In two days, April, 2011, will be over. When I updated this blog last month, I was wanting to make a stronger commitment to regular writing. That has not come to pass. Instead, my days have been busy with work and family, struggling to figure out how to do the same things with continued enthusiasm. I am content most days, but there are parts of almost everyday that encompass some sort of struggle. Here are the big highlights of the past month, not one of which is really mine to own, but each highlight is listed because it is an accomplishment of someone that I care about. My daughter and son-in-law have moved out of my home and are moving into their own apartment. This was not really an easy decision for any of us, and it is now feeling more comfortable than it felt a few weeks ago. Moving out. My friend and her husband will be moving to Azerbaijan, where she will become a Country Director for Peace Corps. Moving up. My grandmother is now safely back in NY, and doing phenomenally well once again, at 93, after another health scare in Mississippi. Moving on. My days are busy with work and worry, friends and fun. Just keepin' on, keepin' on. Short and sweet, and I'll try to get back to you all sooner. xoxo, Jami

Last night there was an amazing full moon, and today is the first full day of Spring! The days are longer and the sun is warmer. Its all good, and very welcome. Last week was stressful for me, on a couple of levels, and the time to think and relax this weekend was so welcome and needed. I have moved back into a job at Sweetser that is very similar to the job that I had before I left, supervising case managers. I like my job, and I am always grateful to be working. That doesn't mean that it doesn't get stressful sometimes. I am spending more time in a vehicle than I have in probably close to three years, and I have to say, that as much as I have always loved driving, I really don't seem to like it as much as I used to. For so long, and the whole time I was in Moldova, I spent most of my time walking, or riding on public transportation. Maybe it would be a little less stressful if I had a vehicle that I loved to spend time in, but I am not convinced that it would even make much of a difference. Walking just seems to be my preferred way to get around now. Oh, it would be wonderful to have a job that I could walk to everyday!

So, the past week was stressful. Driving, combined with the weather, which was not Spring-like at all, worry about the sorry state of affairs all over the world, worry about Japan and the feeling that Armegeddon is near, all contributed to a really stressed out kind of week. By Friday afternoon, after being tired and grumpy for a few days, I was ready to just collapse. I spent the evening totally alone in my own home....something that has not happened for over three years. It was heavenly!! It was an opportunity for me to remember how wonderful solitude is for my soul. I love my life, my family, my man. I need quiet to restore my energy. I had spent time being upset that I felt that I was not being included in an activity that I thought I wanted to participate in. My emotions had been feeling hurt. People at home were not treating me as I felt I needed to be treated...what I came to realize in my solitude is that what I needed was not to be with others, but to be good with myself. Its good when you get what you need for yourself. So now, the beginning of the first week of Spring. New growth, new life, warmer sunnier days on the horizon. All is good in the world, or at least in this little corner of the world. Hope all is well with you! xoxo, Jami

It's a rainy Sunday afternoon, the first Sunday in March, 2011. This week it will mark a year since I have been home, a year of change back to my "normal" life, and a time of re-adjustment back to my familiar routines. I last wrote on here just about 10 months ago, in the middle of May. After coming home, I spent a little over two months living with Bob, and his family, on Bailey Island, before being able to move back into my own home. We went hiking, took long walks and spent an unseasonably warm Spring enjoying life along the Maine coast. By mid-June, I was back at work with my previous employer, this time as a per diem Assessment clinician. The Summer and Fall were punctuated by visits from my PCV friends, Macie and Craig in early July, and Renell in mid-September. Fall went by quickly, with LL Bean seasonal work, third shift as a "picker" to accompany my regular work, leading to the holiday season. The first Christmas home was poignantly sweet. It was everything I had missed over the previous two Christmases'. There was no special gift, either given or received, that could replace the happiness of being home.

January and February have brought nothing special to write about. The days are getting longer, the sun is higher in the sky, and I am now a full-time, salaried employee, back doing the work I was doing for the same organization as I was when I left three years ago. The more things change, the more they stay the same. But, I have changed. I have been writing to the new volunteer who is placed in my old village in Moldova. I have a new friend who just left last week to start his Peace Corps service in Madagascar. I am proud of my service. I am even happier to be done with it and home than I had imagined I would be. I am wondering what the next adventures might look like. I am back to writing, and hope that I will be able to do this more consistently. Keep in touch. xoxo, Jami

It's hard to believe how time has flown by...I've been back in the US now for just over two months and the time has gone by so quickly. I have spent time with family and friends, visiting, hiking, and now it is time to get down to some serious job searching.

The time visiting has been so wonderful. Being away from my family and friends was, by far, the most difficult part of being away for over two years. I've not done anything spectacular since being home, but just getting to spend time with the people that I love most in this world has been spectacular. I have spent some time in Pennsylvania, New York, New Hampshire and most of the time in Maine. This past week, my beloved Uncle and Godfather, Harold, died in New York state. I was not able to be with him at the very end, but I was glad to have been able to see him a few weeks ago. My grandmother is doing well, and continues to be such an inspiration to me. My father-in-law celebrated his 90th birthday this week, and the family is planning a party for later today in Pennsylvania. Even though I have not been present at some of these events, I do feel more connected by proximity than I have in the past few years. It does feel so good to be closer to the pleople that I love. Yesterday Linnea and I spent the day with my parents, and my sister and her youngest boy, Daniel. I was able to talk to my brother before he set sail this morning from St. Croix to Boston. It is priceless to me to be able to do that.

My home in Maine has been rented to some Bowdoin students who are ending the semester this week, and it will feel so good to feel settled back in my own space. It has been a bit of a challenge to have been "floating" from place to place for an additional two months, but the end of the nomadic life is within sight. I know I am feeling the pull to get back to the routine of home, job, family, and regular daily responsibilities.

Some of the time these past two months have been spent hiking on the Appalachian Trail in Maine with my good friend, Bob. It has been a time of exploration of some of the most beautiful and challenging landscape in the the country. We have hiked through snow, ice, and thawing mountains. We have seen the earliest signs of Spring in the hills, and spent quiet times by the fire. It has been the adventure that I imagined it could be, and I am so grateful that we have been able to do this. It is much more abbreviated than I had originally hoped, or even planned for, but even the best of times exist within the reality of expense and time constraints.

So, now it is time for the return to my "normal" life. I can't wait to see what comes next. I will continue to write here, perhaps more sporadically. There are still observations and musings that I imagine that I might want to share with all of you. See you soon. xoxo, Jami

As I am winding down, ending this part of my life here in Moldova, I have found myself to be very busy this past week. Its not been anything major, just a lot of little details and long trips on the bus which have filled my days. Last Sunday I was in Chisinau, returning in the afternoon. Monday I was here in the village and updated this blog. Tuesday and Wednesday brought a trip back into Chisinau for medical appointments, and a last night with Macie and Craig. Wednesday afternoon it was back to the village, work on Thursday, return to Chisinau on Friday morning for the weekend, returning last night to have a pizza party with my co-worker at the Center, Nadea. Nothing major, but a lots of running around.

The events of this past weekend included a wine tour on Friday afternoon, a visit to my training village on Friday night with Toumil and Veronica, and a party with Teresa and about ten other volunteers on Saturday night. It was good to go back to my training village. Maria and her daughters, whom I lived with during my training time, have moved to Italy and were not around, so it was a little sad not to see them to say good-bye. Veronica's host family hosted the three of us for the night, and we had so much fun! We woke up to about 6" of wet, Spring snow on the ground. It was pretty, but I am ready for Spring! It has been cold since the weekend, so the warm weather of last week was a tease.

For those of you who remember the pre-service journey and time it took to get medically cleared for this service, it should come as no surprise that I am once again having some trouble with getting my medical stuff in-line to go home. As it was then, there is not a big problem, just lots of little things, and an ongoing requirement for more information before all the signatures will be given. This is not a huge thing, as I am healthy now as I was healthy then, but it does require more attention than I thought it would, and in this case, might require some follow-up once I am home. Just some details that need to be attended to when I thought an easy sign-off might be forthcoming. I'll still be home on Friday!

So now I am in the process of letting go, saying good-bye, moving on and back to my more familiar life and options. It is a contemplative process for me, as many things are. It is not as much about the packing, or the worry about what is next. I am mostly packed, and have been for a while. I don't worry too much about what is next. This experience has reinforced my existing values and taught me in new ways to be grateful for all that I have and not to worry about the details of my existence so much. I can't wait to be home with all of you, and I am trusting in my own self-perseverance that I will be happy and busy where I need to be. This has been a great experience, I am so fortunate to have been able to do this, meet the people that I have met, and pushed myself out of a comfort zone into a new experience. While I haven't loved every minute of it, that has had much more to do with missing people from home than not being useful and productive here. I am glad that I have done it, and I guess more importantly, I am proud of myself that I have stuck with the difficult things when I wanted to quit. I am leaving here with a sense of satisfaction. That feels good.

This week is shaping up to be busier than last week, and the next post here will be from home. I can't wait to see all of you! See you soon...FOUR DAYS!!!!!!!!! xoxo, Jami

This week marks the beginning of the third year, or better stated, the anniversary of two full years here in Moldova. It has mostly been a good time, and now I am ready to come home. So ready. This past week I approached the Country Director, Jeffrey, about an earlier date to come home. There was a sense that the time that I have had here, while fulfilling and positive, will never replace my need to be with my family. It is the piece which has been hardest for me over the past two years, and the thing which was actually most surprising to me. I expected to miss my family, but not really as much as I have. There have been times, and events which have happened without my being home, without my supporting the people who mean the most in the world to me, and I have struggled with my absence from them.

Fortunately, my request was met with understanding and support. Yay! What that means, is that I will be coming home NEXT Friday evening, instead of the middle of April! Portland, Maine, here I come!!! I'm not sure exactly what is next for me after landing, but I will land on my feet somewhere. I will be home, closer to my family and loved ones, and that is what matters most.

That is the big news for the week. The past few days have been busy, busier than I have been in quite a while, as I pack, tie up loose ends, and prepare to finish all of the tasks that I thought I would have six weeks to do, and are now condensed into two weeks. Now, less than two weeks. I did a flurry of paperwork last week before even speaking with Jeffrey, so the majority of the paperwork is done, but there are still so many last minute bureaucratic things that must be put into place...t's crossed, i's dotted, all of it. It will get done, for sure, but it does involve regular trips between the village and the capital to see that it all falls into place. Which is time-consuming in its own way, given the buses here.

This past week-end I had a planned week-end visit to Jen, who lives in the village two villages away from me. She is my closest volunteer neighbor, and we had planned this weekend a while ago, long before I knew of my expedited trip home. It was a blast. First, it was really nice weather on Friday. It felt like Spring. I packed up my backpack and walked to her village, about seventeen kilometers. A nice walk. A nice day. Teresa and Sarah came down from Chisinau to join us. California rolls, tempura veggies and sweet and sour sauce. Yummy. Oh, and lots of house wine. Saturday was much colder, and another gray day. We mostly just sat around, talked, giggled, watched movies, and then a traditional Moldovan masa at the end of the day. Yesterday it was warmer than Saturday, but not nearly as nice as Friday, and I walked back to my village. A great diversion. A great time. I will miss the friends I have made here.

So that was the week that was. Big news, big plans to come home! Happy birthday tomorrow to my nephew, Nathaniel! Ten days!!!!!!!!!! Love and miss you all. xoxo, Jami

Most of this past week was spent together with the wonderful group that is Moldova 22. The Peace Corps staff here did a fantastic job finding a really nice resort for our three day Close of Service (COS) conference. Comfortable beds, hot showers, lots of food and drink...and the best group of colleagues in the whole world! It was a couple of days filled with memories, planning for the future, and just enjoying the satisfaction of a job well done. Yay for us!! There are 22 of us out of the 29 who left Philadelphia, and it was so amazing to spend time with these great people and also to remember those who didn't quite make it to the end. Aaron, Cameron, Rose, Andrea, Rian, John, and Justin were missed and remembered this week. They are still a part of our group, and we wish that they had been able to join us at this event. The rest of us toasted you, and our success in making it to this point. There are so many friendships that have developed over this time, and so much professional respect for the commitment that this group has provided to the Republic of Moldova over the past two years. I am so thankful to have stuck with this when I didn't want to, proud of this group, and ready for whatever is next!

And, of course, there are a ton of reports, administrative things, medical things, all sots of things that need to be completed and checked off the list before we can leave. I'll be busy. There are things that I need to finish here in the village, and now find time to fit in all of the other required things in the next 45 days. The pace will probably be closer to what I was used to at home, but its been a while since then and it will be good practice to get back into that pace again!

So, back to the paperwork, on with another week of work, focus on the work at hand, and dream about being home and all that the future holds...another week starting. A safe journey this week as my parents return to the cold of New Hampshire, and loving thoughts to Linnea and Joe this week as they are going through a bit of a rough time. I love and miss you all. xoxo, Jami

This was the weekend for the re-scheduled knitting group. It had been scheduled for two or three weekends ago, and then several people were sick, so it was re-scheduled for this past weekend. It was lots of fun. There were about ten of us, all working on various projects. Almost everyone was knitting, and there were a few of us cross-stitchers in the crowd. I am currently working on a cross-stitch throw for Lidia, and I am now almost done. It is among the things I need to get done before I leave, so it was nice to have this concentrated time for handiwork. It was a nice group of women, and a lot of work was accomplished by all. There were two first time knitters, so it was fun to see them learn. Everyone knits in a different way, so it was a little confusing for the new learners, but they did really well. One of the knitters has learned to knit since coming here, taught by her host mother, so her style is so different! It was fun to visit, and connect with friends. I will never be the knitter that my grandmother and mother are, but it is a very relaxing hobby, for sure. I did start a small scarf, just to break-up my cross-stitching work. I know that is something I can finish and leave here before I come home.

Other than the weekend activities, there is not too much going on. Work has been busy, and the weather still mostly gray and very icy. There has been a lot of freezing rain this past week, and today the sun was finally out, and it was warmer. A nice day for a change! I have seen lots and lots of pictures from Pennsylvania this past week, and they have gotten pounded with snow over the past few days, and more is predicted for tomorrow. Yikes!

There's not too much else to write about. Happy Valentine's Day! The days are getting longer! Stay warm! I love and miss you all. 53 days!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! xoxo, Jami

Yesterday I was in Chisinau for the day. It was the second to the last VAC meeting, and while the agenda was fairly brief, there were home-made brownies and fresh coffee courtesy of Jeffrey. Just before the meeting I was talking with one of the newer volunteers about our end of service. He asked me what I will miss about Moldova, and I had no hesitation in coming up with several things that I will miss about this country.

I will miss living close to my food. Okay, maybe not so close that I know the name of the chicken that we are eating tonight for dinner, but I think you know what I mean. Besides that, they don't name the chickens here at this house. I know it is now an idea that has gained some momentum in the US, but here in my village, people survive on the crops that they plant, and the food that they preserve. It has been a healthy and tasty couple of years for me. Along the same lines, I will miss the time that I have had to walk everyday, and the way that it always makes me feel better, physically and mentally, after a good long walk. I have the best of intentions of continuing with both of these things, and I am hopeful that some of this will stick with me throughout my life.

Another thing that I will miss is the crazy efficiency of the public transportation system here in Moldova. I do not care if I never ride on another ruteria again in my life, but it is an amazingly complicated and supportive network of moving people, household items, small animals, and whatever needs to be moved. Wherever you need to go, and whatever you need to take with you, you can probably figure out some public transportation means to move it. It make not be comfortable, or particularly time efficient, but it is effective. We don't really have system of public transportation outside of the bigger cities in the US, except for inter-and intra-city travel. If you live in Durham, or Rifton, or Bowers, how do you get to Portland or Kingston or to Reading if you don't have a car? That is the biggest benefit of the system here. There are rutieras that go to very little village in the country. They may only go through once a day, but everyone knows when they need to be outside waiting. The other thing that they do here which is pretty amazing, is they will go out of their way to accommodate a special request or to drop someone off in front of their home. If someone needs to go to the train station, for example, the driver will alternate his route to take a passenger close to where they need to go. For the most part the drivers are helpful, accommodating and well-respected members of the communities in which they live. They often will just carry goods, and/or money from the villages into the raion center or to Chisinau. I have seen someone give my driver just a cell phone with a $20 (US dollar bill) to take to someone in the city. No note to sign, nothing. Incredible. Sometimes they do have someone sign a note, but I think that is for when the driver doesn't know the person who is supposed to pick up the item, so he doesn't forget who it goes to.

Of course there are other things that I will miss, and there are people for sure that I will miss. I have been humbled by the generosity of those with so little to give. I have been lucky to have done this thing, and I have persevered. Now, I just want it to get warmer and to come home! I love and miss you all. xoxo, Jami

Even things that seem endless do eventually come to an end, and January is almost over! Since coming back to Moldova at the beginning of December, this was the milestone that I knew I would need to reach to stay until the end of my service. I have persevered, and tomorrow it will be February. In past years, I have always had such a difficult time through the fall months, as the days get shorter, anniversaries are painful, whatever...I did some good planning, and had a great trip home in November, just as I needed. Even though it went nothing as I had planned, it was the respite I craved. Those of you who have communicated with me, or read this, know that I have struggled more than usual since coming back. Unless there is an emergency, I do now believe that I will make it until the end of my service, and that is a good feeling. There was nothing in particular this past week that made feel more confident of that, just the passage of days, the crossing off of time on the calendar, the little bit more of sunlight with each day. Yippee!

Last week was a typical work week, nothing unusual, other than the bitter, bitter cold. Last Sunday night it was so cold here in Moldova, that there were several reports of people freezing to death in villages around the country, and I saw two frozen animals here in my village. Sad. Schools were on an abbreviated schedule until Wednesday because it was too cold for children to walk to school. I'm sure its not the last of the cold weather for this winter, but I hope it doesn't get that cold again here before I leave! Now it is warmer, and VERY muddy in my village, hence the title of today's posting.

On Friday, I was planning to go into Chisinau for a knitting weekend with some of the other volunteers. Unfortunately, that was postponed because so many of the people who were planning to attend had bronchitis, or some other sickness. I went in anyway, and had a great time. I stayed in the capital with a new friend, a woman who teaches at the International School, along with another volunteer. I had stayed in her apartment with a different volunteer a few weeks ago, while the teacher was visiting in the US, so it was nice to finally meet her and enjoy being in her great apartment again. She is very generous with her space, and it was good to end the month in such a positive way. The knitting weekend has been postponed until the middle of this month, so I still have that to look forward to! I had three showers in three days, four letters and a package, so all is right in the world! Now I am back in the village, getting ready for another week at work. It was still pretty light out when I got off the bus at 5:30, so the days are getting noticeably longer. That is a good thing, too.

Safe travels this week to my parents as they head to St. Croix! Happy birthday this past week to my friends Ed and Kirsten, and this coming week to my sister-in-law, Brenda, and my sweet younger brother, David. And special thoughts to my friends Betsy and Momen this week, as Momen's brothers are visiting from Uzbekistan. Momen had not seen anyone from his family for over 27 years! I can't even imagine that, as I have had the hardest time here and couldn't even make it one year without seeing all of you. Wherever you are, hold those you love a little closer this week. I love and miss you all. xoxo, Jami

This month of January feels endless today. There is still a week before its over, and it feels like its been January for weeks, and weeks, and weeks, almost since I got back here. This week there was more to do at work, and the week was punctuated by a mid-week trip into the capital so in theory it should have felt like it was passing more quickly. That theory being the one that espouses that the busier I am, the more quickly the time seems to pass. Not really true, but the days are passing, no matter how slowly it feels that way sometimes. You know the saying about molasses in January, well it would be frozen here today!

Right now there are 7 kids at the Center, along with the 5 elderly residents. Some of this increase is due to the very frigid weather we have been having this week. Yesterday and today the temperature has not gone above -15C. That was the warm number, and converts to about 5F. Without a calculation for wind chill, which has been considerable, that's the coldest I think it's been in the almost two years I've been here. It's been that cold for the past three days. Yesterday I was more aware of the lack of sun over the past few weeks, only one day and a few hours so far this month. Today we have sun, hooray!, but it is too cold to be out for very long. The wind has been fierce, which is really makes the cold penetrating. I've had two days without my usual walking, and I think my mental health is suffering for lack of walking! Last year was so much milder, less snowy, and almost pleasant in comparison. I took my heavy coat home in November and left it there, not anticipating how much I would miss it this month. Still, I know I will be glad not to have to carry the heavier coat home in April, and that is what I am still focused on.

The kids are good, and fun to spend time with, as always. They like playing dress-up, building houses with blocks, doing puzzles, reading, coloring, learning poems to recite, and working on writing and simple math problems. School doesn't begin for kids until they are at least seven years old here. All of the children currently living at the Center are between four and eight years old. The oldest, Lenuta, goes to school everyday, but everyone else follows a schedule of activities everyday. This week, even in the bitter cold, there was a lot of time outside sledding. It feels good to have good work to do everyday. Even when I am frustrated with other things, I have always loved going to work, and this is no exception.

My trip into Chisinau was a good one and a welcome break. I went in to get my B12 shot, had an awesome 4 hour lunch with a group of volunteers, visited with Teresa for a bit, watched the movie Sherlock, which I really enjoyed, had a very productive meeting with the acting Program Manager, and safely made it back to the village before the bitter cold hit in full force. Not a bad week, just one that is part of the seemingly endless countdown. Even when I try not to be aware of it, not one day passes that I don't think about all of you and wish I was home. It's close, but not quite close enough. Oh well. Nothing is ever endless, and this too shall pass. Spring is just around the corner! 75 days. I love and miss you all. xoxo, Jami

This week started out as a "teaser". It was warm enough to feel like Spring was just around the corner. On Tuesday it was probably close to 50 degrees, and the sun was out for almost an hour! HA! Wrong!! It's cold, and today it is icy. January. There is no getting around it. Spring will come, I will be home to enjoy it, and for now, I am in the village routine. As always when I am here, there isn't too much to talk about.

The census is down at work. This week there are three children and three older women, and one older man. Two of the three children have been living at the Center, on and off, for much of the past year. Their mother comes to visit them sometimes, but isn't able to have them at home. There is no heat and no glass in the windows at their apartment. These two little girls, Iulia and Maria, are funny and spunky kids, in spite of living apart from their mother. They came to live at the Center with shaved heads, due to a terrible problem with head lice. This week I was reminded of a story that my friend, Robin, shared with me years ago, as these two little girls paraded around with their tights on their heads, pretending that they had long, beautiful hair! Bittersweet little lives. Speaking of head lice, it is a terrible problem here, and I guess it is worse in the winter. It is cold and hard to bathe. It is a pain to wash clothing and hair. So far, I've avoided any bug-jumping, and I'm keeping my fingers crossed. Yuck! It makes me itch just to think about it. On that happy and cheerful note, know that I love and miss you all. 81 days! xoxo, Jami

This week, on January 7th, was the Orthodox Christmas holiday. There have only been two children at the Center, and it has still been vacation week from school, so most of the past week I spent in Chisinau with other volunteers. I had gotten a call from Pan, one of the other older, single women in our training group. She has a friend who teaches at the International School who has a very nice apartment in downtown Chisinau. Her friend was going to be out of the country and offered us the use of her apartment while she was away. We were there from Tuesday through yesterday, with a brief stay in Orhei with Macie and Craig on Wednesday night. We had all sorts of plans to do some "touristy" things, but actually spent a lot of time visiting other volunteers and relaxing. It was a good week, busy and fun, but not overwhelmingly so.

Yesterday, in downtown Chisinau, when I was walking to the bus I saw a car accident on the sidewalk. On the main street in the down town area, people consistently park on the sidewalk. Again, its not too safe here in many ways. I sent a message out to a few of the other volunteers who responded with concern that the driver had hit a pedestrian, which would be a logical response, knowing not to be surprised about the car on the sidewalk. No, I explained, this was one driver backing up into the main thoroughfare of the sidewalk, while the second driver continued to move forward to take the parking space that was being vacated! It is a thinking that is sort of consistent with how people push to get on to the buses, and all public transportation, before letting exiting travelers get off. I'm not sure if this is a "survival of the fittest" mentality, or just plain rudeness, but it is frustrating and exhausting to deal with. There is no orderliness when there is room for aggression. So, yesterday there was a fender-bender. On the sidewalk. Oh my. Other than that, not too much new to write about. It was a good week, and now I am back to the slower pace of village life. There isn't much time left, and still some stuff I want to work on. I do know that the busier I stay, the faster the time goes. Its under 90 days, and I can't wait! I love and miss you all. xoxo, Jami

A new year, a new decade, a full, blue moon, and time out of the village! Not a bad week at all! This is the year that I finish my service and come home, and the count is now under one hundred days, so all is looking good today.

The weather outside is frightful, but it isn't going to bring me down. It was warm most of the week, and even though it is colder now, and it will probably snow, it is, after all, January, and its doing what it is supposed to be doing outside. On Wednesday this week we had our holiday program at work. Like last year, there were poems recited, music sung, games played, and treats for all the residents. It isn't really like Christmas at home, but it was a good party for everyone, and people seemed to have a nice time.

This year things seemed a bit more organized, which shows planning and progress. It was a smaller crowd, and there was more time to prepare this year than last year, when everything was so new. There was a funny skit about the difference between village life and city life, and it was funny to watch people laugh at their own cultural idiosyncrasies. I tried not to laugh louder than anyone else, but it was pretty amusing! I did leave before the dinner was served as I didn't want to deal with the serving of wine to children, and feel my frustration rise with how hard it is to change a cultural norm like that. I have addressed my concerns about this with my co-workers more than once, and I have been told that it is not only okay, but expected, that young children drink at celebrations. When I saw the wine being poured early in the day, I decided that I wanted to leave at the end of the program before the meal. I am living here, in this culture, and I have given information to the staff that talks about the dangers of alcohol for children specifically, beyond that I just don't know what to do. So, except for leaving early, and not fully voicing my concerns yet again, it was a good holiday party at the Center.

New Year's Eve I travelled to Orhei, to stay with Macie and Craig, Teresa and Paul for two days, returning earlier today. It was a low key couple of days. There were fireworks on and off all night on Thursday night, last night was spent watching movies and relaxing before heading back to the village today. It was a quiet and mostly uneventful celebration, but I expect that there will be more celebrating for me over the next few months as I come home and get to see all of you! I hope that 2010 brings us all health, happiness, and hopes for peace and love. I miss you all. xoxo, Jami

I hope that you all had a great Christmas, filled with lots of fun with your loved ones, everything that you wanted, and happy and peaceful times. My holiday was sort of like that, more or less. I just got back to my village after spending the last three days with about fifteen fellow volunteers. Fun, not really relaxing, but happy, fun times nonetheless. It goes without saying that I would rather have been home. It was a decent substitute, and definitely better than sitting here in the village feeling sorry for myself. There isn't much to write about this week. Lots of fellow volunteers are heading out of Moldova over the next few days for vacations: Berlin, Prague, London, Italy. You all know that I am happy that I was able to come home twice this past year, and I am counting the days until my time here is done. I am now just about over 104 days, and the days are getting longer, a little bit every single day! I love and miss you all. xoxo, Jami

It snowed all week. Everyday. Today the sun is finally out, but too quickly headed for the horizon at a little before 3 pm. There was a little snow on Tuesday, a lot on Wednesday, more on Thursday and Friday, and this morning there was another foot or two that had fallen overnight. Overall, there is probably close to four feet on the ground. Pretty, but a big, cold, pain in the patoot. Especially on the trips to the outhouse. The days will start getting longer this week, and even though I won't be able to tell for a few weeks, Spring cannot come soon enough!

Weather is the only real news this week. Work is work, my walking is pretty limited by the weather, there is no transportation out of the village for the foreseeable future, and so I am spending my free time reading, working on projects, and trying to stay warm. I'm trying hard not to think too much of all the fun, and people, I am missing, with somewhat limited success. If I can get out of the village, I am hoping to get to spend some time with other volunteers this Christmas. Last year I spent the day working, as it isn't a celebrated holiday here. This year, if the weather allows, I want to be around some celebrating Americans if I can. It might mean that I don't actually get to Skype until after Christmas, but I can't wait to hear what the holiday was like at home, so as soon as I can, I'll be in touch! Happy birthday today to my friend, Robin, and have a great week preparing for Christmas! I love and miss you all. xoxo, Jami

Gray and brown were not only the colors of the Moldovan landscape this past week, but it was a pretty accurate description for my mood earlier this past week. Everyday this week it tried to flurry, but mostly just stayed gray, drizzly, and miserable. The mud is disgusting! It was hard to come back, and for the first few days, it was hard to be here. Oh, what a difference a weekend can make!

I got back to my village on Monday afternoon, and went to work Tuesday morning. The staff had posted signs that said Welcome Back Djemi (Close enough!), and everyone seemed so happy to have me back. The kids were happy to see me, for sure. I saw Natalia on Wednesday morning, and she let me know that she would be in Stefan Voda all day Wednesday, and in Chisinau on Thursday. I let her know that I was planning to go to Chisinau on Friday. That was the extent of our exchange, and so I still don't have a clear sense of how she is feeling. I am guessing that like me, perhaps her emotions are all over the place about this lost opportunity. Just a guess, though. So, work is back to the same routine. Overall, that is a good thing.

Friday morning I was up early and in at Peace Corps first thing in the morning. I love a Peace Corps shower when there is lots and lots of hot water! I like them okay even when there is not unlimited hot water, but getting there first is great. Later in the day I met briefly with Jeffrey, our Country Director. He had read my blog from last week, so he had a better idea of where things fell apart. It was helpful for me to process the whole thing with him, and I really appreciate his support. I felt more at peace and happier about being back here after speaking with him.

The rest of the week-end was spent at a "Dirty South Party in a Northern Village". Several volunteers serving in the North: Toumil, Veronica, Neal, and some others, prepared a weekend long southern eating marathon, along with lots of fun and games. Friday evening was Tex-Mex all the way: queso, quesadillas, onion rings, fried jalapenos, fried pickles(!), all sorts of good eating. Neal, who comes to Moldova from Louisiana, prepared the Jambalaya for Saturday night. Lots of good times, laughter, and a very grateful reminder for me that it is my colleagues who understand this journey like no one else can. Thanks, guys!

Now I am back, ready for another week at work. I still don't like the gray and the mud brown, but I am in a better space. In only eight days it will be the Winter Solstice, and the days will slowly start getting longer again. YAY!! Happy birthdays this week to my niece, Adena, Michele's grandson, Ryan, my sister-in-law, Aleece, my friend, Martha, and to my niece, Emile. I love and miss you all. xoxo, Jami

Today it is almost a month since I've written, and so much has happened. I'll start at the beginning, the start of the journey home. For those of you who have heard all of this, sorry about the repeat, for everyone else, its a long story, so skip around as you want. As I've been writing for months, I have been working for months to bring my Moldovan work partner to the US for a 'field trip'. I have struggled on how to explain the vision of how services might look, what administrative practices could, or should, be put into place in the Center in the village. My language skills are not that strong, but I realized a while ago that even when I had the vocabulary to describe policies and procedures that we often take for granted, I was not always believed. There are other Residential Centers in Moldova, and most of them are learning from each other on how to improve in areas of administration, documentation, services in general. But beyond what is done here, there is little vision of how things might look with a little more structure and organization. It was, and is, a great idea. I was so excited to be able to show her how we do things. So....

Shortly after my vacation home last Spring, I began to work toward bringing Natalia to the United States. I started with finding a very reasonably priced ticket from Frankfurt, Germany, to Boston. Check. We made application and she received her visa to the United States in mid-August. Check. Around that time I began to look at ways to get to Frankfurt from Moldova, and realized that Air Moldova did not fly to Frankfurt on the day that I had the tickets from Frankfurt to Boston. We talked about options. I asked her to follow-up with the German embassy to find out about transit visas. No check. I bought the tickets from Chisinau to Frankfurt. Natalia waited until November 2 to contact the German embassy, and then felt that the application was too difficult to complete. I did not hold her hand and assure that this was completed. In hindsight, it is the place where the whole thing fell apart, and I probably should have taken control of the whole thing...We got to the airport at 3 am on the morning of 11/11 and she was denied access to the flight to Frankfurt because we were going to be there for more that 24 hours. There was an actual lay-over time of 28 hours. We went to the ticket counter and I purchased an alternate ticket for her to fly from Chisinau to Bucharest, and then from Bucharest to Frankfurt. She was scheduled to arrive at Frankfurt on 11/12 at 10:50 in the morning. Our flight was to leave Frankfurt at 12:15pm that same day. Check. Whoops....the flight from Bucharest to Frankfurt was delayed on the morning of 11/12, and was scheduled to arrive in Frankfurt at 12:30. The authorities in Bucharest denied her access to the flight to Frankfurt because she would be unable to make the connecting flight. They decided to fly her back to Chisinau. At the time, I knew none of this, except that the flight was delayed. I tried to exchange the tickets that I did have for some later the same day. Lufthansa was willing to let me purchase new tickets (at $1500 a piece!!) to fly into JFK later on 11/12. I had already paid out a lot, and to be honest, I wasn't sure where Natalia was at this point. Thank goodness I didn't go ahead and buy more tickets that would have been wasted. I flew on to Boston alone, not sure where in the world Natalia was...Bucharest, Frankfurt, Moldova???

I got home to Boston on Thursday afternoon, met by my parents, but without my Moldovan co-worker, and lots of time to try to figure out what had happened. I have had so many conflicting emotions about this whole thing. I was so excited in planning and thinking about this trip, and I think Natalia was also. I feel like I dropped the ball by not hand-holding and taking more control at every single point. I feel like Natalia didn't do the one and only thing that she needed to do to ensure that she could have this experience. I go back and forth between knowing that things happen the way that they are supposed to, and just being so disappointed that this didn't happen the way it was planned. It is hard for me to be back here now. It was a thousand times harder to leave this time, and I just want to be done. I feel like I have failed to do the good thing that I had planned, and I am frustrated in so many ways right now to be back here.

I am staying focused on the things that I am thankful for, the family and friends who have supported me in so many ways over this journey. It was a wonderful gift to be able to spend time with everyone without the time and energy that translating and entertaining would have expended. Even though I feel like I have let so many people down by not seeing this to the point of fruition, I know I gave it my best shot. The good news is that Natalia still has a good amount of time left on her US visa, and I am still interested in hosting her at some point in the future. At this point, it will be up to her to see if it happens.

So that's the story of the past month. It is disappointing, and a little sad, but it was a wonderful vacation. One hundred and twenty-three days to go....I love and miss you all. xoxo, Jami

I had a fun week, and still I cannot wait to be home. This past week Lidia was at a conference away from the village. She asked me if I would stay here and cook for Ion, and I politely declined. The women that I work with could not understand why I wouldn't want to do this, and how he would be able to survive without a woman cooking for him all week. I do miss cooking and baking sometimes, but really, I don't want to get into doing that while she is away. I have known about her not being here for a month or so, and I had made plans to visit other volunteers. This was the week to visit, and I really did have a good time. I met with my English club students last Monday afternoon, and headed out at 5 am on Tuesday morning.

My first stop, after stopping in at the Peace Corps office for a nice hot shower, was to the city of Balti, in the north. I was there for two days, visiting with Cristine, Marilyn and David. It is a really nice city, much smaller and more accessible than Chisinau, but with everything within an easy walking distance of the downtown area. I spent both nights with Cristine. She has a great little apartment in the center of town, and she is a really great hostess. Wednesday morning there was a dusting of snow on the ground, and it was pretty cold outside most of the time that I was there. I did walk around the piata and went into some shops, and just visited and had a great time. Thursday morning I took a rutiera back to Chisinau, and in the late afternoon I headed to Orhei to stay with Craig and Macie. Good food, good beer, good conversation...fun times! Friday it was on to Teresa's for the night, and then last night back to the village for my final few days before we leave! A lot of running around, and a good time to visit with other volunteers and hear about what all they are doing in their communities.

This week has also brought about serious concerns about the swine flu around Moldova. When I left my village on Tuesday morning, I had not heard much about it locally. When I arrived back in Chisinau from Balti on Thursday afternoon there were people all over town wearing masks! The schools are closed next week, and when I arrived back in the village last night, Lidia told me that she had been home since Thursday because her seminar was cancelled at that time due to concerns about the flu. I have not heard of any quarantines, and this scare had better not interfere with my plans to come home!! I am a little worried about it, since there does seem to be a fair amount of panic, at least in the capitol, about it. The Ukraine apparently is limiting land travel in and out of the country, but I don't believe they have limited air traffic, and I have not heard of Moldova instituting anything yet...I'm keeping my fingers crossed.

This morning I went to work, and not long after arriving there, I was told that there is no gas service to the village right now. This just happened this morning, and apparently there will be no gas for about a week. It is inconvenient, but not not too bad, really. The house is heated with wood, there is still electric service so I can use the computer, and the electric tea kettle. All is good in the world! I am now down to counting the hours!! I love and miss you all. xoxo, Jami

Today is the first day of November. Yay!! I'll be home in less than two weeks for a visit!! Today there were flurries in the air, and it is cold and damp. The days are shorter than ever. Having moved the clocks back last weekend, this week the days have seemed to be over almost before they begin. This week seemed even shorter, and the time went by quickly, as there was a training in Chisinau on Thursday and Friday, and I just returned back to the village a few hours ago. It is dark here already at 5:30.

The training brought together all of the volunteers from our group, the 22's, along with volunteers from the most recent group, the 24's. Coincidentally, there are 22 of us still here from our group, and we have not all been in the same place at the same time since last January, at an earlier training. It was nice to connect with so many great people. Even though we all split into our usual peer groups for evening activities, the daytime training time was shared time, and lots of fun. It was good to hear of all the good work that people are doing, and a pretty inspiring couple of days.

There isn't much time left before I come home, and I am so, so ready. I have been packed for weeks, and now there is just the waiting. This week it is school vacation week in Moldova, so I am planning a trip to the city of Balti, in the northern part of Moldova for a few days. It will help to pass the time as I am now down to counting the hours until I am home. Happy birthday yesterday to my son-in-law, Joe, and happy first anniversary this week to Linnea and Joe. May you have many happy years together. I miss you all! xoxo, Jami

Yesterday I took a day off and went into the capitol. It was nice to get out of the village, and it had been almost a month since I have been in the "big city." It was a good day. Sort of low key, since there weren't a lot of people around, but it felt good to be out of the village for at least a little while. I spent the night last night with Teresa and Jenna, eating enchiladas and watching this weeks Grey's Anatomy. Fun!

The week has been like most others, a little slow in the day to day routine, but busy enough in the everyday routine that I have become accustomed to. On Tuesday we had some visitors to the Center from Smaland, in the south part of Sweden. They were visiting to look at projects to fund in Moldova. My brain was working over-time to think in Romanian, try to remember my Swedish, all while translating in my head what was being said into English. Whew! Other than that, and the big countdown, there isn't much to write about.

It is a big birthday week, and best wishes go out to my nephews, Daniel and James, my friends Adrienne and Helen. Have great celebrations! It was nice to talk to my parents and my grandmother this week. I'll be home in less that three weeks! I can't wait to see you all! xoxo, Jami

That's what I am: bored and cold. Its been a rainy, damp week here in the village. I am anxious to be home. There is nothing new, except that I am cold....since early last week we have finally gotten into some colder weather. That is to be expected for mid-October, but the rain that has accompanied the colder weather has made it damp and really sort of miserable.

I have finished some projects in good time for coming home, and I am not interested in starting on new projects so close to leaving for almost a month. I'm glad that I have tied up these loose ends, and I am ready to head out of here. I am thinking that coming back this time will probably be a lot harder for me than when I was home in the Spring. At least there will only be a few (cold) months left to serve. I think I can, I think I can, I think I can....

It was great to speak with my parents this week, and I just talked to my nephew, Stephen, who will be flying home from Chicago on Monday. I can't wait to see him, and everyone! Safe travels this week to Linnea and Joe, Kim and Mike and all others out there on the roads...see you all in less than a month!! I miss you all. xoxo, Jami

Here it is, another week-end, and another week closer to home! This past week has been typically quiet, with not much going on. Yesterday was Winefest in Chisinau, but I am saving money for the trip home, and decided that this trip was not in my budget. I think this is an event that most of the volunteers try to attend, so I was a little sad not to see everyone and spend some time together. I know it won't matter in the long run, and the weather was not great, so it is just as well that I stayed in the village for another week-end.

I forgot to write about it last Sunday, but last Saturday another one of the volunteers from this part of the country hosted a raion (county) party. There were four of us women: Alex, the hostess, me, Jen, and Janie. Jon joined us for dinner, but only the females spent the night at Alex's. Italian food was on the menu: gnocchi, garlic bread, spaghetti. It was a nice time, and the highlight of the week. Other than that little jaunt last week-end, not much else to write about.

I was so glad to talk with my grandmother on Thursday for her birthday, and birthday wishes go out this week to Betsy. Thirty-two days until I land in Boston!!! I miss you all. xoxo, Jami

This past week has been a busy one. Last weekend my friend Na'Ima came for a visit. We had a great time, and it was really nice to show her around. She was here until first thing Monday morning, leaving on the 5 am bus to Chisinau. On Sunday evening we were sitting in my room, and there seemed to be an awful lot of activity at the house. We were mostly in my room, so I was only peripherally aware of this, but there seemed to be something different going on. Early Monday morning, just after Na'Ima left, Lidia was up and told me that Sunday evening her 21 year old nephew, the brother to the bride of a few weeks ago, had died the night before in an accident in the village. His head hit a tree. That was all she was able to say about it, and I didn't feel comfortable asking for more information. It was too personal, and she was too sad. She spent all evening on Monday helping her sister-in-law prepare the body, and prepare food for the services which took place on Tuesday. It was very sad around here all week.

Tuesday I had already planned to go into Chisinau for a birthday celebration for Teresa's 30th birthday. There were five of us who gathered for this celebration, me, Teresa, Jen, Jenna, and Veronica. We had a very nice lunch, and it was great to see everyone. I had just purchased the tickets for the flight from Chisinau to Frankfurt, and I was feeling so good that this was finally taken care of. The economy is stronger, the dollar and Euro are stronger, and the exchange rate was not as favorable for me as it was last Spring. The price in Euros was the same, but the heightened exchange rate made it a pricier purchase than I was hoping to have to deal with. Still, they are purchased and we will be on our way in less than forty days!!! When I got back to the village on Tuesday afternoon the funeral services and gathering was going on at the home of Lidia's sister and brother-in-law. I had some quiet time at the house, called my parents and told them that the tickets are all purchased, sent some emails, enjoyed the time alone.

The rest of the week was back to the routine: work, walk, read...not much else new this week. It was still a sad week for the family here, and a happy week for me, knowing that everything is now in place for my visit home. Happy birthday this Thursday to my Grandmother, whom I love and miss soooo much. Best of luck to my friend Kim as she gathers support for her petition to keep her community Post Office open on Bailey Island. I miss you all. xoxo, Jami

This has been the week for gathering walnuts and grapes, making wine, and preparing the last of the produce for Winter eating. Along all of the major roads, the ones that I travel between here and Chisinau at least, are walnut trees. In this village, many people go out along the road and gather walnuts for the winter. They carry long sticks to hit the branches, and then open the green shell and take the nuts, place them in very large bags, and load their bikes with a bag or two. There was one family who showed up with their car to load, but it has been my observation that most people only gather as much as they can manage to carry back home. They can, however, carry a lot. I am surprised that there are any nuts left at all, but I just came back from my walk, and there were still some people out there. Lots and lots of walnuts.

As many walnuts as there are, there are surely more grapes here. Last week and this week has been grape harvest, and wine-making in earnest. At every home there are wooden barrels, thousands of bees, and lots and lots and lots of wine. Unfortunately, there are also more than the usual number of inebriated men in the village. Apparently, tasting is the best part of wine making, and the more you taste the better it is! It is a source of familial competition, but after a pahar (glass) or two, everyone here agrees that it is all good, and that Moldovan wine is the best in the world. No comment. I did try the musty juice, just before it is fermented, and its got some funky taste going on. Its hard to describe, and not really bad, but very different.

That's the news on the home front. Work has been good, with the exception of all the kids, and now me, getting sick. The changing temperatures, cool in the mornings and evenings, and warm in the afternoon is part of it, but I don't believe that upper respiratory infections are caused by changes in the weather. Yesterday I took a day at home, did wash, and then slept most of the afternoon. I feel so much better today. I did talk to the doctor, and will see her next week when I go into Chisinau to buy the plane tickets to Frankfurt. Yippee! It will be good to have that task done and paid for. Safe travels this week for Linnea and Joe as they travel to Maine and New Hampshire, and thank you to whomever has sent me a package! I love getting packages! I received an email from Peace Corps that I have a package, but they don't tell you from whom, so thank you in advance. I really can't wait for Tuesday, and my trip to the capitol...all sorts of good things await me there! Anyway, that's all folks! I miss you all. xoxo, Jami

There was really nothing extraordinary about this past week, and still, it was a pretty good week. The weather has been great, for one thing. There have been some occasional rain showers in the evenings, but cool mornings and evenings, and warm, almost hot, comfortable days. It has been just beautiful weather for walking, for being out and enjoying nature, and for playing with the kids. I'm enjoying it while it lasts, that's for sure.

Tuesday morning I went with the kids and another staff person on a long walk over to the vineyards at Purcari. This is one of the most famous and best vineyards in all of Moldova. We got to see the grapes being picked, loaded into wagons attached to tractors, and then moved from the wagons into larger trucks which then were loaded to take the grapes into the factory where they actually make the wine. The workers were happy to show the children the grapes, we ate as many of them as we could manage, and while they didn't stomp the grapes with bare feet, they did wear rubber boots when trampling the grapes in moving them from one wagon into another. At the end of the visit, one of the workers gave us a ride back to the Center in an open horse drawn wagon, and gave us lots and lots of watermelon to eat later! Yum!

Wednesday brought the Peace Corps staff, my program manager and the assistant program manager, to the Center for a site visit. It was pretty benign, neither good nor bad, just one of those things that needs to be done. The nice thing for me was that I made a spontaneous decision to return with them to Chisinau. A free trip is always nice. I wasn't sure that I would be able to run all of my errands and make it back on the last bus, so I checked with friends in the town of Orhei, Macie and Craig, to see if they could be a back-up plan. Macie enthusiastically invited me for Thai curry chicken dinner. It turns out that I almost could have made the 5 pm bus back to the village, but knowing that there was a good dinner and time with friends, the desire to stay overnight was stronger than any desire to rush back. After all, its been over a month since I have been in the capitol. Thursday I visited briefly with Peace Corps staff, got my B12 shot, and headed back in the afternoon. Friday was more working, walking, enjoying the nice weather, and a call from Jen, who is the new volunteer in the village two towns away. We made plans to meet yesterday in Stefan Voda, and had a good time there. We visited the piata, ate some (not very good) pizza, and came back here in the afternoon. Last evening we just watched movies, made hot chocolate, visited. It was low key and very nice. The whole week was sort of low key and very nice. Now, if I could only have spent it with all of you, it would have been perfect. Happy birthday this week to Bob and Donna, and happy anniversary to John and Melba (56 years for my in-laws, Wow!) I miss you all. xoxo, Jami

I like September. I know what's coming, and I like it anyway. The cold, short, shallow days are in sight, I know. Still, this time of year has always been a favorite of mine. Cooler, and as crisp as a fresh apple, the air warms throughout the day, bringing memories of the summer that has just past. This past week in the village has been one like so many others. After the soaking rain of last weekend, this week has recovered nicely weather-wise. Work and life is at a steady pace. This past week, another volunteer, Jenna, took the bus to come see me and do a presentation for the staff at the Center on basic computer skills, reviewing Word and Excel for staff. She did a great job, and it was so appreciated, by both me, and the entire staff who participated.

Yesterday I got a call from the new volunteer, Jen, in the neighboring village. She came into my village this morning at 6 am with her host family to sell the pig that they butchered yesterday. It was nice to see her, and we made plans to travel into Stefan Voda next Saturday to spend the day together. It's nice to have some English-speaking time once in a while! I am so glad that I don't have that butchering thing to deal with. It is enough for me to deal with the chickens. Thank goodness we don't have pigs or cows here at the house. It's enough to make me a vegetarian!

Also yesterday, Lidia and Ion, my host family, went into Chisinau for a big wedding for their niece. They arrived back at home this morning around 7:30 am, and we are preparing for round two. I am excited, as I have not yet attended a Moldovan wedding. The event yesterday was the "modern" wedding. Held in a restaurant in Chisinau, and an expensive event, today's festivities are considered to be the "traditional" wedding celebration. Lidia has spent much of the past week with her female relatives preparing food. Everything will be home-made. No store bought food at this masa. This party is for those who could not travel to Chisinau yesterday, or for the closest of family who have been invited to both events. It is nice to be included today, and it was really nice to have the house to myself for a few hours yesterday. So far the week is shaping up nicely.

There isn't much else new. Yesterday was a sad memory day, but I had lots and lots to do (relatively speaking), and it passed, as they always do, with just a little prayer for what might have been. As always, I am counting the days until I come home. It is now just over 60 days. I miss you all. xoxo, Jami

Labor Day here is celebrated on May 1st, but for my friends and family today is Labor Day. It is the unofficial last day of Summer, a day for picnics and parades and family gatherings. Here, today, it is too cold for a picnic. There is still watermelon on the menu daily, and the grapes are ripe on the vine, but all week-end it has been rainy, cold and miserable. The weather feels more like November than September. Since I'll be home in November, I'm gonna just let myself pretend for a bit that it IS November. Soon enough. Or not really soon enough, but only 63 days, and counting.

In an effort to save as much money as possible toward the last purchase of tickets, and because there is no real reason to travel to the capitol, I have been in the village for the past month. It is a quiet life, but busy with harvesting activities. My work at the Center is consistent and productive. There have been fewer kids and elderly folks staying there these past few weeks and the pace has been slow and easy. This past Tuesday, September 1st, was the first day of school in Moldova. At my village school they had a very sweet ceremony on the first day. It included the usual flowers and speeches that I've become accustomed to, but there was also a part of the ceremony that had the young adults of the 12th form escorting the youngest children entering school for the first time, through the village and into the school courtyard before the ceremony began. These "seniors" have a responsibility throughout the year for the two youngsters, one in each hand, that they escorted this first day of school to see that they are adjusting well, making progress, not getting picked on. Really, very nice. I'm so glad that this year I remembered my camera. Some of you saw my pictures of the graduation ceremony last year at this school, but this first day of school is much different. There is a seriousness and a solemnity to the first day of school that was replaced at the graduation ceremony with joyous over-dress and a sense of completion. Of the two ceremonies that I've been privileged to witness, if I had to pick a favorite, it would be the first day of school over graduation. Hands down.

So, other than the first day of school, the weather, and counting down the days, there isn't too much new. My good friend, Teresa, just left after a long weekend visit. We worked on, and finished making a movie of my pictures so that I have it for presentations if needed when I come home. I tried to limit it to less than 10 minutes so I could put it on YouTube, but I just have too many pictures that I wanted to include and it ended up being a little over 12 minutes. It's not great, but it's something new that I've learned how to do, and I'm proud of that. It was great having her company and a productive weekend. Thanks for the mail, snail and email, and the phone calls. I miss you all. xoxo, Jami

Today is the last day in August. Here it is a holiday, Limba Noastra, "Our Language" day. In 1989, on this date, Moldovan/Romanian was officially declared the national language. Still, there are lots and lots of people in Moldova who primarily speak Russian. Also, this past Thursday was Moldovan independence day. Its been a five-day week-end. Funny thing though, almost everyday here feels like a week-end. I go to work everyday that I am in the village, which has been most of this month, but the pace of life here is so slow and uneventful that the time moves forward without any real sense of weekday versus weekend.

This past week it was mostly very hot and sunny. Last night we had thundershowers and it has been raining all day today. It is also about 20* cooler than it has been.

For all of my friends who have children starting kindergarten: Melissa with Meredith, Jami with Anna, Alicia with Cam, and Kirsten with Kate, relax and enjoy! All the rest of you starting back to school, or sending kids off for their first day this week, enjoy as well! It is a good new beginning! Schools in Moldova start tomorrow, so there is busy-ness here, as well. Happy birthday this week to my mother-in-law! I miss you all. xoxo, Jami

Today it is eighteen months since we first met as a group in Philadelphia to begin this Peace Corps journey. There were 29 of us in our group, now there are 22. Two volunteers left for medical care, and the other five for personal reasons. Those of us who remain are probably here until the end, although unforeseen circumstances could change that in a minute for anyone of us. It feels sort of amazing to have made it this far, and the countdown to the end is in sight.

In the meantime, there is the trip home in November. Planning is going well. I have given Natalia the task of contacting the German embassy to find information about transit visas. It was sort of a cop-out on my part, as the information on the German Embassy page was in German and Romanian. I figured she would be able to get the most accurate information from them. From what she shared after speaking with them is that it is a pretty simple and relatively cheap thing to get now that she has her visa for America. She needs to show up at the Embassy with all of her documents, including her American visa, proof of purchase of round-trip tickets, pay the nominal fee, and then we really will be good to go. I will be purchasing the Chisinau to Frankfort tickets early in October, and then we will get the transit visa. We are moving along. In researching all the options, it really is not only easier, but also probably cheaper to fly in and out of Chisinau. If we take a bus to Bucharest, or from Romania through eastern Europe to Germany, Natalia will have to secure transit visas, and pay a fee for each of them, for every country that we pass through. Traveling in and out of Chisinau will certainly be easier. So as soon as I get back into Chisinau I will get the tickets and start counting down for November!

Other than that there isn't much new. I haven't been to Chisinau in a while, and I have no plans in the foreseeable future to go there. It is a quiet end of Summer time. Work is good. Crops are being harvested, preserving of fruits and vegetables is going full force all over the village, kids are getting ready to go back to school. Life is good. Happy birthday today to my nephew, Ahren. I miss you all. xoxo, Jami

Back in June I found a really great price on tickets from Frankfort to Boston. I bought them when I found them, hoping that everything would work out, and so far it has. Natalia has her visa, and plans are shaping up nicely for our activities. Now I just have to figure out how to get us to Frankfort. This is not as easy as it sounds, at least for Natalia. On the day we are planning to leave, there is no direct flight from Chisinau to Frankfort. We can fly the day before, and be in Frankfort overnight. She will need a German transit visa to do that, and she might need one in every instance, as we clear customs before we get on the Lufthansa flight to Boston. We can fly from Odessa through Istanbul, but this is an expensive and long way to get there. Equally long, but much cheaper, is to take a bus, or maybe a flight out of Bucharest. The problem might be in getting the transit visa through Romania, and again in Frankfort. It is a challenging process for Moldovans to get visas into Romania, as it is now in the EU and the gateway to other European countries. I am working on it, and its sort of fun to try to figure out what to do next to get us across the continent. I know from when I flew home before that it costs as much to fly from Chisinau to Frankfort as it does to fly from Frankfort to the US. Crazy!

Other than the field trip planning activities, I am enjoying these last few weeks of Summer. The weather has been warm and sunny, the grapes are ripening, work is good and fun, and I am settled into village life. I am content, but still counting down the days to November 12. I miss you all! xoxo, Jami

The good news is that Natalia's visa to visit the United States with me has been approved! Since writing last Sunday, I spent last week working at the Center. On Friday, I was scheduled to go into Chisinau for a meeting for the mentors. The new trainees officially became volunteers on Saturday morning. That is an exciting time for them, and they have now moved to their sites where they will live for the next two years. Sunday I stayed in Chisinau, as Natalia and I were scheduled to go to the US Embassy on Monday morning. We met at the Peace Corps office and went to the Embassy together, but I was not permitted to join her for the interview. I was nervous about how it would go, but yesterday afternoon she picked up her passport and the visa was approved! Now I feel like I can begin planning in earnest. We are scheduled to come into Boston on 11/12...90 days from today! I can hardly wait.

There isn't too much else going on. I have one more trip into the capitol this Saturday, and then I think I will be in the village for the rest of the month. There is a lot of work to do here this time of year. My work at the Center is fairly consistent, but there is much more to help with around the house...grapes and tomatoes to pick, pickles to make, all sorts of work.

Happy birthday this week to my friend, Bob, and my nephew Dustin. The summer is going past quickly, enjoy it! I love and miss you all. xoxo, Jami

Well, I have to start by saying that I am a little frustrated right now with my computer. I just updated to Explorer version 9, and for some reason I am no longer able to cut and paste from other sources into this blog. I am sure it is probably just some setting that needs to be readjusted, or this blog added to something so that I can paste into it, but in any event, it makes it a little more complicated to put stuff in here from other sources. I always cite the original source, except once with a picture, but until I figure this out, you will only be reading what I am writing. The reason this is so annoying right now, is because this whole election thing is sort of confusing. Added to that, I am really trying not to get involved, or even care a whole lot about the outcome, although I do care greatly about the process.

The elections were held this past Wednesday, July 29. The election was well supervised and there were no riots or problems during or after the voting. There are still some alliances that will need to be formulated to elect a President and the Speaker of Parliament. The important thing to remember is that this time things were done without rioting, without loss of life, and hopefully this country can move forward in peace. I think I have taken for granted the smooth transition of power, more or less, with the exception of the election in 2000, and the confusion in Florida at that time. Still and all, we do seem to manage to move forward more quickly, and with more consistency than has been the process here this year.

Other than the election, the only other thing going on besides work, and my usual daily routine, is working on getting my partner to the US for our visit in November. We have completed her visa application, and are scheduled for an interview at the Embassy next week. It is a lot of little detail stuff, and a fair amount of big bureaucracy stuff, but we are wading through it okay. I anticipate that we will know about the visa by mid-week next week.

Work has been fun this summer. I really am enjoying my time with the residents so much. Everyday that I am here in the village I go to work, usually for about 4-6 hours every morning. Right now there is a young teenage mother and her infant girl staying there, along with two little boys who have been there since January, and three little girls. There are also 2 elderly women, and a middle aged man who is a veteran of the war in Afghanistan. He is also a stroke victim. During the day there are also a few, anywhere from 2-6, other kids who come between 9-4 or 10-4. It's busy, and lots of fun. I am glad to at least have enough communication skills to be able to talk to a kid! As I have said before, I can get everything I need, even if I don't always get exactly what I want.

Other than that, there isn't too much that is new. The days are getting shorter, and I am trying not to think about the coming winter, except in terms of my visit home. Its what keeps me going. I miss you all. xoxo, Jami

I love motorcycles. I have loved them since taking my first ride many, many years ago. There really is nothing quite like the feeling you have on a motorcycle: the wind, the rush, the paying attention to the road in a new way. Amazing.

It's a firm and emphatic rule of Peace Corps that for safety reasons we are not allowed to ride on, or operate motor vehicles (except tractors with special permission). That's a pretty good rule, given the roads and the drivers here, and probably in most of the countries where volunteers are serving. I love them anyway, knowing that they are so unsafe, and a risk. I always follow the rules. The heat the past few days has been so oppressive that it has been almost unbearable. A nice ride would be welcome. Over the past few days I have seen even more motorcycles than usual, or maybe I am just more attuned to them. Either way, I have seen some amazing things related to motorcycles over the past year, so I thought I would write about some of them now.

There are mostly Russian motorcycles here, and for practical reasons almost all of them are equipped with a side car. They are often the only means of motorized transportation that a family might have. Last summer I saw a motorcycle with a side car transporting seven people!!There were four in the side car and three on the motorcycle. Earlier this week, in the big heat, I saw a young family riding a scooter. Not really a motorcycle but a scooter. The father was driving, one preschool aged child standing on the running board, and a second toddler wedged between her father and her very pregnant mother! Four on a scooter! I haven't written about this kind of sighting for quite a while, because in some ways I am now more accustomed to seeing this kind of craziness. The heat this week helped me to observe this kind of activity in a way that I did at the very beginning of my time in the village, but now seems ordinary. That is my observation for the week.

The heat has been very bad all week, but finally broke last night with a big thunderstorm and lots of rain. The temperature has been above 40* Celsius all week, but today is in the 30*s. It's much nicer today. The upcoming elections will be held this week, on Wednesday. We'll see what the outcome brings for Moldova. Our Peace Corps staff have said that they are not anticipating the trouble that occurred here in April, but really, anything can happen, and we have to be extra careful with our reporting if we leave our villages for any reason.

There isn't much else to write about. This is a big birthday week at home, so I am sending out special birthday wishes to Nick, Michele and Steve, Ginny Z., Stephen, and my beautiful daughter Linnea. I wish I was home to celebrate in person. I miss you all. xoxo, Jami

It's now the middle of Summer, and the weather has been REALLY hot. I'm not complaining, merely stating the fact. The temperature has been in the 90's for most of July, and for sure all weekend. It is the way Summer should be. Last year we had the rain and flooding that seems to have landed in Maine and New Hampshire this year. The only time that I struggle with this warm weather is on a very slow moving bus, over-crowded trolley, or any other mode of public transportation. I love contact with people, I just prefer a little more space, deodorant, and maybe even air conditioning. Adding to the discomfort is the belief held by many people here that windows should not be opened near small children as the "current" will make the children ill. Since I have not heard much about children getting ear infections here, there may be some truth to the superstition. It does, however, make an already hot journey even hotter.

So, weather is the big news this week. Work is going well. My days are spent working, walking, reading. The kids are so cute, and I really enjoy what I am doing. That is good. I really thought that as a Community and Organizational Development volunteer, that I would probably focus on more macro kinds of change. I have found the greatest contentment in the littlest kids, and the littlest changes. I still know I am making positive changes in my life and the lives of others, and at the end of the day, isn't that really the best reward?

This past weekend was another trip to the training house in Ialoveni for a gathering of the chronologically advanced volunteers. We call ourselves the "Old Farts", and we have a couple of "Geezer groupies". The "groupies" aren't old enough to qualify as OF's but we like them and invite them to join with us for whatever the group gets together to do. The monthly events usually involve a fair amount of eating and imbibing in adult beverages, and Saturday was no exception. Jen prepared a great dinner, there were adult beverages, and we had some of the new trainees join us. Lynn and Jen are finishing their service at the end of this month. Jen will be heading home and hopefully moving into a job in Washington, DC. Lynn is planning to spend the rest of the Summer in Budapest before returning to California. Macie, Craig, Pan and I are the representatives of our group, and there are six or seven adults in the new group of trainees who might at some point want to be included as an Old Fart. There aren't many of us, but its nice to have a peer group. Now I think I am done with the traveling for a while. We'll see, as something always seems to come up.

So that's the news from another week. I am looking forward to coming home with Natalia in November. I know we'll be busy, but I can't wait to see everyone. I miss you all. xoxo, Jami

Summertime, and the living is easy. There isn't even much to write about this week. My daily routine has become just that, routine. Work, walk, read, walk, work, read. Village life is slow. Last week I was here in the village Monday through Wednesday. Thursday and Friday were spent in Ialoveni with the trainees, providing insight as a part of a panel discussion. It really is a highlight to be able to reflect back and share experiences, provide some support and guidance to the trainees. Saturday and yesterday were spent back here, and I'll be here until the weekend. There's really not much new, but I wanted to say hi and let you all know that I am still out here counting my time and experiences.

There is some big Moldovan election news: The elections have been re-scheduled for July 29th. I have heard many people in the village voice complaints about a mid-week election. For people living out of town, but who are registered to vote in the village, this means missing a day, or possibly two days of work. This mainly affects young voters, and there is some belief that the date was purposely set for mid-week to sway the outcome. After the upheaval following the April elections, there is concern about the results of this process, and the potential for additional rioting. There is little concern for that in the villages, and the only way it may affect us is that we may be restricted from travel to and from the capital, as we were in April.

Birthday greetings this week to Jonny and to my sister, Julianne. You'll never be as old as me! I miss you all. xoxo, Jami

Okay, really Romania is not much like Rome. In fact, the cities that we just visited are more German than Roman, I'm not Audrey Hepburn, and there was no Gregory Peck in sight, but what a great vacation!

It's been a while since I've written, and its been a busy and fun summer so far. The mid-summer week-end was spent in Orhei and Chişinău, mentoring the new volunteers, showing them around the city. It was a long, hot day, and week, before vacation. Work continues to go well, and I enjoy spending time with the kids so much. We have been playing a lot of water games in this heat and that has helped to cool off the hottest times of the day. All week I was at work, but really spending a lot of time thinking about my upcoming vacation. Some things are the same no matter where you live or what work you are doing!

Last Saturday Teresa and I left Chişinău on the only bus that goes to Braşov. The bus leaves at 7 pm and arrives around 3:30 am. Fortunately, we were meeting one of Teresa's friends, who was already in a hotel room, so we only had to get there and settle in for a few hours sleep. It was uncomplicated but tiring. Braşov is a very pretty city, set against the side of Mt. Tampa in Transylvania. The area was settled by Germans in the late 1400-1700's. (I guess they didn't all go to Berks County!). While the topography reminded me a little of Jackson Hole, WY, with ski slopes coming down right into town, most of the architecture was reminiscent of colonial Philadelphia. The German name for Braşov is Kronstadt. Of the three towns that we visited, it was by far the most cosmopolitan, and international. There were lots of tourists and students, and most people seemed to be able to speak English. Our Romanian was appreciated and understood, so that was cool, too. Teresa friend, Glenda, was with us for the five day vacation, and was a good addition. On Sunday afternoon, we hired a driver and went to see two different castles. The first one we went to was at Peleş, in the town of Sinaia. This castle was built in the late 1880's and is a little froo-froo, with fancy Rococco work, lots and lots of stained glass. Its very pretty, and looks like a fairyland castle.

It was the end of the day, but we found time to also visit Bran castle. This is the legendary home of Vlad Ţepeş, the inspiration for Bram Stokers' Dracula. It is a much different castle, and more impressive to me. It is more fortified and stark, and not a bit spooky. There are lots and lots of little nooks and crannies and places to explore. It is older, from the 1400's, and feels more like a fort than a castle. We were a little rushed going through, as it was late in the day. I do think we saw everything, and it was an impressive place. Just outside the entrance there were the usual tacky touristy kinds of shops. I didn't buy any vampire stuff although I had lots and lots of opportunity to. If you really want a tacky tee shirt, you'll have to go there to get one yourself. Its a place that I would recommend, if not for the souvenirs. After visiting the two castles, we also drove past the fort at Raştov. By this time it was after 8 pm, and this fort was closed. We did see it from the road, but didn't make a trip back to see it later in the week.

Monday morning we walked around downtown Braşov and just acted like the tourists that we were. It was fun. A nice lunch, some shopping for postcards and then on the train for Sibiu. What an awesome place. I'll bet most people haven't heard of it, but it is just such a pretty, quaint (I don't like that word, but I can't think of a better way to describe it) town. It is mid-sized, with three large open squares in the center of the old city. Again, the architecture is German, from the same period. The German name for the town is Hermannstadt, and there seemed to be mostly German tourists in the town. Many shops and restaurants seemed to be able to provide some German speaking staff. Glenda had lived in Germany for a few years, so she was able to converse here in German, along with our Romanian, so we were in good shape. We were here for Monday night and Tuesday, and I could easily have stayed longer. It was that pretty. Beautiful churches and museums, clean and friendly: It felt like a real vacation! Tuesday we spent the day just exploring and enjoying this city.

Wednesday morning, back on the train, this time to Sigişoara. Also German, known in German as Schassburg, it is the birthplace of Vlad Ţepeş. It was by far the smallest, most touristy, and dirtiest of the three towns that we visited. There is a small central square inside the walled part of the old city, with churches and a historic clock tower, but not a whole lot else. There are lots and lots of ticky-tacky Dracula gifts. Again, I didn't bite. (Sorry, I couldn't resist...!) We got to Sigişoara in the late morning, and by dinner time we were making plans to go back to Braşov earlier than originally planned on Thursday morning, which is what we ended up doing. Thursday Teresa and I spent the day in Braşov again, while Glenda went on to Bucharest to catch her plane home. There is a really cool gondola car which goes up the side of Mt. Tampa and a little hike at the top of the mountain. There is a big"Hollywood" kind of sign (it says Braşov, not Hollywood, of course) on the top of the mountain. We went up there and had a great view of the city. We had ice cream and coffee, and then we got back on the bus at 7 pm to come back to Moldova.

The ride back was prettier than the ride going to Romania, mostly because the evening hours when we were awake and able to see the countryside was spent driving up and down through hairpin turns as we left the Carpathians. It was a pretty sunset and really picturesque, and just a tiny bit scary. The only funny thing to happen was the bus driver stopping at the "Valley of Trousers" (written in English!) for about half an hour to go buy some pants, leaving us all waiting for him. Coming from Moldova, this is not at all surprising, but cracked me up anyway, as it is considered an "International" journey! Through many of the villages signs were written in Romanian, German and Hungarian. It was truly an international adventure and so much fun!

Friday and yesterday were spent in Chişinău, with the big US Embassy party last night to celebrate the Fourth of July. It was a good time, with hot dogs, hamburgers and potato salad. There were no fireworks, but still lots and lots of fun, with almost all of the volunteers attending, along with lots of other Americans and Moldovans. Now I am back in the village, catching up on all that I've missed here. Its back to work tomorrow morning, and I'm looking forward to getting back into my routine.

I hope everyone had a safe and happy holiday. Thank you Mom and Dad, Linnea and Joe for more packages! I miss you all. xoxo, Jami

The Sun

by Mary Oliver

Have you ever seen

anything

in your life

more wonderful

than the way the sun,

every evening,

relaxed and easy,

floats toward the horizon

and into the clouds or the hills,

or the rumpled sea,

and is gone--

and how it slides again

out of the blackness,

every morning,

on the other side of the world,

like a red flower

streaming upward on its heavenly oils,

say, on a morning in early summer,

at its perfect imperial distance--

and have you ever felt for anything

such wild love--

do you think there is anywhere, in any language,

a word billowing enough

for the pleasure

that fills you,

as the sun

reaches out,

as it warms you

as you stand there,

empty-handed--

or have you too

turned from this world--

or have you too

gone crazy

for power,

for things?

Happy Midsummer. Happy birthday John. Happy Father's Day this Sunday, not last, as I had thought. I miss you all. xoxo, Jami

Here it is, the middle of June. The very best time of year. Plus, its my birthday! Yippee! This year it was mostly a quiet day, after five days in Chişinău with the new trainees. That was a lot of fun, filled with busy days and late nights. Wednesday and Thursday were spent shopping for small gifts, preparing events and activities, making signs to hold up at the airport. Fun stuff, but nothing too taxing.

Thursday evening the trainees arrived. Tired, excited, overwhelmed. All of us "seasoned" volunteers spent time remembering how it was for each of us as we entered this service, and this different culture. We spent a lot of time talking about how the past year and few months has changed us, and brought a different perspective to how we view ourselves and others. For me, it was a reminder of the reasons that I wanted to do this work in the first place: the enthusiasm, the pride, the belief that one person really can make a difference. It was good for me to remember.

Thursday night after getting settled there was pizza and a little time out on the town. I met Jon and passed on the greetings from his family. He gave me a big hug and literally lifted me up off my feet! What a nice young man, one who will be learning Russian instead of Romanian. It is always good to have Russian-speaking friends! Friday and yesterday were spent moving people and luggage from one location to another, organizing meals out on the town in Chişinău, buying forgotten items for the trainees, and again, late nights. Yesterday evening by 6 pm, all of the new trainees were moved from Chişinău into their training villages. Last night it was dinner with five other volunteers and then an early evening. This morning I picked up my three (!!!) packages, sat on the bus for three hours, and now I am relaxing and catching up on all that I missed here in my village. Tomorrow it is back to work.

Thank you all for the birthday wishes, especially thanks to my Mom and Dad, Linnea and Joe, Kim, Mike and Bob for the packages. Thank you all who have already made donations for my special project. It means so much for the future of the work here. I have so much to be grateful for. Happy Fahter's Day to my Dad, my brother, Nick, Joe and all my friends to whom this applies. Special thoughts this week for my friend and fellow volunteer, Justin, as he is being sent to Washington for some testing tomorrow morning. This week should be back to the quiet routine of village life. As I have learned, there really is no routine to village life, although it is usually a quiet life. I miss you all. xoxo, Jami

It feels good to be busy. I am not busy in the way that I was busy at home, but I am busy this week in my Peace Corps life. This is the week that the new trainees come into town, and there is a fair amount of preparation for all of us to do to make them feel welcome. It feels good to be a part of this effort. Teresa has really assumed the position of being the lead organizer from the volunteer perspective, and she has done a great job. Now there are just last minute details before the "newbies" arrive on Thursday evening.

This past weekend I was in Chişinău and went to a volunteer gathering at Lake Ghidighici after the VAC meeting. This lake is the largest lake in Moldova, and is located just north of Chişinău. There was a pretty good group of people at the lake and then most of us headed back to Jenna's for the evening. Again, lots of fun. Yesterday and today are work days, and then tomorrow I head back into Chişinău for a long, activity-filled birthday weekend. I am looking forward to meeting all the new trainees and helping them acclimate to this different life!

Peace Corps news: Jeffrey Goveia, who has been our Acting Country Director since the departure of the previous Country Director, has been named the new Country Director for Moldova. This is great news from my perspective. Jeffrey is fair, enthusiastic, smart, and a pleasure to know and work for. On a sadder note, my friend, Andrea, who lives in the village closest to me, has decided to return home. She has thought through her decision, and of course, as her friend I support that decision. I will miss her lots, and wish her lots of luck and happiness. Best of luck to Jen and Matt V. Good news for them! I'm looking forward to "seeing" my family on Skype this weekend, and hope everyone is doing well and enjoying the long, warm days of June. I miss you all. xoxo, Jami

Wednesday, late afternoon in early June. Since I last wrote I have had another fun weekend in Chişinău and a good and productive week here in the village. On Friday morning I headed into the city, and then out to meet with Teresa. She has been working to prepare for the new group of volunteers who will be coming a week from tomorrow. She is very organized, and I was visiting more for the company than any real work that she needed me to help with. Eden came out later in the evening, and we had such a good time. On Saturday we were up early and headed into Chişinău for a full day of meetings. It was actually a lunch gathering, and then an afternoon of meetings on providing peer support. Then back to Teresa's town for a birthday party for Lauren, who turned 23 on Saturday. What a fun time! There were 15 of us, and lots and lots of good food and funny stories. Lauren will be leaving us shortly to enter Law school this fall, so it was nice to have this time together. Sunday was spent at the Peace Corps office, and traveling back here to my village life.

Monday morning the day at work started with popsicles for the kids. June first is Children's Day (Zuia Copiilor) and what better way to start the day than with a popsicle. It works for me! Shortly after getting to work, my partner told me that there was a visiting American coming to the village for the day, and did I want to meet him? So, this man turned out to be a native Moldovan who moved to the US in the late 1950's. He was raised in Chişinău, and his ancestral home is the village I am living in. He spoke Russian very well, and since almost everyone here prefers Russian to Romanian, he fit in much better than I do. We had a really nice day, and toured the local winery, along with some interesting sites that I have already seen in the village. The website for the winery is www.purcari.md. Check it out to see the best and the brightest of Moldovan wine making. It's not typical of life here, but it is interesting. Yesterday and today have been routine, but all in all, its been a good week.

This weekend I am headed back into the capital for the VAC meeting on Saturday. I am planning to stay and help prepare any last minute things needed for the incoming volunteers. Next week will be busy for sure. My thoughts this week are with all of my Ream family as Memmy is struggling with her health, and with Michele who is headed out for a family cruise. Keep the letters and emails coming! I love hearing from everyone! I miss you all. xoxo, Jami

Since coming back to Moldova from my vacation in the States, I have been in such a good state of mind. Content, happy, feeling really good about being here and the work that I am doing. Yippee! It feels good to feel fulfilled. It was reassuring to be home and to see everyone thriving without me. It was mostly good to just see everyone, period. And now I have less than a year to serve. I know it will pass quickly, even if some days drag on forever.

While I was home I talked with family and friends about my work, and my life here, and what is good, and not so good about the Peace Corps life. I mostly only have positive things to say about my Peace Corps experience. While the initial weeks and months were a struggle for me, it was more about my personal responsibilities that I abdicated to others, than it was anything that the Peace Corps did or did not provide. Its a great organization overall. Like many big organizations, there is often the perception that there are too many layers, too much bureaucracy. I'm guessing that is true, but as a volunteer I am mostly, and blissfully, unaware of most of this bureaucratic layering. What I am aware of, and what I started to talk about was a sort of "colonialist" model that Peace Corps has. In talking with another volunteer upon my return, she corrected me. As volunteers, we are not forcing anyone to espouse American, or Western, ways of thinking. We are not trying to "take over" anyone or anything. What I came to realize in this conversation (thank you, Zan, for helping me to clarify my argument) is not that Peace Corps is "colonialist", but rather it is unilateral. There is not the sharing of experiences across cultures that there could be. It is not as collaborative an engagement as is possible. Its good, but its not great. It could be better.

So, the big question is: What will I accomplish in the coming year? In a program specific questionnaire that we received a few months ago about how to improve partner relationships, an idea began to germinate. In the coming year I would like to bring my Moldovan partner to the States to see programs and services that are designed to serve the same, or similar populations (elderly and child residential programs). I want this field trip to offer her some of the richness of experience that I have been blessed to have here in Moldova. I want to be able to help her expand her frame of reference on what is truly possible. She is visionary, but limited by resources and knowledge. To increase knowledge is to improve sustainability. I think it is a great opportunity for both of us to increase our collaborative efforts.

So here is the scheming part of my "Dreams and Schemes". I am looking to you, my friends and family, and even strangers who read this who have never met me, to contribute to this effort. I understand that Peace Corps, as a taxpayer funded organization, cannot use any of its funds to pay for our host country friends and partners in any way. I generally agree with that stance. What that position does mean, though, is that I cannot use any Peace Corps money in furtherance of this goal. So I am looking to you, your church organizations, scout troops, community service projects, whomever you are, to help me make this dream happen. My parents, who have power of attorney, can deposit checks to help off-set expenses. Their name/address: James and Beverly Kelly, PO Box 1205, Wolfeboro, NH 03894. Thank you and I miss you all. xoxo, Jami

"I used to assume that the direction of 'progress' was somehow inevitable, not to be questioned. I passively accepted a new road through the middle of the park, a steel-and-glass bank where a 200 year old church had stood...and the fact that life seemed to get harder and faster with each day. I do not anymore...I have learned that there is more than one path into the future and I have had the privilege to witness another, saner way of life - a pattern of existence based on the co-evolution between human beings and the earth...Community and a close relationship with the land can enrich human life beyond all comparison with material wealth or technological sophistication. I have learned that another way is possible."

Helena Norberg-Hodge in Ancient Futures, found in Three Cups of Tea, Greg Mortenson and David Oliver Relin. I just finished Three Cups of Tea, and found it really inspirational. Maybe its where my head is at....

Memorial Day. No holiday here in Moldova, but still a day of remembrance for Americans. And, of course, its the unofficial beginning of summer. Love it!! This is the last week of school here, and many kids are already spending their non-class time helping in the family gardens. There is not a lot of free time for kids here in the village.

We received this information last week in our Weekly Highlights, and I thought it was interesting information about the political process here. As you may remember, after the election on April 5, there was rioting in Chişinău. From Jeffrey Goveia, our acting Country Director:

I got a request from a Volunteer to give a quick review of the election. While, I’ll admit that this is a confusing process to explain, I’d prefer trying to explain this process to you than trying to explain the Electoral College to anybody. Let me try to sort through what I’ve been told. As you probably know, the President here is elected by Parliament by a minimally-required, super-majority vote of 61 (greater than a 3/5ths majority) members of parliament. The Party of Communists currently holds 60 votes in Parliament…one vote shy of the needed super majority. At this point, all three opposition parties have stated that they will boycott the vote for President. The vote for President is by secret ballot, BUT…the fact that a person votes is NOT a secret. The members of Parliament must leave the chambers, walk into the hallways, get a ballot from a registrar, walk into a voting booth, and then deposit his or her vote into a voting box. As such while any given vote is private, it does not appear possible for any given opposition party member to decide to vote without this being known. This provides a very public mechanism to help ensure party “discipline”.

At this point, the first attempt to elect a President will be held on Wednesday, May 20th, 2009. The Party of Communists has submitted two names for consideration. The first is outgoing Prime Minister Zinaida Greceanii and the second is an academic, Stanislav Gropa. As the opposition parties are boycotting the vote, there are no opposition candidates under consideration.

If no candidate receives sufficient votes in the first round of voting on May 20th, a second round of voting must be held within 15 days. If no President can be elected within three rounds or by June 7th, then the acting President (former President and current Speaker of Parliament, Vladimir Voronin) must dissolve Parliament and announce new elections. I’ve not yet succeeded in tracking down the time given for the new elections to be held. Assuming new elections are called, it appears that Vladimir Voronin will continue to serve as Acting President and Head of Government until a new President can be elected.

An update to this is that there was no President elected this past week, and a second round of voting is scheduled for next week. I think its interesting information, even though we are not involved in the internal electoral process here in any way.

Other than this political news, and my return to village life from my mini-vacation in Cahul, its back to work and focus on the day to day routine. I hope you are all well and enjoying the holiday. I miss you all. xoxo, Jami

Today I am writing from an Internet cafe in the city of Cahul. Why am I here, you ask? I've only been back for a little over a week. Shouldn't I be staying in my village? Well, yes, the short answer is that I should be there, but sometimes life involves the longer answer.

Last Tuesday I was in Chisinau for the day, really only taking the time to meet with the doctor (no rabies booster, yay!) and have a nice lunch with Teresa. Together we also went shopping for a small gift for Ana. A nice day. Wednesday and Thursday were spent uneventfully at work. The party for Ana was scheduled for Friday, and I had already made plans to return to Chisinau on Friday. The doctor needed to meet with me to "read" the TB shot in 72 hours, and the plan always was to return to Chisinau at the end of the week. As I looked at my calendar, and thought about what my plans would be for the summer, I realized that I have not done a lot of traveling to visit other parts of Moldova, and have not seen the work that my colleagues are doing. Two of the places that I really want to travel to this summer include Cahul in the southwest part of Moldova, and Balti, in the north. I have been to see the villages of some of the others in my original training group: I have been to Teresa's many times, and I have also traveled to the village where Veronica lives, and also to Toumil's village. These two small towns are not really so different from my village in many ways. Village life is village life pretty much. The other two women that I trained with in PST (Pre-Service Training) are Jamie and Na'Ima. Jamie lives in a small village, and Na'Ima lives in Cahul. Sort of on a whim I gave Na'Ima a call on Thursday evening to see if she would be open to some company. And here I am.

Friday after the very brief doctor appontment, and a nice party for Ana, a group of us had an apartment for the night and spend some fun time together going out for dinner and karaoke. No, I did not sing. Its enough fun to watch this silliness. Saturday and Sunday were spent in our last language IST (In-Service Training) and a language exam on Sunday afternoon. The previous two times that I have had my language tested my physical health has not been so good. I'm not sure how I did on the exam this time, but at least I felt good. I know last time I was surprised that I had improved a level when I felt so bad. I am not expecting to improve another level, but we'll see.

Sunday afternoon I left Chisinau with Na'Ima to come to Cahul. It is a nice, small city. The population is maybe about 40,000, and there are many amenities that are not available in the village. It is still easy to navigate by foot, and it seems that many or most residents do not own cars. There are more cars here, for sure, and tractors in town, but still, many people walk. Right now there are two voluteers in Cahul, Na'Ima and Jen. Jen is ending her service this summer, so I wanted to be sure to visit before she left. Even though I am not so far in distance from my village to Cahul, there is no easy way to cross this country, and travel is most efficient through the capital. It made sense to do this visit now, while I already was in Chisinau, and I am so glad that I decided to come now. Na'Ima has been a great hostess and I have joined her at work yesterday and today. Today there is a seminar that her organization is sponsoring. It is in Russian, so we understand very little. It is a presentation that is offered by two consultants from Latvia and Russian is the unifying language. Since there is little to understand, we have come to the internet cafe, but now it is time for lunch. Gotta go back for that! I hope everyone is well. I miss you all. xoxo, Jami

It was a great vacation. I got to everything that I wanted to do for three weeks. Even though there were people that I didn't get to see, I got to see many of the people that I wanted to. Now I am back. It was not nearly as hard to leave this time as it was last year. Now there is less than a year to serve. I more or less know what to expect of the remainder of my time here, its not so scary and crazy as it was starting out. I have friends here. Life goes on.

Some of the highlights of my time home include the time I got to spend with Linnea, my parents, my brother and sister and their families, my grandparents, my new son-in-law, Joe, my step-grandson, Joey, Joe's family, meeting my new friend, Kim, seeing Bob, and Mike, and too many other family and friends to mention...you know who you are! Really, just seeing people that I love was my main reason for coming home. It was so worth it.

And now I am back. The flight back was much more uneventful than the flight home. For those of you who do not know, I got a case of food poisoning right before I flew out of Moldova. As someone said to me..."What a crappy way to start your vacation, no pun intended". Accurate, but not pleasant. I did spend the first night back here in the Medical apartment and the doctor very graciously came in on Saturday morning to talk with me about it. She said that after three weeks I was probably over everything, and had cured myself, but I am scheduled to come back to Chisinau tomorrow for them to double-check me, give me a TB and a B12 shot, and believe it or not, today, my very first day back in the village, I got bit by a dog again! That makes three. The second one didn't break skin, so I may not have written of it. This bite hurts, but I don't think they will give me another booster. We'll see. I don't know what it is with the dogs here. They are a source of curiosity for me, on so many levels.

It was good to spend a nice warm late Spring weekend in Chisinau. I was supposed to have a language training this past weekend, but while I was home it was postponed until this coming weekend. We will be having our last language exam until we finish service. Because they were not expecting me until Sunday afternoon I decided to spend the weekend in the city before re-integrating back to village life. Sort of slow things down a bit...get used to Moldova urban life before going back to the village life...which is, as I have shared, extremely slow. Saturday was a fun time. There were lots of volunteers in Chisinau, and Saturday night was a dinner at a Mexican restaurant for about twelve of us. It was Andrea's 24th birthday, and she joined the group, which was nice. Andrea is the volunteer who lives in the village closest to me. Her mother is coming for a visit this weekend, and I know she is looking forward to that. She has been having a rough week, and family visits always help.

Today when I went into work everyone, but especially the kids, all seemed so happy to see me. That was really, really great, and just what I needed to feel like this work matters. Maybe some days it only matters to one little kid, but it matters. So, with that feeling this afternoon, I left work, and went for a walk, only to end up getting bitten by that pesky mutt. Some days it is up one and back two. Today it felt like up two, and back one, so I'm still ahead. It really is okay being back here. I wasn't sure how I would feel after being home, and I'm guessing there will still be hard (lonely) days ahead, but right now I am on a "home visit high". Its sort of funny to me that while I was home there were things that were overwhelming to me (the mess in the attic, Walmart, traffic, thinking about next year when I am really home for good). Not the visiting, ever, but some of the things about our way of life are just so hectic/commercial, and I guess I had forgotten, or took for granted that everything at home would feel natural. Not always so, and a little surprising to me. I wonder if there is a middle ground? I wonder if it is just me? I wonder what's next...after tomorrow, of course.

Belated Mother's Day greetings to my mother, my grandmother, Linnea, and to all of my friends to whom this applies. Betsy's mother, Sarah, is back living at home, Michele is home from the hospital, doing well, and getting ready for a family cruise. My thoughts go out to Kim who has recently lost her father. The sun is warm, and the days are long. Spring! I miss you all. xoxo, Jami

I love being home. I have been able to visit, relax, do lots of driving, shopping, eating. Its been great. The flight home was good, even if I did get sick on the plane. That is something that has never happened to me before, and it is not pleasant. Linnea and Joe met me at the airport, and we spent a day in Pennsylvania before heading to NY to my see my grandparents, and then on to New Hampshire to my parents and Maine to visit with friends. I know it is not realistic to expect that I might get to see everyone that I miss, but I am trying to see as many people as I can. We are still in New Hampshire, and doing trips to Maine for a day or two at a time. I hope everyone is well, and that I at least get to talk to people on the phone if there isn't time to get together in person. Life is good. Jami

Post-election Moldova has been a time of unrest. There have been demonstrations in Chişinău this week, and concern for all citizens here as they voice their feelings about the election process. I have included some links for you to read, if you are interested, about the events here this past week:

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/04/08/world/europe/08moldova.html?_r=1&hp http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/in_pictures/7988028.stm

While there were some opinions about the election here in my village, all of the conflict seemed to be centered in the capital. There were no demonstrations of any kind in my little town, and life goes on, as rurally peaceful as always. The primary focus this past week, while most of the days were warm and sunny, was getting all of the crops, especially the potatoes, into the ground. Priorities!!

Work has been unusually quiet, with many of the residents returning home now that the weather is warmer. Everyone is needed to help out at home, even the youngest children, and while we still have five elderly residents, many who had been staying with us have returned home recently, and these are some newer residents still settling in to the daily routine. We still have 3 little boys and 3 girls staying with us, but somehow it just seems quieter. Maybe its because more time is spent outdoors, and so the noise and activity is given freer reign...I'm not sure exactly what it is, but its been nice. The great weather has been awesome. While it has turned colder today, most of the week was really warm and sunny. Finally, Spring!

This weekend I am heading into Chişinău, and flying home on Tuesday for a three week visit!! I can't wait. I have been counting the days since they were over 100. Now I am down to three! I will try to visit with as many people as I can possibly see, and hope to see you all soon! Happy Easter this Sunday! Miss you all. xoxo, Jami

It is really and truly Spring here now. The birds start tweeting early in the morning, the daffodils are blooming, the willows and other trees are budding, and the fields are green. Yippee! It feels good to be warm.

Yesterday was another Saturday in Chişinău. This week it was for the VAC meeting. As always, it was a long day, and, at the same time, nice to get out of the village. Unlike others in recent memory, it was warm, sunny, and actually nice to walk around town. Our Country Director has just resigned, taking a job in Seattle. He will be leaving at the end of this month, and our Program and Training Officer will be the acting Country Director until a replacement is here, probably sometime in June or July. It won't have much of an impact on me in the day to day life here. What might have a bigger impact is that the Assistant Program Manager, Ana, is also leaving soon. She is moving with her husband to East Timur. Brave. Last year, when we first got here, our Program Manager, Liliana, was just going out on maternity leave. She has been back for a few months now, and she is great. My initial contact, however, was primarily with Ana, and I have benefited from her support. I wish her the best in her new adventures.

Today are the elections for Parliament and a new President in Moldova. Here people vote for a party only, and not for direct representation. There are currently 28 different parties identified on the ballot, and to have a representative voice in the Parliament, a party needs to secure at least 6% of the vote. Another way to secure a voice in Parliament is to form a coalition with another party, so that there is at least a partial representation of a party platform. I do enjoy the American political process, and try to be an active participant in our political process. Here it is interesting to be a passive observer to a process that I really don't understand. It is hard for me to imagine how a system works where there is not a process to identify individuals who will represent my individual interests. I take for granted that even if I don't agree with every decision my political representatives make, that they, as individuals, are accountable to me, as an individual voter. This voting for just a party is a little confusing to me, and it has been an interesting learning experience to observe this election process. I'm glad for the opportunity to be here during this time, and I'm really glad that we are not to get involved in this process in any way. It makes my life so much easier.

I haven't done an update to my reading list for awhile, so here it is: MotorMouth, Janet Evanovich; Three Junes, Julia Glass; An Ocean Apart, A World Away, Lensey Namioka; Native Speaker, Chang Rae Lee; The Master Butchers Singing Club, Louise Erdich; Confessions of an Ugly Stepsister, Gregory Maguire; Stranger Than Fiction, Chuck Palahniuk; A River Sutra, Gita Mehta; Absalom!Absalom!, William Faulker; Lost on Planet China, J. Maarten Troost; Four Corners, Kira Salak; The Hours, Michael Cunningham, and I have succumbed to volunteer peer pressure and I am currently reading Twilight, Stephanie Meyer.

I guess that's all for this week. I'll be home in NINE days!!! I hope to see as many of you as I can. Special birthday greetings this week for my Daddy, a remembrance for my nephew, Paul, who would be 26, and for my sister-in-law, Gale. See you all soon. xoxo, Jami

I'm a little late this week with my usual Sunday posting. Sorry about that, but I just came back to my village from a really fun weekend with the "girls". Friday morning I left the village to go into Chişinău. I was originally scheduled to have my mid-service physical last Friday, but most of it had been completed when I was in Chişinău earlier in the month. The only things left to be done were the TB test and the dentist, which was scheduled for yesterday. The TB test is given one day and then needs to be read a few days later. They usually give these on a Friday and ask to read them on Monday. Great for me since this weekend was planned a while ago. Last week I got a call from the doctor that they have temporarily run out of the TB test. The very same day my tutor was telling me that there is a TB "epidemic" right now in Chişinău, and that many people are in the hospital with either the "gripa" or TB. I think I'll be careful and still take my chances on leaving the village. I'll get the TB test when I get back from vacation, and I'm sure I'll be fine.

The rest of the weekend was spent in the town where Teresa and Jenna live. They hosted a "Tudor's weekend" at one of the cabins near to where Jenna lives. The cabins are so cute! There were between 12 and 15 of us there for some or all of the weekend, watching the Showtime series "The Tudors", eating, laughing, having a GREAT time! It was just so much fun, and a great, warm, beautiful weekend. Love it!!!

Yesterday I ran some errands in Chişinău, had my dentist appointment (no problems, sorry David!) and headed back to the village. On the way back the bus had a flat tire. I think this is probably the fifth or sixth time that there has been a problem with the bus ride back and forth into the city, usually a flat tire, but one time it took almost 2 hours by the side of the road before the problem was resolved. I've lost count. It's not as bad in the warmer weather, but it still makes a long trip even longer. Ugh!

So now I am back, taking the day to catch up on some things around the house before heading back to work tomorrow morning. I was hoping to do some wash today, but now it is raining, so I guess that will have to wait for a day or two. Rain doesn't stop the Moldovan women from doing their wash the way a religious holiday does, but it seems pointless to me, so I'll wait. It's bound to be sunny again soon.

This week the national elections are being held here. I believe that there are 28 parties and the whole process seems a little confusing to me. It feels like a relief to me that we are not allowed to become involved in this political process in anyway. The elections will be held on April 5th, and the campaigning is in earnest in the village, and on a larger scale in Chişinău. I go back into the city for the VAC meeting next Saturday, so there will probably be even more activity then.

Two weeks and I'll be home. I can't wait to see everyone! Congratulations this week to Nicki and Keith, Caleb and Connor who have welcomed Abby to their family. See you soon!!!!!!!! xoxo,Jami

More than half over. Filled with the promise of more warmer, beautiful days. Marching forward, another week that has passed by. This week, like more and more of them recently, has happened with increasing anticipation for my trip home, and the almost routine feeling that my life has now assumed. The big events this week were that Lidia's father had his only cow and her unborn calf both die trying to give birth. It was traumatic for him, and a big loss.

Work is good. There has been some turnover of residents, as the goal is to limit residential stays to three month intervals. The past three months have really gone by quickly, when I realize that the people who were first living at the Center have now mostly returned home. The children and elderly who have returned home are getting follow-up home visits from the Social Assistants, and are eligible to come back after some time. I am not sure what the time frame is to be re-admitted, but I will find out.

Yesterday several of the older volunteers met for a light lunch in Chisinau. It was a one day quick trip in to the city, lunch, and home again in the afternoon. Not quite as much fun as heading into Manhattan for the day, but always a nice change of pace. A hot shower, a letter, all is good.

My tutor told me that he bought a pig head at the market this morning, and was cooking it down to eat tomorrow. Yum. Not. I have never eaten a lot of meat, and I am almost a vegetarian after a year here.

Happy birthday tomorrow to my niece, Jean Marie, and later in the week, to my friend Allen. I'm counting down the days. Miss you all. xoxo, Jami