Hey Guys!!!
Quick post cuz I don't have much time left on my battery. OH, and give yourself a big hug from me if you figured out my post title is a take off on a song from "An American Tail". I did it in honor of my little kitty who I left behind a week ago today who I miss very much! That and there are lots of stray dogs here, and I've only seen two cats in the past 4 days.
So I'm in Romania as I type and you read! It's amazing here! The Peace Corps has kept me so busy this whole week that the first time I had to catch up on my jet lag was today! I went to sleep at 6 last night and woke up at 12:30 this afternoon!!!
I can't wait to get into my language classes because the language barrier is very apparent to me, though I am having lots of fun learning new words and pantomiming with my host family! I can't wait to actually be able to communicate with them at a level higher than that of a 2 year old. My host mom and bro actually speak English, so I'm not in too big of a pickle.
I LOVE the food here!!! Yes even though I'm a vegetarian. There's this awesome soup called chiorba. The PC materials call it sour soup but it's so much more than that! It's like this really awesome watery tomato soup with loads of veggies in it.
There are thunder storms here!!! I'm so happy cuz I LOVE rain and thunder. It seems everywhere I spend a significant amount of time in ends up having awesome thunder storms.
I haven't experienced any huge culture shock. The people here are just as nice as everyone has told me they would be. My PC group is awesome and talking with them makes me feel kind of inadequate so far as travel and teaching experience goes.
I start training tomorrow guys, so wish me luck. Keep an eye out for a more in depth blog soon, should I have the time.
I love y'all.
Noapte Buno!!! (good night)
Monica
Sunday, May 25, 2008
Wednesday, May 14, 2008
"Now you get da hell outta here!"
When I was reading through the blogs of PCVs (Peace Corps Volunteers) I noticed a theme: loads of posts describing the waiting process, one post over the excitement over the invitation, and then a post about how there is not enough time to get ready. That is the trap I have fallen into. I would like to think my situation is at least a tad excusable since I didn't get my invitation until a month and half before my departure date. It's not like I was sitting around twiddling my thumbs while I was waiting for my invite, there's only so much you can prep for when you have no idea where you're going. Whoops, there I go again with the excuses, sorry.
Anywho today is my last day at work and I'm really saddened by it. The work environment over here at TES is one of the most positive environments that I have worked in. During the entire application process everyone here has gone out of their way to show their support. I'm going to miss all the laughs I've shared and all the commerodery fostered by this group of wonderful people. I'm glad I'll be able to keep in touch witht hem through this blog, which I will make every effort to update regularly ;) I can only hope my coworkers in Romania are just as crazy as these guys :P
I am more or less ready to head out. I actually had this terrible nightmare a couple weeks ago. It was such a weird dream, I woke up in the dream at like 6 o'clock in the morning on the day I was supposed to leave. My mom came in and asked me when my plane was leaving. I don't know how it was there, but you know those maps they put up on the screens of international flights that show you which countries you are flying over? Well I looked over at one of those and it showed a plane inching its way toward Romania. I guess in my dream when the airplane on the screen stopped over Romania that meant that my flight was going to leave for Romania. At any rate, I looked at the departure time and this clock was counting down from one hour. It was weird because my actual flight is scheduled to leave around noon on Sunday. Well, I had an hour to get ready, and in my dream I was as prepared as I was in real life at that time (I didn't even have my duffles then!). I started scrambling around trying to throw some stuff together. Then I just froze from the panic attack and starting freaking out because there was no point in even trying, I wouldn't be able to get anything decent together in time to make it to the airport. Up until the moment I woke up in a cold sweat I pretty much alternated from rushing around my house trying to throw crap in a backpack to breaking down and sobbing because there was no way I would make it in my dream.
You think I would have been scared straight after a dream like that. I don't know if it's a problem that plagues my generation or if this is a genetic trait passed down from my family but I'm only motivated to get down to business when the stress factor is high. Don't get me wrong, I've started packing and have taken care of paper work-ish issues, I'm just not as near a final packing job as I would like to be. I'm kind of afraid I'm not bringing enough stuff, but every RPCV (Returned Peace Corps Volunteer) and PCV I've talked to has said that they packed WAY too much. I'm trying to keep it simple, and I think I have everything I need, it's just not in the bags yet. So if a situation like my dream comes up I'll at least be able to scramble and throw a decent pack job together (not that I'll put it off for that long or anything).
I'm thinking I'll be able to fit everything in my three bags, which I kept within the Peace Corps dimension requirements, but I'm afraid I'll go over on the weight reqs. I'm pretty sure I'll be able to carry everything. I have a huge rolling duffle, a big Adidas sports bag that I'm going to throw over my shoulder and carry in front of me, a smaller carry on rolling duffle that I can hand carry if need be, and then I'll have my violin case that I'll throw over my back and my purse.
I checked the weather channel and they're predicting it will be rainy in Romania when I get there. I have also heard from PCVs that Romania is really rainy most of the time. So that leaves me with an issue I have little time to resolve: finding galoshes or rainboots. I'll hopefully be able to find a pair when I get there if I really need them, because honestly, I don't have the room in my luggage.
So far as leaving goes it's finally hitting me that I'm going to be gone for two years. I think it became apparent to me when I realized that if I screw something up while I'm getting ready (like bank prep or something like that) it's going to be a total pain in the ass to resolve. It's not like I can just call whenever, I'd have to coordinate my phone calls to be at the right time. It's not like I can just fly over and resolve it in person either, which is what I like to do much better than harping at someone over the phone.
I was also hit with a ton of bricks a couple weekends ago when I took my cat in for a check up and found out her kidney values had gone up considerably. She had to stay the weekend at the vet, taking two days away from the few we had left together. I'm glad to say that her values when back down to what they had been earlier in the year and we were able to lower her blood pressure which had risen since she was checked into the vet. It's just very apparent to me now that I may not see her after I leave and that really hurts me. My counselor really helped me when she said to tell Willow that if I don't see her in two years then we'll see each other again in a spiritual realm. I know the pet lovers understand me on this one, and for me this is like leaving my best friend because I have had her since I was 8 years old. I'm going to stay positive though, and I don't think that she'll feel I'm abandoning her because I had to leave her at my Mom's house for about two years when I moved out a few years ago. I'm going to miss her immensely, but I know she understands what I'm doing and that I'll always love her.
I was able to say good bye to the majority of my family on Sunday when my mom threw a little going away party at her place. It was nice to hang out with my fam and enlighten them on where exactly Romania is. After everyone had left the party my mom and I tried to enlighten my roommate and another friend of mine to the hilarity that is Monty Python and the Holy Grail. Alas, they both left halfway into the movie. They missed the killer bunny part! How tragic. I'm going to have a little send off on Saturday that should be fun...I'm hoping it'll go late enough that I'll be able to just sleep the entire flight to Philadelphia.
Well, between the ebbs and tides of excitement over my new adventure and fear of all I'm leaving I think I've been pretty productive. I have alot to do these next few days. On top of packing for my trip, I have to pack to move out of my apartment. I also have to actually move out of my apartment, which is always fun. This whole application process has been quite a ride though, and I have yet to fully appreciate the fact that I am leaving to live in a foreign country for two years on Sunday...but I'm sure that moment will hit me while I'm somewhere flying over the heartland. Wish me luck!
Anywho today is my last day at work and I'm really saddened by it. The work environment over here at TES is one of the most positive environments that I have worked in. During the entire application process everyone here has gone out of their way to show their support. I'm going to miss all the laughs I've shared and all the commerodery fostered by this group of wonderful people. I'm glad I'll be able to keep in touch witht hem through this blog, which I will make every effort to update regularly ;) I can only hope my coworkers in Romania are just as crazy as these guys :P
I am more or less ready to head out. I actually had this terrible nightmare a couple weeks ago. It was such a weird dream, I woke up in the dream at like 6 o'clock in the morning on the day I was supposed to leave. My mom came in and asked me when my plane was leaving. I don't know how it was there, but you know those maps they put up on the screens of international flights that show you which countries you are flying over? Well I looked over at one of those and it showed a plane inching its way toward Romania. I guess in my dream when the airplane on the screen stopped over Romania that meant that my flight was going to leave for Romania. At any rate, I looked at the departure time and this clock was counting down from one hour. It was weird because my actual flight is scheduled to leave around noon on Sunday. Well, I had an hour to get ready, and in my dream I was as prepared as I was in real life at that time (I didn't even have my duffles then!). I started scrambling around trying to throw some stuff together. Then I just froze from the panic attack and starting freaking out because there was no point in even trying, I wouldn't be able to get anything decent together in time to make it to the airport. Up until the moment I woke up in a cold sweat I pretty much alternated from rushing around my house trying to throw crap in a backpack to breaking down and sobbing because there was no way I would make it in my dream.
You think I would have been scared straight after a dream like that. I don't know if it's a problem that plagues my generation or if this is a genetic trait passed down from my family but I'm only motivated to get down to business when the stress factor is high. Don't get me wrong, I've started packing and have taken care of paper work-ish issues, I'm just not as near a final packing job as I would like to be. I'm kind of afraid I'm not bringing enough stuff, but every RPCV (Returned Peace Corps Volunteer) and PCV I've talked to has said that they packed WAY too much. I'm trying to keep it simple, and I think I have everything I need, it's just not in the bags yet. So if a situation like my dream comes up I'll at least be able to scramble and throw a decent pack job together (not that I'll put it off for that long or anything).
I'm thinking I'll be able to fit everything in my three bags, which I kept within the Peace Corps dimension requirements, but I'm afraid I'll go over on the weight reqs. I'm pretty sure I'll be able to carry everything. I have a huge rolling duffle, a big Adidas sports bag that I'm going to throw over my shoulder and carry in front of me, a smaller carry on rolling duffle that I can hand carry if need be, and then I'll have my violin case that I'll throw over my back and my purse.
I checked the weather channel and they're predicting it will be rainy in Romania when I get there. I have also heard from PCVs that Romania is really rainy most of the time. So that leaves me with an issue I have little time to resolve: finding galoshes or rainboots. I'll hopefully be able to find a pair when I get there if I really need them, because honestly, I don't have the room in my luggage.
So far as leaving goes it's finally hitting me that I'm going to be gone for two years. I think it became apparent to me when I realized that if I screw something up while I'm getting ready (like bank prep or something like that) it's going to be a total pain in the ass to resolve. It's not like I can just call whenever, I'd have to coordinate my phone calls to be at the right time. It's not like I can just fly over and resolve it in person either, which is what I like to do much better than harping at someone over the phone.
I was also hit with a ton of bricks a couple weekends ago when I took my cat in for a check up and found out her kidney values had gone up considerably. She had to stay the weekend at the vet, taking two days away from the few we had left together. I'm glad to say that her values when back down to what they had been earlier in the year and we were able to lower her blood pressure which had risen since she was checked into the vet. It's just very apparent to me now that I may not see her after I leave and that really hurts me. My counselor really helped me when she said to tell Willow that if I don't see her in two years then we'll see each other again in a spiritual realm. I know the pet lovers understand me on this one, and for me this is like leaving my best friend because I have had her since I was 8 years old. I'm going to stay positive though, and I don't think that she'll feel I'm abandoning her because I had to leave her at my Mom's house for about two years when I moved out a few years ago. I'm going to miss her immensely, but I know she understands what I'm doing and that I'll always love her.
I was able to say good bye to the majority of my family on Sunday when my mom threw a little going away party at her place. It was nice to hang out with my fam and enlighten them on where exactly Romania is. After everyone had left the party my mom and I tried to enlighten my roommate and another friend of mine to the hilarity that is Monty Python and the Holy Grail. Alas, they both left halfway into the movie. They missed the killer bunny part! How tragic. I'm going to have a little send off on Saturday that should be fun...I'm hoping it'll go late enough that I'll be able to just sleep the entire flight to Philadelphia.
Well, between the ebbs and tides of excitement over my new adventure and fear of all I'm leaving I think I've been pretty productive. I have alot to do these next few days. On top of packing for my trip, I have to pack to move out of my apartment. I also have to actually move out of my apartment, which is always fun. This whole application process has been quite a ride though, and I have yet to fully appreciate the fact that I am leaving to live in a foreign country for two years on Sunday...but I'm sure that moment will hit me while I'm somewhere flying over the heartland. Wish me luck!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
