well.. I'm beginning to see some regimen in my days... I wake up by 8:00 when my family is just wrapping up their morning schedule and leaving for work and school. I usually wait until they're gone, because I just don't want to upset their morning schedule. I go to the stove first thing to heat up water for my favorite new drink....fresh raspberry and honey tea. I take a little square bench that is stored against the wall and carry it to the table so I have a place to sit. I cut a couple slices of bread (never seems to be fresh... rare to have fresh bread) and pop it in the toaster and when it's done, if I'm really lucky, I can melt some crunchy peanut butter on it.. if not I just have butter and cinnamon sugar with my tea!!! Sometimes I'll cut up an apple or if by chance last night's dinner was actually edible, I might heat a little up...While I eat, I play Soduko.. read.. plan lessons for English classes or just eat...
Usually step out on the veranda to find out the weather while I have my morning smokey treat.... then I put two or three layers of clothes on, make my bed... pick up my plastic bag purse and off I go... get to work about 10:30 or 11:00.. twice a week I teach English at ll:00 am and three times a week at 5:00 pm. There are kids coming in and out.. sometimes I pop in on a dance class... just met the teacher who teaches clothing design... guess she might join the English classes, too.... I usually help my partner by translating... helped her organize a seminar last weekend... brainstorm for ideas and try to understand her needs here...
On Wednesday's I meet the other volunteer in town.. Lee, for French Fries - homemade and delicious.. Lee is from Alabama and brings along picante ketchup and some awesome alabama creole spice that make them even better! I walk home generally in the dark... arrive home anywhere between 6:00 and 8:00. Eat dinner visit a bit and go to my room (where I LOVE to be!)
Speaking of reading.. I read "Aint got time to bleed" and I must say I missed listening to Ol Jesse's the Body's self grandizing stories when I was done... I actually liked it and it reminded me why I voted for him in the first place!!! I remember so clearly thinking the next day "OH NO - now what?" when I found out he had won. He infused alot of energy into Minnesota politics... changed things up a bit... I thank him for that! And of course the rebate check was nice too. I just finished "House of Sand and Fog" - really liked it... am enjoying reading books again!!! Wish I had even more time to do so!!! Between the knitting and the studying and the texting at night...
Just met a young kid (probably 9 yr old) named Vladislav. He speaks a little tiny bit of English... a little tiny bit of Romanian and alot of Russian...and he wants to talk to me... Earlier I played foosball with he and his friends in the after school center. So he is here talking to me and asking me what I'm doing on the computer... he keeps talking and pointing and says when you're done with the computer and says the word for games... so I have to tell him that kids cannot use this computer for games or anything else ever( of course remember he only knows a little English and a little Romanian) Finally he says.. NO!!! I want to play foosball when you're done! Dang it's hard to figure out what's going on around here!
Friday, December 22, 2006
Just a couple of thoughts...
I have a funny and typical story to share... Hope Vanny won't mind... but she went to church in her new town and afer church she was asked to leave because they had a meeting... so last week when she went to church they announced her name and she thought it meant she had to leave again... but really the whole church was waiting for her to get up and introduce herself... instead she just got up and left.. I just laugh to think of all of the people standing there anxiously waiting for her to get up and talk and she gets up and just walks straight out the door!!!!!
When I first arrived here and for quite a long time, I was really mixed up and using the word "I want" instead of " I like ". Countless times I told someone that I wanted something that belonged to them... I told my boss I wanted her jacket. One time I asked someone if they wanted the United States!!! Like it is for sale and I hold the purse strings!!! I'm wondering now how many of my personal belongings I gave away without knowing.. when someone complemented my jewelry or clothing I'd say "you want it?" What an idiot!!!!
I'm sure I said...I want your house... I want your car....I want your shoes, your husband your firstborn... who knows!!!! And what a demanding bitch... I want french fries, I want ice cream,I want raspberries... No wonder I haven't made friends!!! Ha! Life is like that here...
Gave my first English class today.. to some teachers from the school. It was really fun!! I'm looking forward to the next one when I get back from "holiday".
When I first arrived here and for quite a long time, I was really mixed up and using the word "I want" instead of " I like ". Countless times I told someone that I wanted something that belonged to them... I told my boss I wanted her jacket. One time I asked someone if they wanted the United States!!! Like it is for sale and I hold the purse strings!!! I'm wondering now how many of my personal belongings I gave away without knowing.. when someone complemented my jewelry or clothing I'd say "you want it?" What an idiot!!!!
I'm sure I said...I want your house... I want your car....I want your shoes, your husband your firstborn... who knows!!!! And what a demanding bitch... I want french fries, I want ice cream,I want raspberries... No wonder I haven't made friends!!! Ha! Life is like that here...
Gave my first English class today.. to some teachers from the school. It was really fun!! I'm looking forward to the next one when I get back from "holiday".
Monday, December 18, 2006
Holidays!!
Here in Moldova there is a new and old church calendar.. Most people celebrate Christmas (Craciun) on the 7th of January. Although it is said that it is celebrated a bit on the 25th of December, I've yet to meet anyone that does... I know my little brother Cristi will do the traditional American leave cookies out for Santa and Santa will leave a gift..He learned this tradition from the former volunteer that lived at his house... the difference is that he doesn't get to tell Santa what he wants or write a note of request. he gets whatever Santa leaves!! So this year will be the same!!
People here actually exchange gifts on New Years.. My Americanized 22 year old sister told me after a big meal and exchange of gifts on New Years Eve..many people then go to a bar in town and party until 6 or 8 in the morning...
My family in Milestii Mici has invited me for the traditional January 7th celebration and that is what I intend to do. All of the relatives that I got to know will be there and it will be a wonderful reunion!!! I have a few nice options with friends for December 24th/25th so I won't be alone, but it will not be the same as being HOME!!! So here is wishing you all that makes you feel warm and wonderful during this SPECIAL time of year!!!! My love and thoughts are with you!!!
People here actually exchange gifts on New Years.. My Americanized 22 year old sister told me after a big meal and exchange of gifts on New Years Eve..many people then go to a bar in town and party until 6 or 8 in the morning...
My family in Milestii Mici has invited me for the traditional January 7th celebration and that is what I intend to do. All of the relatives that I got to know will be there and it will be a wonderful reunion!!! I have a few nice options with friends for December 24th/25th so I won't be alone, but it will not be the same as being HOME!!! So here is wishing you all that makes you feel warm and wonderful during this SPECIAL time of year!!!! My love and thoughts are with you!!!
My package!!
On Friday I received a message that the package my parents sent had finally arrived.. My dad was told it would arrive in 3-5 days which seemed pretty impossible, but it actually only took about 9 days!!! Of course when I looked at the postage today when I picked it up... I knew why!! It was a $76.00 shipping bill!!! Thanks Mom and Dad!!!
The document said that I could only pick the package up Monday between 2 and 3 pm and Wednesday between 9 and 10 am. So today I was there exactly at 2:00. I tried the door and it was locked...so I stood outside for about ten minutes when an old lady walked by me pulled on the door really hard and it opened... of course!!!!
I showed the lady behing the window my new official Moldovan ID and she said something about a passport, which led me to believe that I needed my passport to pick up the package... it took a little while to figure it out, but turns out she merely was telling me that I didn't need my passport I only need this little green ID card... so I picked up the 10 kilogram package which translates to a little more than 20 pounds, I think... and had no choice but to walk home with it..
It is a pretty good jaunt on foot from the Posta!!!!! I think about how ludicrous it would seem if my Dad had to take this package to a post office somewhere in Mountain Iron on foot to get it sent!! I think he'd have done it, though!!! I switched it from my shoulder to my back to my left arm to my right arm with every long block...
It was a bit cumbersome but I was determined because I knew I would have my own private party on my bed when I got home with it!!! And I did!
My fave of course was the hometown beef jerky... I immediately cut it up in little pieces so it would last longer and vowed to ration it... (after I devoured 1/4 of it right there on my bed)!!! A couple of spoonfuls of crunchy peanut butter and I was beginning to feel satisfied!!! I looked at each gift one at a time.. reading all of the words in English ate tootsie rolls and licorice for dessert and read the letter from my mom over and over when I realized I had left work two hours ago to pick up this package... I walked 1/2 hour across town once more and here I am back at my desk!
The document said that I could only pick the package up Monday between 2 and 3 pm and Wednesday between 9 and 10 am. So today I was there exactly at 2:00. I tried the door and it was locked...so I stood outside for about ten minutes when an old lady walked by me pulled on the door really hard and it opened... of course!!!!
I showed the lady behing the window my new official Moldovan ID and she said something about a passport, which led me to believe that I needed my passport to pick up the package... it took a little while to figure it out, but turns out she merely was telling me that I didn't need my passport I only need this little green ID card... so I picked up the 10 kilogram package which translates to a little more than 20 pounds, I think... and had no choice but to walk home with it..
It is a pretty good jaunt on foot from the Posta!!!!! I think about how ludicrous it would seem if my Dad had to take this package to a post office somewhere in Mountain Iron on foot to get it sent!! I think he'd have done it, though!!! I switched it from my shoulder to my back to my left arm to my right arm with every long block...
It was a bit cumbersome but I was determined because I knew I would have my own private party on my bed when I got home with it!!! And I did!
My fave of course was the hometown beef jerky... I immediately cut it up in little pieces so it would last longer and vowed to ration it... (after I devoured 1/4 of it right there on my bed)!!! A couple of spoonfuls of crunchy peanut butter and I was beginning to feel satisfied!!! I looked at each gift one at a time.. reading all of the words in English ate tootsie rolls and licorice for dessert and read the letter from my mom over and over when I realized I had left work two hours ago to pick up this package... I walked 1/2 hour across town once more and here I am back at my desk!
Miscellaneous ramblings
I have a really nice house... it is almost like an American house definitely 50's style! (And they have no idea what decorating retro style means!!!) It will be a long two years, but I am enjoying the time for me to really do the things that I've always wanted to do read, write,reflect, think and was always too busy to do. It is interesting to, for example, hang my clothes on the line and to watch them dance in the breeze and it reminds me of summers when I was young and how I would go out in the backyard and talk to my mom while she hung clothes... The smell takes me back and it gives me impetus to reflect upon my life. A life that seems full of stumbles, but it's mine nonetheless!
I've had what I would consider a few small successes at "work". I'm still just trying to find out what the work means.. Organizational development is a pretty broad job description, so I'm hoping to learn more about the politics, the community, the culture and of course the language here so I can begin to narrow it down.
I really don't like the food here... although I am beginning to find some favorites. It will be better in summer when the gardens are overflowing with fresh vegetables. They say anything will grow in Moldova... If you plant a shoe you will grow a shoe tree!!! Apple trees, pear trees are plentiful and watermelons, too!
Here they have two church calendars the old celebrates on January 7th and the new on December 25th. Funny thing, I was in Chisinau this weekend.. just hanging out with a few of my volunteer friends... There was a big professionally lettered sign on the street that said
Marry Christmas. Ha! Chisinau is the capital and I love it so much. Unfortunatley for me I am a two hour bus ride away and the last bus home is at 5:00 pm. It is expensive on my "salary" to stay in a hotel and currently (a rule with Peace Corps) we are on lockdown for the first three months... which means we cannot be out of our site overnight until February 15th.
So for Christmas, my first family in my training village has invited me to come and celebrate with them. I guess its the biserica (church) and then a big meal (masa) which goes on for hours and hours and probably alot of wine and cognac and dancing late into the night. They put Christmas trees up I think and they exchange gifts but not until New Year's Eve. The traditional food that they always prepare for parties are my LEAST favorite of all food! One dish is chicken parts - feet, wings, maybe even heads... I never look.. it is put in a chicken gelatin substance and served cold... they just lap it up!!!! EEEUUUUUU!!!!!
I was at a family party the other night and tried so hard to find something to eat so as not to offend them and they finally brought out these sausage looking things and told me it was ground pork... although they started describing that the casing was made from the lining of the stomach and lucky for me I knew that that is normal for sausage and I'll just peel that part off... well my plan almost worked!!! I peeled and began to eat the ground pork and guess what it was!!!! Pork liver. so I hid it under my leftover cabbage and drank another glass of wine with them... they are more offended if I refuse wine I think.
so... I am only allowed one exception from the lockdown rule and that would be to visit my family in Milestii Mici... but it looks like the volunteers will rent an apartment for the night in Chisinau for New years...sounds like it is a fun place to beto ring in the new, as they have the countdown on the main town square... If I got caught taking more than one celebration, I could be separated from PC. Really I'd just be happier if I let the dates slip right by... I'll be glad when they're over.. it is just too sad to think about being away for the holidays. But the good news is that once this one is past I only have one more to do and then I'll be home!!!
On Thanksgiving we had a talent show after the dinner (which was scrumptious, by the way) and one of the volunteers played his guitar and sang a beautiful rendition of "I'll be home for Christmas"...I cried and cried while he sang. later, I talked to another volunteer who is in second year and she is going home for Christmas until January 7th... I started thinking that maybe that might work for me too... although I swore I was going to see Italy and Greece and Istanbul as long as I was so close! So we'll see... it may be really difficult to come back to Moldova once I'm home.
Right now I am feeling challenged with the language and just the general adaptations of life. Everything takes so long... Clothes.. luckily for me - Nadia "mom" has an automatic wash machine.. it doesn't spin very dry, though, so I still have to take my clothes to the bathroom and wring them out in the tubbie... then haul them outside and hang them on the line for a couple of days.. (in this weather)... They freeze dry, I think. We don't have any snow yet and today I walked to work (25 minutes) with just a sweater and my light gortex jacket... I think it will get cold January/February for sure.
I've had what I would consider a few small successes at "work". I'm still just trying to find out what the work means.. Organizational development is a pretty broad job description, so I'm hoping to learn more about the politics, the community, the culture and of course the language here so I can begin to narrow it down.
I really don't like the food here... although I am beginning to find some favorites. It will be better in summer when the gardens are overflowing with fresh vegetables. They say anything will grow in Moldova... If you plant a shoe you will grow a shoe tree!!! Apple trees, pear trees are plentiful and watermelons, too!
Here they have two church calendars the old celebrates on January 7th and the new on December 25th. Funny thing, I was in Chisinau this weekend.. just hanging out with a few of my volunteer friends... There was a big professionally lettered sign on the street that said
Marry Christmas. Ha! Chisinau is the capital and I love it so much. Unfortunatley for me I am a two hour bus ride away and the last bus home is at 5:00 pm. It is expensive on my "salary" to stay in a hotel and currently (a rule with Peace Corps) we are on lockdown for the first three months... which means we cannot be out of our site overnight until February 15th.
So for Christmas, my first family in my training village has invited me to come and celebrate with them. I guess its the biserica (church) and then a big meal (masa) which goes on for hours and hours and probably alot of wine and cognac and dancing late into the night. They put Christmas trees up I think and they exchange gifts but not until New Year's Eve. The traditional food that they always prepare for parties are my LEAST favorite of all food! One dish is chicken parts - feet, wings, maybe even heads... I never look.. it is put in a chicken gelatin substance and served cold... they just lap it up!!!! EEEUUUUUU!!!!!
I was at a family party the other night and tried so hard to find something to eat so as not to offend them and they finally brought out these sausage looking things and told me it was ground pork... although they started describing that the casing was made from the lining of the stomach and lucky for me I knew that that is normal for sausage and I'll just peel that part off... well my plan almost worked!!! I peeled and began to eat the ground pork and guess what it was!!!! Pork liver. so I hid it under my leftover cabbage and drank another glass of wine with them... they are more offended if I refuse wine I think.
so... I am only allowed one exception from the lockdown rule and that would be to visit my family in Milestii Mici... but it looks like the volunteers will rent an apartment for the night in Chisinau for New years...sounds like it is a fun place to beto ring in the new, as they have the countdown on the main town square... If I got caught taking more than one celebration, I could be separated from PC. Really I'd just be happier if I let the dates slip right by... I'll be glad when they're over.. it is just too sad to think about being away for the holidays. But the good news is that once this one is past I only have one more to do and then I'll be home!!!
On Thanksgiving we had a talent show after the dinner (which was scrumptious, by the way) and one of the volunteers played his guitar and sang a beautiful rendition of "I'll be home for Christmas"...I cried and cried while he sang. later, I talked to another volunteer who is in second year and she is going home for Christmas until January 7th... I started thinking that maybe that might work for me too... although I swore I was going to see Italy and Greece and Istanbul as long as I was so close! So we'll see... it may be really difficult to come back to Moldova once I'm home.
Right now I am feeling challenged with the language and just the general adaptations of life. Everything takes so long... Clothes.. luckily for me - Nadia "mom" has an automatic wash machine.. it doesn't spin very dry, though, so I still have to take my clothes to the bathroom and wring them out in the tubbie... then haul them outside and hang them on the line for a couple of days.. (in this weather)... They freeze dry, I think. We don't have any snow yet and today I walked to work (25 minutes) with just a sweater and my light gortex jacket... I think it will get cold January/February for sure.
Friday, December 15, 2006
On my way to work
I thought this might help you formulate a bit of an idea of my life here... these are the some of the things that I'm likely to see on my 25 minute walk to work in the morning:
We seem to have a lot of fog here... in fact the first two weeks here I'm not sure I ever saw the sun!! The air is so wet and heavy that the trees drip with moisture as you walk under them. recently the sun has begun to shine and I often walk home toward the sunset... the sky here is beautiful.. In fact... Orion's Belt is hard to find because the clusters of stars around him are so bright!!!
I'm likely to see a whole lotta old guys on beater bicycles. A large flock of turkeys just hanging out on the street corner... sad part is my mouth waters when I see them!!!
Someone burning a pile of leaves on the street... an old rusted out bus with no wheels parked in front of someone's house.
Everyone carrying a plastic shopping bag - including me... because when you walk everywhere you have to have something to carry the stuff you need! (It isn't just sittin there next to you in the passengers seat.)
Tons of black crows in the treetops... seems to be a bit of a nuisance even for the residents here... one day while Lee (another volunteer at my site) and I walked through the park... overhead were many of these crows and sure enough.. we both got hit at the same time... I hope it is not a sign of things to come!
It is normal to see a horse drawn cart with an older couple driving and some kind of produce in the back... its my understanding is that they are coming from the outerlying villages.. probably to buy and sell their wares! yesterday I saw a two horse team pulling a cart and beside them was a little pony trotting along so bravely!!!! obviously he was just learning the ropes... cute.
The public buildings were fortunately built really strong, but currently they are in different stages of crumble. I walk each day by the Soviet built stadium.. it is huge and was once very beautiful I am sure.. but today I watched a guy lead a cow on a leash through a big hole in the fence. I guess it is used as a pasture now.
Most people are on bicycles or on foot, but every so often comes one of these tiny little square soviet cars putzin down the road.. there are a few bmws - but mostly things are pretty simple.
I occasionally strike up a simple conversation if I find someone friendly walking my way.. for the most part... people aren't that friendly! Unless it's a group of guys drinking in the street! I usually talk to the old folks... often they speak Russian. Most people, though know both languages here. I may have to pick up at least a working knowledge of Russian.. first things first... Romanian!
Well that's it for now...
We seem to have a lot of fog here... in fact the first two weeks here I'm not sure I ever saw the sun!! The air is so wet and heavy that the trees drip with moisture as you walk under them. recently the sun has begun to shine and I often walk home toward the sunset... the sky here is beautiful.. In fact... Orion's Belt is hard to find because the clusters of stars around him are so bright!!!
Every tree trunk in the country is painted white... Here is a picture of a street in Stefan Voda supposedly it is for reasons of tree health, but mostly they feel it pretty and I think its a little like making sure the paint is not chipping on your fence or house... - to show you care about your place...
I'm likely to see a whole lotta old guys on beater bicycles. A large flock of turkeys just hanging out on the street corner... sad part is my mouth waters when I see them!!!
Someone burning a pile of leaves on the street... an old rusted out bus with no wheels parked in front of someone's house.
Everyone carrying a plastic shopping bag - including me... because when you walk everywhere you have to have something to carry the stuff you need! (It isn't just sittin there next to you in the passengers seat.)
Tons of black crows in the treetops... seems to be a bit of a nuisance even for the residents here... one day while Lee (another volunteer at my site) and I walked through the park... overhead were many of these crows and sure enough.. we both got hit at the same time... I hope it is not a sign of things to come!
It is normal to see a horse drawn cart with an older couple driving and some kind of produce in the back... its my understanding is that they are coming from the outerlying villages.. probably to buy and sell their wares! yesterday I saw a two horse team pulling a cart and beside them was a little pony trotting along so bravely!!!! obviously he was just learning the ropes... cute.
The public buildings were fortunately built really strong, but currently they are in different stages of crumble. I walk each day by the Soviet built stadium.. it is huge and was once very beautiful I am sure.. but today I watched a guy lead a cow on a leash through a big hole in the fence. I guess it is used as a pasture now.
Most people are on bicycles or on foot, but every so often comes one of these tiny little square soviet cars putzin down the road.. there are a few bmws - but mostly things are pretty simple.
I occasionally strike up a simple conversation if I find someone friendly walking my way.. for the most part... people aren't that friendly! Unless it's a group of guys drinking in the street! I usually talk to the old folks... often they speak Russian. Most people, though know both languages here. I may have to pick up at least a working knowledge of Russian.. first things first... Romanian!
Well that's it for now...
Wednesday, December 13, 2006
Cristian
So I live with a father, mother and a 6 year old boy named Cristian. He seems like a pretty nice boy. He always remembers to turn the light off (and sometimes reminds me, too!) - He has impeccable manners... and always a big smile on his face.
One of the first days I was here I sat in his room and we were drawing pictures together. I drew a pig and a turtle and then thought I'd get fancy and draw a chicken, since being in the village I viewed them most every day... I was pretty proud when I got the body and the wings and the tail just right.. the neck wasn't exactly right but then I finished it all of with just the perfect chicken feet... Cristy looked up at me like with a big grin on his face and said in words i understood.... "Renell chickens don't have four feet!!!" Duh!!! I don't know what I was thinking, but he still thinks I'm a little stupid!!! Can you blame him? We usually just play games that don't require alot of language, since its hard for him to speak slowly and more clearly so that I can understand.
Last week I asked him one day over dinner.. "So Cristy.. how was school today?" Well... forgive me for trying his mom jumped in to remind me that he doesn't go to SCHOOL he goes to the GRADINITA... which is Kindergarten... I think it is equivalent to asking him how was college today? So... the next day I was ready... I said ... "So, Cristy.. how was the Gradinita today?" He looked at me with that blank stare and looked at him mom and she promptly told me that I'd said Gradina which is garden NOT Kindergarten... DUH once more... anyway.. I tried it one more time.. getting it right this time and he didn't answer me... his mom prompted him to answer and he said... "why do I have to answer.. she doesn't understand" That was a perhaps my lowest moment.
so... I've figured out that this little 6 year old doesn't understand it is a language barrier.. he actually thinks that I am totally incompetent!! It makes sense I guess! He was sooo shocked the other night.. He was having me solve really difficult math problems.. Okay Renell... try this one... it's difficult!!! 10 minus 3!!! The shock on his face was priceless when I answered 7 without a thought... He kept trying to stump me... his toughest test was I think 8 minus 6...
He and I were home alone last Sunday and I washed clothes... operating the automatic washer and wringing everything out in the bathtub and then hanging it all on the line... His mom later reported to me that he had told her... Bravo for Renell... she washed her clothes by herself!!!
So it goes.. his sister Aliona who is 23 just came back from a 5 month stay in the States. After the Holiday break she will move to Chisinau to finish her studies at the University. She brought him a Hummer Remote Control Vehicle back from the States... and some PEANUT BUTTER!!!
One of the first days I was here I sat in his room and we were drawing pictures together. I drew a pig and a turtle and then thought I'd get fancy and draw a chicken, since being in the village I viewed them most every day... I was pretty proud when I got the body and the wings and the tail just right.. the neck wasn't exactly right but then I finished it all of with just the perfect chicken feet... Cristy looked up at me like with a big grin on his face and said in words i understood.... "Renell chickens don't have four feet!!!" Duh!!! I don't know what I was thinking, but he still thinks I'm a little stupid!!! Can you blame him? We usually just play games that don't require alot of language, since its hard for him to speak slowly and more clearly so that I can understand.
Last week I asked him one day over dinner.. "So Cristy.. how was school today?" Well... forgive me for trying his mom jumped in to remind me that he doesn't go to SCHOOL he goes to the GRADINITA... which is Kindergarten... I think it is equivalent to asking him how was college today? So... the next day I was ready... I said ... "So, Cristy.. how was the Gradinita today?" He looked at me with that blank stare and looked at him mom and she promptly told me that I'd said Gradina which is garden NOT Kindergarten... DUH once more... anyway.. I tried it one more time.. getting it right this time and he didn't answer me... his mom prompted him to answer and he said... "why do I have to answer.. she doesn't understand" That was a perhaps my lowest moment.
so... I've figured out that this little 6 year old doesn't understand it is a language barrier.. he actually thinks that I am totally incompetent!! It makes sense I guess! He was sooo shocked the other night.. He was having me solve really difficult math problems.. Okay Renell... try this one... it's difficult!!! 10 minus 3!!! The shock on his face was priceless when I answered 7 without a thought... He kept trying to stump me... his toughest test was I think 8 minus 6...
He and I were home alone last Sunday and I washed clothes... operating the automatic washer and wringing everything out in the bathtub and then hanging it all on the line... His mom later reported to me that he had told her... Bravo for Renell... she washed her clothes by herself!!!
So it goes.. his sister Aliona who is 23 just came back from a 5 month stay in the States. After the Holiday break she will move to Chisinau to finish her studies at the University. She brought him a Hummer Remote Control Vehicle back from the States... and some PEANUT BUTTER!!!
Thursday, December 07, 2006
My life in Stefan Voda
Out with the old... my backyard and toilet in Milesti Miciand in with the new... My new family in the kitchen at home....
I feel compelled to get this entry done because it is really the close of the first phase of my service here... really once the Thanksgiving weekend was done I physically began to call my new home "home". I live a 25 minute walk away from work. Near as I can tell I live on the southern side of town. Again, I view the moon out my bedroom window.. I am thankful for that! I live with Nadia and Ion I think they are in their forties... they have a daughter age 24 and a son 20 ish and little Cristian who is the only child to live there currently. He is six and attends the Gradinita (Kindergarten). Nadia works all day 6 or 7 days a week at a frigid hardware store and Ion is a retired police officer and now works as a chauffer nearly full time. It takes many sources of income to keep a household rolling here. Salaries are very low, jobs are hard to come by and basics are expensive considering their salaries. A large number of the young and able people although highly educated, are living abroad making money for their families. It is a huge problem... I think about what that means to a society when the best and brightest members have limited opportunities for which to stay. Anyway... My accomodations are very nice... Nadia keeps the house extremely clean... she is careful about food preparation and purchase... she likes sweets just like me. My bedroom is very comfortable and pretty! Here is a pix 
Tuesday, December 05, 2006
MY VILLAGE IN THE GUINNESS BOOK!!
We toured this place with a vehicle!!! and it went on and on and on for miles...
The qualified wine manufacturer will acquaint you with underground gallery, where the huge barrels of wine are established. The special tasting hall is arranged in medieval style with tables and benches made from tree in order you to have a good time with your friends at a glass of old Moldavian wine, the pleasant feeling of this air smothered by the aroma of wine will embrace you.
Over 50 km of the underground galleries are transformed into wine warehouses in the Milestii Mici Village (almost 20 km south Chisinau). Now, as many years ago, the underground kingdom still excites the visitors. The lucky guests who get into it have the rare opportunity to travel the darkened avenues and streets with rows and niches, where precious bottles are carefully laid down, where barrels are placed. Covered with the attributes of antiquity – spider web and grey dust – they attract all looks, just like a magnet. In order to make the time travel even more exciting, all those who wish are given the map of the wine depository, sealed with wax. The same map is present on the labels.
The constant annual temperature of +12 ... +14 oC and the high moisture level offers favourable conditions to store the high quality wine. The wine collection consists of over 2 million bottles. The grapes collected on the vineyards around Milestii Mici village are of special quality. The wine made out of these grapes has a rich and noble taste, which is stored then in the stone subways for many years. Cabernet", "Cahor", "Muscat" or "Aligote" – each of them bears the mark of the creator, his soul, energy and inspiration, though all of them are perceived as a part of the universal history of winemaking, as a part of the Moldovan culture.
Thanksgiving
Well Thanksgiving was all that we hoped it would be...after only a few days in our new site, we were able to assemble in Chisinau for the All Volunteer Conference and Thanksgiving Dinner. I left Stefan Voda by bus ( 3 hour ride) on Wednesday arriving at the hotel to find lots of friends. We had some sessions each day, but still had time to spend together in the evenings. Thursday night came the feast - complete with cranberries, stuffing, mashed potatoes, mac and cheese, green been casserole, pumpkin pie, pecan pie all made by volunteers and it was delicious... I wished my stomach had no bottom that day! We had a riveting bird flu seminar on Saturday and departed on Sunday..
Here Anastasia dressed as Poke a Hot Ass poses for a pix with Angela, Chris and I.
a
Here Anastasia dressed as Poke a Hot Ass poses for a pix with Angela, Chris and I.
It's Official!
On the 16th of November I walked across the stage in Chisinau,
shook hands with the Country Director and the Ambassador, took the oath of service and I'm officially now a Peace Corps Volunteer. (as opposed to a PCT - Trainee!!) the distinction is foarte important!
It was a pretty uneventful ceremony,
other than our traditional hora dance of course...that we'd been practicing for a month. It didn't look good at dress rehearsal, but when the show began, we danced splendidly and had a blast doing so!!
Here is the Millesti Mici gang posing one more time before we split into all areas of the
country to start our service.
Sharon, Chris, Me, Vanny, Drea, Becca and Angela..
After a nice reception, I have a very tearful good bye with my family but we remind each other that Viata Merge Inainte! (Life moves forward)! I've been invited to spend Christmas with them in Millesti Mici and I plan to do that! Below is Rodica, Stefan, Me, Elena and Sergiu. Within minutes I am on my way with my new family to Stefan Voda! VIATA MERGE INAINTE!
It was a pretty uneventful ceremony,
other than our traditional hora dance of course...that we'd been practicing for a month. It didn't look good at dress rehearsal, but when the show began, we danced splendidly and had a blast doing so!!Here is the Millesti Mici gang posing one more time before we split into all areas of the
country to start our service.Sharon, Chris, Me, Vanny, Drea, Becca and Angela..
After a nice reception, I have a very tearful good bye with my family but we remind each other that Viata Merge Inainte! (Life moves forward)! I've been invited to spend Christmas with them in Millesti Mici and I plan to do that! Below is Rodica, Stefan, Me, Elena and Sergiu. Within minutes I am on my way with my new family to Stefan Voda! VIATA MERGE INAINTE!
Monday, December 04, 2006
Fall In Moldova
This is a pretty typical scene in my village as I meandered through the village to my language school classroom. These goats were just stopping for a snack, I guess... this fall I learned that the best time to search the streets for walnuts was after a rain and I learned who had the pear trees in the village... straight off the tree... heavenly! There are alot of ways to crack a nut and we've tried them all... during our pouzas from classes, we'd find Chris up in the tree shaking walnuts for us... I am now looking forward to next fall so I can enjoy them again.
Just a scene from Moldova..
.Here's me during a family party winning the ironing race! I must say Chris gave me a good run for the money and his mama gazda was trying to distract me to help him to win. It is a rarity here.. a boy with an iron and he actually knows how to use it!
Ioanna - Mother of my "mother" Rodica in Milesti Mici making wine.
Halloween in Moldova
Here we are all dressed up and ready to go to the school for Halloween... On the left is our girl Peace and Love and lots of hugs... Drea... then comes DreamyExotica Vanny... then me... perfect... Becca Lady Liberty, Angela skin and bones, Chris in toilet paper and of course Sharon our favorite superhero!!! We took off in our costumes through the village turning heads all of the way, of course. We stopped at my friend Valiere's magazin and told him trick or treat... he really didn't know what was going on so we just held out our hands and said bomboane and sure enough, he brought us a handful of candy!
We soon found out that the kids at the school knew more about Halloween than we did! We bobbed for apples, played pin the nose on the pumpkin and were asked to judge the halloween art contest.... and then the music started and it was a mini disco in the school!!! 
This picture shows the kids doing their skit about the harvest... everything was in English! We tucked into the backroom with the teachers at the school and had snacks and wine by candlelight after it was all over.
We soon found out that the kids at the school knew more about Halloween than we did! We bobbed for apples, played pin the nose on the pumpkin and were asked to judge the halloween art contest.... and then the music started and it was a mini disco in the school!!! 
This picture shows the kids doing their skit about the harvest... everything was in English! We tucked into the backroom with the teachers at the school and had snacks and wine by candlelight after it was all over.
Monday, October 23, 2006
My weekend in Stefan Voda
Well I found the right bus and even got the name of the driver who set me up right behind him for my two hour bus ride from Chisinau to Stefan Voda. It was for the most part uneventful.
I arrived in Stefan Voda to meet my Counterpart... Aliona - she is the lady I will be working with for the next two years. She started talking in Romanian and I was pretty much lost. I was able to pick up a word or two in between asking her to please slow down and she quickly realized my level of language was that of a 2 year old or less! Once she realized I'd only been in the country for one month the Bravos came more often!!! We walked through the PAVED streets of Stefan Voda in the cold rain to my eventual place of work. There we had tea and coffee and chocolates and cake and I tried to ask questions and hoped the answers were not more than I could handle.
After a little while we proceeded on foot to the home of the first host family.
No one spoke any English and my Romanian is sooooo bad still ! She left me there and told me she'd call me tomorrow about going to the next family home. To my surprise the medic had two young grandchildren living with her. It is quite common here as most of the kids have good college educations but NO JOBS. So the 24- 40 year olds are away in foreign countries often leaving their spouses and children behind for years and years. The little girls fought and cried and coughed nearly the entire time I visited. I had to choke every morsel of food down as the kitchen facilities were anything but clean. I asked if she had some cream for my coffee and sure enough.. I think she went directly out to the backyard and milked the cow herself. She brought a bowl of milk with lumpy chunks that floated in my coffee no matter how hard I stirred.
When it was noticed that I wasn't eating much, she asked me what I would buy for myself if I went to the store. I told her ice cream and cake and pasta (macaroane) . Next thing I know she comes back from the kitchen with a ball of dough and starts to roll it out thin making pasta for me. She then directs her son to start shaking up a big jar which he shakes for about ten minutes and when finished he spreads it over some dry bisquits. Turns out it is smintina which is pretty much like plain yogurt. They layer it a few times, she gets some walnuts off of the tree in the back yard - crunches them up on top of the cake and a grated chocolate bar finishes off MY CAKE! It was so nice of them to try so hard, but the conditions were very depressing and I started to cry. In fact I cried into the next day.
My counterpart called to tell me that we would go to the next family at 5:00 pm on Sunday, so I just sat next to the soba (the in wall wood stove) and worked on a pair of mittens for Stefan until finally Aliona came to get me.
Fortunately House number 2 was immaculate and the accomodations are outstanding. the father even had a machine ah.. although I later figured out that he was a "chauffer" so the machina wasn't really HIS! They even have a bathtub! I still have to heat water on the stove, but during the winter when the house heat is on the water is also heated, so I will get to actually take a warm shower during the winter!!! Ion (John) and Nadia and their 5 year old son Christian also have a 24 year old daughter who will be coming back from a vacation in the United States and speaks English I guess.
Monday morning this family left for work and kindergarten so I had the whole morning to myself. I took a bucket bath and drank tea and leisurely got ready to go to "the office" at 2:00. Ion came home to pick me up as I had no idea where I was going in town. He heated up chicken soup for me and we drank a glass of cognac for the road... hmmmm... interesting way to start my day!
At the school I was introduced one by one to all of the professors and my counterpart having to go back to teach a class, left me with the Director of the School for an hour. The Director was sweet and understanding and after explaining in Romanian as much as I could handle about how things run there proceeded to sit me down in the posh chair of the Director of Rural 21 (another NGO in the school). She brought me coffee and cake and put a slide show on the computer for me.
Come to find out, a famous Moldovan opera singer Maria Biesu who is equivalent to our Luciano Pavarotti was born in a little village near Stefan Voda. She established and helps fund this Maria Biesu School of Art. It is wonderful! Seems that it is rather difficult to be able to study there. Potential students go through an application process and few are chosen. They are able to study dance (ballet to fox trot to samba) art (drawing, painting and sculpture) accordion, violin, piano. Although I do not work directly for the school, I will work for the NGO MUZA whose board of directors are all teachers at the school. One of their goals is to introduce through teaching and hands on experience the concepts of American Business to adolescents - (capitalism at its best... ) I'm excited about this prospect.
Of course I have to now visit the third family before venturing back to Chisinau for a conference. In talking with my counterpart, it was decided that since the third family lived in a Soviet Style Block Apartment with only 3 bedrooms and 3 children, if Family number 2 seemed to work, that is probably my best option. (Of course family number 2 had many comments to me to help sway my opinion!!!)
I tell Aliona that she can call family number 3 to let them know that I have alre
ady chosen my family. Family number 3 is a Priest and his wife and three children. He says that they have already planned for me for dinner and they understand but they would just like to have me over for dinner and visit for awhile which I agree to do. Robertino (father) comes to the school to get me and we stop and pick up his wife and we all walk together to the apartment. I stayed for almost four hours! We had such a good time together. The place, although nice was small. They were soooo nice and I know we will visit many more times in the future. I have been invited to join them at the BISERICA in a little village outside of town caled ANTOINESTE. They also have a home there that they stay on weekends. It was good that I had a chance to meet them.
So I will live in the home of Ion and Nadia. I have my own bedroom quite separate from the main living quarters... the kitchen is quite modern and there is an indoor toilet, although I have to go to the kitchen to plug the pump in before going to the bathroom so that I can flush it. They have a pump hooked up to their well in the back yard. They have hot water radiator heat although there is no insulation on any of the homes, so it is quite cold inside. I sleep in many layers and am soooo thankful that Bonnie bought and encouraged me to bring my fluffy pink bathrobe. It is a luxury item that I very much appreciate having now!
My language skills jumped slightly to a new level after the weekend but I was EXHAUSTED speaking only Romanian. It made me realize that I have a long way to go to anything resembling proficiency! -but it will come!
We had a field trip yesterday and briefly - I must report that we joined a community celebration for 15 minutes and the people there appeared star struck seeing all of us Americans... they were asking for autographs and taking pictures. When we walked away altogether to go to a museum in town, 50 people followed us down the street! One girl kept screaming I love America!!! Crazy!
Feel free to leave comments and/or write me at binksink@gmail.com
I arrived in Stefan Voda to meet my Counterpart... Aliona - she is the lady I will be working with for the next two years. She started talking in Romanian and I was pretty much lost. I was able to pick up a word or two in between asking her to please slow down and she quickly realized my level of language was that of a 2 year old or less! Once she realized I'd only been in the country for one month the Bravos came more often!!! We walked through the PAVED streets of Stefan Voda in the cold rain to my eventual place of work. There we had tea and coffee and chocolates and cake and I tried to ask questions and hoped the answers were not more than I could handle.
After a little while we proceeded on foot to the home of the first host family.
No one spoke any English and my Romanian is sooooo bad still ! She left me there and told me she'd call me tomorrow about going to the next family home. To my surprise the medic had two young grandchildren living with her. It is quite common here as most of the kids have good college educations but NO JOBS. So the 24- 40 year olds are away in foreign countries often leaving their spouses and children behind for years and years. The little girls fought and cried and coughed nearly the entire time I visited. I had to choke every morsel of food down as the kitchen facilities were anything but clean. I asked if she had some cream for my coffee and sure enough.. I think she went directly out to the backyard and milked the cow herself. She brought a bowl of milk with lumpy chunks that floated in my coffee no matter how hard I stirred. When it was noticed that I wasn't eating much, she asked me what I would buy for myself if I went to the store. I told her ice cream and cake and pasta (macaroane) . Next thing I know she comes back from the kitchen with a ball of dough and starts to roll it out thin making pasta for me. She then directs her son to start shaking up a big jar which he shakes for about ten minutes and when finished he spreads it over some dry bisquits. Turns out it is smintina which is pretty much like plain yogurt. They layer it a few times, she gets some walnuts off of the tree in the back yard - crunches them up on top of the cake and a grated chocolate bar finishes off MY CAKE! It was so nice of them to try so hard, but the conditions were very depressing and I started to cry. In fact I cried into the next day.
My counterpart called to tell me that we would go to the next family at 5:00 pm on Sunday, so I just sat next to the soba (the in wall wood stove) and worked on a pair of mittens for Stefan until finally Aliona came to get me.
Fortunately House number 2 was immaculate and the accomodations are outstanding. the father even had a machine ah.. although I later figured out that he was a "chauffer" so the machina wasn't really HIS! They even have a bathtub! I still have to heat water on the stove, but during the winter when the house heat is on the water is also heated, so I will get to actually take a warm shower during the winter!!! Ion (John) and Nadia and their 5 year old son Christian also have a 24 year old daughter who will be coming back from a vacation in the United States and speaks English I guess.
Monday morning this family left for work and kindergarten so I had the whole morning to myself. I took a bucket bath and drank tea and leisurely got ready to go to "the office" at 2:00. Ion came home to pick me up as I had no idea where I was going in town. He heated up chicken soup for me and we drank a glass of cognac for the road... hmmmm... interesting way to start my day!
At the school I was introduced one by one to all of the professors and my counterpart having to go back to teach a class, left me with the Director of the School for an hour. The Director was sweet and understanding and after explaining in Romanian as much as I could handle about how things run there proceeded to sit me down in the posh chair of the Director of Rural 21 (another NGO in the school). She brought me coffee and cake and put a slide show on the computer for me.
Come to find out, a famous Moldovan opera singer Maria Biesu who is equivalent to our Luciano Pavarotti was born in a little village near Stefan Voda. She established and helps fund this Maria Biesu School of Art. It is wonderful! Seems that it is rather difficult to be able to study there. Potential students go through an application process and few are chosen. They are able to study dance (ballet to fox trot to samba) art (drawing, painting and sculpture) accordion, violin, piano. Although I do not work directly for the school, I will work for the NGO MUZA whose board of directors are all teachers at the school. One of their goals is to introduce through teaching and hands on experience the concepts of American Business to adolescents - (capitalism at its best... ) I'm excited about this prospect.
Of course I have to now visit the third family before venturing back to Chisinau for a conference. In talking with my counterpart, it was decided that since the third family lived in a Soviet Style Block Apartment with only 3 bedrooms and 3 children, if Family number 2 seemed to work, that is probably my best option. (Of course family number 2 had many comments to me to help sway my opinion!!!)
I tell Aliona that she can call family number 3 to let them know that I have alre
ady chosen my family. Family number 3 is a Priest and his wife and three children. He says that they have already planned for me for dinner and they understand but they would just like to have me over for dinner and visit for awhile which I agree to do. Robertino (father) comes to the school to get me and we stop and pick up his wife and we all walk together to the apartment. I stayed for almost four hours! We had such a good time together. The place, although nice was small. They were soooo nice and I know we will visit many more times in the future. I have been invited to join them at the BISERICA in a little village outside of town caled ANTOINESTE. They also have a home there that they stay on weekends. It was good that I had a chance to meet them. So I will live in the home of Ion and Nadia. I have my own bedroom quite separate from the main living quarters... the kitchen is quite modern and there is an indoor toilet, although I have to go to the kitchen to plug the pump in before going to the bathroom so that I can flush it. They have a pump hooked up to their well in the back yard. They have hot water radiator heat although there is no insulation on any of the homes, so it is quite cold inside. I sleep in many layers and am soooo thankful that Bonnie bought and encouraged me to bring my fluffy pink bathrobe. It is a luxury item that I very much appreciate having now!
My language skills jumped slightly to a new level after the weekend but I was EXHAUSTED speaking only Romanian. It made me realize that I have a long way to go to anything resembling proficiency! -but it will come!
We had a field trip yesterday and briefly - I must report that we joined a community celebration for 15 minutes and the people there appeared star struck seeing all of us Americans... they were asking for autographs and taking pictures. When we walked away altogether to go to a museum in town, 50 people followed us down the street! One girl kept screaming I love America!!! Crazy!
Feel free to leave comments and/or write me at binksink@gmail.com
WORDS AND LANGUAGE
As I go through my days here, I find so much humor in the language ( or sometimes the lack of it) What first comes to mind is that the Romanian language has so many borrowed words... for example... blue jeans in Romanian is bluj.... What is the name for a car??? Machine-ah. The size of towns here is measured in the number of hills it covers... I guess our town is about 1 and 1/2 hills. (It has less than 5,000 people. ) the words for punctual and fantasy and khaki are the same only with a romanian accent. When you take a shower it is a douche! Poftim is the word which seems to universal meaning. It can mean thank you and you're welcome and excuse me and enjoy your meal and here it is and I didn't hear you. When I first arrived my most widely used phrase was foarte bine!! Now it seems to be mai tirziu ( pronounced my teer- zoo) which is driving my "mom" crazy because it means later!!! "Yeah, I'll drop myself in a little bitty bucket and call it a shower - LATER!" "Yeah I'll bring my clothes outside and rub them in freezing cold water until my knuckles are raw -LATER!" "I'll get to that Romanian Language Homework - LATER!" You get the picture. I know if my real Mom is reading this she will more than relate to the frustrations of Rodica my Moldovan mama. She wants me up and out of bed so that I can first enjoy the morning air on my way to the outhouse and then in to wash up with a cup of cold water and have breakfast and sit for a half hour before school drinking cafea. Anyone who knows me well knows that aint gonna happen, here there or anywhere! So I am usually flying out of the house slurping my coffee on the way out the door. I just tell her it's the American way!
Feel free to leave comments and/or write me at binksink@gmail.com
Feel free to leave comments and/or write me at binksink@gmail.com
Friday, October 13, 2006
Va fi cum va fi
IT IS AS IT SHOULD BE
Today is not only Friday the 13th but it is officially one month in country... things are beginning to settle down a bit. Today I had my first language assessment. It was painful to listen to myself fumble through the description of Kaye Kelli and Michael, their ages, occupations, and names... Conjugation does not come easily, so my old mind is doing overtime. I feel sorry for the poor assessors who have to listen to each of us... I am glad that is behind me,
This weekend comes the next hurdle. I have received my permanent assignment. For the next two years I am slated to work with an organization called MUZA. Their focus is to develop student leaders ages 12-17 throughout the Stefan Voda region via intellectual and creative means! I will live in the regional center ( population 7.000) which probably means access to internet, indoor toilets (just in time for the impending winter snows!!!) and running water.
Although I must tell you that it was very exciting to arrive at home yesterday and my "sister" had a big surpize for me... Running water!!!! Tate meu Sergiu needs to get a part to get the hot water heater hooked up so for now only cold... but it is nice especially for brushing teeth in the morning... As usual I am always running late... I am driving mama mea Rodica CRAZY!!!! Actually it will be very sad for all of us when I have to move on... we enjoy each other very much!
So... from Corpul Pachii (Peace Corps) I have received my assignment, three families from which to choose and the name of my counterpart in Stefan Voda. It is now my responsibility to get on a bus first to Chisinau (the capital) and then a two hour bus ride from the Central Bus Station in Chisinau to Stefan Voda... Hopefully I will get off at the right stop and my counterpart will be there waiting for me... she speaks no English so that puts the pressure on me!!! I can always resort to telling her what color my shoes are! My conversation is quite limited... fruit, vegetables, colors, and names of public buildings! I will stay one night with each host family and then choose the one which I would like to stay for the next 6 months. After that I am free to choose my own housing. None of them speak any English, so once again... oh momma!!!
It was a kick when I brought the three choices of families out to the kitchen table for my mom and her crazy sister. They were jibbering away in Romanian and every so often I'd catch a word... usually related to someone's line of work or the funny names of the kids... they decided for me that I should live with the 55 year old female doctor (doctors don't make much here but they are very respected... I think bus drivers might make more money!!!!). She has a 16 year old son and lives in her house with all of the amenities. The other options are a priest and his wife and 3 children but they live in a "bloc" - some sort of apartment, I guess. The third choice is a young family with a 5 and 12 year old. He is a chauffer and she works at a magazin. I will be in Stefan Voda until Tuesday. I am trying to go in without prejudice.
It was rare, but there is an agricultural volunteer from my group also in the same town. I am sure we will lean on one another from time to time.
If you look at the shape of Moldova it looks a bit like a boot pointing west... I will be in the heel of that boot.. Only 1 hour from the Black sea resorts and beaches!!!!! I have to travel through Ukraine to get there, but I understand they do not have any visa requirements, so it is easy to do so. I hope that will be a perk for me.
I am excited to finish out the training, be sworn in as an official volunteer and start my work!
Feel free to leave comments and/or write me at binksink@gmail.com
Friday, October 06, 2006
Wine Wine and more wine
October 5th, 2006
Well the most important thing going on around here is WINE. There are barrels EVERYWHERE!!!! You can smell grape juice everywhere in the village. Last Wednesday was some kind of Holy Day – of course NO ONE goes to church, but since the wine is intrinsically linked to Religion here… According to ????Scripture, the grapes hold within them the light and energy of the sun just as the light of God and …drinking it …well… you get the picture. The Holy Day means to some people that it is now time to get the grapes from the field and start the wine making process. So on Friday we meet with the priest at the basilica here in Milestii Mici to discuss the history and role of religion in Moldovan Society. He meets us at the front door with a comfortable smile; he’s dressed in black jeans a black button down shirt and boots! He opens the door and goes behind the altar to change into his priest outfit.
The church is exquisitely filled with beautiful icons, murals and gilded crosses. We have an interpreter with us and we have many questions answered eloquently from this man of the cross. As we were winding down, he noted that it was a bit frigid in here and he has just the thing to take the chill out. He proceeds once again to the back room and comes out with a beautiful bottle of vintage (‘86) wine and a box of chocolates (they tasted like snickers). He pours the wine and we talk some more and before you know it I have finished my glass, I put it down on the table and he fills it up again.
I have not really drank before this and I sort of forgot the rule of the empty glass around here, but this wine was sweet and going down pretty easily and it was the middle of a sunny afternoon and before you know it I get it filled up one more time and I am getting a buzz! It didn’t last long as I had to wipe the grin off of my face while listening to his last remarks. It seemed…. so… Moldovanesque I had to chuckle!!! I went home for a three hour nap!
On Saturday my family went to their vineyard to pick grapes and now we have two barrels fermenting in the back yard. I was unable to go as we have six days of lessons and only Sunday free. Today we drank the moosht… which is just the carbonated juice from the fermentation process, it holds no alcohol yet, but it is delicious. I looked into the barrels and it is bubbling. The whole process reminded me of my wild rice gathering days. So much of life here is similar to the people and places I’ve been before! It makes me think of all of you often!!!
This weekend is the big Wine Festival in Chisinau… sounds like a gigantic State Fair sized wine tasting party. While I am definitely interested in tasting different wines, I do not know if I will attend or not. I’ll be a fair weather attendee for sure. Milestii Mici is in the Guinness book of World Records for the largest underground Winery. We have not yet toured this claim to fame, but there will be many wines from Milestii Mici to taste at the Festival.
Today, with the help of mame mea (Rodica), I washed clothes. I went to the well… dropped the bucket down and wheeled it back up… filled a plastic bucket, brought it into the house, transferred it into a metal bucket which I placed on the gas stove to heat. Once heated, I brought it and a bucket of cold water out in the sunny backyard among the chickens and roosters and scrubbed them in a plastic basin, rinsing in another. She performed the rinse “cycle” and she had to show me how to hang my underwear VERY NEATLY on the clothesline… appearance really matters around here. Hey wait a minute!!!! This story contains no reference to wine!!!! Well… most likely I had a wine stain or two on my clothes after church!!!!! Tonight I have a date with my “mom” to watch Desperate Housewives!!! It will have Romaneste subtitles so I figured that counts for language practice!!! I can’t wait! Maybe I’ll drink o sticla of wine!!! (In English that’s a bottle!!!) You’ll never know!! Ha! Ciao!
Well the most important thing going on around here is WINE. There are barrels EVERYWHERE!!!! You can smell grape juice everywhere in the village. Last Wednesday was some kind of Holy Day – of course NO ONE goes to church, but since the wine is intrinsically linked to Religion here… According to ????Scripture, the grapes hold within them the light and energy of the sun just as the light of God and …drinking it …well… you get the picture. The Holy Day means to some people that it is now time to get the grapes from the field and start the wine making process. So on Friday we meet with the priest at the basilica here in Milestii Mici to discuss the history and role of religion in Moldovan Society. He meets us at the front door with a comfortable smile; he’s dressed in black jeans a black button down shirt and boots! He opens the door and goes behind the altar to change into his priest outfit.
The church is exquisitely filled with beautiful icons, murals and gilded crosses. We have an interpreter with us and we have many questions answered eloquently from this man of the cross. As we were winding down, he noted that it was a bit frigid in here and he has just the thing to take the chill out. He proceeds once again to the back room and comes out with a beautiful bottle of vintage (‘86) wine and a box of chocolates (they tasted like snickers). He pours the wine and we talk some more and before you know it I have finished my glass, I put it down on the table and he fills it up again.
I have not really drank before this and I sort of forgot the rule of the empty glass around here, but this wine was sweet and going down pretty easily and it was the middle of a sunny afternoon and before you know it I get it filled up one more time and I am getting a buzz! It didn’t last long as I had to wipe the grin off of my face while listening to his last remarks. It seemed…. so… Moldovanesque I had to chuckle!!! I went home for a three hour nap!On Saturday my family went to their vineyard to pick grapes and now we have two barrels fermenting in the back yard. I was unable to go as we have six days of lessons and only Sunday free. Today we drank the moosht… which is just the carbonated juice from the fermentation process, it holds no alcohol yet, but it is delicious. I looked into the barrels and it is bubbling. The whole process reminded me of my wild rice gathering days. So much of life here is similar to the people and places I’ve been before! It makes me think of all of you often!!!
This weekend is the big Wine Festival in Chisinau… sounds like a gigantic State Fair sized wine tasting party. While I am definitely interested in tasting different wines, I do not know if I will attend or not. I’ll be a fair weather attendee for sure. Milestii Mici is in the Guinness book of World Records for the largest underground Winery. We have not yet toured this claim to fame, but there will be many wines from Milestii Mici to taste at the Festival.
Today, with the help of mame mea (Rodica), I washed clothes. I went to the well… dropped the bucket down and wheeled it back up… filled a plastic bucket, brought it into the house, transferred it into a metal bucket which I placed on the gas stove to heat. Once heated, I brought it and a bucket of cold water out in the sunny backyard among the chickens and roosters and scrubbed them in a plastic basin, rinsing in another. She performed the rinse “cycle” and she had to show me how to hang my underwear VERY NEATLY on the clothesline… appearance really matters around here. Hey wait a minute!!!! This story contains no reference to wine!!!! Well… most likely I had a wine stain or two on my clothes after church!!!!! Tonight I have a date with my “mom” to watch Desperate Housewives!!! It will have Romaneste subtitles so I figured that counts for language practice!!! I can’t wait! Maybe I’ll drink o sticla of wine!!! (In English that’s a bottle!!!) You’ll never know!! Ha! Ciao!
Friday, September 29, 2006
Adventure on the bus
Last night as the”kids” celebrated the birthday of Andrea in the bar, I decided to go to the internet café and had heard that the last bus to my village left at 7:30.. Well as usual, I dashed out of the café moments before the deadline and found myself in a pitch-black rainy night! I navigated the mud patched and deserted streets of Ialoveni to the bus stop (in my finest black sandals). As I rounded the bend I saw that last bus pulling out toward Milestii Mici and. I knew I’d never stop it in time. Fortunately as any good volunteers would do, I already formulated an emergency backup plan – I would call Anastasia. She lived in Ialoveni and I’d have to stay at her place tonight… she assured us previously that her Russian-speaking host family would molest us if we came over, so I figured it was a viable option. I might be a little late in the morning for language classes, but at least I’d get home!
I waited alone at the bus stop deciding what to do. Finally some Moldovan joined me and knowing that desperate times call for desperate measures, I started speaking Romanian to them!!! I was able to tell them that I have Renell and I am a bus…they were quite amused!
After a few more tries, I learned that the young couple lived in Milestii Mici and the last bus home was at 8:30. Once I knew this, I felt at ease and backed up under a tree to stay out of the rain.
After almost a half hour, with the rain still pouring down the white bus pulled up and I felt familiar again, that is until I opened the door and it did not LOOK like a rutiera and further more it did not SMELL like a rutiera!!! I was already in, though, and as we took off into the black night, I looked and did not find the famliar windshield sign displaying our destination and at that moment, I realized it was NOT A RUTIERA!
What I could glean from the conversation around me was this driver’s name was Dick and he had picked up his friends instead of making them wait for the bus… What then was I doing here???? I think at that moment Dick and his friends were discussing the very same thing!!!!! Oh momma!!!
I tapped my new friend on the leg and asked “Milestii Mici”? “Da” she said and turned her attention once again to the young man snuggling up next to her. I was so happy to quickly see the sign for our village and knew I was at least one step closer to home. They started talking to me at this point and I was afraid they were expecting to drop me off here and it was a very very long walk home from here!!!!! Actually in this rain and mud and my best black sandals...IMPOSSIBLE! I communicated to them “I am going to my house!” and of course the next logical question was… “Where do you live?” I said “Milestii Mici” and beyond that… how do you say…… how do I say????? Shit I don’t know where I live!!!!
Instinctively my linguistic and pantomime skills kicked into high gear as I explained I was somewhere past the disco and the soccer fields and beyond the centru and up the hill… Well the driver dropped all his friends off and it was just the two of us to figure out where the hell I lived! I just hoped he understood that he needed to drop me off where the rutiera would normally do so or I'd have NO way of knowing how to get to my house. He didn’t seem too happy having to navigate the bumpy streets of Milestii Mici, but he brought me to the familiar bus stop 5 muddy blocks from my house.
I’d heard about the mud and I’d actually packed some appropriate boots, but they were back in my house as I thought the sun would shine today. Without the trusty penlight attached to my jacket (thank you Mr. Johnson!!!!) I would have stood alone blindly in the middle of the black street and cried! Instead, I was able to take one step at a time over the rushing rivers, which were now etching caverns in the streets. I decided to take the longer route, which offered pavement, and it took me to the magazin that I visit each day after school. My friend Valiere welcomed me in as usual and when I told him I was going to my house he laughed and pointed at my best black sandals, now caked with mud. He suggested in the only language he knows (romaneste) that I call my brother Stefan to deliver my boots for the rest of the way home. Lo and behold, technology once again interferes with the best laid plans and the phone is busy due to internet usage. So Valiere helps me with my homework while I wait for the rain to subside and slowly but surely one dirt pile after another I arrive safely and soundly at home!
I waited alone at the bus stop deciding what to do. Finally some Moldovan joined me and knowing that desperate times call for desperate measures, I started speaking Romanian to them!!! I was able to tell them that I have Renell and I am a bus…they were quite amused!
After a few more tries, I learned that the young couple lived in Milestii Mici and the last bus home was at 8:30. Once I knew this, I felt at ease and backed up under a tree to stay out of the rain.
After almost a half hour, with the rain still pouring down the white bus pulled up and I felt familiar again, that is until I opened the door and it did not LOOK like a rutiera and further more it did not SMELL like a rutiera!!! I was already in, though, and as we took off into the black night, I looked and did not find the famliar windshield sign displaying our destination and at that moment, I realized it was NOT A RUTIERA!
What I could glean from the conversation around me was this driver’s name was Dick and he had picked up his friends instead of making them wait for the bus… What then was I doing here???? I think at that moment Dick and his friends were discussing the very same thing!!!!! Oh momma!!!
I tapped my new friend on the leg and asked “Milestii Mici”? “Da” she said and turned her attention once again to the young man snuggling up next to her. I was so happy to quickly see the sign for our village and knew I was at least one step closer to home. They started talking to me at this point and I was afraid they were expecting to drop me off here and it was a very very long walk home from here!!!!! Actually in this rain and mud and my best black sandals...IMPOSSIBLE! I communicated to them “I am going to my house!” and of course the next logical question was… “Where do you live?” I said “Milestii Mici” and beyond that… how do you say…… how do I say????? Shit I don’t know where I live!!!!
Instinctively my linguistic and pantomime skills kicked into high gear as I explained I was somewhere past the disco and the soccer fields and beyond the centru and up the hill… Well the driver dropped all his friends off and it was just the two of us to figure out where the hell I lived! I just hoped he understood that he needed to drop me off where the rutiera would normally do so or I'd have NO way of knowing how to get to my house. He didn’t seem too happy having to navigate the bumpy streets of Milestii Mici, but he brought me to the familiar bus stop 5 muddy blocks from my house.
I’d heard about the mud and I’d actually packed some appropriate boots, but they were back in my house as I thought the sun would shine today. Without the trusty penlight attached to my jacket (thank you Mr. Johnson!!!!) I would have stood alone blindly in the middle of the black street and cried! Instead, I was able to take one step at a time over the rushing rivers, which were now etching caverns in the streets. I decided to take the longer route, which offered pavement, and it took me to the magazin that I visit each day after school. My friend Valiere welcomed me in as usual and when I told him I was going to my house he laughed and pointed at my best black sandals, now caked with mud. He suggested in the only language he knows (romaneste) that I call my brother Stefan to deliver my boots for the rest of the way home. Lo and behold, technology once again interferes with the best laid plans and the phone is busy due to internet usage. So Valiere helps me with my homework while I wait for the rain to subside and slowly but surely one dirt pile after another I arrive safely and soundly at home!
Tuesday, September 26, 2006
VISIT FROM THE AMBASSADOR
Today in our training village we met the Ambassador and other dignitaries from the US Embassy. It was extremely informative and good to understand more about the politcal and economic situation here in Moldova.
I am going to attempt to make Mayfred's chocolate chip oatmeal cookies tonight. I may have a little trouble finding baking powder, but I'm going to give it a shot. It is Andrea's birthday on Thursday and I figured every body would appreciate a chocolate chip cookie since they've never heard of them here. I know I will not find Brown sugar and it will be a trip to the magazine while I go through my list in Romanian. I will need UNT and Frisca Alb and something de copt.... Not to mention the utensils in my family home are probably limited and I KNOW they don't have any PAM! I hope they turn out!
I really don't have anything new to add, so I will try to get some pictures up soon. I am not doing too well with my language acquistion although I've only been here a litte over a week, so I'm not going to worry. It is hard... and my family has no patience with me struggling through every word for conversation.. it is just easier to speak English... but... gotta get in some conversations! Every day is busy - and so far enjoyable. Peace Corps treats us right even got a copy of Newsweek. Hoping I have time to read it, but I have chocolate chip cookies to bake tonight!
write to me at binksink@gmail.com !!!!!
Wednesday, September 20, 2006
Rules Rules
Last night while finally getting a chance to connect to the internet on my family’s computer, my Elena was playing around with my digital camera and hit the power strip to the computer (which sits soooo conveniently in the doorway) and I was instantly disconnected. She then told me that we can only go online once daily. I have yet to figure out if that is a village rule or a household rule. One way or another, I am very limited to my access to you. So I am writing on Microsoft Word and will cut and paste during that precious internet time!
Yesterday I thought I was going to get voted off the island. My language lessons brought much frustration! Instead of crying right then and there Andrea and I were reprimanded for laughing. (Don’t tell Diane Tripp!!!) We promptly explained to our profesor de limba romana that if we did not laugh, we would cry. He did not really care. He is 23 and getting married the day after tomorrow, so he is all business and we’re hoping to loosen him up once the wedding is over! His name is pronounced ee juan. (Jon). Actually he is sooo sweet. Anyway…. Today was mult bine and maybe there is a chance that they’ll keep me around long enough to do some damage in another village at a later date. We’ll see.
We feel like kindergarteners… and I guess we are. We learned today the names for grandmother, grandfather, mother in law etc… One of the voluntari in our group, Chris is worried that his “host” sister who is two and learning to speak is going to run circles around him in no time and he is probably right. I have decided to stop speaking to Stefan and Elena and concentrate on communicating with mama Rodina. She knows NO English. We sit at the table over tea and laugh because neither of us knows what the other is saying. I’m usually armed with my dictionary and we generally get something figured out. She is a nurse and works in a neurological pediatric unit. She often practices language with me at the kitchen table. She always wants to help me with my homework! Sergiu works as a supervisor in the local vineyard. He seems very patient and friendly, although I’ve only been able to communicate with him a few times.
Life is calm and slow here. I walk home from school with my backpack on (thank you Megan II) and I just look around at the homes – they are all decorated very beautifully with stucco and brick and stone and cement. Elena says I’ll watch Desparate Housewives with her when the new season starts. I guess that’s incentive enough to keep up the language studies!
Tomorrow we will go to Ialoveni… (Yah lo vein) and meet with the other 36 voluntari from our group. It is called a hub site day. Twice weekly we jump on the unbelieveably crowded and dangerous? Bus to Ialoveni. It is there that we come together as a group and learn the technical portion of our jobs. On the other days, I walk through the village past the goats and chickens and millions of dogs to the home of our profesoara for language and cross cultural training. The animals generally don’t seem to mind, but the first billy goat stared me down a bit. I thought maybe he could smell americanca on me.
This is a crazy undertaking, but I am still convinced that it is the right move for me.
Yesterday I thought I was going to get voted off the island. My language lessons brought much frustration! Instead of crying right then and there Andrea and I were reprimanded for laughing. (Don’t tell Diane Tripp!!!) We promptly explained to our profesor de limba romana that if we did not laugh, we would cry. He did not really care. He is 23 and getting married the day after tomorrow, so he is all business and we’re hoping to loosen him up once the wedding is over! His name is pronounced ee juan. (Jon). Actually he is sooo sweet. Anyway…. Today was mult bine and maybe there is a chance that they’ll keep me around long enough to do some damage in another village at a later date. We’ll see.
We feel like kindergarteners… and I guess we are. We learned today the names for grandmother, grandfather, mother in law etc… One of the voluntari in our group, Chris is worried that his “host” sister who is two and learning to speak is going to run circles around him in no time and he is probably right. I have decided to stop speaking to Stefan and Elena and concentrate on communicating with mama Rodina. She knows NO English. We sit at the table over tea and laugh because neither of us knows what the other is saying. I’m usually armed with my dictionary and we generally get something figured out. She is a nurse and works in a neurological pediatric unit. She often practices language with me at the kitchen table. She always wants to help me with my homework! Sergiu works as a supervisor in the local vineyard. He seems very patient and friendly, although I’ve only been able to communicate with him a few times.
Life is calm and slow here. I walk home from school with my backpack on (thank you Megan II) and I just look around at the homes – they are all decorated very beautifully with stucco and brick and stone and cement. Elena says I’ll watch Desparate Housewives with her when the new season starts. I guess that’s incentive enough to keep up the language studies!
Tomorrow we will go to Ialoveni… (Yah lo vein) and meet with the other 36 voluntari from our group. It is called a hub site day. Twice weekly we jump on the unbelieveably crowded and dangerous? Bus to Ialoveni. It is there that we come together as a group and learn the technical portion of our jobs. On the other days, I walk through the village past the goats and chickens and millions of dogs to the home of our profesoara for language and cross cultural training. The animals generally don’t seem to mind, but the first billy goat stared me down a bit. I thought maybe he could smell americanca on me.
This is a crazy undertaking, but I am still convinced that it is the right move for me.
Monday, September 18, 2006
let the games begin!
Hey! I have so little time with the internet, that I have decided that the only way to really keep in touch right now is through this blog. Please feel free to leave comments or e mail me so I can write back!! here is the group getting to leave Philly for Moldova.. having no idea what the adventure will bring!
Some highlights so far...
The bus that took us from the capital (Chisinau) could not navigate the streets directly to my house, so all the volunteers and others got off the bus to help me bring my luggage - it was hilarious!!! Eight people walking down these incredibly crumbly streets pulling my red luggage! It reminded me of Romancing the stone!!!
Anyway... I got to my casa and my family consists of a mom and dad Rodica and Sergiu -35 years old. The children Shtefan (pronunciation) 12 and Yelena (15) are sweet as brinza placenta! And they speak fluent English and are both VERY smart!!! They have taken me in as a brand new toy or maybe a family pet!!!! Stefan is at my side keeping me on task every minute that I'm home (and not taking a nap). "Renell sit here and watch tv with me!" Renell here are your shoes" "Renell take a picture for your father" ..... because I was telling him my dad builds houses and I wanted to get a picture of the bathroom ceiling before they put tiles on it..." "Renell.. time to take a shower!!!! " (ugh shower they call it... plastic tub for a sponge bath...) Stefan always gets the hot water for me... The good news is that the village that I am in (pronounced Milleshtee meech) has a new initiative to get water to everyone's home. Sergiu is working hard and has remodeled the bathroom with new ceramic tile, pedestal sink and NEW TOAlata!!!!! We won't be able to use if for a month or two, though. So for now when I wake up first thing in the morning and have to pee... it is out to the backyard outhouse where I rouse the chickens and the rabbits that are currently being fattened for dining... not really liking that yet very very very smelly!
When Rodica and I try to communicate we usually quickly reach an impasse and it has been a joke that she calls ..... "stefan" and he comes running to help! Last night I asked him what the weather will be tomorrow so I knew what to wear - Stefan looked at me like I was crazy and said "When you wake up you open the door and look out and then you will know!"
Elena told me that she has been wanting a volunteer for many years as her friends have had one, but there is a waiting list. They were so excited to get the opportunity but she wanted a boy and not an older lady... she said now that she knows me I am not the old woman she was thinking and my personality is just like "Daniel" the boy who she was thinking of that lived at her friends house and she already loves me. She gave up her room for me and it is Foarte Bune. (Very good@) That is all I say in Romanian so far!
Speaking of that.. today is my birthday! My family brought in two balloons and a cake with one candle (foarte buna) and they sang happy birthday in English and gave me a clock for my room! Some of the volunteers in Milesti Mici want to try to find a bar to go to tonight to celebrate. So it comes and goes... I have been having a hard time getting to sleep... listening to music, reading and practicing Romanian conversation in my head. I am enjoying my time in my room, but Stefan and Elena miss me... pretty soon the novelty will wear off!
The very good news is that education is important here... seems it is a leftover attitude from the soviet era - but most students need to leave the country to get employment.
Today was my "first day of school" and I walked to the bus stop all by myself!!! In many ways it is like living life all over again! I met two big goats on the way to the bus and was just hoping they wouldn't smell my americanca and butt me or something. WhenI mentioned the goats to another volunteer, they did what they always do.... laugh at my pronunciation!!! Goat....ha ha ha!!! They give me crap about being from Minn neh SO ta 'cause they think my accent is soooo pronounced!
Well... I think that is it for now... I am not especially fond of the food, but it is good, just a little different and my stomach is rather picky. I still have tootsie rolls and licorice left, so all is well! I had a great mushroom salad at a birthday party last night. Always serve tomatoes and bread - the family gatherings remind me of the Iron Range so I feel right at home! The same food is served over and over until it's gone... everything is conserved here. Miss you and would love to hear from you!! OH my address: This is PC Headquarters in the capital.. I will be there often so send mail!!!!!
Renell Pettinelli PCT
Corpul Pacii
Stre. Grigore Ureche 12
2001 Chisinau
Republica Moldova
Here is how you call me the country...remember the time is 7 hours later here.
011 373 268 plus 5 digit number
5 digit number is 68 -7 -85 for my home...
If you call me and they don't understand ask for Steven!!!
Some highlights so far...The bus that took us from the capital (Chisinau) could not navigate the streets directly to my house, so all the volunteers and others got off the bus to help me bring my luggage - it was hilarious!!! Eight people walking down these incredibly crumbly streets pulling my red luggage! It reminded me of Romancing the stone!!!
Anyway... I got to my casa and my family consists of a mom and dad Rodica and Sergiu -35 years old. The children Shtefan (pronunciation) 12 and Yelena (15) are sweet as brinza placenta! And they speak fluent English and are both VERY smart!!! They have taken me in as a brand new toy or maybe a family pet!!!! Stefan is at my side keeping me on task every minute that I'm home (and not taking a nap). "Renell sit here and watch tv with me!" Renell here are your shoes" "Renell take a picture for your father" ..... because I was telling him my dad builds houses and I wanted to get a picture of the bathroom ceiling before they put tiles on it..." "Renell.. time to take a shower!!!! " (ugh shower they call it... plastic tub for a sponge bath...) Stefan always gets the hot water for me... The good news is that the village that I am in (pronounced Milleshtee meech) has a new initiative to get water to everyone's home. Sergiu is working hard and has remodeled the bathroom with new ceramic tile, pedestal sink and NEW TOAlata!!!!! We won't be able to use if for a month or two, though. So for now when I wake up first thing in the morning and have to pee... it is out to the backyard outhouse where I rouse the chickens and the rabbits that are currently being fattened for dining... not really liking that yet very very very smelly!
When Rodica and I try to communicate we usually quickly reach an impasse and it has been a joke that she calls ..... "stefan" and he comes running to help! Last night I asked him what the weather will be tomorrow so I knew what to wear - Stefan looked at me like I was crazy and said "When you wake up you open the door and look out and then you will know!"
Elena told me that she has been wanting a volunteer for many years as her friends have had one, but there is a waiting list. They were so excited to get the opportunity but she wanted a boy and not an older lady... she said now that she knows me I am not the old woman she was thinking and my personality is just like "Daniel" the boy who she was thinking of that lived at her friends house and she already loves me. She gave up her room for me and it is Foarte Bune. (Very good@) That is all I say in Romanian so far!
Speaking of that.. today is my birthday! My family brought in two balloons and a cake with one candle (foarte buna) and they sang happy birthday in English and gave me a clock for my room! Some of the volunteers in Milesti Mici want to try to find a bar to go to tonight to celebrate. So it comes and goes... I have been having a hard time getting to sleep... listening to music, reading and practicing Romanian conversation in my head. I am enjoying my time in my room, but Stefan and Elena miss me... pretty soon the novelty will wear off!
The very good news is that education is important here... seems it is a leftover attitude from the soviet era - but most students need to leave the country to get employment.
Today was my "first day of school" and I walked to the bus stop all by myself!!! In many ways it is like living life all over again! I met two big goats on the way to the bus and was just hoping they wouldn't smell my americanca and butt me or something. WhenI mentioned the goats to another volunteer, they did what they always do.... laugh at my pronunciation!!! Goat....ha ha ha!!! They give me crap about being from Minn neh SO ta 'cause they think my accent is soooo pronounced!
Well... I think that is it for now... I am not especially fond of the food, but it is good, just a little different and my stomach is rather picky. I still have tootsie rolls and licorice left, so all is well! I had a great mushroom salad at a birthday party last night. Always serve tomatoes and bread - the family gatherings remind me of the Iron Range so I feel right at home! The same food is served over and over until it's gone... everything is conserved here. Miss you and would love to hear from you!! OH my address: This is PC Headquarters in the capital.. I will be there often so send mail!!!!!
Renell Pettinelli PCT
Corpul Pacii
Stre. Grigore Ureche 12
2001 Chisinau
Republica Moldova
Here is how you call me the country...remember the time is 7 hours later here.
011 373 268 plus 5 digit number
5 digit number is 68 -7 -85 for my home...
If you call me and they don't understand ask for Steven!!!
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