Pictures from our visit to the Ukraine

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Go to David & Elizabeth's Ukraine Trip for the daily logs for our trip to the Ukraine.

Homes in Ukraine are built out of concrete and steel and may be may or may not have a layer of brick on the out side. Unless the house in inside a city it will have a garden 1/2 acre or larger. Asbestos shingles are what most homes have on their roofs. The outside walls are concrete which are 18"-24" thick.  On the outside they usually look rundown compared to our standards. On the inside the houses are well maintained, colorful and comfortable. The all have a fence or wall surrounding their property to reduce theft. Here are some average homes with their gardens in Blaki. 

The yellow pipes visible in some of the pictures are the natural gas lines. Throughout the Soviet era and until about 10 years ago, all water and gas pipes were installed above ground. During the winter, the water pipes are wrapped so they don't freeze.

 


In the better area closer to valley between Balki and Dneprorudniy is were the shop owners (the comparatively rich people) live. Here the houses are more modern and may have siding. In the picture below notice the house is sitting right next to an average home.

When you go shopping in Ukraine, you will find some grocery stores.

More often you would go to the market in the center of the town or city you live in and buy your food.

The roads in Ukraine are very poor in relation to the ones we have here in the States. The best roads are the equivalent to the freeways we have here in the State, that is equivalent to the very rough parts of our freeway system. Dirt roads are the norm here once you get away from the main roads and watch out for the cattle and goats grazing beside the roads, at least they will be tied so that they don't stray away. Oh yes, you will NEVER see a wooden telephone pole, they are all concrete.

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