At times, I've been a little hesitant to talk about faith on my blog because the Peace Corps is a non-religious organization. To be quite honest I don't like to use the word religion because to me it's a corrupted institution. I prefer to talk about faith, church (a movement of people), and spirituality in all its forms.
I joined the Peace Corps looking to fulfill my calling to serve and sacrifice. At every turn I'm reminded that I'm in the right place! Praise God! There is a connection between my counterpart and I; her daughter lives in Indiana, and she partially signed up to work with the Peace Corps for companionship with a volunteer. It was just happenstance that she was matched with me, and I'm from Indiana. She constantly tells me how she believes that God brought us together... Some people say it's a coincidence, but I think it's God. Then there are the two high school girls I tutor and hang out with, Ioana and Daniella. We just started speaking in English to prepare for the Cambridge Exam, but now our chats are more centered around our shared faith. Daniella even works with missionaries in the area as a translator so I'm going to help out in the small village where she lives. They borrowed Velvet Elvis from me and loved asking questions about the text and sharing their feelings. By surprise I found the fellowship that I was desperately missing.
All this is my own experience and opinion. I just felt like sharing a couple instances of how blessed I feel. I could have said so many things about all the support I get from family, friends, and even some strangers back home; but I wanted to show how God can lead you on a path if you trust His plan for you! God walks with each of us on the paths and journeys of life...I hope and pray that your eyes are open and you can see God moments in your own life.
Sunday, February 22, 2009
Monday, February 9, 2009
Pictures from Vagabonding
Victoria and Feldioara
9 hr. train ride to Campulung Moldovenesc
Sledding in C-lung
Iasi
9 hr. train ride to Campulung Moldovenesc
Sledding in C-lung
Iasi
Vagabonding for a week across Romania
One word comes to mind to describe last week: BOOMSHAKALAKA!!! (a Romanian announcer screamed this during the Superbowl.) I apologize in advance for this post...it's impossible for me to describe just how great of a week I had!
Below--the red line indicates where in Romania I traveled in a week!
Victoria: I traveled to this small city at the foot of the Fagaras Mountains to visit Tyler and to watch the Superbowl! The group was Jake, Joe, Lee, Tyler, and me....After the Superbowl party, we all woke up a little weary from the festivities. I was going to go back to Targu Mures with Jake and Joe, but Tyler and Lee convinced me to stay. I'm glad I did. A couple invited us to spend the day with them out in the small village of Feldioara. We grilled some mici, hiked through the mud, tried a little fishing, chopped up some wood, and drank a lot of wine and other stuff. It was a fantastic day!
The next day Tyler, Lee, and I set out for Campulung Moldovenesc. We hitched a ride in Ucea, and Lee about lost a leg when the guy slammed on the gas of his Dacia before Lee was in the car! We made it to Sibiu unscathed and randomly bumped into Kate and Rosemarie, fellow Group 25 PCV's. We caught a train to Teius and then hopped aboard an 8 hour train to Cumpulung. We met a nice business man aboard the train, had some drinks, and tried to stay awake so we didn't miss our stop. We finally made it to the frozen town of Campulung where Natalie, another PCV, greeted us at the station with her dog Layla!
Campulung Moldovenesc/Vama: I love this area! We ate a delicious regional soup called ciorba Radauteana, went sledding on trashbags, and got to experience a little of the village lifestyle. Sledding was a blast until I hit a patch of rock and busted up my knee...but you know me, I love my battle scars and now I just have one more to add to the collection!
In Vama we all cooked a meal and sat down for dinner with Rachel's host family. They are great! After some vin fiert (boiled wine) and tiuca we headed upstairs to Rachel's living quarters and played some games before eventually succumbing to exhaustion.
We [me, Tyler, Lee, Rachel, Natalie, and Layla (Nat's dog)] left Vama by train to travel to Iasi and visit David Pi!!
Iasi: Getting to Iasi was an experience. It's worlds apart from my little Transylvanian town. It's the second largest city in Romania and western culture is easily seen at every turn. We went out for Lebanese food which blew my mind...I love Romanian food but need a change every once and a while! Then we went back to David's for some fun before hitting the hay. The next day we went shopping, and to be honest I was overwhelmed! I forgotten what it's like to go to a mall and start browsing stores. I spent all my birthday money on a sweater, scarf, and socks...and it was glorious!! After shopping, David took us all on a walking tour of the city. We hiked around seeing the sites and enjoying the general splendor.
At night we added Liz and her friend Alina to the group as well as the other volunteer in Iasi, Tiffany. We all went out to eat at a Chinese restaurant (!!!) After dinner, we headed back to David's to get ready and then went out dancing at a club. It took be a while to adjust because I'm not used to going out anymore. Once I finally flipped the switch I danced up a storm with everyone until 4 am!
Return trip home: Rachel, Natalie (and Layla), and I headed back to Campulung and Vama because it was easier for me to stay a night there and catch a bus to Targu Mures in the morning. I finally made it back to the autogara in Mures at 6:35, and had missed the bus to Tarnaveni by 5 minutes. I read and journaled for 2 hours waiting on the next, and finally made it back to Tarnaveni at 9:30!
I can't begin to explain how much fun last week was! There are stories, experiences, and scars I'll carry with me forever! Perhaps one day I'll share more with you all, but for now this post will have to suffice. I'll post some pictures very soon!
Below--the red line indicates where in Romania I traveled in a week!
Victoria: I traveled to this small city at the foot of the Fagaras Mountains to visit Tyler and to watch the Superbowl! The group was Jake, Joe, Lee, Tyler, and me....After the Superbowl party, we all woke up a little weary from the festivities. I was going to go back to Targu Mures with Jake and Joe, but Tyler and Lee convinced me to stay. I'm glad I did. A couple invited us to spend the day with them out in the small village of Feldioara. We grilled some mici, hiked through the mud, tried a little fishing, chopped up some wood, and drank a lot of wine and other stuff. It was a fantastic day!
The next day Tyler, Lee, and I set out for Campulung Moldovenesc. We hitched a ride in Ucea, and Lee about lost a leg when the guy slammed on the gas of his Dacia before Lee was in the car! We made it to Sibiu unscathed and randomly bumped into Kate and Rosemarie, fellow Group 25 PCV's. We caught a train to Teius and then hopped aboard an 8 hour train to Cumpulung. We met a nice business man aboard the train, had some drinks, and tried to stay awake so we didn't miss our stop. We finally made it to the frozen town of Campulung where Natalie, another PCV, greeted us at the station with her dog Layla!
Campulung Moldovenesc/Vama: I love this area! We ate a delicious regional soup called ciorba Radauteana, went sledding on trashbags, and got to experience a little of the village lifestyle. Sledding was a blast until I hit a patch of rock and busted up my knee...but you know me, I love my battle scars and now I just have one more to add to the collection!
In Vama we all cooked a meal and sat down for dinner with Rachel's host family. They are great! After some vin fiert (boiled wine) and tiuca we headed upstairs to Rachel's living quarters and played some games before eventually succumbing to exhaustion.
We [me, Tyler, Lee, Rachel, Natalie, and Layla (Nat's dog)] left Vama by train to travel to Iasi and visit David Pi!!
Iasi: Getting to Iasi was an experience. It's worlds apart from my little Transylvanian town. It's the second largest city in Romania and western culture is easily seen at every turn. We went out for Lebanese food which blew my mind...I love Romanian food but need a change every once and a while! Then we went back to David's for some fun before hitting the hay. The next day we went shopping, and to be honest I was overwhelmed! I forgotten what it's like to go to a mall and start browsing stores. I spent all my birthday money on a sweater, scarf, and socks...and it was glorious!! After shopping, David took us all on a walking tour of the city. We hiked around seeing the sites and enjoying the general splendor.
At night we added Liz and her friend Alina to the group as well as the other volunteer in Iasi, Tiffany. We all went out to eat at a Chinese restaurant (!!!) After dinner, we headed back to David's to get ready and then went out dancing at a club. It took be a while to adjust because I'm not used to going out anymore. Once I finally flipped the switch I danced up a storm with everyone until 4 am!
Return trip home: Rachel, Natalie (and Layla), and I headed back to Campulung and Vama because it was easier for me to stay a night there and catch a bus to Targu Mures in the morning. I finally made it back to the autogara in Mures at 6:35, and had missed the bus to Tarnaveni by 5 minutes. I read and journaled for 2 hours waiting on the next, and finally made it back to Tarnaveni at 9:30!
I can't begin to explain how much fun last week was! There are stories, experiences, and scars I'll carry with me forever! Perhaps one day I'll share more with you all, but for now this post will have to suffice. I'll post some pictures very soon!
Friday, January 30, 2009
This is the meeting that doesn't end. Yes it goes on and on my friend...
Last night I sat in the most uncomfortable chair for 3 hours while my colleagues discussed discipline issues and gave each other compliments for merit. This is called the consiliu profesoral, and I didn't like it one bit. I was looking forward to this meeting because at all the previous meetings we had cake, cookies, and lots of beverage options.
My dreams were shattered after Hour 1.
After Hour 2 I was trying to plan ways to escape without others noticing, but then I realized my bag and coat were directly behind the director...my plan was foiled.
Approaching Hour 3 my resistance had been beaten out of me...
In my "American opinion" (as my colleagues like to say), there are about 15,234 different ways to do the same things in a more effective manner. The consiliu profesoral is a remnant of a different age...an awkward age you want to forget -- like when you're 12 and go to your first middle school dance.
My dreams were shattered after Hour 1.
After Hour 2 I was trying to plan ways to escape without others noticing, but then I realized my bag and coat were directly behind the director...my plan was foiled.
Approaching Hour 3 my resistance had been beaten out of me...
In my "American opinion" (as my colleagues like to say), there are about 15,234 different ways to do the same things in a more effective manner. The consiliu profesoral is a remnant of a different age...an awkward age you want to forget -- like when you're 12 and go to your first middle school dance.
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