Week of festive celebrations

Moldova’s Independence Day is Aug 27^th, the day that it declared itself a sovereign nation from USSR in 1991.  The whole country basically has Aug 26 and 27 off – most public offices are closed to commemorate the holiday (Yay, I’m on a 4-day weekend!).  The 24^th and 25^th were special days too in that Orhei Vechi, a small historic town about an hour’s drive from Chișinău, hosts a music festival Gustar.  The name connotes a tradition coinciding with the time of year when fruits have ripened, and the locals are enjoying their delicious abundance, particularly the grapes.  Many PCVs took time out to attend this lively event in a setting showcasing nature’s beauty.  For more on this festival, here is a link in English:  http://www.gustar.md/index.php/en/. 

River Răut provides a moat

Three of us M28s, Leah, Robyn, and I took off early on Saturday to head to Orhei.  It was the first time we traveled on our own outside of Bălți, so it promised to be an interesting experience.  We needed to catch a rutiera at the bus station in Bălți but practically all rutieras headed in that direction are destined for Chișinău.  There is no direct transport to Orhei.  Hence, you need to ask the drivers if they would stop in Orhei.  Most do, or I should say, they stop along the highway that leads into Orhei because they generally won’t deviate from their intended route to Chișinău.  We also had to pay the full price as if we were going to Chișinău (good old supply and demand rule).  We disembarked at the fork in the road and caught a local rutiera taking us into the town of Orhei. 

Lots of people had converged on Orhei for the event and the place was bustling.  It’s shocking that the festival logistics didn’t handle shuttling people between the two locations.  Most people arrive by car but PCVs are not allowed to drive in-country.  Consequently, we usually travel by local transport.  Local taxis in Orhei were jacking up their prices to take people to Orhei Vechi.  We met up with several other PCVs, split up into smaller groups so as to fit into taxis.  My group was able to call up a taxi using a local Moldovan to make the arrangement.  Luckily for that, because we were met by a local driver who charged us a very reasonable fare (35 lei per person) for the ~10-mile drive.  

Cave openings in ridge wall

The setting was a beautiful spot almost encircled by the Răut River and a limestone ridge on top of which is the Orthodox St. Mary’s Church (right).  Ancient caves dot the walls of the ridge, within which early Christian monks lived and monasteries were formed.  The history of this ancient civilization is fascinating and I’ll point you to a link where more details can be found if you’re interested in exploring further.  http://orhei.dnt.md/1/en.html

Our goal was to enjoy the music, and enjoy it we did.  A variety of musical groups performed from several countries and the production was top notch.  Like most music festivals in the US, this operation had a big stage, high-tech sound system, a jumbo TV screen with another one on a panel truck further into the meadow, and laser light system.  The music ranged from traditional Moldovan folk music to European-style rock to choral groups singing Andrea Bocelli-type ballads.  It was certainly an eclectic mix but appealing to the diverse crowd which wasn’t entirely young people.  There were many families in attendance and seniors as well. 

We had pitched our tents in the camping area around early afternoon.  By dusk, the place was entirely filled – almost wall-to-wall tents. Moldovans love a masă (party with lots of food), and this venue was no exception.  Out came blankets and/or large tablecloths placed in the middle of a group of tents and out came all manner of food too.  Small barbeques were set up, even pit fires were dug and set which made the quality of air pretty smoky if your tent happened to be near any of these fires.  Moldovans don’t have any regulations about campfires so complaints are pointless.  Likewise, the festival organizers didn’t have rules about noise abatement after the close of the concert.  If you thought you were turning in to sleep in your tent after midnight, you were sadly mistaken.  People all around us were continuing to talk, sing, dance, scream, and of course, drink and eat, drink some more, and drink some more.  It seemed two groups of guys were competing with each other to see who could continue to sing throughout the night until one of them would give up.  I think the last song I heard was around 6 AM when I decided to just get up.  Based on experience, I knew sleep would not overtake me since I usually can’t sleep on hard ground with insufficient blankets, and two other people in the tent in close proximity.  Not even wearing my customary earplugs and eye mask would get me to slumber land that night.  No matter, you just go with the flow.  Poftim!  (by the way, this is such a cool word!  It basically can be used in a lot of contexts - "(T)Here you are!", "Please", "You're welcome!", "My goodness!", and other exclamatory expressions.)

American-style cuisine for sale

A few PCVs were working a food booth to help raise money for their non-profit organizations.  David, a fellow PCV from Bălți, had helped organize one selling American-style food – hamburgers, corn dogs, and fried zucchini fritters, all served with a cole slaw type salad.  The burgers were really good – definitely a better grade of beef than usually found in markets.  The logistical and production processes were amazing and the output was very professional.  Cost for a platter was 50 lei (40 for the fritters) – not bad for about $4 USD.  I pitched in at various times to give the team a hand here – they all did such a tremendous job in delivering a quality meal to their customers. 

Bubbles of tea in tea drink

One experience I had with a drink booth was for bubble tea – I had to try their version of this drink.  It was a bit pricey but then it was unique to Moldova; I hadn’t run across anything similar at all.  I got a lychee tea and she added bubbles, flavored either with lychee or pineapple.  I even had a fat plastic straw to drink the concoction.  I started drinking the tea and got a couple of bubbles in my mouth.  For some reason, I fully expected that they would be chewy tapioca balls, the kind we get in the US.  Well, they were nothing of the kind!  These were actual bubbles made out of some edible gelatinous membrane, which were indeed filled with more lychee tea!!  It was a total surprise!

We left the festival on Sunday around noon, and knew it would be challenging to return to Bălți.  Again, no regular rutieras were shuttling folks from the festival site back to the town of Orhei.  Only a rutiera was at the entrance waiting to take people back to Chișinău.  So, we decided to try hitchhiking.  It was our first time doing it in Moldova, and other PCVs do it quite often.  We felt comfortable doing it since there were several of us women together.  Within 5 minutes, a car stopped and the man was willing to take us all into his car.  It was a tight squeeze but we made it.  He was very nice, and said he would let us off at the turn-off into Orhei since he was continuing on in the opposite direction.  He spoke a bit of English and I think he was just curious about us since he could tell we were likely Americans.  What a kind man he was!  We offered him some gas money for his trouble, but he said he would take a $1 USD if we had it.  Luckily one of us did! 

Continuing on with our return trip, we caught a regular rutiera on the main road taking us into central Orhei.  We parted ways with two of our fellow volunteers as they are located in Orhei.  The three of us then hunted down a way to get to the highway – a taxi driver took us for 20 lei total.  When he found out we were Americans, he was very glad – he liked Americans!  He also asked if I was Cambodian….  On the main highway, we stopped a rutiera that was going to Bălți but his price was 65 lei – a rip-off!  Deci NU!  We were waiting for another rutiera to come by when after a few minutes, we decided to try hitchhiking again.  It's pretty easy to do along this major route, but it was it likely to be more problematic because we didn’t have a sign that said “Bălți” (none of us had a large enough piece of paper, something we’ll remedy in the future if we ever need to opt for this approach again).  We wanted a direct ride to Bălți, not intermittent stops along the way.  (Yes, we are demanding.) Luckily the first vehicle that stopped within a very short time carried a couple who had a passenger van (lots of room!), who was going to be traveling past Bălți and would drop us off as soon as we got into the city boundaries.  What good fortune for us!!  They too were very nice people and we exchanged pleasantries in our limited Romanian.  The three of us were bushed to say the least, and during the hour drive I felt myself nodding off every now and then, which I was trying hard not to do.  How rude would that be?!  They left us near a bus stop and we hopped one going into central Bălți and finally arrived home.  What an interesting, and exhausting, weekend we spent!

                                                                                          26 August

Independence Day turned out to be overcast with a bit of light rain earlier in the day.  I ventured out around noon to shop as the sun was breaking through (it seems I’m always shopping for food, but that’s why the piaţă markets are open every day).  The PCVs are going to get together at Matt and David’s place for dinner and chill out.  We’ll each prepare a dish, and I’m preparing chicken wings in oyster sauce with some chili paste thrown in, served over rice.  Yes, I am able to buy oyster sauce (the brand is Thai Choice and only found in small bottles) but it’s expensive.  I usually shop at Supermarket Fourchette, a well-stocked chain market that carries some ethnic food brands, a life-saver!  The big supermarkets also usually dispense alcoholic beverages too, from spigots set up across a counter.  Beer and wine are filled up in plastic liter bottles similar to Pepsis for the consumer to buy.  To my knowledge, I’ve not tried these yet but I have been poured drinks from such bottles before when I’d be at a masa, so who knows? 

Youthful dancers shimmying

I caught an outdoor Independence Day event in the main plaza along Independence Blvd. (Poftim!).  Singers and dancers were performing, along with a few speeches.  There was a troupe of children looking very cute yet professional in their dance costumes.  Not traditional dance was this performance.  They could have been on “Moldova’s Got Talent”!

Independence Day event in Bălți

I finally was able to go to a yoga class last night - I certainly needed it!  I've canvassed the place for a little while now but every time I went over to the studio, it was either closed or there was a class going on.  There are no hours posted anywhere at their entrance, and no phone number (the only sign on the door was in Russian).  One time I was successful in arriving before a class actually started, and the instructor spoke Russian but flagged some other student who spoke some English.  Hence, I got the schedule and showed up for my first session.  It was a relatively easy regimen but after not doing yoga for three months, it was a good start.  The instructor led the class in Russian so I had to simply watch everyone's motions and mimic them.  My muscles weren't as limber as they used to be but my body will get to love this!  Plus, the studio is right across the street from my apartment!  Now to find a gym ....

                                                                                          27 August

Early weeks in Balti

The first three months in a new location, volunteers live with their new host families to get acculturated to the new environment.  It’s too bad that I haven’t yet had that kind of experience.  My host family has been pre-occupied with their other house and I’ve been on my own, shopping for myself, cooking my meals, and figuring out means on my own to integrate into the community.  Undoubtedly it’s not the most ideal situation especially fending for myself in a new place where the language seems to be first Russian, and then secondarily Romanian.  While I have comfortable quarters, I do miss the ongoing interactions with “family” members. We’ll see how things fare during the winter when it’s very likely that my host family will be relocating back to the apartment with me.

Here is my room (which is really a living room converted into a bedroom).  Overall the apartment is spacious compared to other residences in the central area.

I do like the kitchen as it's got a microwave, toaster, clothes washer, and gas stove.  Lots of natural light comes in from an attached covered balcony in both the kitchen and the bedroom.  I'm able to cook some Chinese dishes which I've been craving!  I must say I haven't had a potato since I left Ciorescu!

I get by in the most elementary way with my Romanian speech and fortunately, I’ve started additional tutoring in the language with Ina, a teacher who has worked with PC volunteers in the past.  She teaches English and French to local Moldovans, and on occasion will take on foreign students like me who are learning Romanian.  All we do is talk – clearly that’s the practical instruction that I need right now because lacking a host family who is present every day, I can’t practice day-to-day conversation.  I do try to speak at work with my co-workers but they actually understand quite a bit of English.  They’d rather practice their English on me.  I’m sure they get a bit impatient when I speak Romanian because with the pace is so slow.  I haven’t come close to thinking in Romanian – I think in English of course, then try to recall the Romanian words in my head, and finally those marginally correct Romanian words come out of my mouth!   I have definitely committed myself to improving my Romanian speech even at the detriment to fracturing the grammar.  PC supports these efforts as they subsidize the expenses for hiring private tutors (which by the way, is incredibly cheap here). 

Something else weird has been happening as I’ve been studying my new language.  I have found on occasion that when I’m struggling to recall the right Romanian phrase, what pops into my head first is …. the Cantonese version!  It’s happened to me several times, and the irony is that I haven’t used those Cantonese phrases in a very long time.  Guess what they say is true – what you learned as a child does stick with you deep in your subconscious mind.

Tatiana & Me

Thank goodness for Tatiana, my business partner at the Asociatia Femeilor!  She’s reached out to me much more than my host family and includes me in functions when opportunities present themselves.  Last Saturday for example, she invited me to join her friends on an excursion along the Nistru River aboard a ferryboat.  We drove to Vadul Lui Voda, a riverside tourist town near Chisinau and caught the ferry.  The ride itself on the river is quite short as we only cover a few miles.  The main activity is EATING!  

Along with Tatiana and her husband, I enjoyed the warm society of Svetlana, her husband Serge, Elena, and two granddaughters of Svetlana/Serge who live in Canada now and speak English fluently.  They brought large quantities of delicious food, and of course, home-made wine and cognac.  As soon as we got settled at our table on the top deck of the ferry, out came the food/drink and we had placinta, brinza, fresh tomatoes, and biscuits which are mostly cookies.  After about an hour, the ferry stopped along an embankment and passengers could disembark to picnic further and swim along the narrow shoreline.  We found a grassy clearing, spread out blankets, opened up the food bags again, and laid out plates of chicken, vegetables, bread, salame, cheese, more placinta, watermelon, etc.  The men started up a make-shift grill laying charcoal on the ground and setting up a grilling rack that they had brought along.  They grilled sausages in no time, delicious!  

I hadn’t brought a swimsuit along but the others all changed and several went into the river water.  PC had warned us that we should not swim in any of the rivers or lakes in Moldova – we should only swim in swimming pools.  The medical team indicated that the open waters are polluted and can potentially subject you to contamination of one sort or another.  Certainly, the river water looked dirty but the general public willingly went in (the weather was extremely hot that day and folks wanted to cool themselves off indeed, and I didn’t blame them!).  About women's bathing suits .... it seems that body shape and size are not factors when choosing a swimsuit.  Practically all the women wore bikinis and whatever exposed skin spilled out, no one seemed to care!  Liberated women!

Svetlana & granddaughters

After languishing offshore for about 2 hours, the ferry alerted us to re-board and we rode back to our original launch point.  Then, we simply returned to the main beach, found a shady spot for our blankets again, and unpacked our food once more for the final round of eating!! 

Village along Nistru

Iionel and Serge with Boat Ride Promoter

My work routine at the Asociatie right now is still evolving slowly.  August is a quiet month as many Moldovans take their vacations now.  The office is very quiet, and activity appears at a minimum.  However, the team is working on a small business proposal to get some funding for training of disabled people in order for them to earn some livelihood.  It's still in the earliest stages but if it develops further, I'll put out more details in a later post.

Practically all the volunteers traveled to Chisinau on Aug 14^th for an event called Storytellers, a sort of Ted-talk format where people associated with PC during its 20-year period in Moldova shared stories about their experiences and recalled memorable highlights.  For example, a featured speaker from Moldova 1 had stayed beyond his two-year period and ultimately married his host family’s daughter.  In fact, several of the past volunteers ended up marrying Moldovans.  (No chance that'll happen to me!).  Speeches were made by the first President of the Republic of Moldova who had been insistent on getting Peace Corps into Moldova, the first US Ambassador to the Republic who herself had been an ex-Peace Corps volunteer, and lastly, the first PC Country Director to Moldova.  Their stories and others were utterly moving and entertaining.   

Mircea Snegur, first President
of Republica Moldova

Mary Pendleton, first US Ambassador
to Republica Moldova

Justine Murray, first
Moldova Country Director

Ansamblul Tarancuta (Folk singing group)

Six of us stayed overnight rather than returning to our work sites since we had to be in Chisinau the next day, Thursday, Aug 15.  We decided on a hostel near downtown called the FunkyMamaliga Hostel.  Indeed it was pretty funky, but fun!  As with most hostels, you share bathrooms and a bedroom, like a dormitory, although each of us gets his/her own bed at least.  Eight people slept in 4 sets of bunk beds jammed into a small room.  It was crowded and rather noisy, but we had clean sheets, indoor toilets, and hot showers.  I always wear ear plugs and an eye mask when going to bed so I wasn’t too disturbed by noise.  Yet I did find it difficult to actually fall asleep that night.

 

Inner courtyard of FunkyMamaliga Hostel

It must have been excitement that kept me from sleeping because the next day was to be a special celebration commemorating the 20^th anniversary of PC in Moldova.  That day was also the swearing-in day of our entire Moldova 28 group.  Naturally we were anticipating an extraordinary time.  The event was held at a movie theater as an audience of about 300 was expected to attend.  Included in that count were our previous host families from our training days, and our current business partners from our new sites.  Additionally, members from NGO’s, government agencies, and the media were anticipated.  Of course, PC staff and current PCVs were cheering us on from the audience as well.  Moldovans are not generally prompt for events and meetings, so it wasn’t until a half hour after the start of the festivities that the house looked full. 

Each one of our photos was displayed up on the wide screen, along with our home state, and our new Moldovan location.  My program manager, Vitalie, was supposed to have announced my name, but instead got confused and announced Adil’s name even though my profile was the one shown on the screen.  Adil got up to go on to the stage while I sat back down in my seat.  Then Vitalie corrected himself, and I arose to walk up onto the stage.  It was the only misstep in the flow of the announcements – just a chance occurrence but no big problem.  After we had all lined up, we were given the pledge to repeat while cameras were clicking all around us.  I know we made the local news.  We were all filled with American pride, for sure!

My host family from Ciorescu could not attend, sad to say.  It being a work day, some families found it difficult to make the trip into Chisinau.  I was very pleased, however, that my business partner, Tatiana, drove all the way from Balti to be present.  Nonetheless, we couldn’t linger at the reception afterwards as she had to return to Balti right away to finish up some work.  I was feeling depleted myself and was more than willing to conclude the ceremonies.  All the M28s were now finally embarking on their real mission – to spread peace and friendship throughout Moldova.  Go Moldova 28!

                                                                                                     17 August

THE CONTENTS OF THIS WEBSITE ARE MINE PERSONALLY AND DO NOT REFLECT ANY POSITION OF THE US GOVERNMENT NOR THE PEACE CORPS.