Christmas

Last year I spent Christmas in Romania with fellow volunteers, Julie and Vicki. This year Julie and I decided to try another Eastern European destination for the holiday, Budapest.  Julie and I have been wanting to go since we discovered that we can get there with just one train transfer from our sites.  However, we weren't able to find time to go this summer so we decided to go for Christmas.  The train journey took a little over 15 hours and two trains.

Arriving in Keleti Station

We arrived in Keleti station in Budapest on a very chilly morning, but were able to warm up as we strolled to our hotel.  Our hotel was very conveniently located, just one block from the Great Hall Market where were were able to look at lots of local produce, spices (lots of paprika!) and handmade crafts.

Great Hall Market

We also were able to take a short stroll from our hotel down a pedestrian boulevards to one of the main Christmas markets in Budapest.  During the month of December local squares are filled with vendors selling holiday crafts, food and drinks.  We enjoyed drinking mulled wine and checking out local crafts.

Christmas cookies

On Christmas Eve we visited one of traditional thermal bath houses, Szechenyi and enjoyed soaking in the thermal baths and sitting in the saunas.  The steam made it difficult to photograph, but the bath house was built in 1881 and was as gorgeous as it was relaxing.

Szechenyi Baths

 After the baths, we walked back to our hotel through Pest taking in many sites along the way.

Vajdahunyad Castle

The Christmas Tree at the Opera House

That evening we found Christmas Eve service in English at St. Columba’s Scottish Presbyterian Church.  It made it feel a little more like Christmas to get to sing a few hymns and carols in English.

Christmas day we woke up to gorgeous weather and took the opportunity to walk around the city more and cross the river to Buda.

A square in Pest next to our hotel

Matthias Church in Buda

Fisherman's Bastion in Buda

The view of the Hungarian Parliament from Buda

Christmas Dinner

We had nice day, including what we agreed was our most unusual Christmas dinner thus far, sushi.  It was difficult to be away from home and family for the second Christmas, but I feel very blessed to have such a good friend to spend the holiday with.  Thank you Julie!

As for next year, I can't wait to celebrate Christmas stateside, but I look forward to calls with Julie to reminiscence about our Eastern European Christmases.

There and Back Again

For the past couple weeks I was back in the States reconnecting with my family, attending my cousin's wedding, seeing friends and generally enjoying the bounties of life states.  This will be my only trip back during my 27 month service and going back for a wedding was perfect because it meant getting to see more family than I would have been able to otherwise.

My first stop in the states was in New Hampshire.  I arrived 4 days before the wedding so that I could spend a little time with my family, the beautiful bride: Corona, and try to adjust to the correct time zone.  I also was lucky enough to get to do a presentation about my Peace Corps experience to an education class at Keene State College.  The students asked wonderful questions and it helped me think about my service in a new way.

As for the wedding, I don't think I can even do it justice by writing about it. It was just too prefect!  It was so lovely to get to see my dear cousin get married to an amazing guy and to see two families come together as one.

Celebrating with the bride

Following the wedding I then flew back to Seattle with my parents.  The time in Seattle flew by, but I was able to reconnect with quite a few friends and to meet some new members of my friends' families.  I got to meet Cecelia, daughter of Eliza and Daniel, who was born just a couple months after I left for Romania who is now an amazing 16 months old!  I also got to meet Milo, son of Andrew and Megan, who is 6 weeks old and Adelaide, daughter of Robin and Andy, who is just one month old.  I also got to have lunch with my 98 year old grandma twice!  I saw both Emily and Dieter's new house and Margaret and Kevin's new house; both are darling and I can't wait to have more time to hang out in them.  My parents also spoiled me rotten through out my time in the states giving in to meals of foods I had been craving for the past year and a half, taking me to Costco to stock up on supplies to bring back, by cooking Thanksgiving dinner early and providing birthday cake for dessert.

Turkey!

I also got to do short presentation about Romania in my friend Ona's kindergarten classroom.  The kindergarteners asked some impressive and hilarious questions.  When I showed them on the globe the distance from Seattle to Romania, one little boy asked, "Do you fly over the Atlantic Ocean to get there?"  Brilliant!  As I was holding the globe another boy asked, "How does the Earth float upright in space?"  Uh...  I told him that was an excellent question, but perhaps one that should be asked to a scientist.  Three hands then shot up and then we had, "My dad's a scientist."  "My grandpa's a scientist."  Oh how I love kindergarteners!

A presentation at St. Joseph School

Now I am back in Romania and getting ready for my first day back in the classroom.  I am afraid it may be a challenging week, but I feel ready to face the next month before winter vacation.

Service and Stuff

Ones of the interesting things about being a TEFL volunteer is that the summer gives me the unique freedom to do other things.  My school has no program or projects for me to participate in between now and September so this gives me the freedom to do other things.  I say this with a mix of joy and frustration.  There may be things happening at my school, but my inability to get fully involved in my school community leaves me not knowing.  However, I am lucky to have found some other projects.

Each week during the school year I teach an adult English class with a local NGO.  This NGO provides an amazing range of services to the local community including pre-natal care, post-natal counseling, parenting classes, food assistance and much more.  My friends at the NGO, Angela and Saskia (a Dutch volunteer), wondered I might like to do something in a village outside of my town this summer.  I jumped at the chance and with their help partnered with the village school (1st to 8th grade) to create a weekly activity for the students with games, sports and a tiny bit of English. 

Today was my first day camp and I had 34 kids show up!  We had the activities in the yard at the school. The children ranged in age from 6-13 (I think), it was a little hard to get a good sense with so many.  We did some warm-ups, sang "head, shoulders, knees and toes," learned weather terminology and played a game, played chain tag, and "red light, green light."  We took a break after tag because we were all getting very hot.  I suggested water, thinking there would be a drinking fountain they could use, but then I realized that I realized two things.  First, I have never seen a drinking fountain in any Romanian school I've visited (I think I have been in about 15 in various cities here) and second, in the village there is no running water.  Thus our water break involved sending some kids down the road with a bucket to get water, then using the community cups the school has so that everyone could get a little water.  After the break we played a little more and then I quizzed everyone about weather terms.  I am already plotting my next visit and trying the brainstorm games to play with lots of kids in a small yard.

In general, it's hard in the middle of PC service to really take stock of what I am doing.  This past school year has been a lot of things, many of them challenging.  I have tried not to write too much about it in my blog because staff urges us when having challenging days to write in journals or e-mails rather than write publicly.  I have been very lucky to have amazing support from friends and family back home, but have continually struggled to find purpose in my service and the ability to touch the lives of my students.  Today, however, I felt a little closer to finding purpose as I was actually doing something that wouldn't have taken place if I wasn't there.  In school it's difficult because even if I wasn't in school my students would still be having a English.  I try to make my English classes fun, but I've admittedly missed the mark for what Romanian teenagers consider fun.  Thus it was nice to do something new with a younger age group with no particular goal except running around and having fun.

In other news, the Peace Corps announced their intention to leave Romania last week.  The group that is swearing-in and beginning their service this week will be the last in Romania.  This is the 20th year of Peace Corps in Romania and it is now down to just the TEFL sector.  You can read more about the news in the link above.

Lastly, I want to wish a very happy birthday to my brother, Matt.  I am afraid my card might not make it in time, but here is a preview.  I hope it makes it to you eventually.  HAPPY BIRTHDAY BROTHER, I LOVE YOU!

Cousin Magic

In the middle of June my dear cousin Simone came to visit for a week.  Simone just graduated from the University of Chicago with a Masters in Public Policy (total smarty pants) and is doing a post-graduation European tour.  I was honored to be her first stop before she met up with her boyfriend in Germany. I was done teaching so she came to my town to see the end of the school year award show and then we traveled over to Transylvania. 

Simone at the Nadia Comaneci statue in Onesti

We started our travels in Transylvania with a day trip to Miercurea Ciuc which is a three hour train ride from my town on the other side of the mountains.  We were blessed with great weather and visited a museum to see an exhibit on loan from Hungary with Hungarian mummies.  The museum also had a lot of traditional Romanian costumes, tools, and crafts.

 

 Csiki Szekely Museum at Miko Castle in Miercurea Ciuc

Over the next few days we visited Sighisoara and Sibiu.  I had never been to Sighisoara before so it was fun to explore the city for the first time with Simone.  We visited the museum in the clock tower and explored the old town.  The next day we hoped on the train to Sibiu and then had two days to see Sibiu.

 

 Clock Tower in Sighisoara

 View from the train between Sighisoara and Sibiu

 Day 5 - Liar's Bridge in Sibiu

We also visited the ASTRA Museum in Sibiu.  It was by far, the best museum that I have visited in Romania.  It was filled with traditional buildings moved from different locales across the Romania that are now set in a beautiful forest.

 

 ASTRA Open Air Museum in Sibiu

We had a great time traveling around, but the time flew by way too quickly.  I can't wait for our next cousin reunion! 

Times Flies, Scottish Style

Two weeks ago it was spring break for schools in Romania.  I took the opportunity to visit my dear friends Sarah, Dan, and their daughter Hazel in Glasgow. It was an amazing and refreshing trip!  The weather was beautiful and for the first time this year it felt like spring.  All week long local kept telling me that all the sunshine they were having was highly unusual.  Only when on the day I leaving did it turn to more typical Scottish spring weather and rain.

I feel like I packed so much into the trip that it would take ages to talk about all of it, but I thought I would share some photos and highlights.  Sarah also did a great job of documenting my visit on her blog.

Sarah is a wonderful hostess and before I even arrived asked me what food I was missing so that she could make some of my favorites.  I was totally pampered all week long!  Sarah whipped up Mexican food, Thai curry, and beef stroganoff. We also went out for fish and chips, tapas, and Indian! 

The first day, which I sadly don't have pictures of Sarah and I had a day out in Edinburgh.  We took the train from Glasgow in the morning.  I had been to Edinburgh before so we just looked at the castle from afar and skipped the tour, instead we hit the shops, dined in a pub, walked through the parks, poked around back alleys and had an amazing sunset dinner and wine.

Sunday the weather was still gorgeous so we went to a park at Loch Lomond.  The park has what I would call a mini castle, but is just referred to as a manor.  Hazel explored the playground and I soaked up the sunshine. 

Dan with the giant rhododendrons at Loch Lomond

mini castle

entrance to the loch

After the park we got some fish and chips for lunch before taking the train back to Sarah and Dan's flat so that Hazel could have her afternoon nap before the evening church service.

A park near Sarah and Dan's flat full of gorgeous cherry blossoms.

Dan stayed home while Hazel took her nap so that Sarah could show me a little of their neighborhood.  We met up again with Dan and Hazel at church. Sarah's brother is the pastor of Re: Hope and it was great to see him preach.  The service was very moving and the music was great.  Dan then went out with a few friends from church and Sarah and I walked home with Hazel.  After Hazel went to bed Sarah produced and amazing platter of local cheeses and crackers for me to try.  It was heavenly!  I am still dreaming of the wensleydale with cranberries. Another perfect end to the day.

The next day Dan had to work so Sarah, Hazel and I walked to the Kelvingrove Art Galley and Museum.  On the walk we passed Glasgow University.

 

Uni

Museum

The museum is free and fantastic for both children and adults. Hazel did great playing with all the interactive features while Sarah and I got to enjoy looking at Scottish history, nature and design, plus art from around the world.

the museum organ

museum interior

Sarah and Hazel soaking up sunshine on the walk home

The next day we went downtown so I could do more shopping for things that are hard to find in Romania.  Then Sarah and Hazel headed home for nap time and I stayed downtown to get my haircut.  It was my first haircut in a year except my own occasional hacking at my bangs.  Sarah had made an appointment for me with her awesome hairdresser, Mark, which was lovely!

Wednesday, I headed back to Edinburgh to meet up with my friend Emily.  Emily went to grad school in Edinburgh and graduated last year and has stayed on to work in her field.  Emily gave me a great insiders tour of the city.

apartments which combine old and new architecture

cherry blossoms in the Meadows

Nelson's monument and the observatory on Calton Hill

Castle!

Emily and I in Princes Street Gardens

banana phone

After wandering all over town, Emily and I had drinks at the Last Drop in the Grassmarket.

 

We then met up with a couple of Emily's friends and had a chance to catch the sun set over the links public golf course at the end of The Meadows.

Thursday was an amazing day.  The whole family surprised me for an early birthday celebration.  I work up to find the lounge filled with balloons, bunting and a very excited Hazel who had learned to wish me (and everyone) a happy birthday.

Hazel Mae

"happy birthday!"

We went downtown for a little more shopping and I loaded up on my favorite shampoos and other goodies to bring back with me.  It seemed like even the weather was cooperating on my birthday celebration day.  Even the cherry tree outside my window was in bloom.

The view from the guest bedroom.

After Hazel's nap we headed out to go to the shop across the street so I could get some postcard stamps and to go to the neighborhood butcher.  
 

Hazel helping me mail postcards

two stylish ladies!

With our newly purchased meat, Sarah made a gorgeous and delicious Mexican feast.  Complete with party plates and napkins with my favorite, polka dots!  I also was even more surprised with presents!  Sarah and Dan knew the key to my heart with a giant bottle of Tabasco sauce and packets of couscous to take back to Romania.

the view from the dining room table

Hazel getting a little after dinner exercise

After Hazel went to bed, Sarah had one more topper for an already perfect day, we headed out for cake.  The evening was gorgeous so we meandered through the neighborhood and then the University of Glasgow before heading to Kember and Jones for cake.

forget-me-not and daffodils

caution?

Uni

a view of Kelvingrove Museum

FRIENDS!

windy!

A sweet old professor took our picture at the oldest part of the uni

dessert at Kember and Jones

The next couple days flew by, but I was able to get one complete picture our group right before I left.  It was a lovely vacation.

Sarah, Dan, and Hazel, I can't thank you enough!  Love you guys!  Marta

p.s. I can't wait for our next reunion

flying back to Romania - sigh!