SDA Appointment

Day 4 – Wednesday, 16 December

Still a bit jet-lagged, the screaming alarm at 6:30 AM came as a shock to both of us. We realized that we actually had to get up when the backup alarm on our phone shrieked at us from the other room. We launched into gear, quickly making breakfast and dressing up for our appointment with the Ukrainian State Department of Adoption (SDA). Unlike many countries, Ukraine does not allow pre-identification of children, so obtaining a referral to “meet” Lena and begin the adoption process is the first step in every adoption in Ukraine.

While our appointment was at 11:00 AM, this is one appointment where being late is absolutely not an option. Our translator also had an errand to run related to some other families’ paperwork, so she and our driver picked us up from our apartment at about 8:20. Driving around Kyiv in the daylight, we remembered the craziness that is traffic in this city! Sidewalks are not intended for pedestrians alone, lines on the road are merely suggestions, and every driver in the city knows the *exact* dimensions of his or her car, and delights in positioning their cars only millimeters from posts, walls, or dumpsters on either side. The more talented of these folks will play this game with moving objects such as oncoming cars. It’s amazing to see that most of these cars are not covered in scratches and scrapes and gashes and dents!

We crept through traffic into downtown Kyiv and stopped at a Notary for our translator to do some paperwork; notarys in Ukraine are more like paralegals than a notary public in the US, and they take their responsibilities very seriously. We found it both disconcerting and amusing to see an erotic bar adjacent to the notary’s office! Of course, Mark took a photo!

We arrived at the SDA with plenty of time to spare, but as I mentioned, being late is not an option here. It was much better to arrive early, sit in the warm car, and read a book than to get stuck in traffic and miss our appointment! I have to thank Mark again for the wonderful eBook reader that he got me for my birthday! It’s small, fits great in my purse, and I can carry more books with me at all times than I could ever hope to read! During the SDA wait, I finished Wuthering Heights.

At about 10:50, we went to the side door of the SDA. Last time we were here, we were forced to wait outside, and we wondered what happened to the poor people who had to wait when it was 8 degrees outside (yes, it was 8 today)! We discovered that they do allow people inside now, so we went in and waited in the stairwell until we were called.

“Niles?” It was the happiest I had been to hear my name called, and we followed our translator into the small office at the top of the stairs. Last time we were here, our facilitator was not allowed in with us, but they have changed the rules now, and she was allowed to translate for us. It was comforting to have a familiar face in there with us. We relaxed even more when we walked in and saw a file with Lena’s photo sitting on top of the table. The meeting lasted about 15 minutes, where we explained to the SDA how we had met Lena while we were adopting Masha, and had stayed in contact with her for the past 2.5 years. We talked of how she hoped to be a part of our family, and how Masha was very excited to have Lena for her sister. Then our translator and the SDA representative briefly discussed some of the details for our paperwork, and we were done! Tomorrow, they will issue us the formal permission documents to visit Lena and begin the local process for her adoption. Tomorrow night, we will take an overnight train, and should be in the region on Friday morning!

Today’s objective complete, our driver drove us back to the apartment. He dropped us at the mall across the street from our complex so we could grab a bite, then we walked back to the apartment (yes, still just 8 degrees Farenheit)! Shortly after our arrival, our facilitator stopped by to visit and collect the items that we brought for him and to help troubleshoot our Internet connection. It was great to see him again. After a short visit, he left us to relax for the rest of the afternoon…which we used very effectively by watching Tropic Thunder, testing the Internet connection about every 30 minutes, and catching up on blogging.

About 5:00, I heard a roar of delight from Mark, and when I glanced over at his computer I saw the status line “Connected…” Never was there such joy as in our apartment now that we have access to the Internet!!! We are paying by the GB, so we won’t be online all the time, but at least now we feel connected to the outside world again…it’s amazing how addicted we have become! We made a couple of skype calls home, and tested the video calls from Mark’s computer, and then it’s my turn. Then an exciting dinner of chicken and pasta and one more call home to Masha. Maybe tomorrow I’ll get some photos uploaded…..