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UKRAINE
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| Ukraine is the state in Eastern Europe (the total
area is 603,700 sq.km), bordering Belarus to the North, the
Russian Federation to the East and to the North, Poland, Slovakia
to the West, and Hungary, Romania and Moldova to the southwest.
In the south Ukraine is washed by the Black Sea and the Sea
of Azov. The capital is Kyiv.
The climate is moderate continental nearly all over Ukraine,
except the southernmost region of the Crimea where it is subtropical.
The largest river of Ukraine is the Dnipro (Dnieper) - 2201
km in length, the largest mountain system is the Carpathians
and the highest reak is Mount Hoverla (2061 m). The population
of Ukraine is 51 millions, and 70% are Ukrainians. As for the
religion, the largest denomination is Christian: Orthodox and
Greek-Catholic churches. The official state language is Ukrainian,
though Russian is widely spoken in most regions of Ukraine,
except western one. |
| PASSPORT
& VISA |
| Before arriving to Ukraine, you should take care
of receiving a Ukrainian visa. This procedure is done at Ukrainian
Consulate in your country. |
| CUSTOMS |
| While passing customs control, fill in very carefully
the form given to you. It is advisable to keep this form checked
and sealed by the official till the time of crossing the Ukrainian
border, while leaving the country. The amount of money, which
is allowed to bring, is not limited. The same refers to credit
cards and traveler`s checks. While leaving the country, the
amount of money you have with you is not to exaggerate the amount
you brought to the country. For all articles of high artistic
value you should receive the permission to export. The amount
of Hryvnyas should not be more than 100. |
| TRANSPORT |
| There are two main ways to come to Ukraine: by
air or by railway. The largest international airport is in Kyiv
(this is airport Boryspil) though international flights arrive
also to such cities as Lviv, Odesa, Dnipropetrovsk, etc. All
international fast trains either come or pass Kyiv Terminal.
While travelling over Ukraine, you can use plane, railway or
ship. Domestic flights connect Kyiv with regional centres. The
average time of travelling is 1,5 up to 2 hours. You can also
travel by train: Kyiv is linked with all main Ukrainian cities
and towns. Most of trains start in the evening and arrive next
day in the morning or about noon. Comfortable and fast overnight
trains serve such destination as Lviv, Odesa, Kharkiv, Donetsk.
In summer time it is good choice to travel to Odesa , Yalta,
Mykolayiv, Kherson by comfortable cruisers, combining rest,
entertainment and sightseeing. The system of public transport
in Ukraine includes underground, buses, trolley-buses, trams.
The fastest means of transport in big cities is metro. Trains
run from 6:00 a.m. to 1:00 a.m. Service is frequent, with trains
at intervals of 1,5 to 2,5 minutes. The travel costs the same
amount of money for all distances. Passengers should buy a plastic
token in the vestibule before the turnstiles, deposit the token
in a turnstile, and pass through when the light turns green.
To travel by trolley-bus, bus or tram you should buy a ticket,
either at the stop or from the driver and punch it by a punch
on the wall. If you want to travel by taxi, you are advised
to take only taxis with company`s name and checker-board. But
you should discuss first the price with the driver and be ready
to the fact that this service can be quite expensive. Using
public transport is sometime problematic, if you are short of
time or if you are not good enough at language. To avoid any
troubles and worries you should order transfers or rent a car
at a travel agency. |
| INTERNATIONAL
TIME |
| When you come to Ukraine you should not forget
that Ukraine`s time is two hours later than Greenwich Mean Time.
To save power in daylight time clocks are advanced one hour
from the last Sunday in March till the last Sunday in October. |
| OPERATING
HOURS |
| The work time in Ukraine is usually eight hours
per day, from Monday to Friday, with a lunchtime between 1:00
and 2:00 p.m. Most banks are open from 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.
Monday through Friday. |
| HOLIDAYS |
| January 1 - New Year, January 7 - Christmas, March
8 - International Women`s Day (now just Women`s Spring Holiday),
Easter - one day (Sunday in spring), May 1,2 - Labour Days,
May 9 - Victory Day, the last May weekend - Kyiv`s Days, Holy
Trinity - one day (Sunday in summer), June 28 - Constitution
Day, August 24 - Independence Day, November 7-8 - Memory Days
(former October Revolution Days). |
| PAYMENTS |
| The national currency is hryvnya. There are banknotes
of 1, 2, 5, 10, 20, 50, 100 hryvnyas. Besides this there are
kopecks: 1 hruyvnya is 100 kopecks. There are coins of 1, 2,
5, 10, 25, 50 kopecks. The most commonly accepted foreign hard
currencies are United States Dollars (USD) and German Deutsche
Marks (DEM). There are a lot of exchange points all over the
city, though you are advised to change money at major hotels
and official exchange points. Traveler`s Checks can be cashed
at Intourist hotels and a number of banks. Credit cards become
more widely used in Ukraine. At the entrance to a shop, restaurant,
casino, etc. you will see always the information about credit
cards that are accepted. |
| TIPS |
| A 5% service charge is often added to restaurant
bills, but you may still add your own tip. About 10% are recommended. |
| ELECTRICITY |
| The standard electrical current in Ukraine is
220 volts. Clients having electric devices with North-American
appliances need an adapter / a transformer (which you can buy
in Ukraine). |
| PHONE
NUMBERS |
| Fire |
01 |
| Police |
02 |
| Ambulance |
03 |
| Gas Service |
04 |
If you want to make an international call by automatic connection,
dial 8, wait for a signal, then 10, and then the code of the
country, city and the telephone number. To make an inner call,
dial 8, then city code and then the necessary telephone number.
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