Bringing in 2013

The biggest holiday celebrated over what we call "the holidays" in the states is most definitely New Year's. Santa Claus actually comes to Moldova on New Year's, not on Christmas. (Following a tradition from Soviet times, where Santa was forbidden to come on a religious holiday, I am told) And in fact, most Moldovan's don't celebrate Christmas on December 25 but rather on January 7, following the tradition of the Orthodox Christian calendar. So what does that mean for me? I celebrate them all! I celebrated "new" Christmas with fellow volunteers. I am staying home with the host parents for New Year's Eve. (They seem to have built it up a little too much... Come to find out, it will just be the three of us!) I'm headed to the mountains of Romania for a few days later this week, and then I will be back in town for Christmas here on the 7th. (Perhaps we'll also have a small celebration of Old New Year's on the 14th.) Work essentially comes to a halt and celebrations/relaxation continues these few weeks.

As we've got a good amount of snow and then some sunshine this month, sidewalks and streets are often snow-packed and glazed over with ice. It's cold outside and in some rooms in the house that are cut off to heat, it's cold inside as well. (our bathroom for one is cold- which makes the thought of showering not near as attractive).

At the end of every year, I do think it's wise to look back, take stock, and prepare for the future. So as I look back at the last year, I think to myself, Whoa! What a year! Over the last year, I’ve moved from Washington, DC, to this little country in Eastern Europe called Moldova.  I’ve made more than a handful of new friends, who have supported me since arriving in June.  I’ve learned the basics of a whole new language and quite pleasantly settled into a new town, into a new culture, and with a new Moldovan family.  And every day, I seem a bit more grateful for where I’m from, for my family and friends back home, and for all the simple things I have often taken for granted.  I can’t help but feel so blessed for all that God has given me.  

As I look ahead, I couldn't feel more assured that where I am is exactly where I am to be and that 2013 will be a year of learning, teaching, working, relaxing, traveling, and living my dreams! Challenges from day-to-day will arise. A good attitude will be necessary. And like I said before, I already know that the support of my friends/fam will come in handy. So as we look forward to 2013, I leave you with this great new "Recipe for a Happy New Year" that I found from an anonymous cook:

"Take twelve fine, full-grown months; see that these are thoroughly free from old memories of bitterness, rancor and hate, cleanse them completely from every clinging spite; pick off all specks of pettiness and littleness; in short, see that these months are freed from all the past—have them fresh and clean as when they first came from the great storehouse of Time. Cut these months into thirty or thirty-one equal parts. Do not attempt to make up the whole batch at one time (so many persons spoil the entire lot this way) but prepare one day at a time.

Into each day put equal parts of faith, patience, courage, work (some people omit this ingredient and so spoil the flavor of the rest), hope, fidelity, liberality, kindness, rest (leaving this out is like leaving the oil out of the salad dressing— don’t do it), prayer, meditation, and one well-selected resolution. Put in about one teaspoonful of good spirits, a dash of fun, a pinch of folly, a sprinkling of play, and a heaping cupful of good humor."

La Multi Ani!  Happy New Year!

Christmas already?

I can barely believe that Christmas is just around the corner.  Well, that is the first Christmas I will be celebrating.  It's going to be about a month of celebration.  Moldovan's celebrate primarily New Year's Eve on December 31st and Christmas from the Old Church calendar (Orthodox tradition) on January 7.  In between those two holidays, I will spend four glorious days outside of Moldova in the mountains of Romania.  This will mark my first trip outside of Moldova since arriving over six months ago!

I'm trying to figure out how exactly time has slipped away and how exactly I've spent it in the last few weeks.  As a Peace Corps volunteer here, a lot of activities happen on the weekends, related to Peace Corps initiatives and activities (i.e. GLOW/TOBE, Peer Supporting, etc.).  Thus, one week transitions into another with less of a stop and pause between them.  I really don't enjoy this process and weekly try to step back at some point and establish my priorities/to-do list for the week.  Don't get me wrong though- the flexibility of my service is something I really enjoy!

Winter has arrived here, and snow and cold came with it.  Some places in the north of the country have been snowed in for a few days.  In the southeast, we have had less than a foot of snow (8 inches maybe?).  So if you ask me how I'm doing, it will depend on the moment.  At about 4:30 pm when it's already getting dark and I'm walking home from class in the freezing cold, I might want to cry through my frozen face.  If it's an hour later eating dinner with my family, then I might be rather jolly.  If it's the third day since I've showered and I have to shower in the cold bathroom, I may have mixed emotions.  Mixed emotions.  That's what I have quite often.

Back to what I've been up to the last few weeks, here is a summary:

• Class- I'm wrapping up class with my 25 students with Business Plan Presentations.  I ask them to create a business (the more realistic, the better) and use all that we've learned to create a business plan.  Yesterday, I had an expert judge (i.e. another business volunteer) come in and offer suggestions for their presentations, which was actually helpful and fun for them.  Evaluations from the students are telling me that they enjoyed class, that it was helpful, and that they want more!  So it appears I have no excuse to be without activities in the next few months.
• Grant writing- I helped our town hall complete a grant application for cultural preservation for restoring the exterior parts of our old historic church in town.  This took up some significant time at the beginning of the month and was a good practice in Romanian (the grant had to be written in English so I had a lot of communicating to do before I could draft the proposal).It was my first try in grant writing as a PCV and a good team building exercise for me and those at the Primaria (town hall).  Now we get to sit and wait a few months to see if we will win the grant.
• Events in Chisinau- 
• I attended a Winter Charity Bazaar, where multiple embassies and organization sell crafts and goodies, with all proceeds going to charity.
• GLOW/TOBE Meeting- we're upgrading the training materials, and I'm excited about it and thankful for my background with Nebraska FFA and summer camp for this!
• I attended Vernisajul Vinului, a wine tasting event at the National Palace, where Parliament usually meets. I was reminded of receptions on the Hill, as the room was filled with young bucks that are pretty cool or think they are anyway (me included!) or older politicians/NGO leaders/ex-pats, making the rounds and shaking hands.  Also add on the actual Moldovan winemakers and wine enthusiasts, who make the whole event worthwhile. 
• Staying warm- Here's a list of theories/strategies- tea, shots of cognac, izvar (the delicious hot, sweet, peppered wine), real heat, layers and layers of clothing, eating raw pork fat (I choose not to participate), and soup
• Staying happy in gray Moldova- And another list of strategies- get in the sun when it's out (it hides behind clouds quite often), exercise in your room (i'm sore from 10 minutes of exercise- not a good sign), take your vitamins, do things that make you happy (emails, skype dates, ukele playing, reading, hanging out with other volunteers)

DYK (Did You Know):  Moldovan's actually give sleigh rides to their kids as a means of transportation.  I guess there's one reason they don't so much shovel the sidewalks.

A Thankful PCV in Moldova

A few things this girl’s thankful for:

• A wonderful, supportive family in the States
• Friends that are irreplaceable, fun, and down-to-earth
• A wonderful Moldovan host family, who has patience and (almost) sympathy for me and my foreign ways/ideas...
• Kind Moldovans, stern on the outside and jolly on the inside
• My fellow PCV friends, who keep me grounded and sane
• My kind Moldovan colleagues
• That I get to teach eager students that have patience with me, even when they can’t decipher my rapid English in an American accent (they are used to British accents)
• Faith in God and hope for the future
• Funny things that are everywhere. Examples:
• Two old men in my community, sporting crisp new Kansas City Royals baseball caps (I doubt they know the town or the sport, but maybe I’m wrong!)
• On my run the other day, a guy was cutting through what looks to me like a winter wheat field (but it’s probably something else) on his old rusty, one-speed bike to get to the other side of town.  I wish I had my camera.
• My host mother asking the neighbor in Romanian about the whereabouts of my slippers.  One slipper from each of my two pairs went missing the other day.  The funny part is her explaining to the neighbor that their little dog took our American’s slippers, specifically her slippers from America!  (i don’t think my retelling it is quite as funny, unfortunately)  Since then, I’ve been wearing two very mismatched “shlawps”
• My host dad telling me I don’t need to go running and he certainly doesn’t need to exercise, because he does “Shaping” every day all day at work.
• Coffee from America, that I french press every morning.
• How small Moldova is- I can get from place to place pretty easy compared to other PC countries, and it appears to me to be a very “small world” in Moldova
• The young generation in Moldova that has so much potential to do so much with their lives and so much good for their country

Other Update:
Last week, I attended a training geared toward businessmen in Moldova, who wish to improve their web presence through websites and social media.  Being someone who is not so well informed on these issues, it was an educational opportunity (as always) and a chance for me to hear and practice Romanian in a new context amongst new Moldovan acquaintances.  After the seminar, I did a bit of tweaking to my blog and pondered advertising on my blog...  I of course decided to google search whether it’s been done in Moldova by a Peace Corps Volunteer in the past, and it has.  I found evidence from two years ago:  http://onebloceast.tumblr.com/post/2374726108 So now I’m kind of curious to see how advertising might be different on my blog, considering I probably have different content as well as it being 2012, not 2010. If you see advertising come up on my blog, you’ll know why!

Last week, I taught class on SWOT Analysis.  This week, I’m teaching about good management...  I’m starting to run into so vocabulary hurdles with students, making class a bit too strenuous...  But I think they’re learning!  

I’m headed to a Rural Women Leaders Forum tomorrow in Chisinau, followed by some celebrating and thanksgiving with other volunteers.  I seriously am so thankful for this opportunity to be a Peace Corps Volunteer and for all the things mentioned above.  I couldn’t ask for a better job at this point in time.

Business Courses and a GLOW'ing Preview

My Wednesday Class

Last week I began my first training sessions of Business in English at the Primaria.  I think it went really well.  The students seemed eager to learn and to practice English.  I introduced them to a bit of basic economic theory by playing a market simulation game.  Over the course of the next 7 weeks, they will learn the basics of what a business is and what it needs to operate, including a business plan that includes budgeting, marketing, management, and market analysis components.  Presentation skills in addition to general English communication will be a focus, as well as professional development including business communication and resumes.  That’s the hope, anyway!  

If you’re wondering how I’m hoping to pull all this off, I’m using the skills in my back pocket from my time working as a camp counselor and as a state FFA leader and combining them with the knowledge and resources I’ve gained from my ag economics education, background in business, and training from Peace Corps.  Out of the students I’ve heard from thus far or through the grapevine, they enjoyed the first class and learned new material, such as how buyers and sellers interact in the market place; how free markets with many buyers and sellers can provide information to all parties involved and establish the market price; and how this all relates to business.  This is most definitely a test run, and I really hope I hit all the important areas when it comes to business basics.  

This week?  The focus will be on SWOT Analysis.  Fun stuff!

Over the weekend, I was in Chisinau for a training regarding two Peace Corps initiatives called GLOW, Girls Leading Our World, and TOBE, Teaching Our Boys to Excel.  I’m really excited to get involved with these initiatives, because of their mission. GLOW/TOBE Moldova aim to promote gender equality by encouraging girls and young women and boys and young men throughout Moldova to make healthy life decisions, develop life-skills, and to become active members of their communities by providing educational, skill-building, and inspirational opportunities.  Its approach is to train Peace Corps volunteers such as myself to partner with a Moldovan, who can become a Seminar Leader and thus train or educate their own youth in areas such as entrepreneurship, civic engagement, leadership, communication, time management, healthy eating, gender equality, substance abuse, etc.  The idea is for it to be more Moldovan-lead at the end of the day, and not just Peace Corps.  At the end of the day (in 2 years), we won’t be here!  

I’ve been appointed as the Junior Director of Training, which is exciting given my desire to see Moldovan youth succeed and my passion for superbly facilitating learning.  The position comes with responsibility, but I’m looking forward to it and to working with other superb volunteers, who have been working hard in the last year to revamp GLOW/TOBE in Moldova.

Other Updates:

• My diet is changing into more roots (beets, carrots) and conserved produce and less fresh fruits and vegetables.
• I took a bus ride longer than expected.  Usually a rutiera ride from Chisinau to my town is 1 hour and 15 minutes.  I decided to take this old Greyhound bus, which much to my chagrin, went the long way around through a countless number of villages and stopping at them all.  It was a 2 ½ hour ride this time...  Good thing I left earlier than I thought necessary.
• It’s getting cold outside indeed.
• I had a mini-planning/dreaming session about how to spend my vacation days in the next year...  and it’s really exciting.

My Thursday Class outside to make a "frumos" or pretty photo with Doamna Lidia (on my left) and the flipcharts I made that are apparently good enough to showcase.

November Already? Time to Get to Work!

November is the month I will begin teaching a lot.  Starting next week, I will begin a 7-week course on Business in English.  I will have 3 separate classes that will meet once a week for 90 minutes each time.  I’m a bit nervous but looking forward to it.  I never would have imagined that ~35 students and even a few adults who I didn’t invite but asked to participate would be so interested in this subject.  My colleague, Nadea, who proposed this class to me correctly observed the need and desire.

This week, I have been busy securing a spot for the classes, which was a little more difficult than imagined.  Schools, you would think, would be the obvious choice where to hold these classes.  I have opened the course to three different schools in my town and was hoping to mix up the students, partly due to their level of English as well as due to their availability.  The high school students here also participate in extracurricular activities, such as music or dance lessons, language lessons, and sports.  I talked to two directors of two schools, asking if I could use their space after school to teach the course.  Both directors were absolutely welcoming to the idea, BUT with only their pupils.  No students from outside their school.  This was frustrating to me, as I thought about the worst possible alternative which would be that no school would allow mixed classes and thus some students would be forfeited the opportunity to learn.  It also sparks curiosity in me, if that same pride/protection of one’s school rising over the overall benefit of youth in the community exists also in the United States, particularly amongst public schools such as the ones with whom I’m working.  Unfortunately, I think it maybe does.

After a few days of a bit of anxiety about securing a place to have the course, I got some help from my tutor and met with a woman, Doamna Lidia, at the Primaria, the Mayor’s Hall.  What I found was that she was very welcome to the idea of the Business English course at the Primaria.  In fact, she sees it as just a launching point for what activities could occur.  It could lead to more advanced classes perhaps, or maybe to training students to teach such a course (that was Doamna Lidia’s very nice idea!), or to teaching students from the villages around our town center even.

In other news:
It’s gotten colder this week, and the soba (fireplace) is in use.  
I had my first haircut in Moldova-nothing out of the ordinary.  
My host mother refused to let me leave the house today with only ⅔ blow-dried hair.  She herself took out the blow dryer and made sure I finished the job.  
I’m getting over some type of cold that’s left me exhausted all week.
I’ve been happy to chat with a few friends back home recently.  How refreshing!  I’m thankful for your support and for the chance to catch up.  Technology rocks in Moldova!!!

This weekend, I’m headed to Balti, the largest city in the North, to help teach a Business English seminar with another PC volunteer to some eager college students who are in an organization called AISEC.  Should be fun!

The Good, the Bad, and the Nonsensical

I created a few lists of random observations/opinions.  Hope you like them.

Good-  Things that Make Me Smile

• The cute little babas (grandma's) that wear whatever they want and also always a scarf on their head regardless of how scaldingly hot it is (I believe along the lines of their Orthodox tradition as well to keep that darn "current"  away from getting them sick).  Although they may be wearing the same thing that they wore 5-10 years ago and have a distinct odor at times, they still get the respect that I see Grandma's get where I'm from.  Don't mess with them.  They've earned their keep.  But here, they're still earning their keep!  Every morning and night there's this baba who looks as tough as nails, maybe age 75, who takes her calf to the pasture and back home again.  I pass her on my walk to/from work, but other times while I'm going for a run on the road in that pasture.  She surely thinks I'm a bit crazy.
• Aw the Moldovan hospitality.  They want to serve you everything and make sure you're nice and comfortable.
• My host family- my host dad, the soft-hearted, yet stern, yet joking big guy; my host mother, the chatty, spry keeper of the house; and my host brother, the tall, young guy with whom I can sympathize (being  a 20-something year old wandering what to do with life and making the most of it while pondering this question). My family is pretty easy going and so kind to me.
• Snickers. They're at every little shop, satisfy my chocolate craving, and remind me of home (& I always tell the story of getting Snickers from Grandpa Swan!).
• The calm lifestyle of this place.  Moving away from DC, there are definite things that I miss there (hanging out with good friends, easy access to all types of entertainment, great restaurants and neighborhoods, etc).  But fortunately I'm a sucker for quiet mornings, country roads, and lazy, calm evenings.  I get a lot of them here.
• My very blue and white room.  I've never had such a coordinated, "frumos" room in my life.  I feel like a princess sometimes.
• Working with youth.  Last week, I played the guitar and led a song for ~15 kids that attend an after-school program for at-risk youth.  What fun!   I've also enjoyed my brief time, interacting with students in English classes I've visited.
• Fall weather!  Although my toes have already gone cold from time to time, I love the crisp, fresh air!  Not so crisp you don't want to breathe, but enough to put on an extra sweater/scarf.

Bad-  Things that Don't Make Me Smile

• Number 1 issue:  the service industry.  There's this huge disconnect in my mind.  Moldovans are so hospitable at home, but formal hospitality in the service industry has been quite disappointing.  I thought I was a pretty reasonable customer in general when I go out for a meal/drink.  But I've learned that I have strong preferences for good service.  My question is… how do you improve this culture? Tipping isn't really a thing here, so maybe that would help incentivize the industry. 
• When I'm excited for a masa (or party), and then I realize that they all are going to speak Russian the whole time.  Wohwohwoh.  Debbie Downer.  I've picked up a few phrases enough to get some ew's and aw's.  And then they say I'll learn Russian, for sure, in two years.  Yeah…  I'm just trying to keep my head above water right now with Romanian.  Throw Russian in there?  I'm sure to drown.
• When people don't want to collaborate and don't trust each other.  We're lucky to have such a "team" attitude in the United States amongst companies and amongst organizations.  Certainly there are disagreements and fierce competition in the U.S. too that don't encourage collaboration, but in general, people and institutions work together for achieving shared outcomes or for the improvement of the industry they share.  This is surprisingly not as common of a practice as I sincerely wished it would be here. Cooperative development works in the states.  It's a harder sell here (and to some, it sounds too similar to communism).
• My English grammar- it's not so good.  My grammar is poor in all languages I thought I knew well.  My vocabulary bank is convoluted.   I'm not full from a meal anymore.  I'm saturated from a meal now.  I don't need to check with my colleague.  I need to verify with my colleague.   But of course, this is part of the fun.

• Thinking about winter.  And cold.  And people that might be hungry this winter in Moldova, due to the poor crop harvest this year.  

Nonsensical- I Just Don't Understand.

• Why Moldovans don't believe in neutering their pets.  There are way too many vagabond dogs.  And they're skinny little dirty things, poor guys. 

• Why my host family has a spice rack… full of mild pepper varieties.
• The outhouse tradition.  Why continue to use the outhouse when you've got a nice clean toilet inside?  It's way more frumos (pretty), Moldovans.
• "House wine is always better than bottled wine, because it's natural without added water or sugar."  Checking with how bottled wine is made, no water or sugar are added  to it either.

• Why there seems to be just two stations to listen to on the radio and two genres of music in stores/restaurants.  Traditional Moldovan music (musica populara) or else pop music from the      states/international scene.   Where's the variety?  Jazz/blues, alternative, folk, country, samba, classical, etc.  (yes, those would be my preferences)

• Is it soo necessary to fry everything?  I eat prajiture (fried things) about every day.   I do like fried food- don't get me wrong- but is it necessary?  Every day?  With that much oil? 

This is rather a hodge podge of information, but hopefully you like it.  Happy Toamna (Autumn)!!!

More Training and Moldovan Traditions

Another few weeks have passed by soo quickly!  It's finally feeling most certainly like fall.  Three weekends ago, I took off from Causeni for first a wedding weekend in the north of Moldova, then two weeks of language training and program-related meetings with Peace Corps and other NGO's, followed by the National Wine Fest.  Busy weeks and weekends but fun, educational ones as well!

I unfortunately had my camera stolen, so I can't show you all the fun wedding pictures I snapped.  Thankfully, they're all saved, just not on my computer.  So I'll post about that joyous, interesting, and long cultural experience later on.

Many of us volunteers were not necessarily thrilled to go back for more training- including me.  But on the other hand, what's not to love about being with some of the coolest people in the world (i.e. other Peace Corps volunteers!)? ...  We were just getting settled at site and then had to leave again for a couple weeks.  However, as it turns out, I took away some more grammar lessons and some valuable insight regarding projects I hope to implement in my town.  First and foremost, I'm working on starting an interactive Business Course in English for high school students.  I have a lot of ideas floating around on what sessions I can facilitate for them, and it's a bit nerve-racking to plan for it.  But God willing, it will work out well!  Scheduling is one of the biggest issues I've been told, as many students who would be the type to participate in such a class often are busy with school, work, and extracurricular activities. 

Below is a picture of a few of the coolest people in the world, dancing it up in Chisinau to the song, "Staying Alive", in an effort to promote National Sudden Cardiac Awareness Month.  Stay tuned for a video clip perhaps as well. 

To top off a couple weeks of me contemplating my goals and objectives for the next few months in Causeni, I celebrated the National Wine Holiday in Chisinau with some fellow volunteers.  I feel I'm lucky to have already made some friends in the wine industry in Moldova.  They're some really hard-working, talented, and kind people, for which I am already grateful to know them.  Maybe I'll be of use to them by the end of two years.  Certainly, I'm telling all my friends to check them out and buy their wine!  For a number of years now, I've wanted to learn more about the whole process of viticulture, winemaking, and wine tourism/sales. So I'm quite happy to be here in Moldova.  We'll see what more I can learn!  

Sights, music, grapes, and class!

It's been a few weeks since I have blogged… Mostly because I have been working and enjoying Moldova!  The last three weekends, I have had the opportunity to taste some culture in Moldova: by attending a music festival in Orheiul Vechi; by celebrating two national holidays, Indepedence Day and Our Language Day; and by participating in the grape harvest and wine-making celebration. 

Checking out the view with some other volunteers.

Some babas (elderly women) also enjoyed the Gustar Festival

I have been busy during the week as well.  During the last week of August, I attended a training session with a few other volunteers in Peace Corps.  We had all been nominated by our peers to be formal Peer Supporters.  That is, if a volunteer has any issues to resolve that cause mental/emotional stress perhaps, we are here to listen and support them as we are able.   The training was helpful in thinking about how best we can listen to our peers in times of stress or crisis and enable them to solve problems.  (and I hear those times do come to all of us!)

This week and last week, I have taught Business English classes interestingly enough at a bank in Chisinau to three adult students.  I forgot how much I like to teach.  I essentially taught the remaining six classes of the term.  Since the classes were in Chisinau, I commuted 1 1/2 hours one-way, back and forth from Chisinau to my town.  But never fear, podcasts, good music, and my Kindle are here!  Additionally, this teaching opportunity has allowed me access to resources and given me practice in teaching Business English, which I plan to do at my site.

Grape harvest!

 Last weekend, I helped pick grapes at a vineyard and observed the process of a small commercial winery making wine.  I really enjoyed the experience, mostly because I find the story of this vineyard and winery encouraging and inspiring.  Two brothers had a dream a decade or two ago to start a vineyard and winery close to their small town in Moldova.  They both lived abroad, one of themfor 13 years in the United States.  They worked and saved up money and eventually came back to Moldova and made their dream come true.    I and many others can testify to the quality of the wine that they produce.  I particularly enjoyed the ice wine they made (that's when they pick frozen grapes from the vine, which makes a sweet, refreshing, and balanced wine).  The event was not only interesting because of my curiosity with viticulture, but also due to the mix of great Moldovans and ex-pats that were there.  Most of them lived in Chisinau, and about all of them spoke English well.  (I tried to force myself and them to speak Romanian!) The Moldovans there were mostly in their 20s or 30s.  They love their country and work hard to make the kind of living that they want, which is civil, urban, and perhaps more sophisticated than my life in my town in Moldova.  When I told them I was living in my town of 18,000 for TWO YEARS, some of them cringed and asked why.  (Where I live is boring, slow, not so attractive, they tell me.)  My answer is more than a few words.

Working my first grape harvest

I joined Peace Corps and moved to Moldova, because I was a little bored (even in Washington DC, a thriving, attractive city itself).  I'm young.  I want to give back and serve, because I feel privileged to have grown up in the U.S. and to have been educated as an American (and as a Nebraska farm girl!).  I also am fascinated by new places, different cultures, different languages, and the mixture of perspectives and knowledge you gain from living abroad.  Așa.  That's right.  That's why I'm here.  I'm still at the learning stage of what exactly I am to accomplish in Moldova.  Time will tell, but as my Business English students from the bank told me (paraphrased), the quality and ease of life and work comes down to people.  Good people.  Good employees.  I've held this opinion for a while now, and I don't think it will change here.  So if I do nothing else, friendships and positive working relationships  are the bottom line for what I must do.  But certainly more can and I believe will come from that.

Meeting My Neighbor, Zina

Yesterday evening, I decided to take a walk through the neighborhood.  I ended up spending some time chatting with my neighbor, Zina (or Zinaida).  She’s probably around 70 years old, I presume.  And she had nothing good to say about the current state of her country.  She remembers the good old days when the Soviet Union took care of her.  Now, for over the last 20 years, she has seen life transform into something she sees only as poverty.  Bandits and thieves, Zinaida told me, Bandits! and Thieves! have taken all their land or if not their land, all of their produce from their land and ruined the ability for them to maintain the standard of living they desire.  When she asked me where I was from off the bat (yes I have a very strong accent...), she shook her head in disgust, regarding my response, the United States.  She had heard from a couple men that had worked there that all they did was work.  They couldn’t make or save any money in America.  And so the U.S. is bad.  

While we were having this conversation, a young man driving a nice Mercedes Benz with the steering wheel on the right side of the car (left side is normal in Moldova) pulls up in front of us and starts talking to the baba (which means elderly woman) next to me, Zina.  After a few words, Zina recalls who this young gentlemen is.  She hasn’t seen him in years.  He was a little boy the last time she saw him.  

But she recognizes him.  He was one of the boys next door, whose family moved out and left Moldova over ten years ago.  The house still is there, empty, unable to be sold.  Zina asked about his family, and he responded that they all had left Moldova- Spain, England, Russia.  No one was living in Moldova.  His family was only visiting on vacation.  He was the only one that came back to his hometown.  The rest of his family knew what a shame it would be to see their empty house.  

So this is a story in Moldova that reflects much greater on a trend in this country.  When people face poverty in this country, some stay around and moan.  Some stay around and fight.  Some leave and search for a better life.  Not too many people like me move in to the country.  When I told my host dad about the young guy who I had just met last night and his family’s story, I asked if it made him sad.  He responded that he is not sad about it, because it’s a sensible thing for people to do- to seek a better life elsewhere.  What is sad is when people live in poverty and are stuck in poverty.  Luckily for my host family, they have worked hard; they are smart and maybe have had a bit of luck; and they have created a good life for themselves in their hometown.  I know they have made sacrifices that I don’t realize.

A Day in the Life of Laura in Moldova

Today is just a normal day in Moldova.  I wake up, go for a run, and get a bit lost on rutted out roads in my neighborhood.  After a hot shower inside, I have breakfast waiting for me (Multumesc, Tata Gazda.  Thanks, Host Dad).  Breakfast includes a large serving of mashed potatoes and a hot dog, as well as bread and cookies on the side.  Since my dad has already eaten his breakfast of champions, I return half of the serving of mashed potatoes back to the bowl.  It’s hard to convince this father of mine that I eat enough, but I tell him over and over that I do eat to my stomach’s content and often unfortunately then some.  He is a big guy with a much larger stomach than mine, and he’s Moldovan! He wants to show his hospitality by offering me limitless amounts of food.

 My host dad on the right, holding a mushroom grown by my host brother on the left.  Valentin, my host brother, sells high quality mushrooms mostly to places in Chisinau.  I have some white house wine in my hand.

After that, I made the 20 minute walk to work straight through the center of town.  I passed first a young boy carrying his purchase of a watermelon from the market.  I mumble to him, "Buna Dimineata" (Good morning).  The response is always better when I mumble and speak softly.  Moldovans like to greet each other softly, as if a wind current, which is known to make one sick here, might arise if they speak any louder than that. Next I passed an older man carrying his morning purchases- 2 holey boxes filled with chickens/geese and a punga (bag) of something.  

As I entered the center of town, the streets were busy with locals wondering to the bus stop and to and from the local piata (market).  The city of Causeni is the raion center of the raion, Causeni.  With a population around 20,000 (less probably due to those working abroad), they actually have quite a few thriving businesses.  I’m at the point that I know that when I walk or run through town, someone that I have met already is watching me, knowing exactly who I am.  They have one American girl to remember.  I have... many faces and names to remember, names that I struggle to spell/pronounce and that come in 5 different forms.  Bori, Olha, Nikolai, Victor, Vladimir, Nadejda, Svetlana, Voda, Galia,... and yes, I just named the easy ones that I have already learned.  The best is when you are introduced to someone and they give you 3 names.  “Sunt Sasha.  Alexandru. I am Alex.”  

Continuing on my walk, I pass the bank where there’s a crowd gathered, waiting for 9am to strike so they can collect most likely remittances they receive from abroad.  And also be on their way to the market asap.

So I wander for 20 minutes on my daily work commute with my stream of consciousness wandering even further. I sing American music in my head, remain curious on how to say _________ and __________ in Romanian, and recall my strong, challenging desire to learn the Russian alphabet and more. Finally, I arrive at work.

Doamna Nadejda begins to talk about plans for the rest of the week for me and also how I am to examine the X-Chel (xcel) document on the memory stick she hands me.  I do have a computer that has full capabilities (just installed Microsoft Office yesterday- woohoo!).  She also gives me a link to a site that we use quite often- http://aipa.md/index.php - the website for the Agency  of Intervention and Payments for Agriculture.  

My desk at the office.

 
After I grab my morning cup or two of instant coffee (addicted and happy), I read through news and peruse (to the best of my ability) the excel document and website (and other websites it links to).  Wheww this is a lot of work.  If you want to practice, try reading articles here: http://www.timpul.md/, in addition to the link above.

After a couple hours of this, we head to the mayor’s office to meet him for the first time.  He’s welcoming and talks about most things that I think I can understand.  Kind of.  Nadejda asks me to talk about my host family, and I stumble to say anything.  Good one.  You should have worked this out a little sooner.  Sigh.  But the mayor understands that I have a few months before my Romanian will be decent.  He mentions, of course, Kelsey, the infamous American that married one of Causeni’s own good men.  He points to the same future for me after two years.  I laugh.   When really I should have said something about how I am not all that appreciative of the offer at this time, thank you.  And that this kind suggestion has been told to me every day since arriving in this country.  But I refrain. Oh my poor Romanian.

After our short conversation, we returned to the office a block away on foot.  I attempt to call one of my host dad’s friends, Boris, who from my understanding had some type of agricultural enterprise with sunflowers.  And his operation is close to Ukraine.  (our raion to the south boders Ukraine) ...So I call him.  Try to talk, can’t understand a thing, and give the phone to Nadejda.  After only a couple sentences of conversation, all the information I wanted to synthesize was complete between the two of them.  Nadejda then said- Boris just has some land and grows wheat and sunflowers, which have already been harvested. But he lives in Causeni which isn’t right on the border of Ukraine.  Okay.  So the small understanding I had of the 5 minute conversation with Boris, other friend, and my dad on Saturday around the table  over the weekend seemed to be quite inflated, regarding what Boris actually did and where he wanted me to visit.  Hmm. I’ll try harder to listen and communicate better next time I guess?  (but that’s what I do every time!)

It’s almost time for lunch, and I can’t wait because they have a functioning toilet inside the restaurant where we will dine today!  Otherwise, I must use the outdoor hole in the ground next to the office or alternatively the outhouse at home.  Lunch was typical Moldovan-style for the summer- cooked potatoes and mushrooms; a cooked pepper filled with mostly rice; and a side of fresh cucumber, tomato, and dill salad.  And a good splash of oil on it all with a touch of salt.  And always bread.  We don’t usually go to the restaurant for lunch, but I think I prompted Nadea when I asked where the best place to eat in town was yesterday.  

After lunch, we met a couple more of Nadea’s friends as we make our way the two block walk back to the office.  The two are married and musicians and grew up with Nadea. Ion, the man, tells a joke which I fail to understand. Nadea retells it to me, and then I laugh (2 minutes after the joke was told). Before I went back to the office, I attemp to withdraw cash at the bank but am denied.  Although I can withdraw cash from any of my bank’s ATMs, I need both my residency card and a passport to withdraw any cash inside a bank with a teller. Can anyone explain?

Back in the office after that, I study some more Romanian and visit with one of the English classes in our office meeting room space.  I go home and find my host brother and his 4 year old son also at the house.  Every time I am in my room and my little host nephew comes to the house, I get a series of taps on my door until I answer/come out and play with him.  Today I play a simplified game of UNO with him, which essentially allowed me to teach him the 4 colors in English.  It makes my day to hear him say “gween” and “wed”.  After a few more times at this game, maybe we’ll move on to colors and numbers and play real UNO.

I continue to study Romanian, this time in a workbook.  After a bit of that, I help my mother in the kitchen.  She just had a gynecological operation and shouldn't be doing much.  Even though she has to go back to the hospital tonight to sleep, she is still amazingly and sadly the one cooking dinner.  I do what I can to help, although I would doubt that they would allow me to be the head chef anyway, since I am unable to cook like a Moldovan (although I'm developing simple theories on this)...   After dinner, I wash the dishes (something they know I can manage).  


And now I’m just ready to relax.  Or write this blog entry, study more Romanian un pic (a little), and read books before I fall asleep.  We ate dinner early today, so if my dad calls me to eat some watermelon later, I won’t be disappointed.

Hai! Hai! -A Pleasantly Busy First Week

When we were wrapping up training, we were told repeatedly to lower our expectations for getting started with work.  Don't expect much- you don't know the language, you don't know your organization/community all that well, and it's August- vacation season!  Three legitimate reasons why starting a new job in Moldova in August as an American may not be all that thrilling. 

I found the week to be quite an interesting one, however. 

• Monday- I was in the office.  I did a lot of reading on news nationally and internationally and studied Romanian via organization publications and Moldovan news sites.  Even this kept me busy and focused all day.
• Tuesday- Another day in the office.  I sat in on a couple English classes that are taught in our office by Mrs. Svetlana.  She's a great teacher- so great that her students from school come to class during their summer break to keep learning the language (this is quite the anomaly!).  I also got lucky and was able to visit a winery that's known to produce Negru de Purcari, the wine always requested by Queen Elizabeth II.  I went to Purcari Winery with my partner, Nadea, and some of her relatives.  Although it was less than 30 miles away from our town, they had never been there.  I appreciated being able to go with them and on my second day of work even!
• Wednesday- I spent most of the day with a former volunteer, Kelsey, who married a Moldovan and now lives and farms with her husband here.  She took me to see their farm and village.  Thankfully, for the first time in a while, the heat broke.  Cooler weather and a few sprinkles have saturated this part of Moldova since then.  Kelsey and I had a lot to discuss as we drove across the country side; inspected her greenhouses; and stopped by to check on the bell pepper-picking crew.  We have a lot in common, and it stems from growing up around agriculture.  She grew up on a ranch in western Oklahoma and studied agricultural economics in college.  I grew up on a farm in western Nebraska and also studied ag economics.  Additionally, we also have a keen interest in agricultural development worldwide but now especially in this little area where we both live in Moldova. 
• Thursday- Kelsey and her business partner, Raia, started a business called EcoValley this year, which primarily sells fresh produce through a Community Supported Agricuture (CSA) program.  I helped deliver the fresh produce directly to EcoValley customers in Chisinau with Kelsey on Thursday.  I have always been interested and supportive of the idea of a CSA, and to find myself in Moldova delivering produce to CSA customers was just a bit crazy and fun!
• Friday-I mostly recapped the week, and devoted the day to synthesizing all the information I had soaked in from the week.  I try to devote a couple hours at least each day to reading news and freshening up on my Romanian skills.   It may sound that this is pretty unproductive, but truthfully it's difficult to be too productive without basic skills in the language (if you ask me).  Smiles and non-verbal communication can certainly get you a long ways, but I hope and try to acquire more tools than those!  Even talking to my family and their friends and expanding on topics that we talk about are steps I'm taking toward language acquisition.  Topics: anything and everything.  Examples: the reasons why I like Demmel Farm chicken more than the chicken from the store; differences and traditions in religions (my host family is Orthodox, and I am Protestant); hobbies; the history of Moldova; future travel plans; dreams for the future; their vision of my life beyond Peace Corps with a Moldovan husband and a wine export business to the States; family history; my family back in the U.S.; American versus Moldovan traditions; and so on.

Whewww!  So week 1 flew by pleasantly and in an unexpected way.  I have more topics to blog about than I have time/concentration to put forward.  But I will do my best to send more updates soon!

En route to the village and the farm. - Yes, this is the main road , I do believe.  Fewer potholes than the paved street my house is on in town!

On the farm!  Kelsey's family farm has 20 hectares (~50 acres) of bell peppers this year. It's time to harvest them!  They sell most of them at the whole sale market in Chisinau.

At the Purcari Winery with my partner and her daughter

First Weekend at Site!

A lot has happened since I last posted!  I have been sworn in as an official Peace Corps Volunteer and moved myself and all my possessions to my permanent location for the next two years.  My new host family gave me a ride to our town which is only 1 1/2 hours away from the capital city, Chișinau.  I must admit I was exhausted from the heat and the early morning wake up.  But my family was gracious! 

En route to site, my host mother, Natasha, said that we will stop to "buy fish."  To buy mancarea (food)… fish…  I  then continued to tell her how I liked to eat fish and that my last host mom cooked it quite often.  As we walked through the busy market place north of Chisinau, she tells me how fish are expensive to buy at site but cheaper here in Chisinau.  And then we pulled up to the animal pet stand.  Ohh- we're not buying fish to eat.  We're buying food for the fish and an additional 10  little guppies for the aquarium.  And so it goes… I'm close to understanding, but actually I've got a loonng ways to go.

Take 2 of communicating and understanding conversations in Moldova.  I already appreciate my family, because they seem to know a lot of people around here AND they welcome friends and family with open arms from one hour to the next.  It's great!  And overwhelming.  My host mother puts together a splendid barbecue on such short notice for those that spontaneously (so it seems) welcome themselves through our front gate (or sometimes the back gate).  As  my parents introduce their friends to this quiet, foreign-looking young woman who they now call their American daughter, I hear new names that I can't seem to keep in my head.   Galia?  And her husband, Voda?  Or is it Boda?  Or is that other guy Voda/Boda/whatever they said?  But then it gets even more complicated.  I wish to understand just a little ("un pic!") of the rapid chatter around me, but the entire conversation that I wish so badly to piece together is spoken in yet another language.  Not Romanian.  Russian.  Two months of studying Romanian, and all I hear is Russian.  Sigh. 

Continuing in this unfortunate vein, most people can be called by two formal first names, plus any nicknames.  For example, I'm Laura.  But in Russian, I would be Larissa.  My father is Mihai.  In Russian and what he is called most often, Misha.  And so it continues from names to objects and verbs and so on.  The garden is the gradina in Romanian but my host mom, Natasha (or Natalia if you will) can't even recall this word.  She only knows the Russian word for it...which unfortunately has quickly escaped my mind shortly after the conversation about it.

If you aren't aware, Russian is based on the Cyrillic alphabet, not the Latin alphabet where my exiguous language skills are based.  It will be a long while, if ever, that I gain a grasp of Russian here.  But for now, I will smile, laugh, joke about things that I can understand- this weekend it included English phrases/words such as "a glass a wine please", "Good morning, Mr. Dennis", Michael Jackson, Michael Doo-glaws, & George Washington.

All that being said, my host family and I get along quite well!  They speak mostly in Romanian now.  (When they were growing up, they learned Russian and spoke Russian often and in school.)  On the first evening in my new home, my host brother inquired about the aerial view of Nebraska via Google Maps.  The big circles in the squares.  What are they?!  Great first lesson in American agriculture, particularly the type with which I am familiar.  Those big circles within the squares, Valentin, are irrigation circles!  They hold probably the only crops that seem to be doing all right in the awful heat stroke and drought conditions that hit the Midwest and West this summer.  (It's also very hot in dry in the south of Moldova, so they can empathize.)  I then showed him online what pivots look like and also zoomed in on my family's farm.

I included a picture just outside my casa in Moldova.  A very pleasant place- a swimming pool, a porch swing, a serious barbecue pit, a covered picnic area (it's some Russian word that of course I don't yet remember), and also a few things you don't see- watermelon, house wine, a guitar, and a ukele.