It's Sunday, so time to do some blogging.

I went to a party at my friend's house last night. We all had to bring some food and drink, so while in Megamarket I saw some Chinese 'wine' which looked unusual, so I thought that'd make sense for a 'potluck night'. I also brought frozen pizzas at our host's suggestion, though they didn't get eaten as there was plenty of food from the 20-something people there.

It was a lot of fun, actually. There was food, drink, party games (pass the parcel and a 'pub' quiz), and a good time was had by all, for sure. I also had my first try at a hookah pipe - though I think I may have had a go in Berlin, but don't remember. The girls were chastising me for not doing it right, though it sure as hell felt like I was.

I also demonstrated my new-found ability to make White Russians: actually, it's not exactly new-found, but my visit to Megamarket allowed me to buy some shot glasses (for measuring) and a tumbler (I believe 'old fashioned cocktail glass' is the technical term). Finally, all the pieces were together for me to make a White Russian, my favourite cocktail. Despite the high cost of Kahlua, the low cost of vodka actually makes it a pretty cheap drink to make, though it looks a lot classier than beer.

When I woke up on their sofa this morning, I went to Arena City in the centre of Kyiv to meet up with one of the office girls and her friend. We were visiting an exhibition of several different artists: one an English one called Sam with a double-barrelled surname (don't remember it), one a small section for a Japanese guy, and a larger section with art from a number of Russian artists (21 I think). All in all it was okay, but not great. The Sam person had a few videos where people held still as a photo. Unusual, though one of them was of the Klitchko brothers, so a bit of local interest there, I guess.

The Japanese guy's was about forests and stuff, not bad but nothing amazing (hey, I never claimed to be an art critic: you want that, stop reading). The Russian ones were interesting to say the least: there were a row of cardboard boxes with little people projected inside; there was a long film with primitive CGI and strange morphing effects on photos of people to make it look like they were moving, displayed on 3 screens; there were some other, very odd videos on projectors, and much more besides.

And so to now. I have to pack soon because I'm moving to a new place tomorrow, for various reasons. I'm sure I'll miss my Dorohozhychi home, and the sight of the TV tower, but these things happen. I'm told the other flat is nicer, so I'll just have to take their word for it and see tomorrow.

For now, I'll leave you with a couple of pics.

This, for those who can't read Ukrainian (and aren't Ukrainian) is the Ukrainian national anthem. It's displayed in a glass case (notice the reflections) in KPI, the uni building our school is housed in. Wikipedia will help you with translations. And the tune.





And finally... Chicken Kiev, anyone?