Ukrainian Friends

• President Hotel Kievsky is one of the upscale hotels in Kiev (October 2006). Receptionists are well trained to greet international guests.
  1. Gift Shop at the Hotel Rus in Kiev. This lady is very happy because I bought gift items from her (October 2006).
  2. Ukrainian Economist I met at a Kiev restaurant called Pervak. She was with her friends from Estonia and Lithuania who were classmates at the London School of Economics. They are having a re-union every year at a major city in Europe, such as Paris, Madrid, and Kiev.

  3. Two Medical Doctors from Dnepropetrovsk staying at the President Hotel Kievsky in Kiev (2006). They appeared to have beautiful minds. I asked them whether I could photograph them. They invited me to sit down with them, and I had a photo with them. There are many medical doctors in my family. In order to be a successful doctor, he/she must have a beautiful mind and must always be ready to help others.

  4. One of the Ladies I met at a restaurant near the Science Center of Taras Shevchenko University in Kiev (October 2006). I proposed a photo with her, and she said Yes. She was with her friend, and arranged my photo with her friend. They could not speak English, but they were cheerful Unitarians.

• Ukrainian Students in Kharkov (July 2000). A mid-aged lady sitting next to me does not seem to be interested in young people's affair.
  1. Yevgenia Ushenko is a post-graduate student at Chenivtsi National University (south-western region of Ukraine). I met her in Kiev (October 2006).
  2. Ukrainian Student, while waiting for a British Airways flight to Kiev at London's Heathrow Airport.

• The Kiev Day is the last Monday of every year, like the memorial day in the United States. It is a holiday for all Kiev residents for rest and relaxation. In 2010, I was fortunate enough to be in Kiev to share this holiday with all Kievskies.
  1. People are coming to the Liberty Square for good time.
  2. Liberty Square. People gather around the Liberty Tower at the Liberty Square, where political demonstrations are held from time to time.

  3. Kiev's Main Street was closed for automobiles People are free to roam around to make their causes known to others.
  4. I support her cause, even though I did not understand what she was standing for.
  5. The Main Street, without cars, became roller skaters' heaven.

  6. McDonald's is an American institution, and is everywhere in the world. This place was jam-packed on this holiday.
  7. Group of young people at the McDonald's. They are working for the American sales organization called "Amway."

• Everbody is everybody's friend.
  1. Mark and Spencer is a British department store.
  2. Graduating High School Students are going to their graduation prom (2010). They became very happy when I told them I am professor in the United States.
  3. Newly Wedded couple in Kiev (2010).
  4. Two Young Ladies are relaxing on a sidewalk bench. I asked them whether I can photograph them. They said Yes.
     • I asked them whether I can have a photo with them. They said Yes, but they seem to be somewhat nervous.
     • Senior Citizen. I then spotted this senior (somewhat) citizen enviously looking at the young ladies. I was courtenous enough to ask her to have a photo with me. She seems to be happy.
  5. Beautiful Young Couple at a fountain side.

• Happy to meet again! I met this Ukrainian lady at the Vienna Airport on July 23 (2000) and met her again at the Kharkov Airport in Ukraine one week later on July 30. She now lives in Dresden and spoke to me in German. I liked her questions and her answers to my questions, in spite of the stiff language barrier.

• Flight from Kharkov to Vienna (2001.11.4). I was sitting next to this lady. She told me taking a photo is not enough, and she gave me her e-mail address. She was born and raised in Ukraine, but now lives in Bologna (Italy). Everything she wears was made in Italy, but she is clearly an Ukrainian according to this photo. She knows how to live her life.

• at a Cosmetics Store in Kharkov (2000). She looks like my mother.
• at a Giftshop, today and yesterday.

• An Un-invited Guest at an Ukrainian wedding ceremony (July 2000). I can do this only in Russia or Ukraine, not in other countries.
• Hotel Kiev in Kharkov. This Ukrainian lady works at the hotel canteen and overpowers everybody, but she is very warm-hearted and kind to everybody (2000).
• She got promoted. I was there in 1999 and 2000.

• Flower Lady. She sells flowers at one of Kharkov's subway stations (2000).
• Another Flower Lady. She sells flowers at another station.

• High School Girls in Kharkov, Ukraine (July 2000). They seem to know how to make themselves happy, even though we think their economy is not in the best possible condition.
• Two Sweet Girls. While in Kharkov (July 2000), I invited these two girls to a photo with my colleague. They were just walking by. In November of 2001, they came to me while I was attending the Akhiezer memorial conference held in Kharkov. It was a total surprise to me. They asked me whether I brought their photos. I apologized to them and promised to put the pictures on my website, and I invited them to join me in the conference banquet. However, my proposal was rejected by the conference organizers. Their reasoning was that these girls are too young. We were thoroughly disappointed. They wanted to spend more time with me. I now have their addresses and will make every effort to heal their wounds.

• Tanks. On June 25 of 1950, I was in the South Korean city of Seoul. It was a Sunday morning. Seoul's radio said there would be an important announcement and asked the listeners to stay tuned. At 1:10 PM, the radio said the North Korean tanks crossed the 38th parallel about 50 km north of Seoul. Those tanks completely destroyed the South Korean army and came into Seoul after three days. This is how the Korean War started, and those North Korean tanks were Soviet-made T-34 tanks. In 2000, I was happy to find out the T-34 tank was originally developed in Kharkov. During World War II, the T-34 tanks were mass-produced in the Ural-mountain city of Chelyabinsk. It is well known that those tanks destroyed the core of the German army in Stalingrad.

• Ukrainian in Budapest. I spotted this Ukrainian lady at Budapest's Milehanad Park and started talking. She had been in the United States and speaks fluent English. She was with her mother who could not speak English, but I felt much closer to her. She invited me to sit down on her side.
  1. Ukrainian Lady selling sight-seeing boat tickects on the Elbe River in Dresden (2006). She is happy because I bought tickets from her.
  2. Ukrainian Lady managing a jewlry store in Copenhagen (2010).

  3. Ukrainian Lady Paris (2012). She works at Fouchet's Restaurant Here is another photo.
  4. London Metro (2011). This Ukrainian lady is very happy to able to work in London. I enjoyed talking with her. I enjoy taling with happy people. Here is another photo.
  5. In Salzburg, Cheerful Ukrainians (2013)
  6. Two Ukrainian ladies in Krakow (Poland 2013). They came from Lviv. When I told them Lviv once belonged to Poland, they vehemently denied. Their place has always been an Ukrainian city.
  7. Ukrainian lady from Lviv ln Venice (2014). Her hairstyle becomes that of Yulia Tymosenko she works at a restaurant in Venice. Let us look at Timoshenko's photo with George W. Bush, as well as my Julia.

• Small Korean Community in Kharkov. This building is used for a Korean restaurant, Korean church, and the Korean community center.
  1. This elderly person on my left has a very interesting background. Before 1940, he studied at a university in St. Petersburg, and helped Kim Il-Sung in setting up a Soviet-backed regime in Pyongyang in 1948, but he later exiled himself to Kharkov totally unknown city to Koreans including Kim Il-Sung. When I met him in 2000, he was telling me how ignorant Kim I-S was. He had a grand plan for the unified Korea: combine the economic strength of the South with the military might of the North. Sounded great, but he was no longer there when I visited his place a year later in 2001. His son was telling me he was looking for a man who could translate his un-published book in Russian into Korean.
  2. Inside Korean Center. It is very important for Koreans to maintain their own heritage, even ar a place totally unknown in Korea.
  3. This lady of Korean origin is in charge of the Korean community center.
  4. This young lady is providing social services with her Ukrainian colleagues. Koreans believe in doing good things for the community.

How did I talk to him?

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• His home page.
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• Garden of Eden. How can you make this world your Garden of Eden? Obey what God told you.
• Art lover.

  Moses talked to God by writing five books about God. I talked to Einstein by making webpages about him.