Adam

Hi all,

I'm going to be in St. Petersburg over the summer, and I'd like to visit
a friend of mine who will be living in Kiev or Kharkiv.

Does it make more sense to buy the airplane ticket and apply for a
Ukraine visa before I leave, or would it be just as easy to do the
process once in Russia? I have a U.S. passport.

I will probably be staying with my friend, but I have heard that it is a
real pain to do the whole "invitation" process. Would I be better off
using a service like http://www.ukraine-visa.com? If so, which one?

Also, how widely spoken is Russian in these cities? Hopefully, my
Russian will be decent enough to manage by August. Otherwise, is
Ukranian similar enough for me to get by, or should I invest some time
in learning a little bit?

I have a friend who grew up in southern Ukraine, and she said that only
Russian was spoken in the city. I don't know if this has changed.


Thank you!

Bjorn Olsson

Adam <[email protected]> wrote in message news:<[email protected]>...
    > Hi all,
    >
    > I'm going to be in St. Petersburg over the summer, and I'd like to visit
    > a friend of mine who will be living in Kiev or Kharkiv.
    >
    > Does it make more sense to buy the airplane ticket and apply for a
    > Ukraine visa before I leave, or would it be just as easy to do the
    > process once in Russia?

I'd say definitely do it before you leave.

    > I have a U.S. passport.
    >
    > I will probably be staying with my friend, but I have heard that it is a
    > real pain to do the whole "invitation" process.

Since your trip is in the summer, there is enough time to arrange a
private visa if you start the process now. It is not so complicated.
Your friend needs to go to the local authorities (he/she will most
likely know where to go) and apply for an invitation letter for you.
It will probably take something like 6 weeks before he/she gets the
invitation letter, which he/she will then send to you. You simply
bring this letter to the Russian consulate, together with some
passport-size photos and your passport. At the consulate, you fill in
an application, pay a fee, and one or two weeks later you can pick up
your visa. (Check details at the web page of the nearest consulate).

The advantage of a private visa, instead of a tourist visa, is that
you won't need any hotel bookings or other travel arrangements.

    > Would I be better off
    > using a service like http://www.ukraine-visa.com? If so, which one?

Personally, I don't think it is worth the extra cost. YMMV.

    > Also, how widely spoken is Russian in these cities?

Any Ukranian will understand Russian. Either he has it as mother
tongue, or he has studied it, or he has learnt it through exposure, or
(in the unlikely event that he has somehow avoided exposure to
Russian, possibly by living in a very remote village without access to
TV, radio, books, etc..) he understands it pretty well anyway because
the two languages are so similar to each other.

    > Hopefully, my
    > Russian will be decent enough to manage by August. Otherwise, is
    > Ukranian similar enough for me to get by, or should I invest some time
    > in learning a little bit?

It is similar enough for you to get by, but it can be a good idea to
have a look at both. Which one you should learn primarliy depends on
your long-term goals and plans with your studies. In any case, it is a
good idea to have a look at both languages, so that you can adapt a
little and show good will to people with both mother tongues.

    > I have a friend who grew up in southern Ukraine, and she said that only
    > Russian was spoken in the city. I don't know if this has changed.

Probably a little, but not much. And it varies quite a bit from region
to region and between cities.

Bjorn

Bjorn Olsson

[email protected] (Bjorn Olsson) wrote in message news:<[email protected]. com>...
    > Adam <[email protected]> wrote in message news:<[email protected]>...
    > > Hi all,
    > >
    > > I'm going to be in St. Petersburg over the summer, and I'd like to visit
    > > a friend of mine who will be living in Kiev or Kharkiv.
    > >
    > > Does it make more sense to buy the airplane ticket and apply for a
    > > Ukraine visa before I leave, or would it be just as easy to do the
    > > process once in Russia?
    >
    > I'd say definitely do it before you leave.
    >
    > > I have a U.S. passport.
    > >
    > > I will probably be staying with my friend, but I have heard that it is a
    > > real pain to do the whole "invitation" process.
    >
    > Since your trip is in the summer, there is enough time to arrange a
    > private visa if you start the process now. It is not so complicated.
    > Your friend needs to go to the local authorities (he/she will most
    > likely know where to go) and apply for an invitation letter for you.
    > It will probably take something like 6 weeks before he/she gets the
    > invitation letter, which he/she will then send to you. You simply
    > bring this letter to the Russian consulate, together with some
    > passport-size photos and your passport. At the consulate, you fill in
    > an application, pay a fee, and one or two weeks later you can pick up
    > your visa. (Check details at the web page of the nearest consulate).
    >
    > The advantage of a private visa, instead of a tourist visa, is that
    > you won't need any hotel bookings or other travel arrangements.

Note: The above written under the incorrect(?) assumption that your
question about the "invitation business" concerned the Russian visa. I
realize now that perhaps you meant the Ukrainian visa. However, the
process is probably pretty similar anyway.

Bjorn