This is a monument in my village for a famous Moldovan poet.
The political situation in Moldova is fascinating and I’ve settled into a nice routine of printing out the latest political news here and translating them into English. The struggle between the Communists and the Democrats to elect a president still continues, even after three subsequent elections.
Last week was a great week. It was the first week where I really started to feel comfortable with the notion that this village is my home for the next 20-someodd months. I’m not doing much at work besides showing up, translating articles and books, reading, and doing my song-and-dance whenever people wander in and want to talk with me. There are reoccurring questions that I get without fail: “How do you like Moldova?; “What is better, America or Moldova?”; “What do you think of our women?”; “Do you live near New York or California?”; and “What do you think about Obama?”. I don’t care one way or another what your political leanings are, it’s nice to travel when other countries like your president and you aren’t ostracized for having an American passport.
I’ve made friends with a family in my village with four kids whom all speak very good English. They learned English from a PCV nine years ago that spent three years in my village. It’s fascinating listening to them talk about the PCV and how much he has helped change their lives. Not only did he teach them a valuable skill that helped get them a better education in Romania, but he also showed them a new perspective of the world. PCVs in over 100 countries are teaching people the value of having an open mind. I didn’t want to start an English club before coming to my village because I don’t know the first thing about teaching a foreign language. But I’ve changed my mind, and have found five kids that are very eager to work with me, and if the only thing I do here for the next two years is teach them English, I know this impact will go far beyond the scope of my time here. People are looking for a way out of poverty in Moldova, and their best chances to do this is to get a good education. The future truly lies in the hands of the youth, and if they can get a good education and put it into practice here in Moldova, the country will have a much brighter future. It is humbling to know that I can be a part of this, even on the grassroots level, and there is no greater feeling than that of helping people and making a difference. It is a privilege to call this my job, and I know that these experiences will mold me for the rest of my life.
Apart from starting an English club, I helped with a leadership conference for high schoolers this past Saturday. Thirty students attended and listened to speakers (a mayor, auditor, journalist, economist, teacher, and a police officer) talk about their jobs and qualifications. After that, the kids learned how to assemble a CV and a resume, and then they had two sessions on Pro-activity and Leadership. I guided a group of students on the Delegation style of leadership. The kids’ conception of delegation was that the boss simply hands out work and tells people what to do. We did different skits and situations to show them that an effective leader is one that utilizes the assets of his/her employees. I wanted to show them that you don’t have to be the smartest person, or the most talented, to be an effective leader. All the students seemed to have a good time, and I learned just as much as they did, and I look forward to putting on more informational sessions similar to this one.
This is a group of students that I was leading on Leadership styles...in Romanian.
This is a group shot of the professionals we had come speak for the kids at the conference.
Last week I was able to get a tutor for Romanian, no thanks to my partner or my host family. I was getting tired, annoyed is a better word, of “bride shopping” as my partner put it. I threw him a curve ball the other day just to see what his reaction would be, and I told him that I wanted to get a guy to tutor me because we would have more in common. That was when he stopped “helping” me find a tutor; probably for the best because my patience was starting to wear thin. Along with a tutor, I was also able to find a workout partner. I was getting really worried what kind of physical activity I would be able to do during the winter because the snow, mud, ice, and weather are supposed to make it difficult to run through the fields. I met a police officer that said I could work out with him at the police gym since there’s no other gym in my village. A couple free weights and a bar, and I’m a happy camper. In the mean time, I’ve made more Moldovan friends, and we play basketball a couple times a week. Which ever previous volunteer that was here that played basketball in college, thank you for very much for making me look like a horrible basketball player. The guys matched me against a 6’7 giant that is an incredible player, thinking that all Americans are really good at the sport (because of that other volunteer). The guy ran me into the ground the first day, but I’ve been able to hold my weight for the most part since then. It’s just fun getting out with the locals and playing.
This is a wedding driving through my village. They decorate the cars and honk all the way down the street.
This little house is a Crochet and stitching shop in my village.
One of the many horse carts, called a caruta.
A couple kiosks near my work, I love the one called "Lactate" on the left.
In the background is my apartment building, and the foreground is an abandoned Orthodox Church and someone's horse grazing on the side of the road.
My buddy Dave in Balti reading what this monument says in Russian. Apparently it is a monument for Chernobyl.
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