Compact Lviv

Good: Lviv sights are pretty close together and thus I was able to finish my sightseeing early with some time for a late afternoon tea break. Following a recommendation from a brochure picked up at the Tourist Information Office, I found myself having a “local” Cheesecake with Pears (1.60€) & a Coffee and Banana Milkshake (2.50€) at one of the supposedly “popular” dessert cafes. Dining alfresco, I was able to watch the world go by, as well as observe the Ukrainians at the next-door restaurant use really interesting chopsticks. The chopsticks are connected by a little spring at the top end – sort of like tongs – which apparently makes it easier for the users.

Not-so-good: The 1.60€ cheesecake turned out to be 1.60€/100g cheesecake, and ended up costing 3.50€. Ouch. And I didn’t really like the powdery style either.

Noteworthy food/drink: 0.65€ borshch (soup) & 1.25€ holubtsy (cabbage rolls) from a Ukrainian cafeteria chain. Yummy.

Extra interesting fact: In the evening, there were groups of visibly-old men playing chess at the Prospekt Svobody, the city’s most popular boulevard. The thing that struck me most was that these weren’t leisurely games of chess to pass the time, but sharp and lightning fast play with chess clocks to boot. I wouldn’t want to challenge any of them…