal ( I hope to show you a picture even if it was forbiden to take picture inside). I discovered the room 607, i ll stay no more that one night in this depressing place.

йщзывджыуД just to have an idea of what you can read in a ukrainian restaurant.

I joined the cosmonaut hotel, keep by an australian boy. More cosy and friendly. There I met travelers from australia, california, danemark... It s the only true youth hostel in Lviv. I   took advantage of the washing mashing in the hostel to wash my clothes.  I went to the sauna with other menber of the hotel, a crappy sauna, this place was so rotten, a really unique experience. They (ukrainians) beat themselves with branches meanwhile there atay in the sauna....i ve no idea of the virtue of that method.

In Lviv you have to be careful wit the price in the restaurant, it s the price for 100 grammes, I didn t know that!!! I was surprise when I saw on the bill that it was four time more expensive than the real price,...you know why ......because my fish weighted 400 g

Half hour after leaving, we got the border, a big traffic jam gonna made us wait for 2 hours. Polish people come to ukraine to buy alcohol, ukrainians come to poland to buy construction materials and other staff.

The bus driver said to me that we was quiet lucky, sometimes they have to wait half a day. It depends on the mood of the ukrainian police. After few inking pad and the great welcome of the ukrainian police!!! I  passed at last the border.

In Ukraine I could discover the cyrilic alfabet, polish was ever difficult for me but ukrainian is definitly unreadable. I don t know how to pronounce it, anyway I ll put up with. Nothing is translated into english...it ll be exotic and upsetable !!!!.

After having a whole week in Krakow, I decided to leave this lively city. I took a train to get Pzemysl, a city situated on a hill, close to the ukrainian border. As you could notice, I dont follow exaclty my first itinarary. Quiet different, but I didnt know before that you didn t need anymore visa to enter in ukraine. You don t need visa since 2005. I ve planned to stay only 2 days in cracow, i stayed one week, that what I love in my trip, the freedom to stay longer or to leave when I want.

Contrary to cracow, only very few people speak english in this. In cracow everything is done to attract the tourist and to make her life easier: menu are in english, lot of youth hostel, change office in each street,....

I was quiet nicely surprise of the motivation of the young polish to make up lost time from the communist period. In few years it should be the same economic lecel as in western countries .Old people have some difficulties to adapt with the capitalism, some of them prefer the old time. But young people don t, they learn foreign language and they are not afraid to have a while in western country to get experience. I read in a newspapers that most of them are ready to work more than 10 hours a day to get experience (really far away the 35 hours a week in the french companies).

It s 7h30 in the morning, I got up early to catch the bus to Lviv. I stayed one night in this cosy hotel in Premysl,  I slept quiet well , I needed to recharge the battery after the night life of cracow. It s 5 degree outside, today I put my scarf for the first time. I walked until the bus station. I bought the ticket 20 zlotys, I changed my polish notes into ukrainian monnay. I ve exactly 23 minutes to spend 6,56 zlotys. I bought 3 bananas and a snack I took it as breakfast. The crappy bus is ukrainian, we are only four in it. I was going to understand later that it was not the good choice to take this bus.  

I landed in Katowice on the monday at noon, Katowice is an ugly industrial polish city, that s why I took as soom as I could a train to Cracovia. Cracovia was the capital of Poland until the 17th century. A really nice city, every attractions can be get by feet, walking through the numerous pedestrians streets.

I ve already had a short visite of that city when I came for a wedding of my sister s friend in TARNOW two years ago. Interesting for me to see back this city, the improvement and the change of the city are quiet noticeable in two years. A huge number of building   have been revovated, the traditional small car FIAT from the communist period have nearly disappeared.

 Some examples of things which I ve found interesting: 

- You can ask and have a beer in the same time that you are watching a movie in the cinema, there was a bar in the movie theatre.

- To visit the Kazimierch tour, a visit among the ex jewish district, where was shooted the schiendler s list (the famous movie made by steven spielberg), it s still possible to visit the oscar schiendler factory.

- To visit the Nuwa Huta district. A communism district, 10 km from Cracow center. gigantic blocks, gigantic pavements and roads.

- To chill out in the old city center, even the toilets of the Mac Donalds are implanted in a room from the 13th century!!!

- To assist at a classical music concert in one of the numerous Cracowian church

- To tast the polish food : ciastka, kompot, bigos, pierogi...Dlaczego lubie polske!!!

The 1st of october : the departure

 It s 4h25 in the morning, the alarm clock rang. I ve slept only 4 hours, I ve waiting 1 year this moment, I had any difiicuties to get up. Arnaud a freind who suggested to take me to the bus had more difficulties than me. I left Normandy four days ago to visit some friend of mine in Caen, Angers and Paris.

After taking a strong coffee, we walked until the Fiat of Sophie, fortunately the car started well. In few minutes we got the porte maillot. A big queue was already waiting for the bus to get Beauvais Airport.

I bought one week before my departure a low cost ticket to Katowice (south of Poland). I havn t planned to go there but I took the opportunity to go to estearn europe for 40 euros. After giving hugs to Arnaud, I let him going back to sleep... 

I sat close the a spanish girl in the bus, completly drunk, she splet all the trip long, she smelled the cheap wine...burk. We got in the airport at 6h30, once arrived, I inquiered that the plane was running with two hours of delay. I bought the figaro newspaper, it helped me to wait . It was rainning a lot but we taken off at 10 oclock to poland.

As you could notice it, I ve decided to write all the article in english, it could be easier for most of the blog viewers.