Chernivsti

Chernivsti, our home base for our week in Ukraine is a smallish, college town.  A perfect place for Young Life.  Young Life’s presence in Chernivsti is unique in that they own their Club.  Most other Young Life Club’s are rented during the weekend.  Here, they were able to purchase a house several years ago and convert it to what it is today.  A club, a headquarters for Young Life, and a place for people to live.  Hence, a place for Greg to stay for a year.  Kids come and go, live there for a while, then leave, they may come back, they may not.  Sometimes families stay here for a while.  Greg recently Puza started to live with Greg in his room.  He may stay a while then leave again. Since Greg has been staying with us at the Utkin’s, he hasn’t been in his room.  So, someone else has been sleeping in his bed!?  Hmm.

Club is only a few blocks from the center of town with its typical plaza and place for people to sit or be seen.  Everyone walks everywhere, or takes the trolley to get around.  Sasha and Eyra Utkin only got their driver’s licenses 4 years ago, Eyra doesn’t drive.

 

We were on “The Walking Street” and came upon this wedding!

 

Here, we stumbled upon an infant baptism.  It was very cold in the church, the little guy wasn’t happy to be placed in his baptismal clothes, but then when he got dunked in the basin of cold water, he was really unhappy.  These churches have excellent acoustics!