Paul & Lauren’s Travels

I waited a day or two before announcing just to be sure, but finally … the central heating is on! Now, the office is once again fit for human habitation and the kitchen fridge can begin to seem a little more meaningful.

Its fast, dirt cheap and can withstand thermonuclear attack; its the Kiev Metro. The Metro is the amazing soviet era subway system that runs underneath central Kiev. Five cents buys a trip to anywhere on this amazing public transport system. Of course, to reach the train you must descend to a depth that can withstand an atomic blast, and to do this you need some seriously long, steep escalators. Amazingly, the one pictured above is not the longest. Photography is forbidden.

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One highlight of October for us was the Hillsong Conference here in Kiev. It was held at the Ukrainian Palace (a theatre) which is just up the road from us. Wednesday night featured Joyce Meyer speaking followed by a Delirious? concert. Obviously Lauren enjoyed Joyce’s preaching a lot; we both absolutely loved the Delirious concert that finished the night, it was quality.

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Here it is. Delve into my world of Pink Absence (if you dare!!!) Or alternatively if you just want to view more detailed content that I could not warrant putting on this site… like fashion buys and Vegemite, then have a look. Click on “Lauren’s Pink Absence” on the right hand side of the page under Blogroll. Enjoy.

http://www.swansonblog.com/lauren

Hello! Well, I had a great birthday. Paul and I went out to dinner at TGI Friday’s and enjoyed steak (Paul’s meal) and Mexican tortillas (my meal). It was lovely to go out and spend the evening out together. After TGI we went out for coffee at Double Coffee (where the photo was taken).

The Interesting thing about this photo was what was happening in the back-round. The flowers and the Lady were all part of a first meet and a “Ukrainian Bride” negotiation (talk of , marriage, visas, self respect, and you get nothing if it does not work).

We had a great evening! To read more about my birthday, visit my personal blog (Lauren’s Pink Absence).

You may recall in an earlier post the pit that replaced our neighbourhood street, well, thankfully the work on the water mains is finished. The cars can once again make their way home, in low gear, to park safely on the foot path. I wonder if they will next attempt to make the road flat(ish) once more … or then again, perhaps that is just a silly thought.

In a fit of unjustifiable effort I have now constructed a blog for my personal amusement, that and as a way of dealing with culture shock and general mental instability. For a veritable allsorts of my life, the universe and pork recipes check out…

http://www.swansonblog.com/paul

… or alternatively look past the end of your nose, to the right of this page under the section entitled “Blogroll”.

My blog is not intended to replace this one, but merely to help keep this one palatable for the masses.

I recently visited Kiev’s antiques market which is held regularly around the traps. Yeah, sure you can buy old cups, saucers, watches, spoons, paintings, brik-a-brak, various pieces of rust … BUT CHECKOUT THE ARSENAL!

I wonder how much opposition I’d receive from customs whilst bearing an MP38 submachine gun?

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Some may call it insane, some may call me crazy, but I know that my “Funky Monkey” (as coined by Mally) needs a Drum Kit to practice and record with or he would become “Crazy MonkeY”. So after Paul did some research he found an electronic kit that he liked. So the next Day We went out and I brought it for him. Keeping Paul sane and happy is a good thing! (note the glorious wallpaper).

Hey this is my comfort zone… Inside the early childhood unit (ECU) at my school. I have enjoyed getting to know the children in the unit, the families and and my colleagues Pat and Susan. I also enjoy working with Aida, Tanya and Anna the assistants in the ECU.

I have also conceptualised and ran professional development course for the ECU. The first part of the course went really well. All the staff came as did the head of primary, Sharon. I received great feedback. I will be leading the second part of the course in two weeks. I have also been asked to then present it to the primary staff as a whole. I am really excited about this opportunity. I will let you know how it goes.