Russian, Ukrainian & FSU Information & Manosphere Discussion Forums
Information & Chat => Adventure Stories & Travel Reports => Topic started by: justadude on July 31, 2017, 01:36:20 AM
-
I am renting a car in Kiev and driving around Ukraine for 6 days. I hope it goes well! I plan to visit Kharkov, Nikolayev and Odessa. I leave Kiev toward the middle of this week. Wish me luck! or don't)
-
I am renting a car in Kiev and driving around Ukraine for 6 days. I hope it goes well! I plan to visit Kharkov, Nikolayev and Odessa. I leave Kiev toward the middle of this week. Wish me luck! or don't)
The 'luck' may be avoiding benefiting Police Pension Funds - if stopped for 'an offence' !;)
Take photos - but not when driving .. Hopefully you'll be cured of wanting to drive an old Lada based on the Fiat 124....
-
The 'luck' may be avoiding benefiting Police Pension Funds - if stopped for 'an offence' !;)
I wonder if this common idea is based more on myth than personal experience. I mean, have you personally ever bribed your way out of a traffic offense while driving?
The drive from Kiev to Kharkov was uneventful. The worst part was that my car didn't have cruise control. I would have made sure it did, if only I spoke Russian. The car is nice and new otherwise. Good AC.
It is really nice having a car here in Kharkov. It is quite hot here, 91 degrees F today. I wouldn't want to be using public transportation in this heat. Traffic isn't too bad either.
-
I am renting a car in Kiev and driving around Ukraine for 6 days. I hope it goes well! I plan to visit Kharkov, Nikolayev and Odessa. I leave Kiev toward the middle of this week. Wish me luck! or don't)
good luck. :)
-
The 'luck' may be avoiding benefiting Police Pension Funds - if stopped for 'an offence' !;)
I wonder if this common idea is based more on myth than personal experience. I mean, have you personally ever bribed your way out of a traffic offense while driving?
The drive from Kiev to Kharkov was uneventful. The worst part was that my car didn't have cruise control. I would have made sure it did, if only I spoke Russian. The car is nice and new otherwise. Good AC.
It is really nice having a car here in Kharkov. It is quite hot here, 91 degrees F today. I wouldn't want to be using public transportation in this heat. Traffic isn't too bad either.
Picking the right type of person to bribe is an art..
-
The 'luck' may be avoiding benefiting Police Pension Funds - if stopped for 'an offence' !;)
I wonder if this common idea is based more on myth than personal experience. I mean, have you personally ever bribed your way out of a traffic offense while driving?
I have not driven in Ukraine but it is standard practice in Indonesia. When I lived there the standard bribe was $10.00.
-
The 'luck' may be avoiding benefiting Police Pension Funds - if stopped for 'an offence' !;)
I wonder if this common idea is based more on myth than personal experience. I mean, have you personally ever bribed your way out of a traffic offense while driving?
I have not driven in Ukraine but it is standard practice in Indonesia. When I lived there the standard bribe was $10.00.
I knew an American living in Chel who tried to bribe the wrong person, ended up in a world of bother.
Not nearly as serious as the bother he’s in now, being deported back to the USA for some pretty nasty stuff.....
-
I mean, have you personally ever bribed your way out of a traffic offense while driving?
Many times.
You have the choice of accepting the fine and paying into the bank if you dont want to fund corruption. Very often if you insist on this they will walk away in disgust as they can't be bothered writing out the ticket.
-
I wonder if this common idea is based more on myth than personal experience. I mean, have you personally ever bribed your way out of a traffic offense while driving?
I got pulled over in the south whilst driving with a Ukrainian girl. It was in December and she calmly explained that the police were pulling over cars at random for the xmas bonus. Cant remember what I paid but it wasn't a lot. Seemed easier than getting a ticket and dealing with officials.
As they often said - it's Ukraine!
-
I am renting a car in Kiev and driving around Ukraine for 6 days. I hope it goes well! I plan to visit Kharkov, Nikolayev and Odessa. I leave Kiev toward the middle of this week. Wish me luck! or don't)
Khorosho luck!! :) (P.S. I am jealous that you get to go to Ukraine and I do not.:))But I'm ok, though.)
-
I wonder if this common idea is based more on myth than personal experience. I mean, have you personally ever bribed your way out of a traffic offense while driving?
Just hand him your passport with a $20 slipped in between the pages. In that case it is not technically a bribe.
-
I wonder if this common idea is based more on myth than personal experience. I mean, have you personally ever bribed your way out of a traffic offense while driving?
Just hand him your passport with a $20 slipped in between the pages. In that case it is not technically a bribe.
Expensive these days, when I did it, a $10 was enough.
Woe for me though, I didn't have anything smaller than $20 so agent almost got me a police escort until the next oblast.
-
I wonder if this common idea is based more on myth than personal experience. I mean, have you personally ever bribed your way out of a traffic offense while driving?
I've been stopped when driving a car in Russia - 4 times and a passenger 5 times - 2 twice as a passenger in Ukraine, 1 time in 'Abkhazia' ( Georgia )
The drive from Kiev to Kharkov was uneventful. The worst part was that my car didn't have cruise control. I would have made sure it did, if only I spoke Russian. The car is nice and new otherwise. Good AC.
It is really nice having a car here in Kharkov. It is quite hot here, 91 degrees F today. I wouldn't want to be using public transportation in this heat. Traffic isn't too bad either.
Hope the temp reads 33C :chuckle:. Is is humid or dry heat...? Many buses where I live, in Russia, have air-con ;)
Very interest read, justadude ..Let us know if you see many RU licence tags in Kharkov(ov) ?
-
The 'luck' may be avoiding benefiting Police Pension Funds - if stopped for 'an offence' !;)
I wonder if this common idea is based more on myth than personal experience. I mean, have you personally ever bribed your way out of a traffic offense while driving?
...
I really had to think about this question:
I have never had to bribe a police officer for traffic offense. I might have given a border guard a tip when I was a kid. But, my memories of a 14 year old crossing into Mexico is vague now.
I have lived in many crooked countries, and the country where I have had the most problems has been in the USA. Most expensive problems as well.
I have seen little evidence of corruption here in souther Ukraine. And all the corruption I have heard of actually happening in Ukraine has been in what is now Russian controlled.
YMMV.
Wayne
-
The driving is done. I returned the car and got my full deposit back. No tickets, no bribes, no accidents (but a couple close calls). No, the roads aren't all that great. I did drive on the wrong side of the road a couple of times when a divided road became undivided suddenly.
My conclusion after 1000Km is that driving in Ukraine is not that big of a deal. If I ever do live there I will plan to buy a car.
I watched some youtube videos about modded Ladas. Super cool. Just like the states, I would plan to have a practical car and a project car. But who knows what the future holds.
-
I watched some youtube videos about modded Ladas. Super cool. Just like the states, I would plan to have a practical car and a project car. But who knows what the future holds.
I would agree about having two cars, I've got a MB A220d as my daily driver plus a used AMG C63 that I screw about with aka drive like a twat although I'm certain it's on the way out (currently being worked on again!) but for a late '15 plate at £16k with few miles, it was a steal, I just behave as a knob when driving.
I seriously want a BMW M5, they feel awesome although most models lack some of the standard features that are on the C63 and costs £10k more used although it could be worse, could be the horrendously overpriced M4, BMW screwed the pooch with that pricing.
If you like seeing cars go through the streets of Russia/Ukraine, you should check out Limma (https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCRyqc2-xcBJNxc2HVt23zyw/) (2016 Moscow (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IQHOCUgK8AA)) and Zelimkhan SHM (https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCqA4y0g7uSmhgFgEQak2sTg/) (M4 Drifting (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7YrWpvc7gW8)).
I don't condone the way they drive but it's also quite satisfying to watch, I do my crazy on the 'track' (:)
-
Glad you enjoyed the trip. Just a couple of notes:
Way back in time (as in first visit to Ukraine) we went out with the future in-laws and got stopped. Father in law handed over his documents, officer looked at them and waved us on our way. Seems that even police officers and their families also need and regard the Church these days. Was rather interesting at the time.
More recently driving depends on which side of the road the pot holes are on! Since the split up of the country the roads are extremely bad to drive on. Thus we try to fly direct their city rather than spending 6 hours waiting in Kiev or having someone meet us in Kiev and returning us there. Last visits via Kiev we had to circumvent the normal direct route due to who controlled the local areas!