So firstly I would like to show my appreciation and say thank you to Alina & Alex for inviting me, and also to their friends and families for putting up with me. This is a first for me in the Ukraine, and I must say I have thoroughly enjoyed it. From start to finish I had a fantastic time. I only had 5 days, but its amazing what you can see. I was living in a beautiful quiet area outside of the city in Alina's and Alex's apartment, and it was pretty much the perfect location, far enough for it not to be noisy and close enough that everything is a short stones throw away in the main centre.
I was lucky enough to be invited to join them at the family lake house, and it was an amazing introduction to being in Ukraine for my first full day. We arrived to a fresh lake house with the beautiful view of the lake from the balcony. Once the heat set in it was time to start the open fire and get out side chopping fresh logs for the BBQ, ready for the fresh food. It was nice getting involved in something with the family. It is safe to say my log cutting skills leave a lot to be desired, and it is never a good idea to give me and axe anyway haha. I struggle to hold a knife and fork properly, but i did my best and even i was surprised how well i hacked at those logs haha. Once we had the fire burning i was lucky enough to get a private tour and story about Alex's dads very own vineyard, and learnt when the best time to pick is, and what types of grapes are best for certain wines. It was interesting and nice to do something different to your average day back home. The language barrier soon floated away with the more alcohol we consumed, its amazing how much better you speak and understand once the Beers and Rum sunk in. Once we were finished with all that, Alina's parents joined us all and we sat down to an absolute feast which never seemed to end. The food was amazing and as much as i ate, more came. After food and excessive shots of rum, we went in to the sauna with lots of water to sweat it all out. Not a normal Sauna however, i was instructed sauna, then Freezing Shower, Sauna, then freezing shower, then on the third round it changed slightly. Sauna, followed by a Verne Tree Branch massage which surprisingly was amazing. Then back in to the shower, in to a dressing gown and then sitting out on the porch in freezing conditions. The shock to the body is a great way to lose weight apparently, but I made up with that with the amount of food I continued to eat. Its safe to say the whole night was amazing, then to top it off, it started snowing, and not just a bit, a lot. Driving back to the apartment the next day was brilliant. We also visited Alina's parents for dinner as well, and yet again another beautiful spread of food for us all to enjoy. However, the best part was seeing 4 shelves full of different types of alcohol from different parts of the world, I have never been more spoilt for choice in my life. Another fantastic night had. We visited a theme park on my last full day and it was unbelievable. It had been snowing and was now -7 Celsius, and still this place was open. Going on a Ferris wheel to see the view of this beautiful city was definitely a highlight of mine whilst here, you could literally see everything from up there. That evening we went out to dinner and had a nice few drinks and a Sheesha. I lye here, as it was more than a few nice drinks, it was several followed by more back in the apartment until 4am, then we all realised I was back up at 5am to get to the airport to come home. It was safe to say that the whole event was amazing from start to finish, and i can not wait to go back there. All the locals were so friendly and all wanting to improve their English so were always happy to talk to you. Can not wait to go back. Thanks again guys.
