Tuesday 10th October- Kiev City Orphanage (Pritulok) Number 5 - A concert by the children

Tuesday started disastrously as I scrambled around to collect all 20-something kit-bags of donated clothes, toys, bedding etc which a small army of TA had volunteered to carry over for us. Just to make it more challenging I managed to lose my mobile in a taxi before I'd managed to recover any of the bags. 

The upshot was that we travelled to Kiev City Orphanage (Pritulok) Number 5 with nothing to give them, except Spud the Piper and change from their daily routine.

When we arrived near the home, 3 of us (Lesia, Bob Shields and myself) made an impromptu visit to a nearby supermarket, where we loaded up as many shopping trolleys as we could with party food and drink - this hopefully provided the kids with a few days of treats.

Once at the home the children again treated us to a show, but while they sat in the hall waiting for us the first thing they heard was Spud the Piper. This was great fun for the children, wondering what the hell the racket was as Spud led us up the stairs, down the corridor and into the room. The previous day's "rehearsal" had worked a treat because the kiddies put on a better performance and seemed much more confident, moving quite a few of their TA guests to tears.

Afterwards we got a quick tour of the accommodation (see photos) and then agreed that the Governess would provide David with a shopping list. 

Returning to town I just felt numb and depressed for those poor children.

Note: David has put a massive amount of work since the trip, buying as much of the stuff on their list as possible with the £5,000 that we donated.