The Train

Hey everyone!

Our Train Tickets

It's been a few days since our last post, so we wanted to get you up to speed. We are currently in Ternopil, which is in western Ukraine. They speak Ukrainian here and are very nationalistic. If we end up moving to Ternopil, we'll have to learn Ukrainian, not Russian... The alphabets and grammar rules are almost identical though, so at least what we've learned so far in Russian will still be useful. We had to travel 8 hours by train to get to Ternopil (2 hours from Lviv and 4 hours from Poland), which was quite the adventure. Here's the story:

We leave Kaharlyk at 9pm on June 28th. The missionary that was planning on taking us to the train station in Kiev (an hour and 1/2 away) had a headache and couldn't drive us, so our friend Yura offered to take us.

Yura driving us to the train station

Unfortunately, Yura doesn't speak any English. So, we had fun driving with him, his son Misha, and wife Oksana to Kiev, but when it came time to get on the train, we found ourselves in a bit of trouble.

Our tickets were for Kiev to Ternopil, but the only train that left at the same time as our ticket said we were leaving went from Kiev to Chope (чоп)... This was of great concern for us. Yura wasn't sure if it was the right train either, but it was 10pm, and he really needed to start the drive home. So, we were on our own.

The Train Station

Surprisingly enough, we couldn't find anyone that spoke English at the train station (Most young people in Kiev speak English), so we just used our limited Russian skills and hopped on a train, hoping it would get us to Ternopil.

Here's where the fun began:

Once we're on the train, we realize what a sleeper train is actually like... Four beds in an extremely small compartment, that locks from the inside... We suddenly become incredibly aware of the fact that we are undeniably Americans, are nervous enough that we can't remember a lick of Russian, and become convinced that we're probably on the wrong train and will end up in Poland or something. We were so scared, we just sat there praying and sweating haha

So, we pray no one else comes into our compartment... But the Lord obviously wanted to stretch us, so first a girl joins our compartment.

We're freaking out so much at this point, we're absolutely radiating awkwardness, and it's too much for her to handle. She walks in, sits down, clearly feels uncomfortable, and stands outside our compartment door until the next passenger arrives.

On the train

The next passenger is this huge Ukrainian guy, probably 25 years old... By this point, we're starting to realize out behavior was a little ridiculous, and decide to talk to our compartment mates.

Turns out, the girl is 100% fluent in English, and assures us we're on the right train, and the guy speaks no English, but he's really nice and knows how to lock our compartment door, find the bed pads, etc.

Now, it's time to sleep.

We all lay down and turn off the lights. We couldn't decide if we should actually sleep or not, so we just lay down, get under our thin sheet (no blankets provided), and try to be completely silent. About two hours into the train ride, some problems arise for me (Emily). First, I really needed a bathroom and two, I was about to freeze to death.

In Ternopil

I started shivering uncontrollably underneath my single, thin, and mildly useless sheet. My teeth are chattering, my face is buried in my pillow, and I'm totally curled up in a ball (Byron was experiencing the same thing, only he was on the bottom bunk, I was on the top, and his face was being blow on by an air conditioning vent). I decide to look over at the Ukrainian guy sleeping on the next bunk to see if he's just as cold. He's laying there, arms to his side, perfectly still, and flat on his back. I could have sworn his toes were pointed too. Byron says the girl sleeping in the other bottom bunk looked the exact same way... So, I realized I am just a weeny American and need to buck up haha

An Exhausted Arrival

Morning Fog in Ternopil

Next, I decide it's time to find the bathroom. I basically fall off the top bunk and stumble out of our compartment. Then, I come to two doors, both with Russian text but no pictures. So, I choose a door at random and end up outside the train car, blowing in the wind... I obviously chose the wrong door, but once I came back in, I found the bathroom and felt much better. But when I got back to our compartment, I had to figure out how to get back onto the top bunk. So, I try to pull myself up without a ladder (there was no ladder) and end up dangling from a bar between my bed and the next bunk bed unable to reach anything with my feet. I start swinging myself back and forth hoping I can get enough momentum to flip onto my bed (all this while wearing a dress). Anyways, I finally made it up to my bed and was thankful for the darkness haha

I didn't sleep at all on the train because I was so scared we'd miss our stop, but a train working came to our door around 6am to make sure we didn't miss our stop, and all ended well!

Sorry for such a long story! Hopefully it made you smile... Needless to say, we love Ternopil now that we're here, and we'll be doing a more serious post within the next few day!

Blessings!
Emily

Getting Antiquated with Ternopil