OTTER ENCOUNTERS AND A NIGHT ON THE TOWN IN IVANO-FRANKIVSK

OTTER ENCOUNTERS AND A NIGHT ON THE TOWN IN IVANO-FRANKIVSK

Hi, I’m Valentyna from Ukraine. And I’m Mr. East from the U.S. We decided to leave America and move to my
beloved motherland. In the middle of a war. We are on a mission. A mission from God, you might say. A mission to explore this beautiful
country with its rich culture and history, gorgeous landscapes and
world-class cuisine. And to get to know its great people. And we invite you to join us as we travel
around this little known corner of Europe. Here on “East of the West.” Follow us as we explore Ivano-Frankivsk,
one of the most charming cities in Ukraine. As we roam through
the beautiful city center. And around the lake. As we reunite with old friends. And make new friends. And as we discover that
the force is with… America? As we climb the clock tower for
a bird’s eye view of the city. We don’t have a drone. As we’re terrorized by
an enormous albino otter. As we catch a live show or two. And as we have a drink or three
with Marina. So come along with us as we explore… Ivano-Frankivsk! This is our old friend Marina and she
met us here in Frankivsk. And she’s going to be
our tour guide because a lot of things have changed
since we last lived here. How many years have we been away? How many years since we last lived here? Maybe six? – I think so.
– Yeah. 2018, so… – More like seven.
– Quite a bit. Wow. But Marina hasn’t changed a bit. I’m so tired. All right, then.
Let’s go. Marina’s giving more. They do have big teeth. Oh no! It’s coming towards me! Oh no! Oh God! Help me! It’s “Formula of Life.” Yaroslav Pankiv. – “Formula of Life,” eh?
– I think it’s an egg. So some birds made into an egg. That’s very insightful. But together… together,
they make an egg. – That’s a new life.
– I see. It’s avant-garde. You don’t need to understand it.
You just need to feel it. Oh, this is a famous cat. – Hello, famous cat!
– Why is this cat famous? Because everyone knows him. He lives here. Once I wanted to take him home, but… She wanted to adopt him. But they dissuaded her because he’s
a local cat. Everyone loves him. So she would be stealing
from the neighborhood. She’s been pretty unpopular for taking the famous cat away. Now she needs to find another cat. Who’s this chap? Some guy, I don’t know. This is a poet. A Ukrainian poet. Have you heard of him? I haven’t. But I like the poem. And the last line of the poem is: “And books are needed for Ukraine, like freedom, faith, like bread.” I don’t know who he was,
but I like him. You’ll have to research then,
won’t you? I know. I really think Frankivsk is still one of
the best cities to live in Ukraine. In the world! – In the world.
– Yeah, you see, it might be true. Well we enjoyed our time here. And, you see, that’s what I was
talking about. It’s very lively. Oh, is that me? I’ve got a poster!
My own poster! We’re wanted. So it seems. – Some kind of grass?
– Yeah. We met our friend Sergei for dinner at a
Georgian restaurant. That’s Georgia the country, not the state. This is called tarhun. It’s a Georgian non-alcoholic drink
made of some special grass. – It’s pretty cool. Is it good?
– Yeah. They sweeten it with something. Look at this salad. So we have some pear, blue cheese,
and walnuts. Looks awesome. – What do you have?
– I have some spicy soup with beef. And this is? It’s salad with chicken,
apple, and orange. So you came to Ukraine to eat
some Georgian food? – That’s right.
– Yes, sometimes. It’s really good, right? Sergei declined to join us for the
remainder of our evening on the town. Luckily, we met our other friend Sergei. This is for children. Sweets for children. This Sergei is a photographer. We have several samples of his work. Oh, no, no. It has to be… Huh? Did they do it wrong? What’s floating in it? What is that? Just drink. While I enjoy a beer now and then, I have to steel myself for a night on the
town with Marina. But curfew means the bars
all close by 11. How bad could it be? “May the force would be with you
in Grand America.” – There’s no tequila.
– There’s no tequila? OK, guys… Budmo! What are you wearing on your head? My Indonesian head gear.
It’s from Lombok. – That’s very cool.
– That’s right. Oh, nice flag. Yeah? It’s my tribal… – Tribal outfit.
– Nice flag behind you. There’s a flag behind me. Do you like his hat? – How was that for you?
– Hmm? – How was that for you?
– So-so. – Are you ready for the next one?
– Always. Yeah. OK. – She’s so crazy.
– Yeah. I know. No. Marina! Marina, you can’t drink like that!
Because we can’t find your place without you. I can. Please. She knows the address.
There’s always a taxi. All right. OK. He lives nearby. – Are you ready?
– OK. Oh, even Marina has that. Crazy. Two crazy people right here. Shocking! – Let’s drink!
– Huh? No, no! No, I already have a drink.
It’s called beer. Why is it green again? – Just drink.
– OK. All right. Oh, okay. What? Huh? De Valflya? No. No, I… Exactly. Do you want to say that we… Do you want to say that we wasted all
those drinks and you still cannot speak Ukrainian? You have to speak Ukrainian. So “beer.” Huh? No! No? That’s a joke! Is it? Do you still want the student
in your class? Ignorant American! But even in a small, safe city like this, there are reminders that this
is still a country at war.

Welcome, gentle viewers, to Ivano-Frankivsk, one of the most charming small cities in Ukraine – which means it’s one of the most charming small cities in East Europe. We lived there in 2018 – in fact, it’s where we got married – and it was a joy to return.

While there we met with some old friends – one of whom, Marina, offered to put us up at her apartment for a couple of nights. And with Marina those nights are always going to be nights on the town, at least until the 11 PM wartime bar closure curfew. There’s no shortage of bars in Ivano-Frankivsk…

Also while there we strolled round the lake and fed watermelon to ducks and otters.

Ah, the otter! Serene beast, builder of those little dams out of twigs… or is that the beaver? O kindly, sweet, placid otter… Just don’t make one angry: then it bares its fangs. Blood may be shed! Marina nearly lost a finger.

This is PART ONE of two. Tune in next week at the usual time for the conclusion!

Our music is “Do It Again” by the Markles’ Orchestra, and a bit of Wagner. It is public domain and taken from the Internet Archive: www.archive.org

Subtitles offered in: English, Українська, Русский, Español, ქართული

OUR SUBTITLES ARE NOT MACHINE-TRANSLATED. Mr. East did the English and Valentyna did the Ukrainian & Russian. Thank you to our international friends for the help with the others!

These videos can’t be made without the help of caffeine. If you’d like to buy us a coffee: buymeacoffee.com/eastofthewest

0:00 Introduction
2:08 Meeting Marina
3:55 Ottery Encounters
5:18 A Stroll & Finding the Famous Cat
8:36 “Best City to Live in the Whole World”
10:29 Georgian Interlude
12:07 Nightlife Time
15:46 “Do You Know Where I Live?”
17:50 Mr. East Harassed about His Lousy Ukrainian

#ukraine #ukrainetravel #ivanofrankivsk #followthecap #україна #otter