UKRAINE - PART 1

So at last I am in Ukraine! My first time to be living and working here, and with all previous visits to my homeland, I arrive with mixed emotions.
To be sure, Kyiv has changed almost beyond recognition from my first visit just when glasnost was starting to take hold. It used to be that one of the most offensive structures lining the skyline was the chrome/nickel/steel "Motherland Statue" - which at 102 metres - dominated the horizon for years. Nowadays a double-towered skyscraper has taken over as the most obnoxious and prominent structure on the once pristine skyline of golden-domed churches and treetops.
Snarled traffic has got to be the Number One gripe of most Kiev residents. Many complain of commutes of up to 2 hours, especially from the Left Bank suburbs into the city. First-time visitors are astounded at the number of late model vehicles clogging the roads - from Bentleys and Land Rovers to Audi sports cars and even the occasional Hummer! I am told that Kiev's road system was designed to accommodate 50,000 vehicles but now handles more than 1-million! Our driver tells me the rule of thumb is to book all appointments in the morning when traffic is lighter.
Spiralling costs is another shock! The health club which I just joined (which wanted about $900 for a 6-month membership!) boasts a poster of a suburban house for a cool $250,000. A half-decent meal for two at my favourite Georgian or Uzbek restaurant (with regional wine) runs about $200. And a one bedroom apartment close to the center of town can easily top $2000! "You are beginning to see New York-type prices here," said one UN official.
But despite a financial crisis that has seen the currency plummet and credit squeezed, consumption is still high. Well tailored women, along with their mafia-looking boyfriends, pack some of the trendiest restaurants.
Amid all of this Ukraine is going through a seismic demographic shift. I always remembered Ukraine - a nation the size of France - having a population of 52-million. Well, a declining birth rate couple with people leaving to make better wages overseas, has caused Ukraine's population to drop to about 47-million!