Day four in Novograd-Volynski and sadly I don’t have that many notes from the day. It was one of those days that flew by, where we stayed up late and I was too tired to write anything down by the time I got back to the hotel. Thus, you shall get a few notes from Friday and we can jump into Saturday…which just happened to be a fairly big day in all of Ukraine.
From Friday…I have these notes jotted down. It was a cold night but a warm morning. This sticks out in my head because I’m not used to cold evenings as I’m an Atlanta resident. Being cold at night in August is a very foreign thing…but it’s also a very welcome thing as I am so warm blooded that it’s tough for me to get comfortable in the summer. I welcomed this cold night with a great sleep and waking up refreshed.
Another sunny day and I made my way to walk to Larisa’s apartment to meet her, then walk with her over to her mom’s place. It was so sunny and bright out that I needed my sunglasses. Time for me to make my way back to the hotel and grab them. Some may think this would be an inconvenience but I found it to be yet another reason to walk around and take in more culture in my new town. Even though I’ve done this walk multiple times there was always something new for me to see and make me smile.
I have to admit I was beginning to like this simple life. Back in Atlanta I had a high pressure job, had recently purchased a house in the city and life was constantly on the go. Maybe I could live here for a year? The cost of living is much lower, life is simpler…I could make it work, couldn’t I? It’s something that has been popping up in my mind more and more lately and I just couldn’t shake it yet. Of course every time I bring this up to Larisa she says I’m crazy…why would I want to move to a nation that’s so corrupt? Good point…but I still couldn’t shake the thought.
The above thoughts tie in quite well to my last bit of notes for my Friday in Novograd-Volynski. I was becoming quite aware of the fact that people, especially Larisa’s family and the people in her mom’s part of town, grew their own food. Tomatoes, potatoes, apples…everything that we Americans grab at the store without thinking twice about it…is grown in their own yards, or even in public lands. Interestingly enough I think I was gaining weight as Larisa’s family kept offering dish after dish of food. I could only deny them so many times before giving in and stuffing more food into my already full stomach.