Kiev Ukraine Day Four

Today we had the morning free while we waited for our Referral (the document that gives us permission to visit the children in Nikolaev). So, Mary and I decided to take a walk through downtown Kiev. We walked along Shevchenko Boulevard and through Shevchenko Park. Taras Shevchenko is a famous author, artist, and poet from Ukrainian history that is highly revered. To my mind he appears to be for Ukrainians what Pushkin is for Russians. The walk was very pleasant and we were able to see several monuments and an Orthodox church.

 

James standing in front of the St. Volodymyr Orthodox Church. We went inside and enjoyed the beautiful interior of this centuries-old building.

 

 Mary in front of an entrance to the underground passages that are spread throughout downtown Kiev. These passages make crossing the street much safer and many of them have shops in them. Some of the them even have extensive malls. In the background you can see one of the monument statues that are placed along the Boulevard. The name "Shors" was written on this one.

 

 

We stopped to eat some Shaurma for lunch. Yummy!

 

 

A few days back, we walked through an area where they are repairing the sidewalk. When I stepped on the edge of the sidewalk that was still intact, I accidentally broke off this brick. It has been like this for three days so I figured I would record my clumsiness for posterity. The offending foot is also captured in the photo. If only I had some mortar and bricklayer skills...

 

 

After our morning about the city, we enjoyed talking with our family over Skype before leaving to pick up the Referral. Everything went smoothly with the paperwork and we now have the Referral in hand. We returned home to pack and prepare for the next leg of our adventure. Our train leaves in just over an hour and a half for an overnight trip to Nikolaev. We plan to post from there next if we can get an internet connection. Thanks to everyone sending prayers and thoughts our way. We feel truly blessed!