DAY SIX

It’s Friday and I anticipated a lot of fun, and it sure was! I noticed that a restaurant will charge more if they know you are an American (or foreigner). McDonald’s is not very fast in Yalta. Just to get to the counter and place my order took 20 minutes. But they did work on my order fast. I noticed that McDonald’s is very expensive even by American standards. They had a drive thru, which was interesting because it was in location no cars could access. Sometimes it’s best not to ask.
I do not know if I mentioned this or not, but you would be much better off if your ATM card has the Visa or Mastercard logo on it! I can find good ATM’s everywhere for my debit Mastercard, but for my Bank ATM (no MC or Visa logo on it) it is very difficult to find an ATM that works good. You might also want to tell the bank that you do not want a withdrawal limit placed on your card. One card had 500 Grivna limit, the other (MC Visa) seems to have no limit.
And about the TV show I will propose to NBC; I will add that I have great sense of humor as I intentionally do things to get the people to laugh (the natives). I guess it would be not only my adventures of finding a wife and learning cultures, but also to see what we can get the natives to do and for how much. It is important to note that it has to be in good fun, not embarrassment.
I started my day as usual. I woke up, ate a few bites, and went back to bed for an hour. I also have started to take notice on how many days I have left and how many underwear and shirts and socks I have left. I did not turn my underwear inside out and use again! No, I washed some clothes in the small tub (car washing tub would best describe this tub) and after my shower I hang them to dry over the shower doors.
I went to McDonald’s to stock my refrigerator with more food. As I already said it took a while. I met Irina (Ira) at McDonald’s at 2 pm. We went searching for those little dolls that you open up and then there’s another little doll. And totally I think there are 6 or 7 dolls inside one doll.
It was a very busy day as we walk every where we go. The translator machine proved to be very helpful. As well as having my cell phone converted by the chip to Yalta Phone service. I can text message my interpreter (Tanya) if I need to, and she can contact me too. This is good this way because she had arranged me a date for Friday night and Saturday and I could make plans while I was on my date with Ira. Good investment, bring your cell phone, or buy a cheap one with SMS here.
Ira and I tried to find internet without a wait. No luck. We did eat at a Chinese restaurant (no Soy sauce). At the restaurant, I surprised Ira with my "Billy Bob "teeth joke. After she ordered, she looked at me and I smiled. These are plastic teethe you put in your mouth and some of the teeth are missing, crooked and not white. This is great joke on second date, not first meeting. I spent the rest of the date trying to persuade her to put these teeth in. The fun part was playing jokes on other people, like the waitress, or whoever we might meet that day. Now, I know this tactic does not fit everyone’s personality, but it fits mine very well!
One good joke was to ask another person to take our picture. Of course they will! As Ira and I stand there waiting for the picture to be taken, I smile! It is so funny seeing their reaction. Make sure you do not give them your best camera. Okay, so I did convince Ira to wear the teeth. It cost me a shot of Sambuca and 50 Grivna’s. When I went to purchase the Sambuca, we had already closed our tab. By this time the restaurant was already aware I was American, and the price jumped! I think the waitress was giving us a good deal, until the owner walked in.
Later, after walking a thousand million miles we stopped into fragrance shop and I bought Ira some perfume she liked. A note about Ukrainian women right here. Guys, if you cannot afford to buy something for the girl, like expensive perfume, then never tell her you cannot afford it. I already know this before hand. So, there were two sizes of perfume. Of course the larger size is more economical, but it does cost more. I think to myself also, "Why is this girl worried about being economical when she is paying nothing?" Don’t assume it is greed. She is thinking that you and her are becoming one and she wants to help. It really is true. But if you tell her you cannot afford this price, you are saying to her that she is not worth it. Do what I did. With a straight face and firm say, "No". I will buy this one. This let’s her know that she can still be happy, she is worth the purchase, and everyone wins. I have to admit right here that the perfume sales lady was soooooo very hot! I was not thinking much about the perfume, but checking out if she was married or not. But my fantasy is not part of this story (Unless the TV people see the value in this? Maybe they would want me to try to pick up girls that are way out of my league? ....but that would be hard to do since I dated our future Miss Universe, Polina, already).
The day is still young. By the way, add medical insurance to your list of things to get when you travel. Mine cost only 200 dollars, and no doctor will see you unless they know you can pay first. I bought mine online from my travel agent Barbara at www.GoToRussia.com .
Some trip insurance would be good too. The medical insurance I bought had a trip insurance plan included, in case my plans were ruined.
Here is another value to the tour guide (interpreter) Tanya. How was I going to separate from Ira to meet Valentina at 8 pm? Yes! My guide calls Ira and has something she needs to do. But I want to say also it works for the girl too. I asked Tanya that I can be with Polina on Saturday night, and she said she could not contact Polina, her phone was busy, thus letting me know that I was out of my mind thinking I would actually be dating Miss Universe girl for any longer than one date. But you have to try!
So I went home and took a nap. I was glad I brought some comfortable shoes for all of the walking and dodging broken concrete and tar in the streets (neighborhood area, not the tourist areas). I met with Valentina at 8 pm and we decided to go to this restaurant on the sea with the waves crashing against the breaks. We were at a very fine restaurant with 4 star service. She had no idea we had stumbled onto this and as the night progressed we were the only ones in the place enjoying Ukraine’s finest wine and a piano player who sang very nice. I broke the "Billy Bob" teeth out on Valentina after we were comfortable with each other. We had such a great time the night before and I knew this girl enjoyed my sense of humor. We played joke on waiter when it was time to order, and the guy looks at me and when I smile he almost fell over! I think he was going to laugh, but resisted! It would have been funny if I pursued the joke a little and ask him why he laughs, but I was not doing a "bit" for the Kidd Kraddick show. Those teeth proved to be valuable, as I joked a little later on with Valya that I would kiss her with the teeth. When we left the restaurant, she told me this was the first time she had been here, and I told her that this place would be special because it was my first time too. We stood over the Black Sea while the waves crashed against the shore and I could not resist to calmly embrace her and pull her near to me and lightly kiss her. She kissed me back very passionately and I knew then that we did have a good connection. It is almost a relief when it happens because then we both can relax and really enjoy each other. She was probably glad too because we stopped back at my place for a few seconds, and I left the "Billy Bob" teeth behind. We went to the disco. This disco was expensive and this was a good idea because I did not want to have to deal with all the young kids doing their thing. The disco was much like Hard Rock Café as it featured great singers many from America. We sat in the Elvis booth and I was disappointed that I left the camera at home too. We danced until about 1 pm or 1:30 maybe. We exchanged our goodbye’s and when she got home she text message me she was okay and had good time.
As a final note on this chapter of this day, I kissed Ira too, but I did find spark. I think I would have found spark if the girl could speak English. If you date a girl from here, looks can only go so far. Find one that speaks English. Also, another cultural difference was Ira wore the same outfit as she did the day before. The same exact shirt. Maybe she cleaned it, I do not know. But apparently these girls here have only a couple of outfits that they like and use them often. I also want to give note to the man who is 40 and wishes to date a 25 year old. You will have to spend some time at the disco dancing. I don’t care how good shape you are in, there is no way you will keep up with the young girl and not show it (example: I did good job of dancing with Valya, I kept up with her, but I looked like I just finished the Boston Marathon and could have used a towel!). Valya wants to become a lawyer and start a family. She likes the thought of America, but there are other countries too that appeal to her. The girl is incredibly sexy on the dance floor and calm and passive in conversation. When she kisses, a tiger comes out and grabs you, which is exactly why I am still very curious about this girl. But tonight is Day Seven and I have a date with Anna. (No not my one true love from Odessa, another Anna). For some reason I gave this girl a star on my list. I do not remember why, but let’s hope it was for good thought! Peace Out