Peace Corps Journals / Romania / all updates

The Botosani Philharmonic

Sat, 13 Mar 2010 05:36:00 +0800

(Romania / treading the sea)
Yesterday I traveled to the city of Botosani which is the county seat of Botosani county in the plains of north-east Moldova. Romanians from other counties treat Botosani like Americans treat Arkansa ...
7 reads

Traveling Beyond Barriers

Fri, 12 Mar 2010 13:11:00 +0800

(Romania / Lost In Transylvania)
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8 reads

Anisoara

Thu, 11 Mar 2010 19:03:00 +0800

(Romania / The Pick Up Sticks)
Today I said what I think may have been my first goodbye to a local friend. Anisoara is leaving on Saturday to visit her daughter in Virginia and won't be back until mid May a couple of weeks after I ...
6 reads

Doamne de Engleza

Thu, 11 Mar 2010 09:49:00 +0800

(Romania / treading the sea)
I was gingerly walking home on the icy road on Tuesday when I passed a few seven year olds milling around in front of a neighbor's house each standing next to a flexible-flyer type sled. As I passed ...
5 reads

A Case of the COS Blues

Tue, 09 Mar 2010 22:37:00 +0800

(Romania / Lost In Transylvania)
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6 reads

Closing Time

Tue, 09 Mar 2010 22:13:00 +0800

(Romania / Lost In Transylvania)
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7 reads

Connecting

Tue, 09 Mar 2010 08:26:00 +0800

(Romania / Lost In Transylvania)
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7 reads

Memory Loss

Mon, 08 Mar 2010 21:22:23 +0800

(Romania / The Transylvania Joem: A Young Peace Corps Volunteer in Romania)
I woke up last week and couldn’t remember anything I did last Spring. I closed my eyes and let my violet aura spiral around against the dim and tried to think of distinct events that had occurr ...
16 reads

International Women's Day

Mon, 08 Mar 2010 11:22:00 +0800

(Romania / My bursting heart must find vent at my pen: Thoughts from Transylvania)
8 Martie (March 8th) is International Women's Day. It is celebrated around the world and was first observed as a holiday in the United States but I had never celebrated it until coming to Romania.� ...
9 reads

casting

Sun, 07 Mar 2010 19:49:00 +0800

(Romania / treading the sea)
Applying for graduate school is like fishing for a frog prince. I spend hours casting my google searches until I find a school that I fall in love with and imagine myself meandering across the campus ...
8 reads

Make Something Good

Sun, 07 Mar 2010 09:30:00 +0800

(Romania / The Pick Up Sticks)
You know how sometimes you discover certain songs at the exact right moment? The moment when that song rings its truest for you and if you had discovered it 6 months ago you might not have even noti ...
9 reads

Spring is teasing me!

Sun, 07 Mar 2010 08:23:00 +0800

(Romania / Sarah's Journey)
So I thought for sure that Spring was here to stay. We had so many wonderful days I didn't even need a jacket I had lovely walks outside with the sun shining and then what do I wake up to yesterda ...
5 reads

Again Fobbing my Blog

Sat, 06 Mar 2010 09:22:00 +0800

(Romania / Wide Blue World)
Oh dear readers I've been in a quagmire--down in the dumps about an overly challenging workplace hurdle. And now winter seems to be rearing its head again. But I had a great meeting yesterday with my ...
14 reads

About Right

Fri, 05 Mar 2010 20:14:00 +0800

(Romania / The Pick Up Sticks)
My apologies for talking so much about the looming end of my service on here but I find it difficult to think of anything else right now. It's weird. The little knotted ball of anxiety that formed in ...
11 reads

Language barriers...still

Fri, 05 Mar 2010 19:52:00 +0800

(Romania / Romania, Peace Corps, 2008, Cynthia!)
So Tina my neighbor told me immediately when I got arrived home to my apartment yesterday that a lady of age 42 got a sponsor. She said "o fata a fost sponsorizat." Which...means a girl was ..I th ...
2 reads

Little Successes

Fri, 05 Mar 2010 15:41:00 +0800

(Romania / Tiffany's Romanian PeaceCorps Blog)
In the past 6 months of my PC service I have found that it is the little successes that keep me going. Things as simple as my kids turning in their homework or listening to me when I talk. These litt ...
7 reads

Unconditional

Thu, 04 Mar 2010 21:13:00 +0800

(Romania / The Pick Up Sticks)
Now that my tutor's two year long maternity leave has ended she's been back at the high school teaching English. So instead of tutoring lately I've been going and observing her classes just to get a ...
11 reads

Without Breath Learning to Breathe...

Thu, 04 Mar 2010 18:14:00 +0800

(Romania / In Search of My Duende:)
Aloha in the Hawaiian language means affection love peace compassion and mercy. Since the middle of the 19th century it also has come to be used as an English greeting to say goodbye and hello. A ...
0 reads

Tiny Little Culinary Success

Thu, 04 Mar 2010 16:16:00 +0800

(Romania / Wide Blue World)
After complaining that we don't have normal celery here but rather the big celery root which is occasionally accompanied by something that sort of looks like our celery but you'd really only want to ...
0 reads

Martisor

Wed, 03 Mar 2010 04:38:00 +0800

(Romania / Wide Blue World)
A little belatedly here's a small story of what has easily become my favorite holiday--Romanian or otherwise. The streets have been filled with flowers for sale particularly snowdrops and trinkets ...
4 reads

Recent blogging = FAIL

Tue, 02 Mar 2010 20:21:00 +0800

(Romania / Romania, Peace Corps, 2008, Cynthia!)
I'm sorry.I will try to get ALLLLLLL my pictures and stories up before I get back to America.I will be leaving Romania for good at the end of April/beginning of May.There's so much to post and still more to do.-Cynthia
4 reads

tooting my own horn

Sat, 27 Feb 2010 18:45:00 +0800

(Romania / treading the sea)
Last week my 8th graders learned how to write a thank you letter. Their homework assignment was to write a thank-you letter to one of their teachers who has impacted them. A couple of the letters w ...
8 reads

Baby Time!

Fri, 26 Feb 2010 23:03:00 +0800

(Romania / Emily and Nils)
Hello this is Nils speaking. I am very happy to announce that our daughter Jane Vera Bergeson was born yesterday at 6:21 pm. We'll give more details later but for now enjoy these pictures!
11 reads

How Could I Forget the Chickens?

Thu, 25 Feb 2010 15:06:00 +0800

(Romania / Wide Blue World)
When I was preparing to go to Madagascar this time last year I read one PC woman's blog there about finally having chickens on her lap on the bush taxi-an anticipated eventuality. Here in Romania I h ...
11 reads

Bloody Hell. They're Right!

Wed, 24 Feb 2010 14:10:00 +0800

(Romania / Wide Blue World)
Just like we Americans stereotypically associate the sum of Romanian history with the false myth of Dracula so sometimes do Romanians mistake the America of television with the real thing. Today I we ...
86 reads

P1000261

Mon, 22 Feb 2010 16:51:33 +0800

(Romania / Uploads from ionntag)
2 reads

Matei Update

Mon, 22 Feb 2010 07:49:00 +0800

(Romania / Wide Blue World)
In a roundabout way I have sort of contributed to a short reprieve in Matei's emergency situation. Here's what has happened so far: Mary with NOROC Agency got a $500 donation from someone in the stat ...
4 reads

The Other Shoe

Sun, 21 Feb 2010 21:40:00 +0800

(Romania / The Pick Up Sticks)
Shortly after arriving in Romania (which occurred exactly two years ago today) I met a few volunteers who were at the end of their terms. They had just attended their Close of Service conference and ...
12 reads

Spring...where are you?

Sun, 21 Feb 2010 12:15:00 +0800

(Romania / Sarah's Journey)
Yet another week this winter has passed on the bright side it is getting warmer on the dull side it is still grey and there is mud everywhere! I am anxiously awaiting the appearance of spring and d ...
9 reads

Spring Skiing (and Seconds)

Sun, 21 Feb 2010 09:08:58 +0800

(Romania / The Transylvania Joem: A Young Peace Corps Volunteer in Romania)
Yesterday I went “spring skiing ” at Straja with Dan (Leddy’s husband). It’s technically still the end of Winter but the conditions were kind of crazy– the likes of whi ...
3 reads

1000 Paper Cranes for Dachau

Fri, 19 Feb 2010 08:57:00 +0800

(Romania / Wide Blue World)
I can’t really explain why I must make a hobby of death camps and suffering. When I have my epiphany I’ll let you know. In the meantime I’d like to solicit your help for a small project which I ...
8 reads

Baby's Due Date... Where's the Baby??

Fri, 19 Feb 2010 02:38:00 +0800

(Romania / Emily and Nils)
Today is officially Jane's due date (notice the number on the baby counter is zero). But our baby seems completely content to stay where she is for now. That's okay with me since that means a few more ...
15 reads

A Little More Cluj

Thu, 18 Feb 2010 13:30:00 +0800

(Romania / Wide Blue World)
I don't remember where Susie took this picture of me. Oh yeah it's outside the Synagogue of the Deportees. I think I'm trying to break in. And the second picture is the calf weaner. This one's for you Mark. Did the calf weaner make the Manzanar Virtual Museum cut?
12 reads

Inainte am fost acasa

Thu, 18 Feb 2010 08:32:18 +0800

(Romania / Peace Corps Romania)
Before I went home I mad a short pilgrimage down to see Ted for his birthday. Brent met us there and a jolly good time ensued. I met another volunteer from a nearby city we will call her Sarah and w ...
5 reads

A Ray of Light

Wed, 17 Feb 2010 17:03:00 +0800

(Romania / Lost In Transylvania)
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5 reads

dove

Wed, 17 Feb 2010 16:50:00 +0800

(Romania / treading the sea)
A peace corps volunteer who lives near me received a package in which were among other items a package of dove heart chocolates. These chocolates were wrapped in shiny foil with hearts on the outsi ...
9 reads

The Cakeless Wasteland

Wed, 17 Feb 2010 12:05:00 +0800

(Romania / Wide Blue World)
This is the story of my trip to the city of Cluj in the north of Romania center of Transylvania. It involves long train and bus rides delicious and varied foods excellent company and a fair amount ...
7 reads

Stages

Tue, 16 Feb 2010 22:08:00 +0800

(Romania / The Pick Up Sticks)
Tonight after an enthusiastic session with the drama club and an interesting showing of Hamlet I walked home with three of the club members and one of the teachers. The five of us chatted about scie ...
10 reads

The Poet’s Pallbearer

Tue, 16 Feb 2010 17:32:48 +0800

(Romania / The Transylvania Joem: A Young Peace Corps Volunteer in Romania)
I have recently been really digging a Romanian poet Nichita Stănescu. Stănescu was one of Romania’s most beloved contemporaries and a lot of my Romanian friends (young and old alike) can ea ...
20 reads

A lil of this a lil of that...

Tue, 16 Feb 2010 15:17:21 +0800

(Romania / Peace Corps Romania)
I have decided that watching too much of one show while here is a bad thing. For instance Watching too much West Wing makes me think I am smarter than I am could also be making me a little conceited ...
10 reads

valentine's ball

Mon, 15 Feb 2010 14:57:00 +0800

(Romania / treading the sea)
Following the successful Halloween and Christmas parties at my school students asked if I could help with a Valentine's day party. Several 7th grade girls actually. While the student council's par ...
22 reads

When in Rome (Or Romania)

Mon, 15 Feb 2010 11:22:00 +0800

(Romania / My Romanian Holiday)
February is in the air and the season of Iarna is now in full. Apparently it snows here most every day in the mountains and it's truly a sight to behold. Skiing sledding skating wondering gawki ...
1 reads

Happy Valentine's Day!!

Sun, 14 Feb 2010 13:52:00 +0800

(Romania / Sarah's Journey)
Hey all I hope this Valentines Day finds you all happy and if you have a loved one to spend it with good for you and if not well there is always next year and we always have other single friends to ...
6 reads

America is the Exception

Sun, 14 Feb 2010 12:33:43 +0800

(Romania / The Transylvania Joem: A Young Peace Corps Volunteer in Romania)
“Food is a central activity of mankind and one of the single most significant trademarks of a culture.” Mark Kurlansky In Kurlanksy’s sense what does our American food attitude say about ...
34 reads

who cooks

Sat, 13 Feb 2010 06:57:00 +0800

(Romania / treading the sea)
Last night I was chatting in the kitchen with Gabi and Ciprian.We were talking about my trip to Vatra Dornei that morning to go skiing. "So when you visit other volunteers do you cook or do they ...
9 reads

If one had but a single glance to give t ...

Fri, 12 Feb 2010 18:12:00 +0800

(Romania / My bursting heart must find vent at my pen: Thoughts from Transylvania)
I gave Istanbul a glance and was so astounded by what I saw that I let the sounds and soul of the city seep into my spirit. It's been a week since I departed from the city once called Constantinople ...
10 reads

Let's Talk About Sex

Wed, 10 Feb 2010 20:35:00 +0800

(Romania / Lost In Transylvania)
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17 reads

Cities with Souls

Wed, 10 Feb 2010 18:19:09 +0800

(Romania / The Transylvania Joem: A Young Peace Corps Volunteer in Romania)
From January 3oth until February 5th I spent a week in the city of Istanbul. It is the unhesitating “you must go there ” place that volunteers talk about as we serve in Peace Corps Roman ...
27 reads

reluctant fire

Wed, 10 Feb 2010 15:26:00 +0800

(Romania / treading the sea)
When I come home from school my room is still warm from last night's fire although chilly. I make some tea and read snuggled under a blanket in the afternoon light allowing myself to drift. As t ...
12 reads

The Trip Home

Wed, 10 Feb 2010 14:38:04 +0800

(Romania / Peace Corps Romania)
The following is a running diary of my trip from Petricani to the United States towards the end my brain gets a little tired...14:00 EET - 7:00 EST Tirpesti ROLeft the house my gazda drove me to th ...
18 reads