Ukrainian food

Since I arrived in Ukraine I only got good food. I have off course tasted the Ukrainian borsch-soup, red and made with potatoes and onions. I also love varenyky, a kind of dumpling filled with either meat, vegetables or fruits. You find this also as pancakes. This morning I also has the greatest oatmeal, with the porridge filled inside an apple, and with some caramel-sauce to make it sweater. Delicious.

Art Nouveau in Odessa

Art Nouveau is found everywhere in Odessa, and it seems the city had some blooming years around 1900. The Odessa art nouveau is characterised by its massive use of ornaments and sculptures in the facade. Some of it is clearly in the German/Austrian tradition as I recognise it from my hometown Ålesund. But much of it has roots in the baroque style, with it use of organic and symmetrical motives. You will also find wonderful houses inspired by Arabic architecture, as a confirmation of this city's position as a cultural melting pot by the Black sea.

It is clearly a challenge now to keep these houses with all its details, as many of them are in a very bad condition. Many houses has hole in the wall, missing parts of balconies and pieces falling down. Maybe this is more a result of how housing is managed in Ukraine than about the economic ability? Still Odessa is an architectural stimulation to the eye.

Russian in Odessa

Odessa is a great place to get to know the Russian language. I am in my third week now, at the MacMillan language school. I came with very little experience. I had a simple course at home some years ago, and I knew the Cyrillic letters. Now I am able to read (very) simple texts, and I manage to order in cafe's and pay on the bus. Out teacher has given is parts of the structure of the language and essential vocabulary. She is still has some surprises for us, as I have seen in some other Russian language pages on the Internet.

Here is my school: http://mlc-russian.com.ua/
And a very good Russian language resource here: http://www.russianlessons.net/

My notebook on the café-table