Tour History
Donetsk June 9 — 18, 2005
It took us four hours to get to Donetsk from Dnepropetrovsk. I was on the bus with Anastasia staff as I was scheduled to work on Donetsk tour as well. We arrived at Central hotel at 1pm and checked in quickly. These rooms were great. They had central air, large bathrooms and large beds. I took a couple of hours to get unpacked and settled in again then I met with the Anastasia staff to go to the airport and greet the 26 other men flying in. We got out of the airport quickly and started back to the hotel. Everyone got checked in and relaxed a bit before the orientation meeting scheduled for later that evening. After orientation all of us walked up the street for dinner. The food was good and the service was fair, especially considering 36 of us all walked in at once (Anastasia staff included). Afterwards we went back to the hotel to rest up for the social scheduled for the next day.
The next day, Friday June 10th, was the first social in Donetsk. I went down for breakfast at 9am to find half the men already down there trying to get a head start on the day. The breakfast in this hotel was more “American” than most other hotels. They had eggs, bacon, juice, various meats and plenty of bread and most of us weren’t shy about getting our money’s worth with this inclusive breakfast. We later met in the lobby before taking a short walk up the street to the club. I was surprised to see how fast this group of men got started in comparison to the group in Dnepropetrovsk. This social seemed to go very quickly and most of the men were collecting phone numbers just as fast as they could write them. After the social about half the men had dates and the other half met in the hotel restaurant for some pizza. Everyone was still a little jet lagged so the night ended around 11pm.
The next day the social was in Mariupol, an hour and a half bus ride away in a club called Kleopatra so after breakfast everyone met in the lobby at 10:30. We were on our way by 10:45. We arrived at the club almost a half an hour early and already tons of women were there! This club was huge and filling up fast with women. There had to be well over 300 ladies and more arriving every minute. Needless to say the men all were very happy and were overwhelmed by the numbers. The only problem here was the lack of air conditioning. It was a hot day and with that many people it didn’t take long for everyone to take their sport jackets off. By the end of the social the heat had taken its toll on a lot of the men so those without dates met for dinner then went to bed.
Sunday, June 12, was to be the last of the three socials in Donetsk and the club was a 3 hour bus ride away so everyone went down for breakfast early then met in the lobby at 9:30am. There were only a few men left that didn’t have dates lined up for the rest of the week and they didn’t waist any time meeting ladies. This social wasn’t as good as the previous one but everyone was happy and looking forward to spending the next few days getting to know the ladies they had met. We arrived back at the hotel at 11:30 that night. It had been a very long day so without much conversation everyone went right to bed. The next day, Monday the 13th, there was a tour scheduled to see the city. Even though I wasn’t able to go I’m told it was a good trip and the men enjoyed the sights. That night about 12 of us, some with dates, met with the Anastasia staff for bowling. All of us had a few drinks, a lot of laughs and lousy scores. It must have been those foreign bowling lanes. After bowling some of us met for dinner and then went back to the hotel.
The next morning everyone, including me, was down for breakfast early. There seemed to be a sense of urgency in the men who now realized there was only 4 days left for dating and getting better acquainted with the ladies they had met. The Hospitality room was packed by 9:05 with men trying to contact more and more women and things stayed that way for the remaining days of the tour which went very quickly. All in all everyone seemed happy and either found their special someone or vowed to return and continue their search. A few of the men had even gotten engaged before the end of the trip.
The day finally came when it was time to leave, Saturday the 18th of June. We were scheduled to leave the hotel no later than 7:30am so everyone was up very early, including the hotel staff that was kind enough to get up early as well and have a good breakfast ready for us. Reluctantly all of us climbed on the bus and went to the airport for the long plane ride home. The plane for Vienna left on time and we arrived at the hotel, for our 1 night lay over without any problems. We decided to meet later that night in the lobby and go for one last dinner together. Most of us knew that this would be our last chance to share our war stories and have some laughs together. After dinner we walked back to the hotel and turned in early knowing the next day would be a long one for most of us.
The following morning we took taxi’s to the airport then met briefly at the departure gates before boarding our flight to JFK in New York. Once in JFK, everyone went different directions and barely had time enough to say goodbye as they ran for their connecting flights. I was home only a few hours later and already planning my next trip. Thanks again Anastasia!! I had a great time and met some really great people. I’ll look forward to seeing all of you again!
Author: Todd Brunswick
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