Oh Wise and Worldy Ledgies

[paperflowers]

I will be escorting my mother and her two sisters as they visit Ukraine and Poland. This will be thier first visit home since they left after WWII, and they really want to see what has become of the places they knew as children. They would like to visit Crimia, Kyiv (Keiv), and Krakow. I know these are not tourist hot spots but was hoping for some practical tips from fellow ledgies.
I have done a fair amount of research on the internet and am getting conflicting information.
My first question is regarding sort of general travel about Europe.

Are the train schedules available on the internet, reliable?

Are the month Euro rail passes worth the investment, particularly in Poland and Ukraine?

Is train travel going to be so completely confusing because of the language? I have a hard with the 24 hour clock time thing now throw in the Cyrillic alphabet Oy! My mom and her sisters are fluent and can read it but I hate not knowing what the hecks going on. Would it be totally impractical to rent a car?

How about money exchange, I have gotten many conflicting reports on the internet regarding this.

Are Euro's the way to go? Hryvnia? Złoty? Dollars?

Should we use the exchange booths or banks?

Can I really use my Debit card?

It seems that renting a flat is cheaper than a hotel. I am reluctant to book with brokers over the internet, worried about scams. What I should do?

Do younger Poles and Ukrainians speak English?

How do Europeans perceive Americans?

They want to see the "Black Madonna" in Czestochowa. Has anyone ever been there? Is this going to be too touristy? Extremely crowded? The reason I ask is my mom and her sisters are elderly and I am worried about them standing in long lines.


Should we take any extra precautions in Eastern Europe? I read it's extremely bad there one place and then read that violence and crime is vastly exaggerated in others. Here again I am concerned because I will be traveling with three elderly women. Are we gonna get mugged on the subway?

I have read that we should carry out passport or a copy of the first few pages with us at all times in the Ukraine because the police will detain us if we can not id ourselves, true or no?

Will the police shake us down looking for a bribe? I have read conflicting reports.

Any insight would be greatly appreciated.


Thanks in advance.