i get yelled at by an inebriated Ukrainian gentleman.

so, day 1.

we get up at 7 30 (half past midnight us time), and go to church. after getting lost in the Ukrainian version of Walmart, we finaly get into the church. it was a really awesome service, it was a Hillsong church, so the music (albeit in Russian) was really good. after the music, the preacher started saying things i didn't understand. thats when i realized the people talking behind me were translators : ) the message was really good, about how God doesnt want to change your passions and the things you love, but take you as you are and use your passion to serve him.

the most interesting part to me was the fact that the church was somewhat inconvenient to get too, but was still filled with people. that means that everyone there really wanted to be there, and everyone was actively involved in the worship service. also, there were no pew bibles. the preacher started a prayer over everyones bibles, and everyone raised up their own. there where shiney new ones, beat up old ones, cell phones, Ipads, and stapled-together sheets of paper. everyone there was involved enough that they got their own bible, however they could, and brought it with them. more churches in america should be like Hillsong Kiev was.

after church, we ate at the most traditional Ukrainian restaurant you will ever find..... McDonalds. the food at Rotten Ronnies is just a little bit different in Kiev. first is that they dont use preservatives, so the food is less greasy and the condiments taste real-er. also, the fired pies are made of whatever fruit is fresh localy, the filling is made in the back every day.

after leaving the Golden Arches, we took a tram to the top of the hill and saw the building formerly occupied by the soviet KGB, now the department of the interior. we saw a Russian Orthodox church, where service runs for hours and people come and go as they want. then we went down a street of souvineer vendors, where i enjoyed the advantages of the exchange rate (1 dollar to 8 Ukrainian "Grivna").

on the hour long tram ride back to the Ark (the first time all day i got to sit down on public transportation), my groups conversation was inturrupted by an inebrieated Ukrainian man who obviously really needed to talk to me. after yelling at me a few times in his language with me attempting to explain that i dont speak that language, i decided to the best course of action was to point at myself and say "America" a few times.... it didn't help. the Ukrainian woman beside me eventualy said that he wasnt even speaking Russian, so i just ignored him.