James,
I started looking at the FSU as a whole, let's face it that under the USRR the Russians populated each and all of the countries.
My first 2 visits were to Uzbekistan, I'd met FSU ladies previously in neutral countries, then I met a lady in Ukaraine and thereafter I met 'the one' in Ukraine. Yes she is beautiful, with an even better personality, and whilst she holds a Ukrainian passport she is not Ukrainian, she was born and raised in Uzbekistan and of Russian parentage.
Since visa regulations were relaxed last year Ukraine has become particularly convenient with direct flights from most European capitals and New York and with no visa's required.
Problem is becoming though that Ukraine is so bl00dy expensive, just eating, drinking & taxi's I can easily spend USD150 per day, for the two of us, whereas on a recent business trip to Romania I would spend an equivalent of USD50 per day. Indeed only talking earlier today to an airline Captain that works for me, he had an overnight in a Moldova hotel and he claims to have spent 6 Euro's on food & drink for his whole stay, we were laughing about it.
I, after close to 3 years, feel like Ukraine is my second home, I can be there in some 3 hours from UK and the country is easily navigatable, I've been across it a few times by taxi. I could never say the same about Russia, which is a sub continent, or two, in itself.
yeh but you didnt answer the question. and i think romania is more expensive than the ukraine, albeit i was in mamaia in constanta. That cost 1500,000lei per nigt there.
whereas in lvov i found a cheap hotel for $20.
boredfukka,
Well I currently pay EUR35.00 per night in Timisoara, Romania for a 4 star hotel including breakfast. Bearing in mind that the 'Grand Hotel Lviv' advertise prices of around USD100.00 per night, and based on my own personal experiences of UKraine, I can just begin to imagine the sort of shitehole that you are staying in for USD20.00 per night.
AS I said in another post, no lady likes a man that appears to be mean with his money however what Romania has to do with the subject of this thread is quite beyond me.
The hotel for $20 actually had a big downstairs bar with a pool table and was full of Ukrainian people! It was a ukrainian hotel not a tourist hotel and the room was not a super deluxe suite but it has a bathroom and a good bed. Do you think Timisoara is a good place to start a backpackers hostel? Do they get lots of tourists there? Just wondering coz I would like to start one going somewhere.