We Have Landed!

Sorry we couldn't post sooner... computer issues and catching up on sleep are the reasons! We arrived in Kiev Monday afternoon around 1:30 p.m. We didn't get out of the passport/luggage/customs area until around 3:00 p.m. This was a bit of a struggle considering how tired we were... especially Sydney. None of us were able to sleep on the plane. Overall, the flights were good except for the last stretch from Frankfurt to Kiev. We couldn't get seats together so we had to sit 1 row behind each other in the middle seats. This proved to be very interesting with overcrowding (seats were small) and it being so hot on the plane - the aromas were abundant! But, we made it in one piece and are glad to have made it here with very little problem.

We were taken to get groceries and then to our apartment, which happens to be on the fourth floor... four floors of stairs! We lugged our suitcases and groceries up and we were asleep by 6:00 p.m. Kiev time (it is 9 hours ahead here). We all awoke at various times throughout the night. Syd got up at 3:00 a.m., then I got up at 4:30 and last but not least, Dan at 5:00 a.m. We had an appointment with Dr. Yuri at 11:15 a.m. to review some possible health issues we may see at our appointment. He is a very nice man and we feel really good about meeting with him.

The driving here is very fast and crazy. There are no seatbelts to use (they are all tucked in under the seats). Our taxi driver that took us to our appointment today had some anger issues and at one point got out of the car to yell at another driver. The driver we had on the way back was much nicer but still drove really fast.

We spent the afternoon with friends from Regina that are here in the final stages of their adoption. It was great to see them. They took us around downtown and showed us the ropes. Our apartment is right in the hub of downtown so it is quite noisy and lots of traffic. The apartment is pretty good. Once we know where we will be after next week, we can actually unpack our suitcases and settle in. To M & M who helped us pack, you will be happy to know that we were told we packed light! We will be grateful for this everytime we have to haul the suitcases up and down all those stairs.

The weather is sunny and hot. It is a bit stressful not being able to communicate or read anything but we know now of a few places that have English. We have to sign off now... jet lag setting in. Our appointment is on Thursday. We will let you know about how it went as soon after as we can. I can't seem to get an internet connection on our laptop, so it looks like we will be relying on internet cafes. Bye for now!