The phone rang in my hotel room. How odd. Who could this be?
9;30 in the evening. I had just gone to bed.
It was the hotel reception desk. The Young woman says she wants me to leave the hotel for half an hour. Why? It's hard to explain, she says. For education reasons.
What? This makes no sense. Sorry for the inconvenience she says. It's only for half an hour.
I object. I don't want to get up and go out.
Then i wise up. I figure somethings happening. Maybe I don't want to be in the hotel. I decide to walk down the stairs. I don't want to get caught in the elevator.
In the lobby, people are milling around. Some have gone outside. Some guys in boots and reflecting jackets looking like they might be firemen are standing around. Also a bunch of security people.
I go outside and see a middle aged guy I had said hello to when I checked in a couple of days ago. Maybe he knows what's going on.
We get talking. He's an Englishman. He travels here as part of some kind of NGO. Wondering about the situation in the states. Worried about Trump. Thinks its like the 30's which doesn't augur well for the future. Worried for his kids and grandkids.
Biden is the front runner now. He gave a great speech here in Ukraine a few years ago to the parliament. Urging them to deal with their massive corruption. Just one problem with his talk. Everyone listening knew Biden's son was working for one of the oligarchs so it rang hollow. Such a waste.
The other really interesting candidate we talk about to oppose Trump is Buttigieg the South Bend Indiana mayor who went on Fox News and wowed them on "hate radio" (as Kamela Harris might refer to it}. And Fox News' Brit Hume says "Buttigieg is the most impressive candidate since the emergence of Barack Obama." Golly that must mean more impressive than Trump in the view of Fox News no less.
Standing out in the cool spring air my new acquaintance asks me. Are you confident Trump will be defeated. Well I'm as confident of that as anything these days which isn't saying much at all.
Meanwhile, i'm thinking how odd it is that Ukrainians were able to see through their last President who was elected with over 50% of the vote and defeated by a 3 to 1 vote after failing to perform while so many Americans are taken in by ours.
And as I'm finishing this up I read Teresa May has resigned. And the only tears for her are her own.
We live in interesting times.
After about a half hour we were let back into the hotel. I guess it was just a fire drill. I'm glad it wasn't anything more exciting.
It's been raining a lot here in Ukraine. But the air is clear and occasionaly the light is extraordinary.
2 comments:
Hi Hugh , sounds like you are having an incredible adventure . It has only rained twice here . Once for 45 days and once for 30 days .
So you are not missing too much . Safe travels and see you back in the hamlet .
Enjoying your writing .
Very interesting insight indeed!
Just be well and get home safely!
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