Differing Tastes

All I can say is that we will be in serious trouble if we ever get a place that we have to furnish from scratch.

On our priority list for the apartment were dishes and curtains.  Curtains because we didn't want Saphira and Thaddaeus waking us with the sun and dishes - well - you've got to eat.

The most frustrating thing about the dishes is that here in Ukraine they have glass dishes by Luminarc that you buy by the piece or in a set - but the sets don't normally come with breakfast bowls or you have fine China. Luminarc are supposed to be the unbreakable glass - like corell - but they scratch and the patterns aren't always nice and you still pay a lot of money for something you (ok Alister and I) aren't really happy with.  No ceramic, no stoneware, no everyday china even.  It literally goes from Luminarc to fine china with gold trim that you can't put in the microwave and why do you really want to pay $20 a plate for that? So we ended up going with Ikea again.  We had gotten some Ikea plate when we first got married (Thanks Mr & Mrs B.!) but all the bowls and half of the plates had broken (they were glass and so we were already a bit prejudiced against the glass luminarc).  So this time we got a set of ceramic Dinera imported over the border at 60% mark-ups (and that still makes it cheaper than some of the Luminarc sets even!) The most frustrating thing is that I can go onto Target's website and find 20 dinnerware sets that I like and  at least there will surely be 6 of those that Alister would agree on too.

It's an open market people- someone please come sell inexpensive and pretty ceramic dishes in the former USSR!!!

Our next quest was curtains.  Every fabric I liked, Alister thought was ugly and cheap and I likewise thought that his choices fell into the cheap and ugly category as well.  We finally found one we agreed on for our bedroom, a two sided fabric - that again I liked the side that we designated as the "back" and he liked the side we designated as the "front" best.  Alister compromised on the fabric and I compromised on the side.  In the end, hanging up in our window.  He is really happy with it.  I like it too - so in the end I suppose we came out with a win-win.  The drapes for the kid's room/office were much less important to me - it is Alister's work space after all -  and the key is just to block the light so Saphira won't start yelling: "momma, papa - Me awake!"  We chose deep blue almost blackout drapes.  The room is light pink with a red and gold couch bed - so we needed a masculine color to pacify Thaddaeus and Alister :-)  It also ended up looking nicer than expected.  I think the key is that hanging, you see the fabric from a distance - but in the shop you see it close up on a card.  It makes a difference.

Up or Down?

To move up or down – that was the question.

Our 14^th story has come to a technical, if not a literal,  end.  We gave up our flat last December to move (temporarily) back to Northern Ireland.  Early September, we finally returned home to Kiev.  A strange feeling, coming home but  being homeless.  The flat was such a safe, happy place and we had some good times there – but a one bedroom apartment is small for parents with two children and wanting to host people in their home.  We knew when we left that we would need to give it up.

We could have chosen anywhere in the city, and a good many people wanted us to move north or west, but we wanted to stay put; in part because the region is incredibly convenient.  Supermarkets, markets, electronic markets – we could find almost everything we needed without having to veer too far out of our way. But the main reason we chose to stay is that we’ve made friends here in the region.

We didn't have too many choices owing to the new visa regulations that require some paperwork from the landlords: no one wanted crazy foreigners about!   In the end, it was down to the place we choose and a 4 room on the 8^th floor.  The four room was closer to the location that we wanted to be but was $200 more per month.  It was, in my opinion – not Alister’s – nicely decorated, maybe too nice.  She was willing to let us have the cat – but we worried just how much a scratch would cost to repair on a wall or something else.  While the 4 room gave Alister a definite office – the living room was small and didn’t feel like a great place for gathering and socializing.  We finally found a 2 bedroom apartment on the 19^th floor.  

We went with the 3 room because even though it is a room or a balcony short (I’m sure Alister will be constantly a bit frustrated with us interfering in his space as his office is also the kid's bedroom) it had this big room that can just be used for any and every type of gathering.  And while it is furnished, it is only furnished to a point and the landlord is willing to let us make our own mark on it.  Now it will be up to Alister and I to see if we can decide on a mark.