Sunday in Moldova....

I decided to dedicate some time today for getting the hang of this blogging thing, so be sure to scroll down to the end of my page and take a look at the pictures I have managed to add! Sometimes all it takes is a little time to get to know your computer. Other times it takes a sledgehammer and a bottle of wine!
Well, here it is week seven in Moldova and I have learned many important lessons in this time. I will start with the superficial lessons. First, when the Peace Corps officials tell you to be careful about the water, not to eat the home-made cheeses, etc.-LISTEN! They know what they are talking about. I have always been able to eat the craziest stuff and live to tell about it. (Suni, remember the Chicken Feet at that nasty Dim Sum place in Chinatown?) I have discovered that being sick is not fun when you are in a foreign country, so the lesson I am taking from this is to be more careful about what I eat and listen to the Peace Corps. They know of what they speak!
Lesson #2: This lesson involves temperature. I didn't go to Africa because I was afraid the heat would kill me. Enter the 115 degree temperatures in Moldova. (Andi, I am sorry about what I said about global warming! I believe, I believe!!!!!!) It has been over 110 degrees for a week now. I thought it would not be a big deal. After all, I am from Arkansas. Summer sweltering is a part of life. I am afraid that there is a difference between running out to your hot car and giving it 5 minutes for the air to kick in and trying to sleep when the low temperature is about 95 degrees. I am tired of sweating and having my brains fry out of my head on the walk home from language class!!!!! Please, if you believe in God in any of her forms, ask her for a bit of divine intervention. I was so busy obsessing about the winters it never occurred to me to do a bit of a rain dance and light a candle for cooler temperatures!
Enough with the whining about conditions. (This is what I went into the Peace Corps for, wasn't it? The adventure of living in another country?) Let me tell you about some of the truly beautiful things about living in Moldova. The people are amazing!!!!!! I have never met a kinder, more hospitable group of people in my life. Everywhere I go, people are interested in talking to me, finding out where I come from, practicing their English, letting me practice my broken Romanian, etc. I don't know if there is enough room to begin to tell you about my wonderful host family. They take such good care of me and have made me feel so comfortable and welcome in their home it is unbelievable. I am one lucky lady!
Right now I am in Practice School. That means that I head to Chisinau every morning (Peace Corps is wonderful. They send a driver to pick us up every day and take us into the city to the University there!) I teach two classes a day with students from assorted universities all over Chisinau. They are amazing students! They range in age from 18 to 61 and are all wonderful students of English. We can talk about all kinds of topics, from the deep to the shallow and they hang in there for it all. One of the students brings me cold water every morning because it is so damn hot! The most amazing thing is that the students keep coming. It is unbearable hot (no air conditioning anywhere!), it is their summer vacation, and they still come. As I said, I am one lucky lady! Practice School lasts until one in the afternoon, then we head back to Peresecina for language class (with two of the most wonderful, patient and kind instructors in the world!), then starting next week I will have to go to Orhei every evening for dance and voice lessons. It seems I have gotten myself into another fine mess. I have agreed to learn to dance the Hora (the national dance of Moldova!) and sing the national anthem for the swearing in next month. Not so worried about the singing, but I am terrified about the dancing! You have to follow directions and touch someone to dance it. Not my strong suits on the dance floor! I have decided, in the spirit of adventure, to give it a whirl (HUGE pun intended!), but won't get my feelings hurt if they politely tell me I should concentrate on the singing....
Right now the days are pretty long, so I haven't had a lot of time to myself, but everyone (i.e. the other volunteers who have already been here for a year!) say that PST is the most difficult time in Peace Corps. I am feeling a little lonely for my family and friends, but that is to be expected. I think the two years will go by faster than I ever expected. It is already hard to believe I have been here for six weeks already!
I miss all of my friends in the states and hope that everything is going well. After Christmas I will start looking for an apartment, so keep me in mind when you make your summer plans for travel. I hope that you will take me up on my offer to show the beauty of Moldova. I will have a piece of Futon ready with your name on it! Stay well.....
Jennifer