Having lived in Kyiv a couple of year's now, I viewed the journey down to Odessa (1 May-5 May) as something that would be enjoyable, but mostly because my wife was going and I was meeting up with some good people. What a pleasant surprise to find Odessa a notch or two more liveable than Kyiv!?!

Nice Vokzal! Nicer Opera House! Even nicer streets!!

Restaurants served noticeably better quality food. Slightly higher level of service orientation and the militsia are even looking a bit smarter (in both the British and the American senses of the word)than the ones we have in Kyiv. Easier walking on the sidewalks (only tripped a couple of times), shopping areas a bit more spread-out, parks much neater and better maintained, comfort-level in the restaurants was up (BIG SEATS!) and the variety of food was greater. What wasn't there to like?

Hmmm, wife brought along a guidebook and we wandered around looking at architecture, famous monuments and seaviews. I liked 7KM market (at least I liked having the sashlyk and coffee with Nick while the gals looked for bargain prices on shoes) and the city seems to be proceeding along a more orderly growth path than Kyiv.

OK, the young people were a bit edgier and projected a bit more "attitude" than up in Kyiv. I was surprised at that, almost seem like those HS brats I tended in Southern California for a few years. In fact, saw my first "do rag" in over two years and even a few gold chains over black T's. What a laugh!

I get questions about the difference in mushrooms here in the U.S.and in Eastern Europe. Here is a sample of some I found. Oh and by the way yes they are very delicious. Rob.

Hi, my name is Raed from Jordan.

There is considerable interest regarding the cost of living in Ukraine. Regardless where you are or where you may go, it is mainly your willingness to spend money that will determine your overall cost of living. That is what it costs to get what you need and what you want. The "wants" are usually what will get you in trouble or will leave you somewhat less than satisfied.

What freedoms and rights do you have living in Ukraine? Let’s go one by one starting with relevant points of the Bill of Rights of the United States and branch off into a few other items.

We laugh, we joke about it, we exaggerate it slightly. In Ukraine, merchants insist upon customers being able to pay with exact change. It is so different from business standards (at least in America) that it deserves more than a summary dismissal. Why? Why is the emphasis placed on the customer to provide exact change? To be honest, I don't know. At least, I don't know if what I've come up with is, in fact, the real reason or basis behind this practice. My explanation will probably come close...but probably not, um... exact...

There's not a lot love in the world for smokers. The more expensive cigarettes get, the fewer places you can actually smoke. Smokers coming to Ukraine will have burning questions... Where can I smoke? How much is a pack of cigarettes? Do Ukrainians smoke?

You know and I know that you know that the idea of working in Ukraine is a little off the wall. That is precisely what makes the prospect of working in Ukraine a little, no...a lot more interesting than the typical nine-to-five job. A survey was conducted by CareerBuilder.com of almost 6,200 people regarding Dream Jobs. Aside from an overwhelming 84% indicating they were not in their dream jobs, their five most desirable elements of work might be surprising. Or... Maybe not.

Most of the men who come to Odessa are interested in meeting women. There are at least 17 marriage agencies in Odessa. That much competition tends to reinforce that there is a market worth competing over. OdessaFX is not involved with marriage agencies. Nevertheless, it is appropriate to provide some considerations for men who will be coming here and who will be interested in meeting women.