Tuesday, April 27, 2010

Service Stories: The Supermarket

The till showed fifty-six hryvnias and nine kopecks, so I handed over a fifty and a twenty note. "Don't you have one hryvnia?" the woman behind the counter asked, though her facial expression made it feel more like an accusation than a request. "Niet," I said, shrugging apologetically. "Not even one?" she tutted, reaching into the till to pull out three notes: a ten, a two and a one. "Don't leave your basket on the floor," she barked, pointing me towards the exit as the next person elbowed in.

Ukraine is many things, but one thing it isn't is Japan.

4 comments:

Andy said...

What's the largest note I can use every time I visit a supermarket during my trip then...?

Michael said...

Hand over a 500 and speak to her in broad Geordie.

Andy said...

I'd be doing that anyway...

Myeral said...

'Hryvnia' sounds like a Star Trek made-up language word.