Do you know where Kiev is? It is the capital of the Ukraine
I must admit, I heard about it, but I have never been there. What a shame that this beautiful city was hidden by the iron curtain for over 2 decades. Dr. Igor Sofanov, an expert in scar treatment, contacted me and asked if the Dermaroller could be of help for further scar improvement. After I have had a look on his website, I got curious, I called my travel agent and off I flew.
I arrived in a different world. Everything is written in Cyrillic and all speak Russian or Ukrainian, and I did not understand a single word. The first persons you meet anywhere on an airport are taxi drivers. A smile is the easiest way of understanding without words. We started some bargain and the price was cut by half, and was still too high. OK, I said to myself, let him live. Half an hour later we crossed the wide river Dnepr and after another 5 minutes I stood in front of my hotel, located in the center of Kiev. What a relief, the receptionist spoke English. 5 minutes after my arrival Dr. Sofanov stood in my room and we started our discussions right away. His English is kind of limited, but his German is good, and that of his daughter Swetlana is perfect.
After the heat had settled a bit we started walking through that fantastic city that spreads over several hills. I plunged into a different culture and a fascinating world. Most hills of the 900 years old Ukrainian capital are dominated by glorious Orthodox churches. Their towers are covered by pure plated gold so your eyes get dazzled.
The Ukrainians have made great efforts to wash away the dark times of communism and with some paint the days of glory emerged from history. I was surrounded by breathtaking architecture, richness and wealth. I was simply impressed and did not regret my journey into the unknown.
Next day we went for work. And here I experienced a second shock. When I scrolled through Dr. Sofanov’s patient files and pictures I became speechless. I have seen many scar cases in my life, but what I saw in this office was beyond by believe and I felt very lowly. Over 3200 scar-patients Dr. Sofanov has treated until today. Patients come from all over the ex-UDSSR, from Moscow as well as from Siberia, from Kazakhstan or St. Petersburg. He showed me horrible cases of hypertrophic scars or keloids as big as an apple on a girl’s ear. He cured them all, and in this moment I did not regret a single moment that I had flown to an unknown destination.
Dr. Sofanov smiled when he saw my surprise and he said: “I need your help. You see”, he said, “more or less all hypertrophic scars in the end become atrophic or even depressed and I have no therapy to treat such scars. No matter if these are acne scars or scars originated from accidents. Do you think the Dermaroller can improve my results?” he finally asked me.
I showed him my power point presentation with all the pictures we have received from doctors all over the world and then it was up to him to be voiceless.
Several patients were lined up and we started our refinery work on his cases. And what made me a little bit proud, I also could demonstrate my latest invention: the DERMAPOINT®. A brand new needling device for difficult areas that cannot be reached by the Dermaroller: For instance on a scar that stretches from the nose bridge towards the eye. (The DERMAPOINT will be exhibited the first time to the public on the EADV (European Academy of Dermatology and Venereology) in Paris, September 2008.
After our work was done and patients had left with a smile, we walked through the park landscape of the green city Kiev towards the centre.
Swetlana was my tour guide through her fabolous town.
My feet hurt but I ejoyded every minute.
Different people, different habits. Lovers come to this famous bridge and swear eternal love – at least for some time. They tie ribbons around the iron bars, and those that are more serious and want to be chained forever, click a padlock on the bars and throw the key away.
In the case below they must have thrown away two keys – You see, it works!
It was Saturday and one could think all 3,5 million inhabitants of Kiev were on their feet. The main road was blocked for cars and we could see musicians and jugglers everywhere. It was a normal weekend festival where people simply enjoy their life.
And to be honest with you, I have traveled the world and I have seen many beautiful women, but it seems that the Ukraine produces them by millions. What a fantastic country, what a joy to live!
Thank you IGOR for lifting the curtain. EX ORIENTE LUX.
