Bus Ride Home

"Vacation" week presented me with many, many opportunities to spend time on public, cross-country transportation in Ukraine. What a blessing...

Actually, I don't really mind bus and train ride so much. The only thing that really starts to get to me is the soreness and stiffness that sets into the joints after the first 3 hours. I really do enjoy watching the countryside go by, checking out little microcosms of Ukraine. There's so much to see on those long drive: villages, landscapes, large furry creatures that wander through the streets, men and women peddling their wares on the sides of the street, brightly painted houses with thatch roofs, grandparents riding their bicycles to the market, endless numbers of outhouses (in all states of repair- or disrepair), gardens, cemeteries, magnificent or quaint Orthodox churches. There's so much.

I even discovered this year that spring and summer are not the only interesting times to drive through the country. Last fall, when I journeyed to Dnepr for Thanksgiving, I was completely fascinated by watching the leafless trees, checking out the neat designs that God crafted into their branches. I literally sat and watched the trees for hours of the drive. I think it's my version of "stop and smell the roses." In the winter, the entire face of the country is changed by the snow. Watching the falling snow on those drives is beautiful...even if you don't care for snow.

Well, Tuesday was quite possibly my last opportunity to savor the trip between Dnepr and Poltava. It was a lovely day, so I kept my camera out, trying to catch pictures of some of the things to be seen on the drive. Unfortunately, I got a little too caught up in watching and failed to capture some of the best things I saw, like the little lady sweeping her yard with her foot-long broom, the herd of chickens that escaped their yard and were being frantically chased down, the cow walking solitary down the road, the beautiful Orthodox prayer chapel made completely out of wood, and the salmon-pink cottage. Here are some of the shots that I did get, though (sorry that most of them are blurry- moving vehicle, you know):

The fancy calendar that was mounted in front of my face on the journey home. Happy little tiger.

The reversed sign on my way home. I was actually going Dnepr-Poltava, even thought this sign says Poltava-Dnepr. Don't be confused, friends.

One of the churches on the way home. I like the crane in the background.

Church and cemetery.

This was just so Fiddler on the Roof. Love it.