Depending on when I post this blog, I am heading back to Negresti today, Saturday the 27th or I have already arrived at site and have moved all of my things out of the dorm behind the school and into my apartment and home for the next (less than) two years (that reminds me, when asked about the length of my stay, I need to start saying how many months I have remaining and not the standard "doi ani" that I usually throw out ... it is amazing how time is moving by).
Wait ... don't I already have an apartment? Didn't you recently post something about having a place to live? Here's the difference: livability. But thanks to some hard work on Mihaela's part I now have a refrigerator and a bathroom sink; I heard to Internet was also installed!
Because the school needs the room I am currently staying in, I need to move out all of my things as soon as I get back. Dragging around virtually all of my worldly possessions through the town on Saturday night should be comical. I plan on laughing at my self. In Romanian, of course.
I was in Sinaia (look it up) for a week. The travel was decent. I went through București because it was fastest and during my layover I felt like a genuine tourist again with my big backpack sitting on my hips and a curious stare on my face. This is probably why I had to fight off a bunch of cabbies trying to get me to get in their taxis. One guy even offered to drive me to Sinaia even after I told him I had already bought a ticket. Such is life in tourist trap cities.
Peace Corps put on a great in service training session, as did the participating volunteers who offered different sessions on skills they themselves already possessed. I was very impressed with the conference and it was likely my favorite part. The nights were filled with carousing through the city, some individuals more so than others. Since we had both group 27 and 28 here (as well as some extendees from previous groups) there was double the American presence here. As you can imagine, the local community could feel it ... or rather hear it. In writing this I realize I am happy to be leaving; as much as I like my group, I look forward to leaving the drama and craziness behind until we meet again in December. Like most constant social atmospheres, it drains you very quickly.
I really have nothing else to say, I am not particularly in the writing mood but I wanted to throw something up on the blog. I am at school starting next week and I am teaching in two or so weeks. That is all for now. Pace.
Saturday, August 27, 2011
Wednesday, August 17, 2011
Watching Paint Dry
How about an update on the apartment? I've spent part of the past week and a half putting my apartment together, installing some clothing lines, cleaning, buying necessary items, and ridding it of the smoke smell from the previous tenants. It has been slow and needless to say I have received nothing on time. Mihaela has been helping me shop around town; we've (meaning she's) found some good deals. Pots and pans, utensils, dishes, containers, and other household necessities were purchased. A stove and external gas tank were hooked up Monday but that is really all that has been done aside from my doing. I am still waiting for counters and cabinets, for my bathroom sink to be installed, for my bedroom door's window to be replaced, for a number of items that are not my own to be removed from the apartment, Internet to be installed, and most importantly, for a refrigerator. I can't consider the apartment functional until I have a refrigerator as I have meats and other items that must remain chilled. Most aggravating is that the Internet company says they are "out" of modems so they can't hook up my Internet until "they don't know when". Really, Rom Telecom? Get your act together.
Eh, asta este (an attitude I am trying to understand, the efficiency loving American that I am). Unfortunately, one piece of advice from my father that stuck when growing up, "Son, men get things done" and variations hence on that same theme (NB: not meant as a slight towards women), does not mesh well with the typical non-immediate "imediat" attitude of Romanian society. That is to say, at least with reference to American English, "imediat" seems to be a false cognate.
Anywho, the kitchen has been painted light blue and I would like to say the foyer area was painted the same except that may imply the entirety of the foyer was painted, which it was not. In fact, 70% of the way through the third wall I ran out of paint. Why not go get some of the same color, you ask? Because you have to mix the colors yourself here and I didn't measure how much dye I put into the bucket in the first place, believing I had enough. Thus I have a diagonal line through the light switch on one wall separating two colors, and the entire archway wall into the kitchen area cut in but unpainted. Brilliant. It reminded me of when I painted for a year after college and couldn't for the life of me ever estimate how much paint I would need for a given area of wall space. I haven't decided yet how I will fix this problem but if and when I decide I will make sure to fill you in.
I've been reading some good books recently. I reread Nietzsche's The AntiChrist which was more powerful the second time, as are most philosophical works. I read the first three Foundation series by Asimov, which are interesting and fairly entertaining. I've been poking around Mark Twain's complete collection for some time now, reading short stories here and there. Then there's this other work, called Suicide Note (which is exactly what its title reads), that's about 1900 pages of the author's philosophical views on extreme nihilism or something. He ended up offing himself on the steps of a Harvard campus building in front of a tour group on a Jewish holiday the moment he finished (yes, he was an ethnic Jew); a number of individuals received his work in their in-boxes four hours later. It sound gruesome I admit but at least the first hundred pages or so have been a very intriguing picture of the course of human civilization, its important role in the transition between biological and technological evolution, and it's potential destiny in the creation of "God-AI". Yeah, I know. Apparently he didn't want any part in that ... his loss. Also check out The Kingkiller Chronicles, a great fantasy novel that my nose has been stuffed into for just under a week; great characters and plot!
Hmmm ... went to Iași recently to see some live music. I met some English teachers there, one of whom was performing. I also got the chance to meet some more locals from Negresti. I went with Florin and some of his friends, all of whom were super cool. Aside from the English teacher there was a girl with us who also played guitar and sang; very talented. You can see Andrei here and Alexandra here. I hope to find a bass for cheap soon so I can join Florin's guitar circle (sort of like "guitar club" or something) and maybe even play a gig or two somewhere at some point. We'll see how that pans out. It would probably be asking too much to borrow a saxophone but Florin is going to keep his eyes peeled for one.
Sinaia next week for a conference with Peace Corps. I get to see my fellow group mates and meet the rest of group twenty-seven. Cool! It is a training session but the city is supposed to be a beautiful place so I am looking forward to some bored fun. I'll throw up a video of my apartment when I am finally settled. Pace pentru acum.
Eh, asta este (an attitude I am trying to understand, the efficiency loving American that I am). Unfortunately, one piece of advice from my father that stuck when growing up, "Son, men get things done" and variations hence on that same theme (NB: not meant as a slight towards women), does not mesh well with the typical non-immediate "imediat" attitude of Romanian society. That is to say, at least with reference to American English, "imediat" seems to be a false cognate.
Anywho, the kitchen has been painted light blue and I would like to say the foyer area was painted the same except that may imply the entirety of the foyer was painted, which it was not. In fact, 70% of the way through the third wall I ran out of paint. Why not go get some of the same color, you ask? Because you have to mix the colors yourself here and I didn't measure how much dye I put into the bucket in the first place, believing I had enough. Thus I have a diagonal line through the light switch on one wall separating two colors, and the entire archway wall into the kitchen area cut in but unpainted. Brilliant. It reminded me of when I painted for a year after college and couldn't for the life of me ever estimate how much paint I would need for a given area of wall space. I haven't decided yet how I will fix this problem but if and when I decide I will make sure to fill you in.
I've been reading some good books recently. I reread Nietzsche's The AntiChrist which was more powerful the second time, as are most philosophical works. I read the first three Foundation series by Asimov, which are interesting and fairly entertaining. I've been poking around Mark Twain's complete collection for some time now, reading short stories here and there. Then there's this other work, called Suicide Note (which is exactly what its title reads), that's about 1900 pages of the author's philosophical views on extreme nihilism or something. He ended up offing himself on the steps of a Harvard campus building in front of a tour group on a Jewish holiday the moment he finished (yes, he was an ethnic Jew); a number of individuals received his work in their in-boxes four hours later. It sound gruesome I admit but at least the first hundred pages or so have been a very intriguing picture of the course of human civilization, its important role in the transition between biological and technological evolution, and it's potential destiny in the creation of "God-AI". Yeah, I know. Apparently he didn't want any part in that ... his loss. Also check out The Kingkiller Chronicles, a great fantasy novel that my nose has been stuffed into for just under a week; great characters and plot!
Hmmm ... went to Iași recently to see some live music. I met some English teachers there, one of whom was performing. I also got the chance to meet some more locals from Negresti. I went with Florin and some of his friends, all of whom were super cool. Aside from the English teacher there was a girl with us who also played guitar and sang; very talented. You can see Andrei here and Alexandra here. I hope to find a bass for cheap soon so I can join Florin's guitar circle (sort of like "guitar club" or something) and maybe even play a gig or two somewhere at some point. We'll see how that pans out. It would probably be asking too much to borrow a saxophone but Florin is going to keep his eyes peeled for one.
Sinaia next week for a conference with Peace Corps. I get to see my fellow group mates and meet the rest of group twenty-seven. Cool! It is a training session but the city is supposed to be a beautiful place so I am looking forward to some bored fun. I'll throw up a video of my apartment when I am finally settled. Pace pentru acum.
Sunday, August 7, 2011
Super fun times at Bistrița Summer English Camp (plus, a little extra good news)
Back from Jo's camp in Bistrița county and I had a wonderful time. Hmmm ... where to start? At the beginning I suppose ...
I left Negrești last Sunday morning at seven a.m. via bus, picked up a train in Roman, stopped in Pașcani for an hour and said hello to Theron and Sara (and Candice, who was visiting) before continuing up through Suceava and onwards towards Ilva Mica, north of Bistrița city. A passerby picked me up outside the train station and dropped me off in the center of Sângeorz-Băi, Jovanka's site.
Her town is incredibly beautiful; I was quite taken with Northern Romania during my beautiful train ride into the mountains. The area looked comparatively well developed, not to mention the mountains and valley towns, surrounded by steep hillsides dotted with lines and clusters of trees with grass fields spread between them, covered in herds of animals and the various spartan dwellings of peasants and shepherds. It all made me feel like reading some pastoral poetry.
She lives on the top floor of the tallest bloc in town. The view from her apartment is ... well, unfair. Gorgeous I suppose I mean to say. The whole town was very pretty with nice houses and facilities. I was there of course to help her run an English camp with her counterpart. I was joined by fellow volunteers Melissa and Jeremy W.B. The camp was run three hours a day and consisted of games, a hike, and a lesson themed on gender and mass communications. The nights were spent drinking wine and cooking a variety of dinners.
There were between twenty-three and fifteen students participating (we gradually lost some throughout the week). They were all high school students and had a pretty decent command of English. All instructions and communication was in English.
We sang a few songs, played a number of games that focused on teamwork (ex. I had everyone get into a tight circle, stand back to back, and sit all at once; I loved watching them fall down a few times before they got the hang of it!), I even narrated a game of Mafia (though it was REALLY difficult to think of gruesome ways to kill people, never mind remembering who was killing who). In the middle of the week we explored some gender stereotypes, which is always good food for thought, and it was to my surprise well received. The hike on Thursday was excellent and I was able to snap some great photos of the town. Friday was field day and we taught them Ultimate Frisbee and some ridiculous relay games. The kids had a great time and they made sure they told us. It really felt great to interact with such a great group of super enthusiastic high school students that genuinely appreciated our time with them; I had just as much fun with them as they had with us!
My train ride back was decent despite the fact that Melissa and I left for Suceava at three in the morning. We were back in her city by quarter to eight in order to meet fellow volunteer Grant from Vladeni, a nearby village. Leaving early and not sleeping was worth it; I was very happy to see and spend time with Grant, a really great guy whom I hadn't seen since we left Târgoviște. This was Saturday. That night they cooked probably the best chicken stir-fry I have ever had (I even ate the water chestnuts ... yeah, THAT good). I left this morning (Sunday) and had a very pleasant ride through Roman and onwards to Negrești.
In other news, an apartment has finally been secured for me! Thank you Florin for all your diligence in resolving this matter! It is three rooms with a big bed, a soba (wood furnace) two small balconies, and a big kitchen. There is a pull out sofa in one room and an empty room for which I am still considering a few ideas (it is unheated so I can't really use it as a living space). I should be signing a contract tomorrow and then I can go about moving items in, begin to paint and make myself at home :)
I left Negrești last Sunday morning at seven a.m. via bus, picked up a train in Roman, stopped in Pașcani for an hour and said hello to Theron and Sara (and Candice, who was visiting) before continuing up through Suceava and onwards towards Ilva Mica, north of Bistrița city. A passerby picked me up outside the train station and dropped me off in the center of Sângeorz-Băi, Jovanka's site.
Her town is incredibly beautiful; I was quite taken with Northern Romania during my beautiful train ride into the mountains. The area looked comparatively well developed, not to mention the mountains and valley towns, surrounded by steep hillsides dotted with lines and clusters of trees with grass fields spread between them, covered in herds of animals and the various spartan dwellings of peasants and shepherds. It all made me feel like reading some pastoral poetry.
She lives on the top floor of the tallest bloc in town. The view from her apartment is ... well, unfair. Gorgeous I suppose I mean to say. The whole town was very pretty with nice houses and facilities. I was there of course to help her run an English camp with her counterpart. I was joined by fellow volunteers Melissa and Jeremy W.B. The camp was run three hours a day and consisted of games, a hike, and a lesson themed on gender and mass communications. The nights were spent drinking wine and cooking a variety of dinners.
There were between twenty-three and fifteen students participating (we gradually lost some throughout the week). They were all high school students and had a pretty decent command of English. All instructions and communication was in English.
We sang a few songs, played a number of games that focused on teamwork (ex. I had everyone get into a tight circle, stand back to back, and sit all at once; I loved watching them fall down a few times before they got the hang of it!), I even narrated a game of Mafia (though it was REALLY difficult to think of gruesome ways to kill people, never mind remembering who was killing who). In the middle of the week we explored some gender stereotypes, which is always good food for thought, and it was to my surprise well received. The hike on Thursday was excellent and I was able to snap some great photos of the town. Friday was field day and we taught them Ultimate Frisbee and some ridiculous relay games. The kids had a great time and they made sure they told us. It really felt great to interact with such a great group of super enthusiastic high school students that genuinely appreciated our time with them; I had just as much fun with them as they had with us!
My train ride back was decent despite the fact that Melissa and I left for Suceava at three in the morning. We were back in her city by quarter to eight in order to meet fellow volunteer Grant from Vladeni, a nearby village. Leaving early and not sleeping was worth it; I was very happy to see and spend time with Grant, a really great guy whom I hadn't seen since we left Târgoviște. This was Saturday. That night they cooked probably the best chicken stir-fry I have ever had (I even ate the water chestnuts ... yeah, THAT good). I left this morning (Sunday) and had a very pleasant ride through Roman and onwards to Negrești.
In other news, an apartment has finally been secured for me! Thank you Florin for all your diligence in resolving this matter! It is three rooms with a big bed, a soba (wood furnace) two small balconies, and a big kitchen. There is a pull out sofa in one room and an empty room for which I am still considering a few ideas (it is unheated so I can't really use it as a living space). I should be signing a contract tomorrow and then I can go about moving items in, begin to paint and make myself at home :)
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