Intim
2 provulok Shevchenka.
Open weekdays 11 a.m. to 7 p.m.;
Saturdays noon to 7 p.m.
ValentineХs Day is for lovers. ItХs the day when people indulge in candlelight dinners, moonlit strolls, red roses, soft music, fine wine and romance. ItХs for happy loving couples. People with partners. Perfect pairs. Saccharine-sweet, dripping-with-syrup sweethearts.
But what about the rest of us? Those with no hand to hold; those with no lips to smooch? Is there nothing for the loveless to do on ValentineХs Day other than long for a dreamy date at one of KyivХs most romantic restaurants? (See Story, Page 16).
Not to worry. The Kyiv Post Best Of team to the rescue Р again.
We have scoured the city, searching for the perfect paraphernalia for all those aficionados of narcissistic lust; those palaces of pleasure; fortresses of fornication. WeХre talking sex shops, Baby.
Our research turned up reports of six sex shops in Kyiv. However, we were only able to find three that remain.
One Р a kiosk inside the train station Р was transformed into your average newspaper-yogurt-Fanta-cigarette-flashlight kiosk during the recent remont. All that remains from its heyday as a kinky kiosk are some tablets for prolonging erection and a packet of penis slips (spiked, rubber, thimble-like objects).
A second shop, called Adam and Eve on Mezhyhirska in Podil, was apparently closed down recently. And, we heard of a third mysterious shop, but having no address, we were unable to find it.
Our probe into the remaining three places revealed a plethora of pleasure-inducing devices. All the shops offered a fine array of goods designed to service. All three shops had blow-up dolls, sundry electronic devices, lingerie and some plastic sado-masochistic merchandise for those who are not terribly interested in real pain.
The Salon of Erotic Culture, a large walk-in kiosk across from the train station Р recognizable by its covered windows Р is a tiny space that, not surprisingly, tends to attract the type of people who hang out near train stations.
This shop has the largest supply of erection-inducing and erection-maintaining products from gels (Hr 36) to pills (Hr 25 to Hr 70) to penis enlargers (Hr 95) and penis exercisers (Hr 135). This shop also boasts the best Р and most expensive (Hr 614) Р blow-up doll, called Mistress Wonderful with Тsoft skin, moving eyes and deep throat vibes.У
Another shop, Intim, in the yard off 24 Gorkoho, is located in a secluded, unassuming space. This store has the largest variety of dildos and vibrators, and when we arrived, the sales clerk was so bored that she hardly noticed we were there, making for a pleasant browsing experience. However, that shop lost points because some of the prices were double those at a shop of the same name across town. When it comes to sex shops, we consider bang-for-the-buck an important category.
Which brings us to the winner. The best sex shop in Kyiv is also called Intim, at provulok Shevchenka. Located next to the McDonaldХs on Maidan Nezalezhnosti, this place is tucked away in the basement. It ainХt fancy, but it is sensibly decorated. It carries the most reasonably priced and widest variety of accessories in Kyiv. A decent, albeit small, vibrator sells for Hr 15. The more experienced perhaps would prefer the giant strap-on, vibrating dildo for Hr 560. The Тsuper satisfaction bedside kitУ (comes with four attachments and batteries) sells for a mere Hr 40. Aside from the sex toys there is an array of novelty gifts, condoms and party paints.
Intim is a great place to find that perfect ValentineХs Day gift Р even if your best lover just happens to be yourself.
