This morning, towards the Ukrainian border, we expected one of those famous moments galley usual: free zone, a sort of no man's land with customs zealots who allow everything, even you search for the body to grab a few dollars for transit; KGB atmosphere with its share of gloomy offices, mobile orange sale, lino off the floor and interrogation endless frontier of language with its Cyrillic forms to fill in course and series of misunderstandings that lead inevitably to nothing ... was expected but not at all so that ...
As a schoolboy studious, Xav fill the forms. He regrets not having chosen the Russian LV2. The output of Russia was carefree.
It was thought that the entry into Ukraine, which requires to join the EU would be easy.
What we're naive! One enters the area Ukrainian passport control and then control the car. And that's how it starts. What had not been a problem in Kazakhstan and Russia is blocking here. Unable to move with the entire load of the car (spare parts, photo-video equipment, computers). We want them to enter their country with too many expensive goods. If you want to go we must pay 300% of the board ... uh that is to say that we do not have 24,000 dollars on us ... and even!
not then go! Customs officers ask us to turn back and return to Russia. But you have no visa! "Niet" categorical on the Russian side.
The situation becomes complicated ... After two hours of waiting, under a blazing sun, the Ukrainian customs inspector comes pretty upset by the story with the solution: one of us has to stay here with the car the other goes to Kiev remake of Russian visas. Tomorrow is a holiday but we should have the visa on the weekend. Russian visa in hand we can turn back to Russia to try to go to Ukraine to another border post 200km further north where they can manage the case. We remain puzzled by the proposal ... Finally, I personally am a nervous breakdown (10 days non-stop route requires ...).
Summit of customs inspectors Russian and Ukrainian. Six staff around the car passing the buck by raising the tone. There is little in the middle ... Then they make us understand that the situation is hopeless and that even if they let us go in Ukraine, they do not even consider, we will refuse passage to Poland.
And that's where we find the fault. Persuade us that we will enter easily in Poland on the pretext that the CEO of Venturi knows personally Consul of Poland in France. Yes but it's too risky for them to let us pass, they risk losing their jobs. Whatever we promise to find them a job at Citroen if they have a problem.
Anton, a young customs who speaks a little English we are a great help and is very understanding despite our tunes not happy. He even called a dozen times a Ukrainian friend who lives in Corsica and we will translate all the subtleties of this absurd and fantastic. A big thank you to them!
total of 4:30 of tense negotiations and difficult ... and eventually go to the dark side of the force! We So here in Ukraine, exhausted.
Fortunately, first impressions with this country are soothing. The atmosphere is quite serene. Small villages scattered, small huts with flowers, herds of cows on the roadside, everything is green and peaceful.
But the roads reminds us bitterly Kazakhstan ...
Finally, we find refuge in a small guest house in the pretty town of Sumy. Hosting Maxim and his wife made us forget everything.
GS
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