Today is Duminica (Sunday) in Romania and we trainees have been working hard for one week. We arrived here on Thursday a week ago and after two days in a hotel our gazdas (families) came to get us . We will now be with our families for about three months.
Our group of 44 trainees gathered in Chicago before flying to Romania and learned a little about each other, about Peace Corps policies and in general an introduction how best to approach our new experiences. I, like the rest, was highly energized (see photo) and excited about what lies ahead! Our group is quite diverse; many are fairly recent college graduates with many worldly experiences. About six are in the 50-60 category and many fall into the late twenties and thirties ages. Two have taught for a year or two in China, most have traveled extensively throughout the world and many lived in different countries; many have studied two foreign languages for several years, many have diverse work experiences, too. It is a diverse group by age, experience, interests, and personalities. But we are all here for a common purpose...to teach English, to share our Romanian experiences at home in USA, and to share ourselves and our culture with Romanians. It will be great fun!
Our school/training days are intense! I travel by bus to the school where we train. At 8:30 we begin language classes which last until 12:30. Four hours sounds like an eternity to spend on a foreign language but I found it extremely fun, challenging and difficult. The teaching style is entirely different from any language course any of our group has had. Peace Corps is known for its fine language instruction. So much for Rosetta and Byki. For the first week we were in groups of 9 with two instructors. They now have evaluated our style and quickness to learn the language and beginning Monday one teacher shall teach a group of 5 of a similar learning pace and preferred style. From 1:30 to 5 we have two periods in the larger group where we learn about Peace Corps policies, health, safety, culture, experiences and who knows what is next! Also this past week we observed Romanian teachers and students in a local high school. By Friday, my friends, my brain was fried!
My gazda family is absolutely terrific! So very kind, thoughtful, fun, helpful. Monica is 39, a math teacher in the high school; Cristi, her husband, is 35, works in "economics" at the Town Hall; Rodica, Monica's mother, is 62, a retired teacher of the Romanian language, does most of the housekeeping and cooking. Monica and Cristi have no children. Monica speaks English fairly well. She began to teach herself four years ago. Cristi understands a great deal but can speak little and Rodica does not know English. My Roman/Englais dictionary is always by my side. For me it will be a slow process!
Rodica is a terrific cook! There have been many new foods, some I have liked better than others but all have been very tasty. My gazda eat organic food when possible. More about foods at a later date.
Their home is very new and they spent several years helping to build it with their own skills in their spare time and vacations. They have a small garden ("L"shaped, about 15 by 35 feet plus 15x10) of carrots, beans, tomatoes, garlic, onions, cucumbers, plus, behind the slat fenced garden are sour and sweet cherry trees, raspberry bushes. There are several rose bushes and herb plants. Outside the house feels very private in spite of being very, very close to their neighbors. To me it feels like my deck in my "tree house" in Ohio and this weekend I enjoyed my morning coffee in the peace and quiet of the garden. My family all appear to be "dog and cat whisperers" having two outside dogs who have their own sort of privacy behind the slat fence around the garden and a young kitten who prefers inside but lives outside, a most loving kitty. I believe I must have one when I get to my site! (my teaching location)
So far every house I have seen in Romania has a fence around it! This was a first impression when arriving in Romania and I have seen no contradiction to that so far. The fences may be only for show or may be seven feet tall privacy fences. Ours is a privacy fence. In my neighborhood are very new houses but outside our front fence is a rutted dirt road with an abandoned field on the other side. Running through the field are two 24 inch diameter metal pipes which brought heat (occcasionally) to apartment houses during the Ceausescu years.
Then about 100 yards across the field you see the type of apartment building which the Communists built...large drab, gray concrete structures.
Last weekend we visited a monastery; I had my picture taken with a Romanian (who else!) nun! While there Cristi performed the most amazing feat of maneuvering a car that I have ever seen, (bar none!) of getting his car, a Dacia, out of a tight spot. A large tourist bus was parked in front of our car at a 90 degree angle to our car. There were about 10 available feet on one side of us and a car parked on the other side. He maneuvered his car with about 20 or more forward/reverse moves, positioned his car parallel to the bus and pulled out between the bus and parked cars!
Last evening Rodica and I strolled to City Center and through a large park, a most enjoyable time on a beautiful evening after a short hard thunderstorm.
I looked forward to this weekend to "crash". No joke, I was dead tired. Now, the stress and strain of getting here, beginning training, feeling at home with my gazda is behind me. I expect next week to be hard and long but easier than this week because we are now here and more settled.
Crash landed but came out whole! Yeah! Bring on Monday!
