СВАДБА!!! (wedding)

Okay, so first off, i finally figured out how to switch the computer into russian here, so i might try to use some of my класная слова (my cool new words). hopefully it will work, not really sure.
So, anyways, I only have 3 weeks left of straying, о боже (oh god) time has gone by very quickly. In the next 2 weeks I have to finish our community project where we are teaching a seminar to Ukranian teachers of English on how to use the interenet as a more effective resource; i have to teach a test class in front of observers and finally have to take my langaguage proficiency test, which should be very interesting. but, i am still able to get out and enjoy what Rokytne has to offer.
This past weekend I was invited by my host family to go to a wedding of one of their good friend's daughters. The bride was 23 and the groom was 21. I spent much of the night attempting to explain how in America many people don't get married till they are 27 or older.
When I first got there I was introduced to the bridesmaid who spoke fluent english, and who brought me over to a table to put on a white flower to show that I was an 'eligible' male. (unmarried) then about 20 minutes later we all went upstairs and sat down at talbes literally COVERED with food. (it was slightly redicoulous, as they just kept bringing more food out, even if there wasn't any room to put in on the table.) I early on decided that I wasn't going to be drinking vodka, and it was a wise decisioun, as the women across from me put down about 15 shots over the course of the night (i.e. i would have been passed out on the floor) I stuck to wine, and it was pretty good stuff.
So we ate for a long time, with ocassionally speeches and chants of Gorka, Gorka (kiss, kiss) to the bride and groom and the bestman and bridesmaid (a big tradition here), and then the really fun began! we went downstairs, and the one-man band began to play fast paced Ukranian music. Let me tell you, these people can dance! even the guys who i thought would be way to cool to be seen doing a fast-paced waltz were flying all over the place. It took me a while, but i finally got into it, and spent much of the night either dancing with the 'eligible girls' (who my host mother basically yeld at me for not dancing with them at first, because a young man must ask a lady to dance when the man/woman song comes on... interesting...) or doing a typical russian circle with people dancing in the middle. I will have to explain everything else in person, it was just to much fun. The party ended at about 12, and i got home and immidiately fell asleep. I was exhausted!

hope all is well with you! take care,
Love,
Seth

This isn't Ukraine anymore

Hi all. Happy Thanksgiving to all those back in America!! I will be celebrating the holiday with the 3 other peace corps volunteers in my cluster city, Rokytne. I believe we will be buying a chicken, and doing the usual pie, potatoes, maybe some jello. It's not really the same as back home, but we are going to try. A quick story that i thought was pretty funny about our attempt at thanksgiving in Ukraine.
Our group was in Kyiv yesterday afternoon, and we ventured into a fairly large (or large for Ukraine) Supermarket with so many amazing things in it (spices, hot sauce, chocolate beyond my dreams) and we were trying to find things for Thanksgiving. Well, i thought i saw something that looked like a Turkey. After using my faulty russian, and the help of other peace corps volunteers, we asked if it was Turkey or where we could find one. A very nice (yet eventually exasperate clerk) attempted to help us find some turkey. She showed us chicken, whole chicken, cooked turkey, turkey legs, and Ukranian man that spoke English even helped us. Eventually she asked us if we wanted a WHOLE turkey, and we said, yeah, sure. so we were asked to wait 20 minute while they got it ready. After about 5min. myself and another volunteer started to think, I wonder how much this is going to cost, so we asked to see the turkey. they went in the back, and held up a turkey about as big as a small child! we asked how much it cost, and they weighed it and brought out a small sticker which said that it would cost 320griven (62 dollars) and that it weighed 24kg (about 55 lbs!!) we then realized that there was no way we were going to fit this into a Ukranian oven, and so, sadly, had to leave the monstracity there...

anyways,Sorry that I have not been writing a lot lately, but for the last 8 days I was either in Kyiv or my new site, Lugansk. (Spelled Luhansk in English, take a map of Ukraine, go as far east as you can, find a larger city, and that would be Lugansk.) I will try to write a quick description of Lugansk. It is huge, 470,000 people, and one of the largest industrial cities of Ukraine. It is about 30 minutes from the Russian border, so while, officially, schools are supposed to teach in Ukranian, my school kids almost all speak entirely in Russian (its a good thing im learning Russian) But in my whirlwind tour of the city over 4 days, i was privy to the schools student body president elections with discoteque afterwards with about 50% american music, as well as a ice skating for 45min. at an indoor ice arena, and on saturday went to an EXTREME circus (lots of women dancing in skimpy costumes with okay clowns and no animals...) but my city has a first division soccer team which will be fun to watch, as well as tons of foreign restaurants as well as huge shopping centers.
talking to the people, it definitely seems like I am in Russia (many of their relatives live in Russia, and their politics often lie in that directions) it is going to be a very interesting next two years. I am excited, alittle nervous about how dirty the city is, but know that I will love/ and hate it, but overall, will be glad to be here and doing what I do. Hope all is well wherever you are!
-Seth

Hi all,
Well, This is my first report from my new site, Lugansk (or Luhansk in English). Basically, take a map of Ukraine, go as far east as you can and find a fairly large city, and that's where I'll be for the next two years. I am just visitng for the weekend, but I will be coming back for good Dec. 21st. Lugansk has aobut 470,000 residents, and is a very industrial town. It is not really what I was expecting in a placement, as I am living only 5 minutes away from a coal mine, but in all reality, I am sure it will be great and I will learn a ton here. The students are very motivated, as I am going to be working at a Law Lyceum (sort of a private high school) for grades 9-11. it is about 80% boys here and is a sort of military school so that will be interesting. The school teachers are really trying to impress me, so I went ice skating at an indoor rink in the city yesterday and am going to the circus today. Should be exciting. I will try to write more aobut my experience here, but just wanted to write something quickly!
-Love,
Seth

Winter in Ukraine

Well, i would have to say that it is officially winter here in Ukraine. Yesterday it snowed at least 5 inches in a storm that put out electricity in my neighborhood off and on yesterday afternoon. I was out in the storm in a bazar in Bela Cerkva (a larger city about 40 minutes from Rokytne) buying a new winter coat so I look more Ukranian. ( what i mean is that i try to look more ukranina, somehow they can always tell im an American). But anyways, tomorrow morning i head out to Kyiv for our site placement (where we find out what city we will be in for the next two years) and go on Wednesday to visit our city and meet teachers, etc. so i am very excited aobut that. Hope all is well with you wherever you are. Take care.
Love,
Seth

B-day in Ukraine!

Now entering week 6 here in Ukraine. So strange to think that i have been here this long. Time really does fly. Last week was holidays for the students here, so no teaching, but still a lot of language class. Last Friday I was able to celebrate my birthday by having a dinner-party at my host families house. it was really a lot of fun. My host mother Tanya deffinitely out-did herself by making all of my favorite foods, and the other peace corps volunteers and my language teacher were able to come over and help me celebrate. I got a little cold over the weekend, so slept a lot and helped around the house. It was very relaxing, and good to start the week afresh. I taught three classes today, will teach one tomorrow and one on Friday. We all head to Kyiv in about a week for site-placement (where we find out where we are going to be for the next two years, a little crazy) so I am excited for that.
It snowed here today... as in it is cold... but i prepared myself this weekend by going to the bazar with my host mom and picking out some new stylish Ukranian leather gloves. (my choppers don't really fit in, people always ask me about them) and my host mother made me a skarf for my birthday, so Ukranian winter, come on!
Hope everything is good where you all are, and take care!