Its been a while....

November 23, 2009

I know that I have not written in a while, but I have been busy! Since September I have been working more at my center with my partner on strategies to make the center work more efficiently. It is a slow process, but we are starting to make headway.

In the later half of October the rest of my program group and I went back our 1^st host families in our training village of Vasieni. We had our last two weeks of training there, which included language and technical training. It was great to be back with our original host families and back at site with the rest of our training group. It was back to days filled with language and technical training and group lunches. We took advantage of being close to Chisinau, the capital city of Moldova and went in every chance we could. We also took the chance to eat and drink out as much as possible too. Andy’s Pizza is one of Moldova’s most popular franchises and actually serves pizza that does not have mayonnaise on it. That’s right in Moldova mayo replaces tomato sauce on a pizza. There is also a McDonalds in Chisinau which we also took advantage off, several times!

After getting back to permanent site it was fall break from school, which meant no work. It was meant to be a week of getting caught up on paperwork, but it quickly turned into a week of slacking. But I had a reprise and school was closed for another week. The state closed down schools for another week due to the outbreak of the flu in the country. This week was a productive one, myself and the staff at the center went into work every day to get caught up on paperwork.

In between all of this was my 37^th birthday. My host family prepared a huge masa (celebration dinner) for me on the actually day. They tried to include all the Moldovan foods that I like, which are very few. I made banana bread and my host family loved it. The rest of the birthday celebration took place at my friend’s Teresa’s place. She was gracious enough to take in 7 of us for the gal’s dinner and sleepover. I made my famous homemade spaghetti sauce and brownies that were shipped over from the states from my mom and dad. And boy where they good!!! The evening was filled with good food, good wine, charades, knitting classes and great friends. I was really happy to be able to be around friends and feel like I was not so far from home on my birthday.

In the next couple of weeks there will be a big Thanksgiving celebration at the Peace Corps office this coming Saturday. Most of the PVCs will be there and are looking forward to having some American home cooked food. I am planning on making chocolate chip cookies, which have already been a big hit here in Moldova. One of the key ingredients, brown sugar, is not sold here and thanks again to mom and dad I am able to make an American favorite.

Shortly after the Thanksgiving the weekend my friend Melissa and I are heading to Prague for a few days of Christmas cheer. We are looking forward to the 23-hour bus ride there, that’s right 23 hours! We are also looking forward to seeing the Christmas market that inhabits the city during the holiday season. But I will write more about that in my next blog.

I hope that all of you have a great holiday!

Take care and be safe!

Jen

Things to check of the list…

It has been a month since I last posted a blog, I am sorry for that. But I have been busy. The last two weeks in August were challenging for me to say the least. Bad news from home regarding my dear cat Charlie, he lost a battle with a car, which bummed me out for a while. Then, I got a yucky stomach bug called giardia for the second time was not fun and I would not wish on any enemy. The trifecta was finding out that my pop back in the states had a ‘minor’ heart attack. He was in and out of the hospital in a day & a half and all is well now. But, I made him promise to not get sick for at least the next two years until I get back to the USA.

The 1st day of school, the 1st graders are treated like gods!

The remainder of the summer here in Moldova has been less uneventful, but never the less interesting. School has started and work at my center has begun. The children seem to be happy that school is back in session and to be busy and around their friends again. At least three times a week I am in the school sitting in on the Romanian Language classes for the 6^th and 7^th graders. The teachers and the students are all very generous with their time and all delighted to see me on the days that I am there.

Five days a week I am at the center. My biggest value at this point is teaching the kids and staff a bit of English through impromptu sessions of the Word Challenge game and having the kids write the new words 5 times each. I am pretty sure I am not an English teacher, but there seems to be an over whelming sense that I am supposed to teach my entire village to speak English, do they not know me???? Along with the English sessions I have also taught all the kids at the center to throw a Frisbee, which they all seem to like very much. Thanks again mom and pop for sending the Frisbees! My next task is to incorporate the Frisbees into games that will teach the kids sportsmanship and get them more active.

Picture- 1st day at the center, the kids are eating lunch.

I am also working along side my partner at the center to get things running more smoothly there. The center has recently started a teen program and it seems to a huge success with the age group. We hope that when this program is settled into a grove that we can start adding on more programs and projects and really make the center a ‘community center’ instead of just an afterschool program. Ideas that I brought to the table were an English Club (which is in high demand by all ages), an environmental clean up day, talent shows, dances at the local casa de cultura and many others. I think once we get things rolling the community center will be a reality, but it will take time.

Well, I am just about out of things to share. But I do have one last thing to impart. All I am going to say is that I have witnessed the circle of life and its messy. My host family killed and butchered one of their pigs last weekend and took it to the local market to sell. I can now check off hearing a pig die and eating really fresh pork off my list of things to do before I die.

Picture~ My host mother (2nd from the left in the blue) selling her fresh pork to market goers.

If you would like to see my pictures feel free to click on the link below for more:

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=124547&id=569816376&l=41521076e6

I hope you all had a great summer, the leaves are turning here and the weather is turning chilly. I am almost ready for my 1^st Moldovan winter…….I think.

Take care and be safe,

JJ

It Has Begun....

Well, where do I start? I am in the middle of week 10 in Moldova and have been at my permanent site for the last 2 weeks. And I can say I am now a real Peace Corps Volunteer. My fellow M24s and I were sworn in on August 8 in Chisinau.

The evening before we were sworn in we had a farewell party for our host families in Vasieni. Some of us danced, some of us sang and some volunteers gave presentations. It was a good time had by all.

Things are going well with my new host family; they are kind and generous and take good care of me. They have a pretty home and an orchard with peach, pear and apple trees and of course grapes. Most every Moldovan home has its own crop of grapes which they make their own wine from. Most of the homemade wine that I have had so far tastes very good. The harvesting of the grapes will happen in a couple of weeks. I am looking forward to the process of picking the grapes and seeing them being made into wine. But of course the wine must ferment for a year, so I will have to wait to partake in the tasting of this year’s wine until 2010.

I have started working in the center and since their programs don’t start until September there is modest amount of work to do besides planning out sessions for the afterschool programs and conducting research. I have also started tutoring sessions with the school director (principle) which is only slightly intimidating. She has a lot of patience, she really does. The bulk of my work will start in September when school starts and the programs at the center are up and running. I will then also start working at the school, the mayor’s office and one of the other NGOs here in town.

In the meantime I am learning more Romanian, meeting new people in my village and living the Moldovan life!

Hope you all have a good August and please wish my dear old pop a happy birthday!!!

Take care and be safe!

JJ

The contents of this website are mine personally and do not reflect any position of the U.S. Government or the Peace Corps.

12 Days Left….

Well, we just finished week 6 and we are heading into the final stretch of our PST training.  In a mere 12 days we ship out to our respective assignments and begin our official Peace Corps service.  I know that I am anxious to begin this next phase of PC life and I am also really looking forward to getting back to work with my new host site/partner. 

These last two weeks can be compared to a rollercoaster, a mixed bag of emotions, stressors and delights.  We completed our 2^nd language assessment and passed with flying colors as they say.  There are rumors that this assessment is just prep for the longer more taxing one that comes in week 8 of PST and if that is true I cannot imagine how difficult that will be.  The assessment is something that most of us are not looking forward too, but keen to be done with.

Between the studying and learning more about our jobs some of us managed to have some free time and enjoy ourselves a bit.  Last week we visited the largest wine cellar in the world, which happens to be just a few miles from where we study.  The winery is called Milestii Mici and is really interesting.  It spans over 200 kms under neath the city of Milestii Mici and has been there for almost 40 years.  Please see some of the pictures I took, along with others from my host family visit at:

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=111294&id=569816376&l=46135f516d 

 

 

And now that I have mentioned my new host family I will tell you just a bit more about them.  I will be living with a retired couple for the next two years and I could not be happier to be placed with them.  They have a wonderful home and garden (more like 2 acres of pears, peaches, grapes and other assorted yummies) that sits near the Nistru River.  It is a beautiful place and I believe I will be really taken care of there.  Plus there are 3 puppies and 2 kittens, so what more could one ask for?!  I even get to name one of the puppies after Charlie, my cat back in the states, if I want too. 

 

In the weeks ahead we are working hard to get more language under our belts and finish up PST.  We are also working on a project for the host family farewell party that is on August 7^th.  This project might include singing and dancing to traditional Moldovan music, but that would be spilling the beans.  Let’s just say if you know me really well, that singing and dancing are not my forte and it should be interesting!

 

On another interesting note, the Moldova elections are this week.  Please keep an eye out on the news for results.

 

I hope you all are enjoying the summer, please give each other hugs and kisses from me.

 

Take care and be safe!

 

JJ

DISCLAIMER: 

The contents of this website are mine personally and do not reflect any position of the U.S. Government or the Peace Corps. 

Week 4 of PST.....

Hello All!

I just finished with week four and all is good still.  A lot has happen since I last wrote and let me see if I can catch you all up….

All the current volunteers and trainees (that’s me) attended the 4^th of July party in Chisinau and had a great time.  We partook in Moldovan style hamburgers and hot dogs, which were quite marvelous and plenty of Moldovan wine, which was also very tasty.  The trainees were ushered home before dark so we could make it home before curfew.  Next year when we are ‘grown’ ups we will get to attend the party longer… and we are all looking forward to that day! 

Other major mild stones have happened in the past week that are worth mentioning.  We received our 1^st program assessment; our 1^st language assessment and we also received our 2-year assignment, which included our partner NGO/Mayor and host family information.  After studying Romanian day after day for only 3 ½ weeks and fretting over how well I would do I can that I passed my 1^st language assessment.  Even one of my instructors was amazed at how well I did.  I also passed my COD assessment, along with my entire fellow PSTs (who also passed their language assessments).  In the middle of all this studying and worrying we received our 2-year assignments. 

I will be in the small village, which have about 2400 people, which is the official population on paper.  There are usually fractions of that due to the high number of people that are working abroad and sending back remittances.  The village is in the southeast of Moldova very close to the Ukrainian boarder.  I am the only volunteer that has been assigned in the village and I will be the only volunteer that is that far southeast.  My other PSTs are scattered around the country and we have vowed to visit each other and my saving grace is that you have to pass through my village to get to Odesa!  The NGO that I will be working for is actually a organization that is funded an American NGO called Keystone International and here is their web site:

http://www.keystonehumanservices.org/khsi/moldova/

I will be working with the Centrul Comunitar Unitate, which is the Community Center that they run.  I think I have been placed well and I am excited to meet my new partner tomorrow.  Which I am not sure I mentioned, but all the PSTs leave tomorrow morning to meet their new partners and host families!  We are all traveling alone to our new sites and meeting our partners and staying with our new host families for the next couple of days.  We are all very nervous to partake on this adventure alone.  We have been treated like 5 year olds for the last few weeks and now all of sudden we are 18 years of age and forced to leave home on our own!  I am sure that we will all be fine and get to our final destinations without too much misadventure, the PC assures us that they have never ‘lost’ anyone in this part of the training.  That is only slightly assuring! 

Another excited thing happened this week beyond the above life changing items; I had the opportunity to meet the wonderful people that run the YMCA office here in Chisinau.  They are a small operation that works with orphans and youth that have been imprisoned.  They are eager to work with the PC and me.  I am hoping that this is the start of a 2^nd project that I can do while I am here for the next 2 years.  So if anyone from Y International is reading this – I will be calling/emailing soon!!

Well, I must be going now.  I have to get some sleep before heading out in the morning to Tudora.  I have a 3-4 hour mini-bus ride ahead of me.  Meeting a new partner, see my new place of work and meeting new host family and seeing my new house!  Not a big day at all!

 

Hope you are all well and take care!!!

Here are more pictures on Facebook for you all to look at....

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=108073&id=569816376&l=cddf6c0f54

 

Love~

 

JJ

Disclaimer:   The contents of this website are mine personally and do not reflect any position of the U.S. Government or the Peace Corps. 

1st Three Weeks in Moldova

Well, it’s been 3 weeks since I arrived in Moldova and I am finally getting down to starting my blog.  I have officially been in the Peace Corps for over 23 days and I can say that I have had a great time so far.  I have met great people here in Moldova, through the Peace Corps and in my village and I must say that I have nothing bad to say about them or the experience thus far. 

 

The group of  COD (Community Organizational Development) volunteers that I with live in the small town of Vasiene, Moldova.  We spend most of our days learning Romanian and learning more about our future assignments.  Most of us seem to be adjusting to the other side of the planet quite well. The lack of running water and inside WC facilities really only affected us the first few days after we arrived.  I can say that I have no problem with the WC being outside or squatting for that matter.  I am still getting used to the fact that I walk past roosters, multiple chickens and ducks and one big ass turkey to reach the WC.  But in time, I am sure that will become the norm.

 

In little less than a week we will all find out our perminate assignments.  This will include the new city/village that we will be living in and the kind of organization we will be partnered up with for the next 24 months.  All of us are excited and anxious to get this week over with so we can get our assignments.  But I know that I have become close to many of the PSTs (Peace Corps Trainees) that I am in Vasiene with and I will be sad to see the day we have to split up.  We have become each other’s supports systems and will count the days down until we see each other again. 

 

On a more American note, we have all been invited to celebrate the 4^th of July by the American Camber of Commerce here in Moldova.  It’s a party American style, with a pool, barbeque and drinks at a golf course.   Any other American that is working in the area for a government division will also be there.  I heard that last year was a blast and we are all looking forward to having a good time.

If any of you are interested in seeing pictures from my adventures so far please visit: 

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=103855&id=569816376&l=a5d9cfe7c4

That’s all for now folks.  I hope that you all are well and take care this holiday weekend.  Be safe!

 

Hugs and kisses to you all!

 

Jen

 

Disclaimer:   The contents of this website are mine personally and do not reflect any position of the U.S. Government or the Peace Corps.