Preparing for my long-awaited departure for Liberia, two pieces of advice have guided my thoughts. My first day in Bulgaria, our Country Director recommended that we "leave all our expectations at the door." If anything could have defined my Peace Corps experience, that was it. The idea that we could somehow be prepared to understand the challenges and rewards that each of our unique skill sets would bring to the communities we lived in was premature. It would take us months to realize that more-so than any language barrier, "success" was impeded by our belief that what worked in American communities would work in Bulgaria. Only when we abandoned our ideas about how to cut and paste American examples onto the current community were we able to help Bulgaria address its development needs in a way that was more inclusive and more sustainable.

I know that no matter what I do today or how many books I've read about Liberia, when I step off the plane in Monrovia, I will be stunned. For me, the only way to proceed is to simply accept that, and to be ready to adapt.

The second piece of advice was to bring rain boots. While some people may bless the rain down in Africa, hopefully these boots will keep me from cursing it!

Veche zapochnah da broq neshtata koito shte mi lipsvat. Obache, nqkaksi ne moga da gi izbroq. Milosta, Lubeznosta… kak se broi tokova neshta?

Chustvam se tolkova kasmetliva che po vreme na tiq 2 godnini se zapoznah s mnogo hubavi, inteligentni i mili hora. Ponqkoga, imam chustvato, che nikoga prez jivota si, ne sam bila povecha obichena ot sega. Otvaraiki rutseto, bulgarite v Pernik sa mi prieli kato chast ot semestvoto si. Osobono kato mislq za samestvoto na moqta sutrudnichka, razbiram koklo veliko neshto e da vzimash nqkoi kato dopulnitelen chlen na samestvoto si. Nadiavam se i na tqh da razbirat kakvo sa napravili za mene. Dumite ne mi stigat… me moga da obisnq do kakva stepen sam blagodarna. Sled tiq 2 godini, taka se chustvam kato u doma ci, che na mene mi a muchno da si hodq.

Istinata e, che sam si izjiviala bezbroini ujasni neshta- nai-veche tova ojesh e na blogodarenie na Korpusa i lipsvaneto na jelanie da razbirat kavo stane (osobono kato tova neshto predstavlqva neshto “neconfortno” da napraviat.). Znam kakvo e da se usetish opasnosta u doma si. Izjiviqh mnenieto ot drugi che sam mursaliva i che ne iskam da se opravq neshtata sama. Chesto se chustvah samotena, bez nadejda, oburkana i poburkana. Borih se za neshtata koito na drugite ne im se struvashe da napravq- imam predvid che vqrvam che vseki idin ot nas trabva da ima shans na ranvo da usepqm, osobono horata ot multincva.

Osven tova, kakvo nosq v sebe si? Poraznah- povecheto otkolkto po-malko. Pokajah na sebe se che moje i izik da naucha. Prikarvah vremeto i migove kakto tribva- kakto idvat, ne kato sustezanie- koi kolkoto moje. Razbiram, che chuvek naistina moje da vuzdeistva ha rezultatite na nashiq jivot, ili puk da okazva vlianie na nqkukvo promiqna kum dobro. Naistina, tolko mnogo neshta moje da napravim koito pomagat na horata…. Da stanesh obiknoven dobrovolets i da uchasvash vuv pochistvane v kvartalniq park… chao Bulgaria! Vinigi shte se gordq s Vas!

I had no idea what stop we needed to get off at. Those are the kind of adventures I participate in as of late- deciding that I have a pretty good idea where a bus might take me, though harboring the thought that in actuality, I'm not so sure... But to be more correct, its not that we didn't know where to get off, its that we weren't even really sure what we were heading into. Finally we spotted the Red, White and Blue and jumped out of our seats, pushing by the locals to get to the door before the driver speed away. The Russian Embassy. Part I.

On September 17th, it was freezing. Only a month before we had been running for the shade and substituting practically every meal for cold liquids and ice cream, but today was decidedly gray. And cold. Did I mention cold? Christin and I had a small list or errands to run before braving the consular's office of the Russian Embassy in pursuit of visas. After reading practically every webpage dealing with Russia and Russian visas, we were skeptical that Russia would be ebullient to grant the likes of us- young "good-willed" volunteers, fluent in a cousin language, educated in a former strong-hold of the USSR - tourist visas to the Motherland. None the less, we decided to brave the bureaucracy. We'd contacted travel agencies, hotels, hostels, private companies in search of the two coveted documents in the process; an official invitation (required for all foreigners) and a hotel voucher to confirm our stay. Now it was go-day. After finishing up our errands, we took a break for lunch. At 12:45 sharp, we made our way to the consular's department.

It was with shock and desperation that I began piecing together the sign infront of the embassy's consulate entrance. Working hours- 9am-12pm, M-F except for every 3rd to last wednesday of the month...WHAT??!?! We both immediately began grumbling about the lost time and money involved in getting to this step, and I personally began replaying moments from earlier in the day- if I hadn't helped that poor, lost Canadian dude, we would have caught an earlier bus, if we had simply run by the consulate to see what the hours of operation were, we surely would have been accepted...etc etc. We commiserated and agreed to meet up the next, just this time, a bit earlier.

One would think that Bulgarian is spoken in the Russian embassy in Sofia. But as with every endeavor into bureaucracy, thinking seems to get you nowhere. We stuggled at the first window, baffled by the fact that neither our American passports nor our pleas for the conversation to occur in Bulgarian were considered. Luckily the guy behind us was more than willing to translate the Russian into Bulgarian, and in a short while, we realized that I had no proof of health insurance. Christin advanced to line #2 as I made a detour to the German Embassy where a friendly lady issued me aan ffordable travel/medical insurance policy for up to 10,000 EURO. Back at the Russian embassy, I was greeted with more Russian. Then a quick interview and a large sum of money ($150 for I week in Russia!) were exchanged and we were dismissed.

Guess what language they spoke when I returned to pick up my American passport?

Russian lessons, anyone?

I love capital cities. The mixture of expats, diplomats, and nationals who are desperately fleeing from the past, and those who stubbornly refuse to admit that, like time, tradition all too easily passes into the world of things ephemerally treasured.

The interminable question seems to be; change or tradition, or perhaps, conformity versus individualism? But here is my question- need we live our lives based on the philosophical stipulations set down by long-since deceased old white dudes?

Here are some recent conversation topics that I've had in the last two weeks that have brought me to this post.

*Country music- is the old stuff as good as the new, and more importantly, is the new stuff really even country?

*Architecture- areas of downtown Sofia are obviously influenced by Vienna-educated Bulgarians

*Success- Why is an individual's redefinition of the standard of success cause to incite hostility in others?

When we choose a different path in life, some people seem to see that as a challenge to their chosen path- as if our declaration of what’s good and right for us is inherently a denunciation of theirs. Ever so more is this true if the offended party is living a typical and successful life. So what is it about the average person that they feel a need to be so possessive about an experience that is really more about the collective – society’s goals- to the extent that those who deviate, either “above” or “below” the mainstream, are seen as a threat?

Conformity allows society to run smoothly. Without conformity, there would likely be political and social chaos. Conformity means that Coca-Cola can more easily observe the average 14 year old American and determine what kind of product to release. After all, isn't it nice to go to the store and realize that you like all the stuff that's available? (I assure you, its much better than going in and realizing that half the products scare you into hunger...)

Idividuality, on the other hand, is the thing that bring us new ideas. Sure, conformity is the thing that makes them happen (acknowledgement of employee-employer responsibility, free markets, mass-media campaigns, etc), but without the innovative person who is willing to deviate from the norm, where would the new ideas come from?

Everyone is glad that Steve Jobs gave us the iPod, yet Cat Stevens can't come back to America. Go figure.

As grape season flourishes here in the "Shopska" region of Bulgaria, I'm reminded of my first Bulgarian autumn. Two years ago I found myself living in a part of the country where people are immensely caring and warmer than their compatriots (so I'm told...). Everyday I woke up to a full breakfast - tea, coffee, milk, toast, homemade jellies, fresh fruit, and who knows what all else - and I scurried off to language class with Courtney, Erica, Alex and Anna, where conversation inevitably turned to commentary about fleas or the best pretzels, or why in the world Anna preferred nescafe when a perfectly good cup of turkish style coffee was the exact same price...

But when I think about that fall, I think about my wonderful and loving host family, and all the things they tried to explain to me, all the situations I couldn't yet comprehend, and the hilarity that ensued once we realized that I'd confused the words for "more" and "stop" at the dinner table! I think I often baffled them; spitting out the grape and watermelon seeds, not drinking 3 cups of coffee a day, and taking an interest in the small-time agriculture/harvesting that many families participate in.

Gathering grapes in the family vineyard is a memory that I'll never forget. It must have been 90 degrees, the air thick with a rarely experienced humidity, and the whole family was off to pick grapes. When my first pleas to assist the family were ignored, I had to utilize my entire vocabulary to convince them that I was truly interested! After a quick lesson from our next-door neighbor Mira I became a sanctioned grape cutter, and with the most dangerous looking pair of shears I've ever held in my life, I began happily snipping away. There were a few incidents with bees, but all in all, I think it was some of the only manual labor I've ever enjoyed. I think about it each year, and I wish I knew what week was grape gathering week, because I'd drop everything to go down and help once more!

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I've got nearly 6 weeks left as a volunteer here, which means its time to start making plans and securing plane tickets!! My friend Christin convinced me into a trip to Russia, so I've been spending the last few days trying to get the travel visa in order. In the meantime, I've stumbled upon some very interesting sites!

you've heard of volunteering, nannying, eco-tourism, etc...but now...MISERY TOURISM!

offered, as far as I know, only within the freezing depths of Russia, misery tourism offers something that the well seasoned traveler has yet to experience; the realization that life outside the affluent is complete disparity. http://www.unclepasha.com/travel_russia_misery/misery_tourism.htm

check it out for yourselves!

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Lately I've started reading blogs of other Americans who live in Bulgaria, and I fear that most of this time, I've been depriving any of you readers out there of a clear picture of Bulgaria. So many of these blogs are filled with pictures from everyday life, products that you can buy, or simple anecdotes that by now, seem normal. In my last few days, I'll see if I can't remedy that on some level....

Four jobs I have had in my life:

1. Tractor driver

2. Bartender at a nascar bar

3. Political Organizer

4. Research assistant

Four countries I have been to:

1. Taiwan

2. Austria

3. Macedonia

4. Italy

Four places I’d rather be right now

1. Anywhere in America, waiting to see the lunar eclipse

2. Inaguration Day, Jan. 2029 (see me? I'm on the left!)

3. A nice fancy gym with lots of unoccupied elipticals

4. Rockefeller Center, christmas morning

Four foods I like to eat:

1. Lime tostidos!

2. Lettuce wraps from PF Changs

3. anything from Subway

4. rice and meat stuffed peppers

Four people that I would like to tag:

1.Alfred

2. Apryl

3. Koubi

4. Alex

There was a time in my life when I believed that swearing was unnecessary. I was of the opinion that my lexicon had been enriched by a multitude of institutions and that surely I could think of a more intelligent way to express myself, and if I couldn't, well, I was just a result of poorly allocated governmental funds... Bearing in mind the rather high opinion I had of my linguistic ability, I smugly sifted through the pages of a discarded GRE book left in the Peace Corps office. In only took a minute for that smug expression to slide off my face, replaced by a look of disbelief. In that moment, the library echoed with a string of obscenities that more than compensated for all those bygone years...

Much like a fresh-faced 18 year-old, newly graduated from highschool, or the 20 something clutching the much-sought-after diploma, I've found the end of my Peace Corps experience to be surrounded by an unending and familiar refrain; "Wow! So, what are you doing to now?" Anticlimactially, I responded as honestly as I could, expressing frightening uncertainty about my future. Finally, however, I resigned myself to the fact that just choosing an option would abate the questioning from others, and on a superficial level, from myself. The choice: GRE preparation!

After some investigating, I realized that quite a few PCVs had found time during their service to take standardized tests such as the GMAT, GRE or LSAT, and that some of the testing schedules were as readily available as there are in the US! Step two was to find some good study materials and a study partner who would be more adamant in study behavior than myself. (As a college student I was notorious for taking test after reading through my notes once or turning in papers that were still warm from the printer. I once handed in a paper with math problems written on the opposite side, much to the amusement of my roommates who later hung it on the fridge.) My parents brought me a GRE book from the states, and I found a study partner after my friend Mladen told me that he wanted to study in the US.

Now, let's return to the vocab. Americans, evidently, use significantly fewer words in their daily lives than the average Bulgarian. Maybe we're lazy, or maybe we use more slang, but whatever it is, its been a great source of joy in my workplace. "How is it possible that you don't know all the English words?!?" they asked me. I tried to explain that a lot of these words are only used in literature (some aren't even used at all, I'd wager!) and aren't part of everyday speech. After another round of chiding, I pointed out that the word "ambidextrous" was conspicuously missing from the Bulgarian language...this was the closest I could come to redemption. My pride wilted once again after my first study session with Mladen. Not only had he studied about twice as many lists as I had, he also had a disturbing knack for giving pin-point definitions to the words that challenged me the most!!!! Further investigation revealed that a disproportionate amount of the words are exactly the same in Bulgarian. We (I) then decided that you have to be Bulgarian to get a good score on the GRE verbal...

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The newest crop of PC volunteers (officially "trainees" and not "volunteers" until they earn their wings) arrived in country last week. I was asked to be a resource volunteer, which means that I will help during the training session to transfer skills and knowledge that we've picked up during our two years here. A few days before our first official meeting with the newbies, currently volunteers were warned that a new dress code was in place for incoming volunteers, and we were "strongly encouraged" to adhere to it as well. Normally, I like rules. I'm kinda into them. I think they make society run more smoothly. This time, however, I had a bit of a beef with PC. They asked that and PCVs who had visible facial piercings remove them before interacting with the new kids. The policy actually alluded to the idea that volunteers who were not in compliance with this policy (whether when interacting with the new people or working in their own cities) we not effective volunteers. Naturally, I got kinda fiesty and wrote some emails about the flawed policy implementation (you could, for example, have a purple mohawak, and that was acceptable) and received several phone calls, and finally PC stepped down! It was a pretty exciting moment though, and this is a highly abridged version of the event.

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I never wrote about Spain! Spain was a pretty good time and I got to swim in the Mediterranean sea, meet up with a friend, go to clubs til 6am, eat some crazy food, see some awesome buildings, and survive 5 hours waiting for a train! I also saw a train dining car for the first time in my life, ran into a former PCV from Pernik, reveled in the availability of licorice, and saw an amazing classical guitar concert!! All in all, a pretty good time! :)

I went to Italy and Spain!!!

I think that my dreams to go to Italy started sometime around the age of 14, which means it only took 10 years for them to become reality! Then, the idea of traveling to Spain emerged this spring, and, well...whaddya know I went there too! With a track record like that, I think I should start focusing my dreams on even bigger targets, say, the return of Tab soda, Gore '08 or self-charging iPods (imagine!!)... Or wait! What if the Spice Girls got back togOH! yeah. sorry about that one guys...

I’m going to try and do this blog in a style unlike that of one I’ve done before. I religiously kept a travel journal in Italy (though in Spain I was a bit more like a Christmas-and-Easter-Catholic), and I intend to use this to describe most of my experiences in these countries. Before I start that however, I’ll throw in a few more details;

*I’ve now seen the Mediterranean from both sides! (Swam in one, tanned on both!)

*I bought tickets to Rome on a whim (even more so for Spain) and had less than 2 weeks to plan both trips

*I took my first ever solo vacation

*Gelato in Italy should not only be enjoyed daily, it should be EXPERIENCED

*Couch Surfing is the 2nd most important website in the world (following weather.com)

*Hiking and biking should be included in absolutely every vacation between Mar-Oct

*I pledged to drink only wine in Italy when given a choice- good thing too, because a coke was 4-5 euro!

*These entries sometimes begin and trail off unexpectedly…it usually means food was coming!

2:06pm- finally, lunch! After seeing Michelangelo’s Basilica in honor of Mary and the angels, Trevi Fountain, and various things whose names I’ll never know, I’m ready to taste my first “Italian” meal! Cannelloni, caprese and red wine sound about right! So far, no one would really notice that I’m faring this trip alone; the city is over-run with tourists, many of them American (damn Americans…)! Typical of any major tourist-attracting city, the streets are lined with fake Gucci, Louis Vuintton, Prada, etc – and typical of myself, I want them all! Aahhh… my first sip of real Italian wine in perhaps two years – yet somehow, I still feel we can re-kindle this friendship. I’m willing to turn the other cheek and start afresh…

Being Sunday, the Vatican was closed. Through dumb luck however, I stumbled across Michelangelo’s Basilica, which was actually his last major work. He completed it when he was 86! Mass had just begun in Italian….

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July 2nd - St. Peter’s Basilica

My amazement with houses of worship continues- to think that someone was so supremely moved by their love and devotion to a religion that they built such a marvelous structure. Perhaps this is why I continue to be enthralled; I’m hoping that one day upon entering that I too can become so passionately penitent.

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More stumbling-upons. Another church discovered by accident. By no means are they unknown to the public, but as an ill-prepared traveler I am in a constant state of surprise and astonishment. I guess the saying that bliss is enjoyed only by the dimwitted and the ignorant is true in yet one more instance.

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A tablecloth, all by its little self, may have enough power to determine your dining decision. No table-cloth? Affordability, no-fuss, simple fare. But the opposite could indicate class, attract foodies from afar, or cause you to turn away in disappointment; your last few euros jingling faintly in your pocket.

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Rome is lacking cats. I do hope other Italian cities can compensate for this great travesty. Life is more authentic with cats in it.

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2nd class, non-smoking. Maybe in Bulgaria this is my social status. It Italy, its my travel preference. 5 hours on a train, here we go!

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Long train rides are not enjoyable unless you are expected at the end.

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Lying on cascading tiers of rock at first seemed unthinkable, but I soon remembered that I was staying in a village and all-in-all, rock sun-bathing was an especially exotic prospect. Before other newly arrived tourists came to my point of mind, however, from afar they heralded me as a native, snapping photos of my assimilated self.

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A little too much cliff tanning, I find, can lead not only to extreme thirst but also sunburn. The former is more easily remedied, especially by knowing shop-keepers who take it upon themselves to replace your selection of sparkling water with still. How did they know I grabbed the wrong bottle on accident? So maybe after all there is a label I live up to- Mineral Water Drinker. It could be worse.

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Riomaggiore- July 3rd, excerpts from Daemon, Riomaggiore local

“Remember…you are the hero of yourself.”

“no body wins unless everybody wins”

“A cat has 7 lives”

“Every cloud has a silver lining, every dog has its day”

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“Code of the Trail”

Between the 5 sea-side villages of Cinque Terre are a set of trails which wrap around each cove and connects each village to its nearest adjoining neighbor. To end in Riomaggiore, my village, I took a train to Monterosso and hiked back. The entire journey was an uninterrupted expression by nature- such beauty to exist in one small place is nothing short of marvelous. Each view was increasingly more beautiful and awe-inspiring than the last. I started out early so as to avoid most of the crowd. I was rewarded with unrestricted use of the first length of my trip which lasted nearly 2 hours. Early on, the people I passed shared a greeting with me- good morning or “Buongiorno” and it held parallel with something I learned in Bulgaria; there is some hiker’s code- apparently international- that says “Thou shall acknowledge fellow lovers of nature and make the neighbor feel as a friend.” This is a lesson the tourist-hiker must learn- the lack of it is telling.

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Is it actually possible that each glass of wine I order becomes progressively more accomplished in its flavor? Is it dumb luck, or do things just happen this way in Italy- increase and increase? Of course anything like a Sangiovese blend, like the glass I enjoyed midway through the hike, will be excellent- it’s the following, refrigerated red table wine that truly illustrates my curiosity. And dare I say that said Sangiovese blend was dramatically enhanced by a pairing with anchovies on local bread- I do, I dare!

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Today alone was quite a positive experience. Tackling the hike, wine-bar hopping, order-in pesto pasta, watching waves crash into the marina… Although its scary to admit, more than several times today I found myself thinking or carrying out imaginary conversations in Bulgarian. I also spoke to a shop-keeper in Bulgarian. Maybe it’s been too much time alone!

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Okay so traditional traveling, or at least my interpretation of it, is not something I’m interested in. Or maybe its just not for me as an “alone” thing. I can handle about 80% of the silence, but sometimes you crave a companion. Maybe it’s that I don’t have a true appreciation for the things I’m seeing and experiencing. They should be the point and the driving force behind the travels. Instead I find myself wanting more. Today is day 5 of 7… maybe there is a barrier to entry, maybe I’m just on a plateau. Then again, maybe it’s not so hard to just put yourself out there and meet people… its getting colder and I’m tired, while the Irish pub across the street is hiring…

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I have found a wonderful spot in Florence – Piazza Spirito. It’s a huge, plain church with a wide open square and cafes that encircle a fountain. I like it immensely.

Other things I enjoy- a glass of house wine is less than a coke…then again, the glass costs more than an entire bottle of Bulgarian wine…

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The Uffizi in and of itself was quite a work of art. Al Frescos adorning the passageways. This is the oldest art gallery in the world and it houses some pretty spectacular paintings. I was unfamiliar with the most famous one, “The Birth of Venus,” but it was lovely and I bought a postcard to prove it! I waited 2 ½ hours to get in and spent about 1 ½ hours in the exhibit. My only regret is having not studied art before coming, as such greatness was a bit wasted on me.

this is the end of Italy! I couchsurfed, took a bike tour of Tuscany, and met wondeful people and will go back to Italy any chance I get! I'll update Spain some other time...I'm too tired now!

more photos- http://community.webshots.com/user/cafejunkie05

In case you aren't watching bTV or CNN, I'm just passing out the update that, after 8 years, the Bulgarian medics are free! They had been sentenced to death, then a retrial emerged with the same results. THEN they were gratned life in prison, and finally were sent to Bulgaria to serve out their imprisonment. Upon their arrival, President Georgi Purvanov immediately pardoned them.

At this time, it is unclear who the financial benefactors were, as both the EU and France claim to have not contributed financially to the cause. I'm including a few links in case you'd like to read more about it!

http://www.news.com.au/heraldsun/story/0,21985,22129328-663,00.html

http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1184766052915&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/chi-070724libya-releasejul24,1,7938158.story

After 18 days away from my city in Pernik, I’ve got quite a lot of things to write about! First and foremost, I love trains!

I realize that I haven’t talked much about the “work” I’ve been doing here in Pernik, so here is a round-up of info on that topic.

One of the main priorities of the PC Bulgaria post is to educate communities on the realities and dangers of human trafficking. Human trafficking can range from forced sex-slavery, the trade of human organs, forced-labor, baby smuggling, etc. Eastern Europeans are particularly susceptible to becoming victims, as many of them are looking immigrate to another country for work or education. A common method by which victims are trafficked is by responding to a fake job advertisement for employment in Western Europe. Often without checking into the validity of the sending company, a young person signs up, hands over their documents, and quickly find himself a victim once they arrive in the Promised Land. As a North American, this topic is something you most likely have not heard of, unless you keep up with current world events and trends. I know I had never heard of this until I joined Peace Corps! With some local partners, a group of committed PCVs organized a traveling film festival which showed two Bulgarian films on the topic, and a film produced by MTV’s “Exit” campaign. Pernik was the first stop on the tour, so I convinced my coworkers that we should host the event. We organized the space, advertised, invited locally relevant NGOs and the city youth council, and prepared a set of discussion questions. Turn out was pretty low, but I think the people who attended found the festival entertaining and informational. Despite the low turn out, I had a reason to personally feel successful. One of the ideas of Peace Corps is that volunteers bring their previous knowledge and know-how to their organization, and transfer the skills they acquired in their normal lives to their Peace Corps lives. Well, with only 100 days left of service, I felt like I finally used one of my “skills” in order to make this event a success. When turn-out seemed bleak, Alden (a fellow PCV) and I hit the streets of Pernik armed with pamphlets on anti-trafficking and began canvassing ever youngster between the ages of 12 and 20. Thanks to my days as a canvasser in the streets of Manhattan, I immediately fell into a comfort zone, and all the tactics I had mastered back then came flooding back…it was really rewarding to see nearly 80% of the people I canvassed at the film!

If you’d like to learn more about trafficking, please check out these sites for an introduction.

http://www.humantrafficking.org/

http://www.animusassociation.org/en/index.html Bulgarian NGO that works with victims of trafficking

http://217.69.40.171/english/ mtv exit campaign

While I was on vacation, another great thing happened. An opportunity to use the mutli-media equipment we won through a grant from the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) presented itself, and my coworkers set things up all by themselves! This may seem like something small, but its nice to know that they were paying attention when I showed them how to use the equipment, and its even nicer to know that they will continue to use it even after the project is complete! Aahh, success!

Sometimes communities in Bulgaria need only very small amounts of money coupled with truly grassroots ideas to see significant improvements. The PC “At-Risk Youth Fund” acknowledges exactly that idea, and funds projects up to 500 BGN (roughly $360). These projects have ranged from improving outdoor basketball courts, supplies for youth camps, shoes for youth, trafficking seminars, etc. Peace Corps Washington does not supply funding for this committee, so it’s up to PCVs to fundraise for the fund. Myself and Boudreaux, a volunteer in Sofia, decided that we would organize a charity 5km run/walk in Sofia exactly for this cause. We are currently in the process of securing the space, measuring the course, securing donors (Runners World has already provided some support), advertising the event, and recruiting runners! The event is scheduled for the 10th of September, so if you somehow find yourself in Bulgaria in early September, please come run! Its only 10 BGN to enter, and you get to help orphans and other kids! Stayed tuned to this blog for more information. J

And finally…the big job hunt has begun! I spent nearly the entire afternoon scouring for jobs in several worthy metro areas. So far I’ve marked about 20 positions that seem interesting, ranging from event planning for Carnegie Hall to tutoring kids in Harlem. Time to update that resume and pump out some cover letters!

118 Days!!! this is the remaining duration of my Peace Corps experience... This week we had the duty of supplying PC with a definate date and I chose that one. We have an "official" close-of-service (COS) date, but there is a 30 day window on either side of that date when we can terminate our service. My date, October 19th, falls just a week after the proposed PC date.

After my COS, I plan on taking a weeklong trip to Germany and Prague. If I have time (read: money) I'd also like to see Cracow and Bosnia (and of course Russia...oh Russia...). In the meantime, I'm going to ITALY next week!! I'm pretty pumped! oh yeah, Mom and Dad...I'm going to Italy...so don't panic if I don't answer the phone :)

Two other bits of news;

The conductor of the Pernik string orchestra was invited to conduct in Toronto this November!

In PC Georgia, PCVs can't have bikes because its "too dangerous."

write me comments!!! they make me feel important!!

My parents just came to visit me in the BG, and you can check out all the photos right here! http://community.webshots.com/user/cafejunkie05

On June 1st, I woke up extra early to get in a quick run, chat with my coworkers, do a semi-final rehearsal with the orchestra and get my booty to the airport to meet my parents!! It had been nearly a year since we'd seen each other last, and I was excited that they were bringing me stuff from America!!! ohhhh, I mean, I was excited to see THEM! :) After a brief haggling session with the taxi drivers, we went to check our things into the train station's baggage area. The ride to the train station seemed pretty normal to me, but I think my dad was sitting on pins and needles as the car swerved, scooted and skimmed by surrounding vehicles. This would not be the only trip where my dad would question the driver's competency.

Back in Pernik, I did the unthinkable and prepared a meal for my parents. No foreigner has truely arrived in Bulgaria until he's tasted shopska salata, so we dropped our bags in my depressingly empty apartment and headed to the local market place for some Bulgarian tomatoes, cucumbers, peppers and cheese. My dad had quite a good time noting the measuring devices, the variety of products and the cats; my mom wanted one of the baba bags woven out of plastic (also famous in US China towns). So after a good dinner of stuffed peppers, shopska and zagorka, everyone went to sleep! My parents had traveled roughly 24 hours to get here, and some rest was in order.

The first weekend was spent in Bulgaria, and we mostly looked around Pernik. We went to my favorite cafes, where I tried to train them in the art of "doing nothing," a skill that I have more than mastered in the past two years. :) We went to the Thracian fortress near my apartment and listened to updates from my dad on what grasses Bulgaria and America have in common (more than you'd think!). My great friend Ogi, who is an investigator for the local police in a nearby town, and her family had a free afternoon, so we had lunch. Her family has taken such great care of me during my time here, that I had to introduce my family to hers! Ogi and I did an admirable job translating for a table full of excited parents, though mostly I think people were just happy to have finally met one another. After lunch we packed our bags for ISTANBUL!!!!

We spent about 4 days in Istanbul, and we did a variety of things ranging from; Turkish baths, sight-seeing, museum hopping, boat cruises, and carpet shopping (I bought a little one!). For Westerners, there is no place imaginable which compares to Istanbul. The second you walk off the train, there is something in the air that tells you something is different. For me, its not just the meeting of the continents, the fact that its a Muslim country, or the historical aspect of this marvelous city- its something more, something that I can never quite put my finger on. You should go see it for yourself! :) My favorite part of Istanbul is seeing all the different mosques. I have some unnatural obsession with houses of worship. There were tons of tourists in the city, but we still found plenty of great places and we were never inconvenienced by long lines or other crazy things. We saw a belly-dancing show, ate lots of duners, had some turkish delight, drank our fair share of tea, bargained our butts off, and I even got to use my Bulgarian with a few of the vendors. I think the parentals were thoroughly impressed :)

After Istanbul, we had the TRUE vacation...the Bulgarian Black Sea!!! I could probably live on the sea. year round, in a bathing suit, during a snow storm. We went to the cities of Burgas, Sozopol, and a little detour to the town of Primorie. Primorie was unplanned. I almost lost my father. I should read signs more often. Anyway, SOZOPOL was fantastic! We played in the water, ate SHARK, saw old Bulgarian houses, met local artists, and saw a Bulgarian folklore performance. We were on the seaside for a very short period of time, but in 2 days i was able to relax relax relax.

By the time we got back to Sofia/Pernik, Mr. GWB was invading Sofia. After the G8 summit, gwb took a little trip around our part of the world. All the peace corps volunteers were invited, but I politely refused. You know that old saying "if you can't something nice, don't say nothin at all?" Well, I couldn't trust myself and decided it would be better if I just abstained from the event. GWB continued to be a pest in my life, however, as we had to deal with monument closures, road closures, and no public transportation. So we decided to head back to Pernik and get ready for their last 4 days in the BG.

I had been cooking up a surprise for my parents since early May, and there was still a bit more work to do. The conductor of the Pernik string orchestra "Orpheus" had asked me to perform with them for their final concert of the season, and it just happened to coincide with my parent's trip!!! i wanted to surprise them though, and when I went to my last few rehearsals, I just made up some story about "having lots of work!" I'm so sneaky. Needless to say, they were thoroughly surprised to see my walk up on stage and sing a few American songs and a Bulgarian folk song! After the concert, the local TV news interviewed them. My parents were baffled that the reporters wanted to talk to them, but were more than happy to gush about their experience in Bulgaria thus far.

Perhaps one of the most fun things we did was a work party. At my job, we celebrate everything. Good weather, birthdays, name days, successful events, fridays, whatever- we celebrate it! My parents had brought some Jack Daniels and chips with salsa, and it was a big hit. I was so impressed with my coworkers too, who despite vocabularies of 200-300 words, some how managed to have my parents' attention for the full 3 hours!

After 13 days, I had to say goodbye to Mom and Dad, but it was a good trip! My parents were crazy enough to give up their seats on the final leg of their trip, and in exchange won free tickets to anywhere in the USA (except Hawaii of course)!!!! I'm glad that they now HAVE to take another vacation!

please stay tuned for youtubes of my performance with Orpheus. Also, if you actually know how to make youtubes, please let me know!! I'm allergic to technology!

I keep forgetting to update!

Last weekend I spent a lovely, lovely time in Veles, Macedonia!!! (or, the MAK, as we like to call it) My friend Cindy from Vanderbilt was celebrating her 23rd birthday, and rumors of a ridiculously good time and a welcoming balcony beckoned…

Actually, Cindy’s birthday is something of an International holiday. May 24th marks the creation of the Cyrillic Alphabet by the brothers Kiril and Methodi, so many of the Cyrillic-using countries celebrate the occasion. The added bonus was of course…free holiday days!!! Whew! I took the opportunity to head to the MAK and see some of my favorite Balkanized Americans!

The first night I arrived, Cindy was throwing a party for all her friends and coworkers in Veles. She has two wonderful, amazing sitemates – Simonche and Stefi- who helped cook, clean, bake and plan the party. It was a full house (balcony) and after dinner the party turned into a Macedonian song-fest! Her landlords came over to help celebrate (actually, they live below her) and it turns out the guy is pretty talented and knows like, every Macedonian song written- EVER. A typical Bulgarian “Na gosti” doesn’t typically include three guitars and 20 people singing, so I was pretty impressed! Finally around 2am, the guests left and we got to sleep!

The rest of the trip was filled with group runs, sing-a-longs (in English), eating “pita,” getting awesome highlights (for $15…), and another party with MAK PCVs. A party at which I was crowned beer pong champion of Macedonia!!!!! Okay, so I crowned myself, but Simon and I did win! I miss the Veles crew a ton, and I’m pretty convinced that they are 3 of the coolest PCVs I’ve come to know.

I JUST read that the Bush administration, in preparation for upcoming G8 talks, has changed its stance on global warming! They now think its important to focus on the environment and the cut down on the emission of all sorts of harmful stuff (well, maybe not all sorts…)!!! I am shocked and pleased.

In other US political news, a few weeks ago a handful of Congressmen and Congresswomen undertook a challenge to live life like an average person who receives food stamps. For one week, they had $3 a day to nourish themselves. One of the things they all seemed to say was that you could buy more junk food calories per dollar than you could healthy calories. If you had a tiny bit of money and a whole family to feed, how are you supposed to stay full AND get nutrients? You know, assuming that Doritos and little Debbie snack cakes don’t fit so well into the food pyramid… These legislators were criticized by many because, in fact, they didn’t accurately recreate the budget of a food stamp recipient. Food stamps are meant to supplement a citizen’s budget, not make up the entirety of it. I agree that it wasn’t a “real” situation, but I truly admire these politicians for finding an issue that is important to them, and finding a new and creative way to reach people’s minds. I would guess that most people are unaware of the amount of aid a welfare recipient receives, so hopefully this demonstration paints a clearer and more accurate picture. I wish these guys were my representatives!!!

Work is going tediously slow, but that means I’ve had a chance to read a few books! I recently read Capote’s “In Cold Blood,” Judy Bloom’s “Summer Sisters,” and am nearly finished with Hemmingway’s “The Sun also Rises.” I’m taking book requests!!!

My parents just called me from the Minneapolis Airport, and they were getting ready to board! I will see them in 13 hours in Sofia!!!!!! I’m pretty excited!

For those of you obsessed with American Idol, you might be interested to know that Bulgaria also has its own version called "Music Idol." The first season is currently airing. Unfortunately I don't have a TV, so I've been missing the show. BUT BUT thanks to www.vbox7.com, Bulgaria's answer to youtube, I've been able to catch highlights from the show!

Plamen Putov...this boy mostly sings English songs and is AMAZING!!! like, if he wasn' 17, I would probably be in love with him...

http://www.vbox7.com/play:f7094ead not sure what this song is called, but you'll know it!

http://www.vbox7.com/play:b59d716a performing "Stand By Me"

so, let's mention again that he's 17!! I don't think he studies voice or anything, but he is amazing!!! I don't think I've heard him sing a wrong note yet!!

of course, the sad news is that he got kicked off the show :( The remaining boys aren't nearly as good (Theodor, for example, frequently misses pitch) and the girls are okay. One of the girls, Nevina (I think...) is 15 and is also pretty good!

Enjoy!

Happy Anniversary to my workplace, the Palace of Culture!! On May 11th, 1957 Bulgaria welcomed the first Palace of Culture (or as I like to call it, the POC) right here in Pernik. To help celebrate our holiday, we had a huge party! Before the party we held a concert that included all the musical and artistic groups which are part of the complex. Here they are!

In front of the building, the current folk dancers perform one of many, many dances. Later on, "alumni" of the dancing group join the stage so that there are as many as 120 dancers!

One of the biggest crowd pleasers was the "sport dancing" group. Dancing to "Grease Lightning" from the famed movie "Grease," these dancers showed a great deal of professionalism.

Kiril (playing the accordian) is one of the nicest guys in our building. He is always so thankful for the smallest things. He's also an amazing singer, but tonight gave the priviledges to a former soloist from the POC's professional folk orchestra, "Graovska Mladost" (www.myspace.com/graovskamladost)

The less famous but equally entertaining wind orchestra played "The song for the Palace" and another piece which the director wrote himself. Off to the side, girls dressed in the style of cheerleaders are dancing with hand-made pom-poms. The conductor of this orchestra is 75 years old, and can quote 100s of recipies from memory, can tell you about the origin of the sandwich, and also claims to be my grandfather...

Its me with my coworkers! So while we aren't exactly part of "musical or artistic" acts, we did put together the whole night!! And by "we," I mean "they!!" All I did was take pictures. :)

Here we are inside at the party! On the left I am with my counterpart, Desi, and are often crazy coworker Sasho. Seriously, sometimes he calls me a rabbit and asks if i want a carrot! On the right is Ventzi who leads the folk orchestra. He has a bazillion friends all over the Balkans and in North America. He keeps promising me that he'll take me on one of their tours!

The End!

Let’s start out with an apology for the length of this update!!! I’ll try to keep the ridiculously boring details to a minimum and the action (action!) to a maximum. See, didn’t that parenthetical aside liven things up? I thought so too.

Today’s theme is: “When you start making friends, its amazing how much smaller the world becomes.” Michael Pepa, Sofia train station

I’ll never forget Randy’s story about “vruski” during our pre-service training. We’d barely been in Bulgaria a week when Randy took a trip with his host family to the local bazaar to replace some broken shoe strings, or, “vruski.” Ever adept at learning Bulgarian, he filed the word away for future use. Future use turned out to be the next day in language class. The language trainer told the Volunteers that “vruski” might possibly be the most important word we volunteers would learn. “Shoelaces?” thought Randy, “what’s so important about those? And more importantly, what sort of society places THIS MUCH value on shoe strings?!?” As it turns out, this word also means connections.

All across the Balkans, locals chalk up success, failure, and opportunities to these imminent vruski. Did your rival land an awesome job? Vruski. Is your cousin’s wife really working at [insert prestigious institution here]?! Can she hook me up? Vruski. Want to pass your university exam? Vruski. Vruski. Vruski. You get the idea here. A conversation with nearly any local, young or old, often touches on this topic. Most definitely, they believe, this is what’s ruining the country. No one’s got a chance at success with out the Vru... okay, okay, you got the point.

But when I stop to think about it, is American drastically different? Perhaps so, although it could be that I’m horribly underestimating the affect of the “connections market” here in Bulgaria. However, just a few days ago Lincoln and I received a visit from a Peace Corps DC-aucrat, and it reaffirmed my belief that the US job market is full of its fair share of vruski. When I jokingly mentioned that, in order to prepare for grad school in ’08 while still making a little cash, my future plans included a gig at Subway (oh man, what I would do for a turkey on honey oat with some peppers, black olives, tomatoes….ahhh), DC dude was quick to offer an alternate plan of action. “Why not shoot an email out to the Returned PCV network? I’m sure someone there could help you find a short term job.” Or, how many times do we hear about people be hired for jobs before the position is even advertised. Aren’t “connections” just a really low-brow way of saying “networking”?

Okay, this was NOT the point of the blog.

I just got back from Vienna!!!!!! Though my original plans entailed running 13.1 miles in-between a few days of sightseeing, laziness during the month of February fated my trip into one of touristy pleasure. We’d researched hostels and the like, but in an effort to be both super thrifty and travel in a new way, Emily and I signed up for couchsurfing.com and began roaming the site for Viennese hosts. Emily found a fun girl named Sue who seemed willing to host us, so mission number one after landing in Vienna was to find her street! This was done easier than expected, but with no thanks to the 1-hr German lesson I’d received months earlier. Thankfully, Austrians are very friendly! Sue provided us with more information that we could possibly read in a week, let alone use! She helped us determine our route to the marathon registration hall and the pancake feed which followed. Walking into that registration hall was…fantastic. Booths, sponsors, runners, kids, anticipation and excitement filled the walkways and the air. Since there were 26,000 runners signed up for the marathon and the halfsie, the runner’s high filled the expo like a pre-euphoria for all those who’d put in hard months of training to get to this day. And for someone like me who’d passed the chance by, it was a reminder that doing is much, much better than just watching. To make myself feel a little better, I grabbed a few fliers for fall marathons in Europe.

The pancake feed was in the city’s municipal building, which was flat out gorgeous. Even though we were sitting on rolled up carpet and stuffing pancakes in our faces, there was no dodging the lavish light fixtures or the roof which soared on and on. It’s one of those places where you can start to imagine, more realistically than before, what it must have been like to be part of Viennese high life in the 18th-19th centuries. After listening to opening remarks in German, we high-tailed it to check out a few more sights before the sun went down. Across from the municipality is the Burgass theatre, which again, is stunning. We stared at it for at least an hour while wondering what it could possibly be! I think it was two days later when we realized the front cover of one of Sue’s travel books was none other than this very theatre. We’re so astute.

Sunday meant race day!! We took the metro to the start, and I hung out with Emily until the gun went off. The plan was for us to meet up at some statue between two buildings we’d never seen, and I hoped really hard that I’d see this girl again within the next three hours! I took the metro back to the center, and with two hours on my hands started walking around. I soon happened upon the finishing area, and the jumbo-tron screen featuring the race’s leaders soon drew me in. I scored a spot on the fence 50 meters from the finish line, and waiting nearly 90 minutes to see the winners of the full and the half, and then Emily! We met up, drank some powerade, and then had tasty tasty falafel. Since Emily wasn’t tired and there was plenty of daylight (it was about noon), we went to see the Shournburn Palace. For me, the highlight of the palace was the labyrinth. We were unable to find our way out, but thanks to some kids, we saved ourselves from complete and utter embarrassment.

The next few days consisted of; starbucks, sushi, modern music concerts, delicious, delicious Austrian beer, hanging out, and an Irish pub run by Asians who played Country music. On our last day, we took a bike tour of the city, which in my mind was peeeerfect. It wasn’t much of a workout, but it was fun to see the city and all the buildings we’d missed. I was blown away by the city’s infrastructure and how bike-friendly the entire place seemed to be! Bikers have their own lanes and their own green lights at crosswalks!! I would recommend couchsurfing to everyone…we had so much more fun hanging out that I barely even felt like a tourist!

A week before I went to Vienna, I had a chance to brush up on my English with some fellow North Americans! Two very talented musicians, Lynn Kuo (http://www.lynnkuo.com/) and Rachel Mercer (www.myspace.com/rachelmercermusic) arrived in Pernik to begin rehearsing with our Chamber Orchestra “Orpheus.” Their stop in Bulgaria was the kick-off to a month-long tour of Europe where they would be showcasing modern Canadian composers. I was lucky enough to catch them not only in Bulgaria, but in Vienna as well! The ladies were later joined by composer Michael Pepa (Canadian) and Beverly Grigsby (American). For about 5 days, I played the role of; schedule holder, airport fetcher, translator, dining companion, direction giver, and reservation maker. Most of our guests were from Toronto, and I hope someday to visit them too! Lynn and Rachel are not only fabulous musicians, but have fantastic personalities. Our time together flew by more as if we were old friends rather than people haphazardly thrown together by way of a common language. As we said goodbye to our guests as they boarded the overnight train for Belgrad, I was truly sorry to see them go.

Today I'm reminded of a Minnesota folk singer, Mason Jennings, who once said "...some one's been there long before ya."

60 years ago today, Jackie Robinson walked into Americans' lives as a Brooklyn Dodger. During a time when America was still stricken with the diseased mindset of segregation, nearly all of his teammates shunned and heckled Robinson, all that is, except one. Pee Wee Reese, the then Dodgers team captain, supported Jackie from the very beginning. "You can hate a man for many reasons, color is not one of them," he said.

this post is not about Mason Jennings, or Jackie Robinson, but more about the Pee Wee Reeses of the world. While America was busy separating "us" from "them," Reese choose to believe that there was no "them" to discern from "us." Instead of seeing Robinson as an African American who happened to play ball, he instead saw him as a fellow athlete. I often wonder where people like Reese come from. Growing up in a society that shuns one thing or another, there is always someone who rises above the ignorance and does what he believes is right- something contrary to everything he's been raised to believe.

When we, as volunteers, find ourselves fearing that certain minority groups will never become integrated into mainstream society or that there is no foreseen end to rampant discrimination, its then that we must remember Mason Jennings' words. And its then that we must especially remember people like Pee Wee Reese. Because as long as there has been injustice, there has been someone else willing to stand up for what's right. I personally find a lot of hope in that.

Across many Western Christian countries, today marks "Palm Sunday" or "Passion Sunday." This is the first day of "holy week" which typically ends with a vigil on Saturday and exclamations of "He is risen!" on Sunday. Today I attended my first "Palm Sunday" service outside of the US, and it was a bit different.

First off, this year marks the rare occasion when the Eastern Orthodox and Christian calendars align for the Celebration of Easter. eerr, wait a moment. actually, every THREE years, these two calendars align with each other. This news would be surprising both to Americans and Bulgarians- the former probably have no idea that Easter is celebrated at different times in different religions, and the latter is fond of mentioning how peculiar it is that this year we will celebrate on the same day- both equally unaware of one another.

I normally would have been in Pernik on a Sunday afternoon, practicing with my choir that specializes in old religious music (though, sometimes the occasional italian love song makes its way into the repertoire), but on account of the "holiday," rehearsal was canceled. I found this odd, especially since I was pretty sure not a single person in the choir regularly attends church, and that as a group with a repertoire like ours...hmm... you fill in that puzzle!

As I wondered around Sofia before Mass, I noticed that many people were carrying some type of leafy twig which bore absolutely no resemblance to the palms they freely hand out at St. Charles each year. Recalling that the average Bulgarian attends church enough to make even the "Christmas and Easter Catholics" feel pious, I was pleased to see so many people had attended church. Moments later, I realized how wrong I was. On many a street corner, next the the bunny and easter egg adored table cloths, you could buy your very own palm-y branch... I was a bit appalled to see this Christian tradition commercialized (totally different than Christmas cards, I swear!), and I think the height of that came when I saw people adorning their heads with palms that had been worked into rings. because for half a euro, you too can be King of the Jews...

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In other religious news, I was accepted to the American Research Institute in Sofia's program for the Spring of 2007! If I decide to accept this invitation, I'll be studying Bulgarian history, and the interesting role religion has played in their history. Sofia is an amazing city where, in the very center of city you can see the Catholic cathedral, the Synagogue (largest in Europe), a Mosque and an Orthodox church...all of them within 500m of one another!

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last weekend, one of my favorite people in the entire world came to visit me in Bulgaria!!! Cindy, one of my friends from Vandy, is a PCV in Macedonia, and lives about 5 hours away from my town here in Bulgaria. I think I've mentioned this irony before- what are the odds of two people joining the Peace Corps, and then living closer together during these two years than they would in the US?!?! Well, she and several of her friends made a trip to the BG to; a)take a vaca, b)hang out with me! c)play in a soccer tourney, and d)hang out with me! I had such a great time showing them around Pernik, Sofia, middle-of-no-where Bulgaria and confusing the heck out of them when I shook my head up and down for "no" and side to side for "yes." The Macedonian language and Bulgarian language are very similar, so it was fun for them to listen to me speak with my coworkers and friends, AND they could interact as well. Anyway, it was the BEST of times and I can't wait until I see all of them again!

In terms of work, a few interesting things have been happening as well. We began working harder on the project we won from the "US Agency for International Development" two weeks ago, and one of the things we've done is videotape concerts. my coworkers also completed a one week course on using powerpoint, so they'll soon be making materials for art and music teachers to use in the classroom. Very cool!

well this is my update for now! Send me emails, letters or give me a call!! :)

Yes, I full-heartedly ask you..."who needs novocaine?" NOT ME!!!! is the resounding answer in Bulgaria tonight. Today I had to get three cavities filled in Sofia, and our dentist is notorious for doing one and sending you out the door. However, today, he and i struck a little bargain. If I agreed to abstain from novocaine, he would do all three in one sitting!!! its like, the JACKPOT...until of course, you realize this actually means no novocaine. "Dr. Dean" also told me that if at any point I felt I was in too much pain, I could just squeak and he'd stop drilling in order to dope me up with some drugage. That seemed fair enough to me, so I was like "Let's do it Dr. Dean!" Anyone have an idea where this is going? Well, things went pretty good and I was feeling like a rock star until....oowwwwww!!! nerve, nerve, nerve!! When I made my pathetic attempt to alert our darling doctor, he simply replied "Well, I'm almost done now, so just hang in there. you're so brave." hahaha. I'm so brave? what am I, a 4 year-old? Anyway, some people learn from history, but I am apparently not one of them! this process happened again with the next tooth- wincing, squeaking and commentary on my bravery... BUT, when it was all over, I got to return to work and proudly proclaim that I, like every other Bulgarian, was able to handle a visit the the dentist without novocaine!

So while I continue journaling my "painful" experiences in Bulgarian, let me bring you to the next installment...teaching English!! a few months ago, I made contact with one of the local private language schools. These private schools are, on some level, a form of tutoring. You go to normal school, and in your free time, you attend these classes a la "extra-curricular activities." This typically means that the students are highly motivated because they have selected this activity and its FAR from free. The teachers at this school approached me to see if I'd be interested in teaching a few of their classes. This was not a long term commitment, but something I could do when I had free time, when the teachers were overloaded, etc. The first weekend in March, I decided to attempt this "teaching English thing" with high level speakers. I. was. petrified.

I was panicked about WHAT on EARTH I would do with them. Make word lists? play games? read outloud from newsweek?? This may seem strange (if not irrational) to all of you!! After all, wasn't this an ENGLISH class that I was about to lead? I prepared a topic on the American educational system (compare and contrast with the Bulgarian model), and a short debate on the meaning of the word "freedom." The day that I taught class marked the official Independence from the Turks day in Bulgaria, so I thought it would be a nice effort on my part. The beginning was a bit like pulling teeth, but by the end the kids were talking and even doing some of the things I'd asked! Then the teachers asked me to use the same lesson the next day with a new group of students, and I agreed. The second day went much better and was borderline fun! For me, the real highlight came during the "questions and comments" section of the lesson. One of the girls asked me if high school students segregate themselves in America, if sororities were real, was it advisable to join one, had i joined one, etc. As it turned out, she had a favorite film, "Mean Girls!!!!" I also love this movie, so if this student wasn't 14 years old, we would probably be best friends...

okay, that was just a quick update! My friend Cindy from Vandy is coming this weekend! she is a PCV in macedonia and only live about 8 hours (max, with layovers) away! If we were in America, we'd certainly live further apart, so what are they odds that we'd live close together as PCVs?????

Tomorrow on March 8th, I will be celebrating not the fact that I am a woman, but that I am a smart, capable human being who is committed to efforts to empower women around the globe.

But my plate will be a bit full, as I’ll also be fighting indifference and a bit of ignorance. This “holiday” is a chance for all of humanity to celebrate the accomplishments of women throughout history, to be thankful for their accomplishments, and to empower a new generation of “world citizens” to believe in a society where “all (wo)men are equal.”

And even though I am thankful, I’m not satisfied. As long as I live in a country where I at times feel like a second-class citizen, I am not satisfied. As long as I know that I live in a country where equal work doesn’t mean equal pay, I am not satisfied. As long as I know there are women in the world who are denied education, who are denied reproductive education and choices, who live in abject poverty- as long as I know that women subsist in these conditions, I am not satisfied.

I am not satisfied because the fight is not over. While we Americans fuss about our busy schedules and homes with two working parents, we forget that not every woman has the luxury to jet away to her executive job, dropping the kids off at day-care (2 year waiting list!) on the way. Somewhere along the way, I think the idea of equality was replaced with the idea of “good enough.” So what if my university degree yields a lower salary than the exact degree held by a male peer, I can still get an education, can’t I? Or, True, very few women hold political office, but we get to vote, don’t we? It seems to me that we’ve become so accustomed to “good enough” that we’ve forgotten the passion with which many good men and women fought for our rights, freedom, and so-called equality today. But I digress…

The history of this holiday is amazing. It’s truly a story of women rising up together to change public policy- to show their strength and prove to labor organizations that they no longer would accept being underpaid and overworked!! (grrrrr!) I am, however, saddened that this holiday instead is used as an excuse for presents, flowers and time off of work to drink and party. This is the indifference and ignorance that I was speaking of earlier. If we believe in the power of people working together for social change, if we believe that women around the world have yet to achieve equality (but that they deserve it), if we believe that everyone’s quality of life will be raised once women receive education and are able to freely make their own reproductive choices, then I believe we own it to ourselves to CELEBRATE in the name of the accomplishments which we’ve attained thus far, and in the name of those which we *will* achieve.

Every day is a day in which we should strive towards equality. Every day is an opportunity to empower a child or make a difference in someone’s life. Every day is International Women’s Day.

Tomorrow on March 8th, I will be celebrating not the fact that I am a woman, but that I am a smart, capable human being who is committed to efforts to empower women around the globe. Yes, tomorrow I’ll celebrate humanity, its fighters, its successes- and I’ll also celebrate that I’m in this fight to the finish.

I think my favorite Bulgarian holiday is March 1st, "Baba Marta." There are about a zillion variations on the fable behind the story, but the important thing to know is; it involves spring, storks, and the colors of red and white. I'm sure some clever volunteer will blog about this holiday, and I'll post a link to it later on.

so why do I like it?

because Baba Marta is the ultimate gift-giver's paradise!!!! the week following March 1st, the streets and main shopping areas are lined, and I mean LINED, with individuals selling "martinitzi." Martinitzis take the form for bracelets, cloth broaches for your jacket, necklaces, and rings/trinkets- the important part is the red/white combination of yarn. Some bracelets have colorful stones or beads (the turkish eye or a heart are popular) or are embroidered with your name, zodiac sign, or favorite football team. These martinitzi are exchanged between friends, family, peers, and coworkers in preparation for the welcoming on spring, so the more people you know, the more martinitzi you get and receive!!!! and at the low low price of 30 stotinki (about $0.20), you can buy to your heart's desire! They are so cool because individuals create the designs and think up new ideas and you can truly find a unique bracelet. Okay, I will try and take some pictures so that this makes more sense...but seriously, I love this holiday!

Right now at work we are collecting offers for our tech equipment that we'll buy for our USAID grant. It has been a bit frustrating because we have very specific price ranges for each item we buy, and not all the companies we are working with understand that! For example, we say "okay 1500 BGN for a laptop is our max" and we get offered one for 1900. hahahah. we are getting excited about designing our website, and we're planning our first power-point presentation led activity. On March 8th, the world apparently celebrates "International Women's Day" (minus America! I'd never heard of this before last year), so we are creating a presentation on women in Bulgarian history. Our presentation won't be until the end of the month, but it will be really cool because someone from the embassy will be here and will present a similar powerpoint on women in American history! I hope it turns out cool.

Speaking of women in American history, Ann Coulter continues to pollute every accomplishment ever achieved by women. This woman says the most extraordinary things I've ever heard and is perhaps one of the most intolerance people I have ever interacted with. She recently hinted that John Edwards was a "faggot" at the Conservative Policitical Action Conference. And okay, I agree that everyone has a right to their opinion, but what is that about? If John Edwards is in fact a "faggot," does this somehow affect his ability to be President? Last time I checked, that's a big resounding NO! So then what's the point of mentioning it? I know that sometimes it seems like we "liberals" are pushing society into a highly "PC-ed" language, but I'm forever in favor of decreasing the amount of hate speech in public, in private, and in the media. Anyone with me on that?

About 2 weeks ago Desi, my counterpart, took me "na gosti" (visiting, or in Midwestern perhaps 'to go calling') to her aunt Clara's house. Clara lives about 100m from me in a neighboring apartment building, and had been asking to meet me for quite some time now. So Desi and I went to Clara's for lunch, and its been friendship ever since. Clara just had her 72nd birthday this weekend, but you would never guess her age! This woman is so "v chas," literally "in the know" that its hard to believe she's a grandma. She writes in a journal about world affairs, knows what a laptop is, and makes some mean homemade soup! In addition to the lunch she prepared for Desi and I, she's also made me two FULL meals...this includes fresh baked bread, cookies, soups, pies, stuffed grape leaves, you name it! Since she lives so near to me, she also keeps tabs on my well-being because she can see if lights are on or off in my apartment. She had a million questions about our cattle business, whether we sell the cows, how often they give birth, what we do the milk, etc...and she was absolutely DELIGHTED to see a picture of calves at branding. Its truly amazing to see someone soo intrigued by life by the time they've reached her age.

This week we of course celebrated Valentine's day. Valentine's day is considered a "Catholic holiday" in Bulgaria, and only in the last few years have they begun to recognize it as a fun and worthwhile holiday. In the US where one might stress over dinner reservations, the perfect card, a well-selected gift and who knows what all else (!), in Bulgaria its perfectly acceptable to give a card and some stuffed heart-shaped thing to your loved one... But what if you aren't in a relationship? Have no fear! it just so happens that the Bulgarian holiday for wine-makers coincides with our Valentine's day! So if you've got no one to love, there's always a bottle of wine to help keep the cool nights warmer. My parents had thoughtfully sent me a box of Valentine Day's candies, cards and stickers, so I was able to show my coworkers how Feb 14th might be celebrated in the workplace in the States. I had a ton of fun being the center of attention while i described the red and pink "mail boxes" smattered with hearts and lace which we made in elementary school, the art of selecting the perfect valentine for that special someone, and the cunning needed to drop the correct combination of "conversation hearts" into your friends valentine. During our party then, of course the key candy was the bag of "conversation hearts," which were used to create witty little phrases. I was amused how my coworkers ate these candies though; whereas I would grab a handful and snack away on my favorite Valentine's candies, they would tentatively reach into the bag and pull out just one- one which would be a bit of luck for the future. In the same way that we prize our fortune at the Chinese restaurant, my coworkers held some hope that their chosen messages would become reality. The actual Valentines were also a big hit too! the little heart stickers used to seal the Valentines now adorn nearly every phone in our workspace (including mine!). I brought a few blank cards into work, and my coworkers delightedly filled them out for their children or boyfriends. Of course, we also drank a bit of wine!! :) This was definitely my favorite valentine's day to date!

A few weekends ago I went to the city of Dimitrovgrad to see my good friend Ethan, and also to work with a handful of PCVs on a "activity kit" which focuses on accepting others and diversity. We had some truly productive moments, and were kept on our toes by one of the newest members who was really anxious to get at the philosophy behind the project. We're hoping to have an "open" general meeting in the next few weeks so that this project can fly. Dimitrovgrad was pretty fun, and after a long day of meetings, we went to a neighboring town and met up with more PCVs there.

Half marathon training starts tomorrow, so I better get going! please feel free to leave a comment here on my blog! I'd love to hear how you're doin!!

"What do you mean Americans like to eat sandwiches?" commented my host mom while cooking chicken in a vat of oil, "That's not very healthy!"

Somewhere along the way, many Bulgarians have not been properly introduced to the ideas of fitness and nutrition. Sick? its because the door was cracked open at lunch. Coughing? its NOT because of your pack-a-day habit. Fat? Only tea and fruit for the next 14 days.

As I fondly recall my early morning runs in late summer, I can clearly picture the other people in the park. First, they would stare at me as though my head was on fire. Next, they'd form a fan club to cheer me on with each lap. But in the end, my head freshly afire, they would yell at me to cease running and take a breather. Okay, yes this was marathon training and sometimes the running seemed a bit excessive to the average onlooker...but morning runs in the park rarely accounted for more than 15 minutes of my run! What person in their right mind would exercise for 15 minutes, and then go home?

I was speaking with another PCV about his idea to create a "fitness" room at his orphanage. While he's advocating the purchase of free weights and other such things, his coworkers would really prefer a bike. When the PCV mentions that 20 minutes would be needed for each child to get a workout, his coworkers explain that 3 minutes on the highest setting replace the other 17 minutes...

i just keep coming back to the sandwich. In a country where people eat 2-3 pieces of bread with each meal, put mayonnaise on their pizza, and douse garden fresh vegetables with oil...how on earth could a sandwich be bad???

okay, enough on that subject. I recently joined another choir in pernik, and this one promises to be more fun. The director works in sofia at the Musical Theater theater...one of his favorite songs is "Memory" from Cats, and he loves to make reference to Cabaret whenever possible. Clearly this is my kinda guy! My sitemate Jim also joined the choir, which makes it more fun. Now I have 5 scheduled rehearsals a week!!! I am also going to start working with a private english school in Pernik. They've offered to compensate for this (PCVs can't make money, so the pay would go directly to my organization) which I hope to use to create more youth projects.

I'm still suffering from plantar fascities, but I'm hoping it will pass in the next couple of months. I've got a half marathon to run in vienna, afterall!!

the only other news is that it still isn't too cold in bulgaria. today was high 30s and it might finally snow this weekend. okay all...stay warm and I'll try to find a cool topic to write about next time!

Za mnogo godini!!!! Neka neshtat na koito se mechtiesh da stanat!! In other words, here's to hoping that your wishes for the new year come true!

My resolution? To spend more time on MySpace.com!! No, seriously! As media takes new forms and pushes boundaries, I decided its only fair to drag my organization from one side of the borders to the other. At the palace of culture, our most outstanding asset is the talent of our orchestras. So, we're embracing the 21st century,reaching out to new communities, and creating myspace accounts! Please check out my first victim, the folk music orchestra. Make them your friends!!!!!! this is not a request, its a demand!

http://www.myspace.com/graovskamladost

My holidays were wonderful! I spent Christmas eve with my counterpart, Desi, and her family. Desi and her mother had prepared a HUGE meal, which of course was meatless. Orthodox Christians celebrate the night before the birth of Christ a little bit differently than we do, and it always shocks Bulgarians when I tell them my family always enjoys a bit of ham and turkey on the 24th! Among the many things you find on the table include; honey, beans, rice&spice stuffed peppers and cabbage leaves, walnuts, rakia (of course!), banitsa with pumpkin, bread w/o eggs or milk, a sweet soup made from re-hydrated fruits, and a special bread called "pitka s kusmeti"- or- bread with luck(s).

Before the meal begins, the oldest person at the table breaks the lucky bread into several pieces. The first piece is for God, the next piece is for Mary/Jesus, and then the rest is distributed among the family members and guests. Then, after many years of your mom telling you to sit up straight and stop playing with your food...you start digging through your piece of bread!!! inside are a variety of lucky pieces- little twigs, coins, buttons, fruits. Whatever you find in your bread determines your fate for the year. This year I found the piece of fruit.

Christmas Day was spent with the lovely Andrea and Boudreaux in Sofia! We watched Jimmy Stewart remind us that life is indeed a bit wonderful afterall, ate some home-made mexican, shared our families' traditions on Christmas, and wore fantastic jingly reindeer antleers. This was a great day for sure!

New years was in LONDON!!! Every employer gives their employees some time of christmas bonus...our was "free" vacation days to travel about! With our three extra days, I made a trip with my fearless companions Emily & Christin to see what the Brits are all about. We had fantastic weather, great food (oh the indian food...), stayed in an awesome location, rang in the new year and even saw Carmen at the Royal Opera!!!

Of course, one of the most important thing in London to see in Big Ben!!!!! When Emily and I were waiting at Customs in the Luton airport, the dude asked us what we were doing in London. "Seeing Big Ben!" I blurted out. Hey, it was about 8am our time and we'd been up since midnight dealing with crazy neighboors. Anyway, Big Ben will never fail to remind me of the time Pictionary was banned as a Schneider family game. How the heck Lee, at the age of like 8, knew about Big Ben, I'll never know! This picture is for you Lee!!

we spent New Years a bit closer to Big Ben, and the fireworks were amazing! check out my photo link at the end of this post to get a glimpse!

We also went to a multitude of parks and awed at things such as Brits out for jogs, horse trots, inter-racial couples, etc. London seemed like a deam come true! on our first day we saw buckingham palace which was a bit underwhelming. Infact, we debated a bit before decided the big grey building was, infact, the palace! Emily 1, Toni 0.

The museums in London are also worth seeing. We went to the imperial war museum, the tate modern art museum and the British history museum. All of them were free, and each of the fantastic. I highly recommend them.

The most frustrating part of our trip was that none of the Brits understood me! I was asked to repeat myself MORE times in England than I ever have been in Bulgaria while speaking Bulgarian! I swear! haha.

OH the Tube! The Tube was great and amazing and sooo user-friendly. i am a bit obsessed.

I'll leave you with a picture of me at tower bridge in london...think of it as a teaser for the pictures link that will follow!!

http://community.webshots.com/user/cafejunkie05

At the University of Georgia, a group of Christians are taking on an anti-discrimination policy that they feel doesn't apply to them. This Christina group, Brothers Under Christ (BYX) has fraternities on several campuses around the nation, Vanderbilt being one of them.

I have several good friends who were either founding members of this frat on Vandy's campus or were devout BYX members. Now, I'm an accepting person, so I will just say that I appreciate and understand the "need" or "want" for a Christian fraternity, but at the same time, I do not necessarily agree with everything they do.

Anyway, BYX is/was hoping to register their fraternity as a student organization, but they didn't want to comply to the non-discrimination policy which states that student organizations are not allowed to discriminate based on gender, sexual orientation, national origin, religion, veteran status, etc...you know the list. This fraternity requires its members to make a pledge that they are Christians.

http://www.alliancedefensefund.org/news/story.aspx?cid=3938 this is a press release from the alliance defense fund. They are representing the plaintiff, BYX. its got the basic info on the case's grounds.

There are several other religious organizations on campus, and at this time, its unclear how many of them do or do not comply with the University's non-discrimination policy. At least one religious group (Baha'i Faith) requires that officers of the group are members of a particular religion.

BYX states that their freedom to exercise religion is restricted by the University. I see this as a bunch of crap, because really, it seems like BYX is the one doing the restricting. The University has not told BYX that they cannot freely exercise their christian beliefs, but rather, has said that BYX cannot keep people out of their frat simply because they do not practice the same religion. Now, isn't excluding people rather un-Christian-like?

I would really hope that the University wins this one, but it seems that there is a bit of inconsistency which the implementation of the policy at hand. It could be that this (Baha'i's status as a student org) slipped under the radar as head of student activities have changed, but perhaps someone at the U really doesn't like BYX itself and is attempting to unfairly implement university policy. You really can't say,but it will be interesting to see the results.

I, as a Catholic, support Christianity. What I do not support is Christianity's obsession with victimization and belief that one's "Christian-ness" is reason in and of itself to bend the wonderful laws of our country which protect our freedoms, liberties, and rights.

okay, maybe that was a little strong, but give me a break! I had a bad day...

thanks to Dillon Barker and his blog for the info and the links to relevant court documents and news articles! EDIT- the U decided to grant BYX student organization status.

Music makes meeting is the theme of the Pernik chamer orchestra's 2006/2007 concert season. Never has this been more true than last night. After listening to a wide variety of piano duets, solos, and a string piece, the musicacns and Palace of Culture staff found ourselves enjoying a local dish "Kaverma" and speaking in a variety of different langauges.

The two piano players, as husband and wife, were guest artists from Vienna, and of course spoke both English and German. The wife was originally from Taipei, Taiwan- so throw another language into the fire! Sitting to my left were two English brothers. The elder brother had composed a set of tangos for the Chamber orchestra, and he had flown down espeically for the opening of these pieces. We marveled that in a "small" town in Bulgaria, one dinner table could be filled with people from 3 continents, more than 5 countries- and yet be able to communicate with one another. This was truly a satisfactory moment for me, and I was pleased that the theme of the concert season was physically manifested.

This, however, was not my only encounter with foreigners this week! On wednesday, my old NGO's presdient's wife (you still with me?) searched me out at work. One of the other Roma NGOs had won a project, and some french girl was coming to orchestrate the details. The french girl, as luck would have it, spoke english. When we met the girl at the bus station, it became clear that she had no affiliation with any project giving of any kind. She was actually a freelance jouranalist who was interested in the state of Roma in Bulgaria, and particularly in the projects the Bulgarian goverment and NGOs are carrying out. She had lots of interesting questions to ask, and it was also a good chance for me to challenge my Bulgarian skills. (although this time around, I think the bulgarian lang won out..if I were keeping score though, I'd say its a tied ballgame). It was also a good opportunity to get answers to questions I'd had during my acquaintence with these NGOs. Virginia (the french girl) asked some questions that I'd been wanting to ask for quite some time now!

now, i typically only say good things about bulgaria, but I am going to leave you with something that caused me to be less than impressed with some of the people I know, or perhaps, something that speaks about a more widespread phenomenon here. This french girl arrived ahead of schedule, which was unpreventable for our standpoint. I went with this woman Vikki to meet Virgina, because being the english speaker, I was very valuable. Vikki was anxious to hear about the terms and conditions of this project she thought she had recieved from the NGO she assumed Virginia was association with. So of course this girl was waiting for us when we arrived, and the first thing Vikki wanted me to translate was "Sorry I'm late. i was waiting for Toni to arrive." WHAT? you have got to be kidding me! i was so offened that Vikki was attempting to use me as a scapegoat, and not only that, but that she thought i was dumb enough to believe a lie about myself!!! I was infurtiated that this woman was somehow miscaculating the vital role I held in this meeting-no english translator, no money for your project. It seems like these finacial terms should be enough for a person to take responsibility for themselves and NOT INSULT THE TRANSLATOR. Then, when it became clear that Vikki was not to receive any money from this girl or her"NGO," both of us became discardable. Never mind that this girl had come all the way from france to write an article about bulgaria OR that she made a speical trip to pernik to speak with Vikki- this, compared to what she wanted, was dismissable and was a waste of her time. when the interview was over, the reporter wanted to take pictures of the Roma neighborhood for the article, and Vikki (unemployed with no kids to feed), claimed that she was too busy to take this girl to the neighborhood. I have listend to this woman complain about myriad things- from people not caring to NGOs not giving money, etc, and finally the day comes that someone cares. Someone shows up to her doorstep, genuinly interested in her work, in the Roma, and this woman is too self-righteous to giver her the respect she deserved.

this was disgusting.