до побачення (Goodbye)

by Ryan Markiewicz | Jun 27, 2024 | Berlin's Wall

A wonderful visit. Thanks to all who made it such a memorable experience. One that I won’t forget.

We were always in good hands with Zoryana.

With Ole (and his son, Sviatoslav) and OD in Odesa, sharing a meal after THEIR hard day’s work.

Odesa. Life goes on. Even with the war and constant air raid sirens.

A special treat meeting Pasha’s Mom and Dad.

Top row, left to right–Sergio Kovalchuk, Oleksandr Zatsarnyi, Sergii Sous (birthday boy ; ), Petro Onyshchuk, JB, Olesya Tatarinova, Oleksandr Kutsevol, Alina Lozinska. Bottom row, from left–Svitlana Korzun, Cool, Derek (also Cool ; ), Yulia Grischenko (behind), Oksana Onoprienko (in front).

Thanks everyone.

There’s an old trucker saying and since I am an old trucker–to ALL of you who made this such an unforgettable experience for Derek and me—

See you on the flip side. 😉

Onward! 💪

JB

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Last Day in Kyiv

by Ryan Markiewicz | Jun 26, 2024 | Berlin's Wall

Our last day in Kyiv was another special treat.

First, we stopped back at the office  It was our colleague Sergei Sous’ birthday, and (lucky for him, they sell alcohol at those roadside gas stations, remember? 😉) We were able to pick him up a bottle of vodka (his favorite) and present it to him as his birthday gift. Also, everyone loved the LP Hawaiian shirt, so we are ordering a bunch of them. 👍

It was our colleague Sergei Sous’ birthday!

The next morning, I was honored to have breakfast at the home of Pasha’s parents, Anatoliy and Anna. If you look closely, you can see behind us are dozens of hockey pucks  Anatoly played for the Soviet National team against the NHL and the other top teams in the world (he even had a Buffalo Sabres puck from when he played vs. the Sabres in the 90’s in Buffalo. Still a big, tough guy 🙂

Pasha’s parents, Anatoliy and Anna.

Andrii and his lovely wife, Radmila (and baby Adrian), joined us.  Check out the spread—and this is only HALF the table.  What a feast! It was all prepared by Pasha’s Mom, Anna.

Afterward, Anatoly and I took a shot of his Mom’s homemade vodka. Pretty damn good!

And then Andrii and I took a dip in their pool, joined by their beautiful dog, Afina.

No words necessary here–The picture is worth 1,000 words 😊

It is clear to me what wonderful parents Pasha has, why he is such a good “kid,” and what a wonderful family Andrii and Radmila will build.

Did my heart/all our hearts good, I believe.

A(nother) special day!

Onward!

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The Road Back to Kyiv

by Ryan Markiewicz | Jun 25, 2024 | Berlin's Wall

We bid a fond farewell to Odesa and our LP colleagues. Odesa is a BEAUTIFUL city, and (other than the constant air raid alarms) life goes on there pretty normally. It’s hard to imagine, but I think that’s true most of the time in a situation like this.

My Dad was a US Army Air Corps (the predecessor to the US Air Force) airplane mechanic during WW2 and was based at Sudbury, Suffolk. He (like most WW2 vets) never talked much about the war, but I remember him telling me that he was amazed that when Hitler’s bombs started dropping, and the alarms sounded, everyone quietly, casually went into the bomb shelters. The famous British “stiff upper lip.”  And then, when it was over, life resumed as usual. I also remember him telling me about his experience in Suffolk that “the Vicar’s daughter was lovely” 🙂

So, in Zoryana’s capable hands we head back to Kyiv to say goodbye to the gang and to get a special treat before we head to Berlin.

Onward!

In Zoryana’s capable hands

Passing one of our loads of pipe heading from the port to the well sites on our way out 👍

And, of course, we stopped for another Road Dog

And Derek had to show us up 😀

I found it funny that besides the road dogs, the roadside gas stations sell all this, too. Shelves and shelves of alcohol at rest areas–what could go wrong? 🤪

And as beautiful as the drive was, there are still occasional reminders that the nation is still under attack by Russia.

Beautiful poppy fields appeared now and then along the highway. What a beautiful country!

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Meeting The Odesa Team

by Ryan Markiewicz | Jun 24, 2024 | Berlin's Wall

We had a lovely evening with the Odesa team. Shared some good stories, had some good laughs, and learned a bit about everyone’s personal history.

Walking to dinner on a beautiful Odesa night

A lovely restaurant. Ole’s son, Sviatoslav, joined us for the evening. I hope we didn’t bore him TOO much with all our old stories 🙂

Ole (I call him the The Professor. I hope he takes it as the compliment it’s meant) had some interesting conversations about our past lives. Interesting points of connection.

OD telling me about life in Odesa during the war. A quiet guy, but worlds of experience and knowledge. Both guys are total gems!

Next, we’re heading back to Kyiv (and ready for more Road Dogs 🤪)

Onward!

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