The
Good, the Bad and The Ugly of living in Ukraine
May 2007
In this age
of lowered expectations, reduced freedoms and the specter of Big Brothers'
insatiable quest for more intrusion into our daily lives, which is surely
to be found among the more technologically advanced civilized Western countries,
many have sought out and in some cases found various places about the world
that offer considerably more freedom, privacy and less expensive lifestyles.
Although living in Eastern Europe is not anywhere even close to living
on the French Rivera, it does have several advantages to consider.
Here are
just a few of the reasons to consider Ukraine:
1) Its
a much less expensive place in which to live. Example: My wife and I live
in what is considered a nice (for Ukraine) 2-room apartment and are presently
paying only $150.00 per month for rent. Here is a site to find your own choices
for accommodation in
Kiev. The remaining utilities including:
high-speed Internet cable access, natural gas (most often included in the
rental fee), water, electricity and telephone expenses (less any international
calling) typically run at between $20 to $30 per month.
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2) Seldom
do I/we need to spend over $400 to $500 US per month for all of our daily
and monthly needs.Im able to save well over half of my pension funds in
a solid, reliable and stable bank, which pays me 12.5% interest!
3) Food
is plentiful and relatively cheap! Although one cannot expect the variety
of foods found in the US or Western European countries, it is adequate
by most anyones standards. Examples: Chicken is sold by either the piece
or whole. It generally runs between 15 to 18 Grevnah per Kilo. [At the
date of this writing, the US Dollar is worth 5.04 Grevnah] This equates
to $3.57/Kilo or roughly $1.62 per pound.] Fruit and vegetables are
even better buys, especially when in season. Carrots run around 2.50 to
3.50 Grevnah per Kilo. That equates to 50 cents per kilo or 2.2 pounds
for 50 cents! Vegetables are a real bargain here and often of high quality.
Theyre usually grown in very rich organic soil.
4) Local
Transportation is dirt-cheap! One may travel almost anywhere within town
for 1 Grevnah! Remember a Grevnah is about 1/5th of a U.S. dollar or about
20 cents. If one takes one of the methane powered older buses its only
half a Grevnah or 10 cents!
5) Ukraine
has far more than its share of beautiful women! If youre lucky enough to
marry one with a heart of gold (such as my wife) and not a gold-digger,
it will make your living in Ukraine considerably easier, but its not entirely
necessary. If you are willing to purchase a home here it will be relatively
easy to live here without many difficulties. I know a Canadian fellow who
is not married and is living here quite satisfactorily with even less Russian
language ability than my own
6) The
local people look favorably (usually) upon visitors or residents from the
U.S. This is not often the case in many countries throughout the world
as you, dear reader, may already be aware! This is a huge benefit!
7) It
is very easy to find places where one can change most currencies including:
U.S. Dollars, British Pounds, Russian Rubles and, of course, Euros. A few
other currencies may be exchanged here but exchange points for them are
not so readily accessible. These include: Australian Dollars and
Swiss Francs.
8) Bank
savings interest is considerably higher here! It is very easy to find sound
and firmly established banks, which pay 12.5% interest on local currency.
Some offer as high as 17% but are not always as reliable. Both Raiffeisen
(An Austrian Bank which does business here) and OTP (A Hungarian bank)
are quite reliable and easily accessible in Ukraine.
ATMs are available
in many locations all over the cities. (But you might not find one that
has the English language option).
9) There
are several Super Markets scattered all over the cities as well as
innumerable smaller open type markets and kiosks near every neighborhood.
Although the variety can be restricted, the supermarkets are usually the
better places to buy consistently good products.
10) I
feel safer and more secure here than in any large city in America even
at night!
11) Medical
care in Ukraine (for residents) is free! One needs only pay for the medications
and associated materials needed to administer them. I know this is true
since I had occasion to use it recently for a heart attack! The care was
professional and competent even if not employing the latest technology
available elsewhere! If I had this hospital stay (21 days) in America,
it would no doubt have cost me $6,000 to $8,000U.S. or more. Here it cost
me around $400U.S.
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12)
Real Estate can be purchased here (Dachias) for as little as U.S.$4000.00
to U.S.$5000.00! A Dachia is usually a place out a bit from the city in
a country setting that is not usually intended for every day living. A
Dachia usually has running water (typically located outside the building)
and electricity. It usually has only an out-house for toilet facilities.
But they can be upgraded fairly inexpensively. Most are fairly near bus-stops.
Real Estate in Ukraine has experienced an unrealistic increase in perceived
value within the past 5 years. An apartment, located in the city where
I live, that sold for U.S.$5,000.00 5 years ago now sells for up to and
in some cases above $40,000.00. A modestly appointed and minimally acceptable
to most Western tastes yet still decent, low-range apartment will cost
that much or more.
13)
It is usually easy to find locals whod like to improve their English language
abilities. So, its not difficult to find paying students for English lessons.
The going rate is 20 Grevnah per hour! Or about $4.00/hour. This doesnt
sound like much, but keep in mind that $4.00 goes a lot farther here than
in America!
14.)
Fluency in either Russian or Ukrainian is not necessary in order to manage
everyday things like shopping and inter or intra city travel. I manage
well enough on my own with a Russian vocabulary of only about 300 words.
P.S. There
are many Laws in Ukraine! But, few of them are ever actually enforced.
The local police are not particularly interested in putting people in jail
as in some other countries. If a law is broken there is usually only a
relatively small fine involved and one is back on one merry way with no
grudges held. The police largely leave those who keep their noses clean
alone! Money can buy one's way out of most situations.. In this sense it
not unlike the WildWest of North America. Politically speaking,
Ukraine has technically joined the U.S. in The new world order,.
but in view of the fact that Ukraine is such a poor country, it will likely
be quite some time before cameras will be at every intersection of the
cities here owing to the fact that Ukraine simply cant afford to do so!
Theres a flat 20% tax on everything! This is usually not noticed since
its almost always included in the purchase price.
What to
see and do in Ukraine
Western Ukraine
(especially Carpathia) is mountainous and has good fishing in lakes and
some streams. Snow skiing is available at very reasonable costs. No fishing
licenses are required or even available. What is referred to, as Crimea
by Westerners is known locally as Krim.Yalta and Sevastopol are located
there. Good Trout fishing is possible in/near Sevastopol. Otherwise most
of the fish here are not what most westerners would consider good game
fish except pike. Locally they are known as Chukka Krim has a protecting
arm of mountains looking outward to the Black Sea. It is known of as the
Riviera of Ukraine! Many rich people live there. Im told the fishing is
good and that the quality of life is considerably higher, cleaner and generally
better than in Nikolaev where we live.
Were planning
a trip there this summer with some friends from Holland.
And now
for the Bad News
Im inclined
to believe that Red-Tape was invented here in Ukraine. Huge amounts of
formal and typically necessary paperwork must be kept and safely stored
for future situation(s.) Notarization of legal documents includes
the hand sewing (with red thread) of the documents that are more than one
page in length. No one here in any governmental office seems in a rush
to get his or her work done. They are frequently quite slow and not particularly
efficient. A simple request for a residence application can take several
trips to the same office and waiting for hours each time to be seen!
If you dont have the patience to deal with things like these, dont consider
living in Ukraine!
Ukraines infrastructure
{roads, sidewalks, public toilet availability, telephone system (still
uses the mechanical make/break contact type similar to that found in America
in the 1940s), sewerage system and water supply} has not been improved
significantly since the end of WWII. Readily available clean rest rooms
are rare and frequently a huge disappointment. One smells them long
before one actually sees them, especially in summer.
Some Ukrainian
merchants tend to try to take advantage of Westerners, especially Americans,
by changing their prices for various things once they are aware of one's
nationality. Best to be aware of the possibility of this and search
for the more honest traders.
The food in
restaurants lacks variety and does not really tempt the palates of American
especially. There are now a few non-smoking restaurants which are
not all that bad. In Nikolaev there are three where we eat: Celentano and
Sport Restaurant near Stadion and Straus inside Mega Market. All of these
are located on Prospect Lenina in Nikolaev and easily found. Kiev, the
capital has a new Ukraine Building near the train station that has a good
variety of styles of food and it too is totally non-smoking!
Characterwise,
many Ukrainians have a different view of ethics and will seldom admit to
making a mistake - I feel sure this is something to do with having lived
for decades under a strict communist regime, but it is a difficult trait
to get used to. Work should always be supervised and it is unwise to pay
upfront as the temptation to just disappear with the loot is too great.
Decent quality
clothing and shoes are really rather expensive here and the variety is
severely limited. This is slowly changing.
Now last
but not least The Ugly!
Ukraine is,
for the most part, a dismal and somewhat at first glance depressing place
visually, owing largely to the ubiquitous gray apartment buildings in which
most people here live. Lack of investment in the cities leads to broken
pavements and overflowing rubbish bins and there is a lack of variety in
the shops; but this is just a difference in lifestyle due to may years
of past economic decline.
In summary:
If you can
handle the negatives, Ukraine still has a lot to offer. I prefer to live
here than in the states mostly due to the general sense of Freedom and
economic and political advantages. Remember I feel safer here than in any
large U.S. city late at night! Its surely something to keep in mind!
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