Viking 'Footsteps of the Cossacks' (Ukraine)

[Grandcruisevirgin]

Just wondering if you are in Ukraine or will be there when I'm there Altiva,you have been so helpful maybe we could meet.

The river looks so beautiful,I'm so glad I'm doing the cruise instead of going to Ukraine and trying to see the sights on my own.

[Peregrina651]

Happy birthday, altiva -- and thanks for the wonderful pictures!

[altiva]

Just wondering if you are in Ukraine or will be there when I'm there Altiva,you have been so helpful maybe we could meet.

The river looks so beautiful,I'm so glad I'm doing the cruise instead of going to Ukraine and trying to see the sights on my own.

 

Hi Grandcruisevirgin,

when are you coming?

It's nice, isn't it? Wait till you try the food.

I still think you should come once again some time and do, for

example, Ukrainian castles route, in the west, with Carpathian

mountains. I am certain that once you come from your fist voyage of

discovery, with all the wonderful photos and stories, your all

commune will be dying to go there too, and you will become their

leader! Almost like Moses (a joke).

[altiva]

Happy birthday, altiva -- and thanks for the wonderful pictures!

 

Thank you, Peregrina!

[altiva]

For those, coming on this cruise.

In Ukraine, there are officially established 7 wonders.

Seven wonders of Ukraine.

The seven wonders of Ukraine were determined by Ukrainian Internet

voters and by scientists, historians and experts in tourism industry.

There are:

1. Kamyanets-Podilsky fortress.

2. Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra.

3. Sofiyivka.

4. Sofia Kyivska.

5. Khersones Tavriysky.

6. Khotyn fortress.

7. Khortutsya.

Out of seven, those on this cruise can easily visit 4.

Kyiv-Pecherski lavra is in Kyiv.

Sofia Kyivska is a St Sophia church in Kyiv.

Khersones Tavriysky (Chersonesus Taurica) is in Crimea.

And Khortutsya in an island on the Dnieper.

It's not shabby, visiting four our of seven hottest spots.

[silkismom]

Happy Birthday!! Grandcruisevirgin & we are on the same 22 Sept cruise. It's about time for me to start copy/pasting info from here so I can bring it along. Our air flts are finally about settled! We are now taking UA from ORD to Munich and plan to pay for economy plus as soon as it is ticketed.

[Grandcruisevirgin]

Hi Grandcruisevirgin,

when are you coming?

It's nice, isn't it? Wait till you try the food.

I still think you should come once again some time and do, for

example, Ukrainian castles route, in the west, with Carpathian

mountains. I am certain that once you come from your fist voyage of

discovery, with all the wonderful photos and stories, your all

commune will be dying to go there too, and you will become their

leader! Almost like Moses (a joke).

 

I'll be on the September 22 cruise from Kiev to Odessa. I'll be arriving in Kiev on September 20th, for the pre-cruise extension. If you're in Kiev, we could meet on the 20th or 21st, or if you're in Odessa, I think the ship gets there on October 2 or 3, and then Silkismon and I fly out on October 4th.

So, we could meet in Kiev or Odessa or any place along the route.

 

I hope you have a happy birthday!

[ocean999]

We go on this cruise April 20th! Can't wait. Just some general questions: Do we get food choices at dinner on the cruise? Does Viking provide some good soaps as occur on other non-river cruises? Are there refrigerators in the rooms? Is there a place on Viking site (I'm going to try and check) where you can see some of the meal selections? Thanks for this info, and Altiva, thanks for all of the great pix of the beautiful outfits, etc and thank you, Perigrina, for all of the bounty of information that you have provided to all of us, and also for your absolutely wonderful blog, which I plan to take with us on the cruise.

 

I haven't found anyone going on our cruise, but as Altiva said, it looks like only about 15% of cruisers go on this site.

 

Happy Birthday, Altiva! It was just mine last week, and SILKISMOM, we had Celebration Womans Day as well here in the USA last week!!!!! Thanks for being here, folks!I love this site!

[Peregrina651]

We go on this cruise April 20th! Can't wait. Just some general questions: Do we get food choices at dinner on the cruise? Does Viking provide some good soaps as occur on other non-river cruises? Are there refrigerators in the rooms? Is there a place on Viking site (I'm going to try and check) where you can see some of the meal selections? !

from the front desk. Be sure to return it before you leave the shipYes, there are choices at every meal. Breakfast is a buffet plus a couple of hot items that you order from your server. Lunch is a buffet plus three choices from the kitchen. Dinner all sit-down with choice of appetizers, entree and desserts--each night is different. I don't think there are any menus on Viking website but if you find them, please post a link.

 

Yes, soap, lotions and shampoo in the cabins.

 

There was a little fridge in our cabin. We used it as a table.

 

Bottled water supplied as needed. Once you open a bottle, a fresh bottle will be placed in your cabin.

 

Hairdryers are in the deluxe cabins, standard cabins can borrow one.

 

FYI: If you have a problem with a post on this thread, please use the

to report it to the moderators. Do not post requests in this thread as the moderators do not read the individual threads.

[Peregrina651]

, and also for your absolutely wonderful blog, which I plan to take with us on the cruise.

 

!

 

Take two so you can give one to Henry, the hotel manager.

[altiva]

I'll be on the September 22 cruise from Kiev to Odessa. I'll be arriving in Kiev on September 20th, for the pre-cruise extension. If you're in Kiev, we could meet on the 20th or 21st, or if you're in Odessa, I think the ship gets there on October 2 or 3, and then Silkismon and I fly out on October 4th.

So, we could meet in Kiev or Odessa or any place along the route.

 

I hope you have a happy birthday!

 

Sounds great, great time of the year, with lot of fruits and vegetables.

I'd love to meet. I don't have my schedule yet, and but when the time gets closer I'll see how to manage it better.

[altiva]

We go on this cruise April 20th! Can't wait. Just some general questions: Do we get food choices at dinner on the cruise? Does Viking provide some good soaps as occur on other non-river cruises? Are there refrigerators in the rooms? Is there a place on Viking site (I'm going to try and check) where you can see some of the meal selections? Thanks for this info, and Altiva, thanks for all of the great pix of the beautiful outfits, etc and thank you, Perigrina, for all of the bounty of information that you have provided to all of us, and also for your absolutely wonderful blog, which I plan to take with us on the cruise.

 

I haven't found anyone going on our cruise, but as Altiva said, it looks like only about 15% of cruisers go on this site.

 

Happy Birthday, Altiva! It was just mine last week, and SILKISMOM, we had Celebration Womans Day as well here in the USA last week!!!!! Thanks for being here, folks!I love this site!

 

Oh, you are a Pisces also. :)

[altiva]

Today is a start of Maslenytsya in Ukraine.

It's the last week before the great Easter fast, when people are not

supposed to eat dairy, fish and meat. Many Ukrainian restaurants will have

a fast menu added to accommodate people who are fasting.

Maslenytsya means "buttery". You are supposed to stuff yourself with

pancakes this week. And they are supposed to be fried on real butter.

Ukrainians love butter and add it to many dishes. Vareniky

(dumplings) must "swim" in butter, for example.

Here is a Ukrainian woman, making butter at home. You can buy real

home made butter on farmer's markets.

Ukrainian pancakes are called nalysnyky.

It's pancakes, stuffed with rice, meat, buckwheat, berries, cheese

(the cheese ones are sweet, they add sugar and raisins to them).

These are the ones with cheese. You eat them with sour cream.

 

Besides pancakes, people eat different sausages, salo (lard), meat,

paltry.

[altiva]

Nalysnyky with raspberries.

[silkismom]

Ok, now I'm drooling, do they have those pancakes all year or just for a festival? Do you know of any good (not expensive) restaurants near the Radisson Blu hotel in Kiev, I think that's where they put us before the cruise.

[Peregrina651]

 

 

Besides pancakes, people eat different sausages, salo (lard), meat,

paltry.

 

 

Just like my grandmother used to make!!

[altiva]

Ok, now I'm drooling, do they have those pancakes all year or just for a festival? Do you know of any good (not expensive) restaurants near the Radisson Blu hotel in Kiev, I think that's where they put us before the cruise.

 

hi silkismom,

Of course they are too eat and enjoy every day.

For every day eating, Puzata Hata (a potbellied house) and Two geese

are good. They are self-served restaurants, where you take a tray and

pick up the dishes as you proceed to the checkout. Puzata Hata is

better. They have all the Ukrainian dishes, and they taste home made,

and the prices are really low. They have one on the main street,

Khreshchatyk. Also, on the main square, called square of Independence

(Maidan Nezalezhnosty), you can see a glass dome, and an entrance to

the metro. If you go inside, instead of entering the metro, go the

other way down. They have an underground mall there, 3 or 4 stories.

There is Puzata Hata there as well, plus, on the last below (or would

it be first?) there is like 5 or 6 cafes, cafeterias and pizzerias

and what not. They have low prices also.

I don't know your budget, but you simply MUST go to Mamayev sloboda.

It's a Ukrainian medieval village in the centre of the city. They

have churches there, and their own vinery, and houses of a pot-maker,

a smith, houses of cossacks and a windmill and much much more.

Everyone is dressed in a national costume.

They have a tavern, called "A plait under a glass".

Here is a link to the virtual tour:

http://mamajeva-sloboda.ua/publ.php?category=204

It's on street 2 Mykoly Dontsya.

Their site has an English version, but they did not translate it all.

If you insert this link into a google translate and choose

"translate from Ukrainian to English" you can read the menu.

They have 350 authentic Ukrainian dishes and drinks.

http://mamajeva-sloboda.ua/posluhy.php?id=32

And you can see the photos there as well.

Here is an extract on pancakes only:

Pancakes with capons - 200 grams.

• Pancakes with good (liver with onions) - 200 grams.

• Pancakes with cabbage - 200 gms.

• Savory Pancakes (with cheese, garlic and green onions) - 200 grams.

• Pancakes with sour cream - 200 grams.

• Pancakes with caviar (Sturgeon caviar) - 200 hr./25 caviar

• Pancakes with mushrooms - 200 grams.

• Pancakes with poppy seeds - 200 gms.

• Pancakes with cheese - 200 grams.

• Pancakes with jam - 200 grams.

• Pancakes with honey - 200 grams.

And here is the map of the whole territory:

http://mamajeva-sloboda.ua/map.php

Hungry now?

[silkismom]

Starving!!

[Peregrina651]

hi silkismom,

Of course they are too eat and enjoy every day.

For every day eating, Puzata Hata (a potbellied house)

 

 

 

It is the circular sign in the picture. We went to the one just off Khreshchatyk. Delicious! It is a bit confusing at first (new experience and all, trying to figure how it works) and there are so many choices but the staff is helpful and patient. BTW, cash only.

 

[Grandcruisevirgin]

Just like my grandmother used to make!!

My mother used to make them too but she called them blintzes or blines. There was actually a dairy restaurant in Philly called the Blintze, I don't know if you ever ate there,Peregrina. The place closed years ago, I liked the sweet ones but not with sour cream. The Ukrainian church on the other side of the town where I now live has periodic pierogie sales. Both blinds and pierogies can be found frozen, they just don't taste like the ones mom used to make!

[Peregrina651]

My mother used to make them too but she called them blintzes or blines. There was actually a dairy restaurant in Philly called the Blintze, I don't know if you ever ate there,Peregrina. The place closed years ago, I liked the sweet ones but not with sour cream. The Ukrainian church on the other side of the town where I now live has periodic pierogie sales. Both blinds and pierogies can be found frozen, they just don't taste like the ones mom used to make!

 

I used to make them--when I was in high school, back in the days when we lit the house with candles. Grandma taught me how but I haven't made them since then and have completely forgotten how to do the pancakes. What I love is seeing the world-wide variations on pancakes and on pirogie/varenekis--crepes, blini, flapjacks, wonton, eggrolls, tortillas,gyoza, etc., etc.

[Peregrina651]

Ok, now I'm drooling, do they have those pancakes all year or just for a festival? Do you know of any good (not expensive) restaurants near the Radisson Blu hotel in Kiev, I think that's where they put us before the cruise.

 

We ate at the little pizza place just down the street from the hotel--I don't even remember the name. This is a report not a recommendation because if you stay at the RB, you are bound to see this little place and you will want to know about it. Everybody's tastes are different, so I don't usually 'recommend' restaurants unless they are best in their class but I am willing to tell you about my experience so that you can make up your own mind. It was clean and wholesome; it was inexpensive and it was close to the hotel. The pizza was fair in my estimation, good in my husband's; there were no leftovers. The dining room is downstairs. Smoking is permitted. Multilingual menu. Cash only. On a weeknight, it was relatively quiet.

 

 

Hut of the Potbelly, on the other hand, I recommend-- for the food and for the experience. Go with other people, if you can. If you are doing the extension with Viking, you will meet fellow cruisers on the included walking tour and maybe you will find others with whom to share a meal.

 

 

 

 

Edited March 12, 2013 by Peregrina651

[ocean999]

These look just like my mom's, mine and grandmothers blintzes!!! Yumm! Getting hungry hearing all your delicious comments, Altiva! Thanks!

[ocean999]

QUESTION: As we get ready for our April sailing, can anyone tell me if my DH has to bring a suit jacket for the Opera or for the Captains dinner? I hope not. It's so tough to get all our stuff in as it is. Thx.

[Peregrina651]

QUESTION: As we get ready for our April sailing, can anyone tell me if my DH has to bring a suit jacket for the Opera or for the Captains dinner? I hope not. It's so tough to get all our stuff in as it is. Thx.

 

No sports jacket needed. DH wore black dockers and a button down for both the opera and the Captain's dinner and that was fine.