This is a picture of a beautiful sunset in Cahul. I was walking to the university from my house and I snapped a shot. You can see that the trees haven't yet started to bud out in this picture, but two weeks later, Spring has arrived. The trees are all blooming and it is really pretty. I won't say for sure that winter is gone, however.... I looked out my classroom window and it was snowing this morning!
This is a picture of the panel that my sitemate, Michelle, put together. (She is the third from the right!) It was a panel for women's day and was made up of successful Moldovan women from business, nonprofits, gov't, etc. It was a great way to encourage young women and to celebrate the success of women in general!
This is a picture of my friend Emily. She was a model for the International Women's Club in Chisinau. The ambassador hosted the show and the ambassador's wife invited several innovative designers to show their clothes. It was a VERY swanky affair and a lot of fun. It is definitely a different side of Moldova than I exist in every day. I wasn't sure how practical some of the designs would be for wearing to the outhouse in my town....
This is a group of amazing students that I teach for a British Literature course. English is their second foreign language and they are doing an amazing job!
This is one of the first groups I had last semester at the university. They have just finished their last class with me and are spending a few weeks studying for their exams. Another amazing group of young people that I will truly miss! Below is the same group, this time with me in the picture!
Below is one of my most beloved groups at the university. They are showing off the copies of Jane Austen's Emma that one of the other volunteers in Cahul (the amazing Liza!) got donated to the University. We have a small library here, but no class sets of any books. Liza is helping me to get class sets of books so that students don't have to all share one book and try to work out a reading schedule or spend a lot of money on copies. If anyone is interested in helping out with organizing class sets of books for us, let me know!
So, I thought it was high time I showed you some pictures of the working side of my life over here in Moldova. I am always showing you the pictures of the parties and the playtime, but not so much about the work. I am currently working my ever-lovin' tail off, but loving every minute of it. I am so lucky to be where I am and to be doing what I am doing. I miss everyone, but I am doing good work, so it makes it all worthwhile. I hope everyone is doing well and has survived the crazy winter in Arkansas. (I hear you have had your own suprise snow!) Take care and as always, thanks for keeping up with me!In the next post I will show some pictures of my trip to Turkey. Stay tuned!
Jennifer
2 comments:
Arkansas certaainly prepared you for the vagaries of the weather in Moldova, didn't it? Currently, we're having flooding the likes of which haven't been seen in 50 years. Or maybe 100, depending on to whom you are talking. FEMA said the other day that they had just finished assessing the tornado damage, and now they have to assess the flood losses. I'm so sorry we're inconveniencing FEMA, aren't you?
I'd love to get some of the Arts Center ladies together to get y'all some class sets of books. How do I do that, please?
I did some research and discovered how the Eastern Orthodox church determines Easter. Here goes: it's the first Sunday after the first full moon after the vernal equinox after Passover. In other words, the first Sunday after the Paschal moon. And also acoording to the Julian calender, not the Gregorian one that we use. Got that? I've also discovered that it's basically northern Europeans who refer to the festival as Easter, from the pagan holy day of Ostara, which is a fertility ritual.(hence the eggs and rabbits) Southerners more in tune with Rome call it by some variant of Peshach, or Passover. What is the word in Moldovan? Anyway, once in a great while, Easter is the same day in both the Western church and the Eastern church; it all has to do with the moon in her course.
(Thus endeth the lesson!LOL)
Jennifer:
Daniella has several groups at CEntral that organize book drives and the like. She is interrested helping you out.
Can you please post how we would go about getting book sets to you?, which book sets you want? Can you also post something about the school/students, life in Moldova, etc. the basic info that she would need to take to her International club, her social activism club, and other groups (e.g. AP english classes)in order to make the book-set donations happen? Thanks!!!
Maria
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