Our two Belarussian boys...
 

....had the ultimate treat today - a boat ride on the Potomac. We put in at
the Pohick Bay launch ramp and cruised up to the Lincoln Memorial so they
could see the sights from water. They had a super time, and so did we.
(Except for forgetting the camera!) They fly back to Belarus on Tuesday,
but we're already thinking of having them back again next year.

One day we drove by the local fire station, and saw a couple of the firemen
sitting outside. We stopped, explained who the boys were, and asked if they
could look at a fire truck. Well, the two firemen (one of whom was female)
were just falling all over themselves to show the boys a nice time. I was
wondering if they were going to take them for a ride with sirens and all!

http://i98.photobucket.com/albums/l2...ndLosha181.jpg

and,

http://i98.photobucket.com/albums/l2...ndLosha184.jpg

Our two Belarussian boys...
 

On Sat, 26 Jul 2008 01:16:10 GMT, John H.
wrote:

...had the ultimate treat today - a boat ride on the Potomac. We put in at
the Pohick Bay launch ramp and cruised up to the Lincoln Memorial so they
could see the sights from water. They had a super time, and so did we.
(Except for forgetting the camera!) They fly back to Belarus on Tuesday,
but we're already thinking of having them back again next year.

One day we drove by the local fire station, and saw a couple of the firemen
sitting outside. We stopped, explained who the boys were, and asked if they
could look at a fire truck. Well, the two firemen (one of whom was female)
were just falling all over themselves to show the boys a nice time. I was
wondering if they were going to take them for a ride with sirens and all!

http://i98.photobucket.com/albums/l2...ndLosha181.jpg

and,

http://i98.photobucket.com/albums/l2...ndLosha184.jpg

They'll never forget that day.

--Vic

Our two Belarussian boys...
 

John H. wrote:
....had the ultimate treat today - a boat ride on the Potomac. We put in at
the Pohick Bay launch ramp and cruised up to the Lincoln Memorial so they
could see the sights from water. They had a super time, and so did we.
(Except for forgetting the camera!) They fly back to Belarus on Tuesday,
but we're already thinking of having them back again next year.

One day we drove by the local fire station, and saw a couple of the firemen
sitting outside. We stopped, explained who the boys were, and asked if they
could look at a fire truck. Well, the two firemen (one of whom was female)
were just falling all over themselves to show the boys a nice time. I was
wondering if they were going to take them for a ride with sirens and all!

http://i98.photobucket.com/albums/l2...ndLosha181.jpg

and,

http://i98.photobucket.com/albums/l2...ndLosha184.jpg

Very cool! Great idea!

Our two Belarussian boys...
 

On Jul 25, 8:16 pm, John H. wrote:
...had the ultimate treat today - a boat ride on the Potomac. We put in at
the Pohick Bay launch ramp and cruised up to the Lincoln Memorial so they
could see the sights from water. They had a super time, and so did we.
(Except for forgetting the camera!) They fly back to Belarus on Tuesday,
but we're already thinking of having them back again next year.

One day we drove by the local fire station, and saw a couple of the firemen
sitting outside. We stopped, explained who the boys were, and asked if they
could look at a fire truck. Well, the two firemen (one of whom was female)
were just falling all over themselves to show the boys a nice time. I was
wondering if they were going to take them for a ride with sirens and all!

http://i98.photobucket.com/albums/l2...ndLosha181.jpg

and,

http://i98.photobucket.com/albums/l2...ndLosha184.jpg

I was wondering how you all were getting along. I think that was a
great idea of your church sponsoring those kids to come to the US and
stay with you. (that is, if I remember correctly)

I doubt if you can speak any russian, and I don't' think they could
speak any english, but it seems like "ice cream" is universal!

Our two Belarussian boys...
 

John H. wrote in
:

http://i98.photobucket.com/albums/l2...ndLosha184.jpg

What's their status? I know someone who brought home a cute Russian orphan
after the bureaucratic fight with the US Gummit, of course. She's going to
be an electrical engineer after graduation....but the boys ARE persistent.

I think they have 3, now....all orphans, adopted.

They know more about the USA than I do!

Firepersons (PC!) love kids. They drive our trucks over in front of
Walmart, suit the kids all up like firepersons and water the vacant lot
next door with a 250', hi pressure ladder truck from way up there!

Our two Belarussian boys...
 

Tim wrote in news:feecded3-83cf-467f-9e65-
:

I doubt if you can speak any russian, and I don't' think they could
speak any english, but it seems like "ice cream" is universal!



Most East European kids speak fluent English and have for a long time. A
friend just came back from Prague. I asked if they learned any Czech.
"Why? Everyone in Prague speaks English. They'll stop you on the street
to speak English to you!", they told me.

The Soviets taught all their kids English so when they took over America,
they'd all be able to tell us what to do.....

All Iranian kids spoke, or tried to speak, English when I lived in Tehran.
English meant you got great jobs working with foreigners. In the 70's,
Tehran had lots of foreigners, especially American and English. Hell, we
had our own TV channel and it was the most popular with Iranians.

Even the street kids in Prague spoke English, they told me....begging for
money and selling their bodies.

Our two Belarussian boys...
 

On Fri, 25 Jul 2008 20:16:01 -0700 (PDT), Tim wrote:

On Jul 25, 8:16 pm, John H. wrote:
...had the ultimate treat today - a boat ride on the Potomac. We put in at
the Pohick Bay launch ramp and cruised up to the Lincoln Memorial so they
could see the sights from water. They had a super time, and so did we.
(Except for forgetting the camera!) They fly back to Belarus on Tuesday,
but we're already thinking of having them back again next year.

One day we drove by the local fire station, and saw a couple of the firemen
sitting outside. We stopped, explained who the boys were, and asked if they
could look at a fire truck. Well, the two firemen (one of whom was female)
were just falling all over themselves to show the boys a nice time. I was
wondering if they were going to take them for a ride with sirens and all!

http://i98.photobucket.com/albums/l2...ndLosha181.jpg

and,

http://i98.photobucket.com/albums/l2...ndLosha184.jpg

I was wondering how you all were getting along. I think that was a
great idea of your church sponsoring those kids to come to the US and
stay with you. (that is, if I remember correctly)

I doubt if you can speak any russian, and I don't' think they could
speak any english, but it seems like "ice cream" is universal!

You're correct in all.

Yesterday, after their favorite meal (hot dogs at Costco) we took them to
Dairy Queen. They've learned the word 'chocolate'!

It's a great vacation for the kids, and a pain in the butt for us. But when
they leave, we'll have tears running down our face as we say goodbye. It's
remarkable how strong an attachment can be formed in only a few weeks. They
soon seem like part of the family. One of these boys lives with his
grandmother. His mother's in jail for stealing, his father is not to be
found, and his grandfather is dead. The other lives in a two-roomer with
three siblings, a mother, and a father who's an alcoholic. Alcoholism is
the favorite illness over there, it seems. Every boy that's stayed with us,
and had a father at home, had an alcoholic for a father. Damn shame.

We'll probably have them back next year, but don't tell my wife I said
that!

BTW, you sound upbeat about your wife. That's good. Anytime the mood
strikes, give me a call.

Our two Belarussian boys...
 

On Sat, 26 Jul 2008 06:02:36 +0000, Larry wrote:

Tim wrote in news:feecded3-83cf-467f-9e65-
:

I doubt if you can speak any russian, and I don't' think they could
speak any english, but it seems like "ice cream" is universal!



Most East European kids speak fluent English and have for a long time. A
friend just came back from Prague. I asked if they learned any Czech.
"Why? Everyone in Prague speaks English. They'll stop you on the street
to speak English to you!", they told me.

The Soviets taught all their kids English so when they took over America,
they'd all be able to tell us what to do.....

All Iranian kids spoke, or tried to speak, English when I lived in Tehran.
English meant you got great jobs working with foreigners. In the 70's,
Tehran had lots of foreigners, especially American and English. Hell, we
had our own TV channel and it was the most popular with Iranians.

Even the street kids in Prague spoke English, they told me....begging for
money and selling their bodies.

Belarus is nothing like the Czech Republic. While in Germany, Prague became
a favorite spot to visit. The city is spectacular. The Germans didn't bomb
it, and neither did the allies. The Germans blew up part of the city hall
just to let folks know who was in charge, but everything else in the city
remained whole.

The Czech's loved Americans, at that time anyway. (This was early '90s.)
And many of them spoke English at least well enough to be understood. Most
of the time we camped just south of town, but one night we stayed at an
apartment. Many of the folks in Prague would rent an unused bedroom for the
night to visitors. This was a little illegal, but what the hell. The folks
at the 'America House' on the city market place had a list of people who
would rent rooms.

My wife, daughter, and I stayed in a rented room for what I thought was
about $40 for the night. The next morning the owners were upset when we
paid them. So, they called America House and got someone to translate. The
owners had meant for us to pay $40 PER PERSON! Well, guess what. Their
failure to communicate cost them, because I didn't have the cash and they
didn't take VISA. (Besides, they were trying to rip us off.)

We had one boy from Belarus who could say a few things in English. He was
from Minsk, his parents had money, he was on a dance team that traveled
internationally, and he'd picked up a lot of English in his travels. But he
was the only kid I've seen in the program who could speak any English. They
do, however, all know how to say 'no' and 'Coca Cola' upon arrival!

Our two Belarussian boys...
 

On Sat, 26 Jul 2008 05:52:12 +0000, Larry wrote:

John H. wrote in
:

http://i98.photobucket.com/albums/l2...ndLosha184.jpg

What's their status? I know someone who brought home a cute Russian orphan
after the bureaucratic fight with the US Gummit, of course. She's going to
be an electrical engineer after graduation....but the boys ARE persistent.

I think they have 3, now....all orphans, adopted.

They know more about the USA than I do!

Firepersons (PC!) love kids. They drive our trucks over in front of
Walmart, suit the kids all up like firepersons and water the vacant lot
next door with a 250', hi pressure ladder truck from way up there!


These first two sites give some information about our local program. Typing
'Children of Chernobyl Program' into Google will provide all kinds of info.
(Read the first update in the above site to get a feel for the problems the
program is facing.)

http://www.historicchristchurch.org/.../Children.aspx

(Read the first update in the above site to get a feel for the problems the
program is facing.)

http://moran.house.gov/list/press/va...n/Angels.shtml

This last site provides a little more detail about what actually occurs.
This is not from our area, but we do about the same things.

http://tinyurl.com/5hvyum

The first child we had will be graduating high school this year and then
attending the University of St. Petersburg in Russia. Very bright kid.
After his first visit he went home and began taking English five days a
week in school. He also talked his parents into paying the English teacher
to come to his house one night a week for tutoring. He absolutely loved
this country.

Our two Belarussian boys...
 

John H. wrote in
m:


These first two sites give some information about our local program.
Typing
'Children of Chernobyl Program' into Google will provide all kinds of
info.
(Read the first update in the above site to get a feel for the problems
the
program is facing.)

http://www.historicchristchurch.org/.../Children.aspx



A friend of mine and his wife who have a boat in Scituate are involved in
this program. This summer, they sponsored two pre-teen girls from Russia
who are undergoing radiation sickness treatment at the Children's Hospital
in Boston. They have two pre-teen daughters of their own and the four girls
got along famously, even though the girls from Russia spoke virtually no
English and my friend's kids spoke no Russian. It was fun watching them
communicate none the less, and they started picking up a few words and
phrases in each other's language.

Nice program. Hard to believe that the Russian government allowed people to
continue to live in a radiation contaminated area.

Eisboch