"I love those who can smile in trouble, who can gather strength from distress, and grow brave by reflection. 'Tis the business of little minds to shrink, but they whose heart is firm, and whose conscience approves their conduct, will pursue their principles unto death" - Leonardo da Vinci

Zdraveyte Everyone!

It has been quite awhile since this blog was last updated. I thought I would take this Saturday morning to write about the recent happenings with my Peace Corps service in Bulgaria.

Not too much is new! After a very hard, long and cold winter spring has finally arrived! As many of you know, it was record breaking temperatures in Eastern Europe this winter and was difficult for many. Being from the North I was certain the cold would be difficult but I would handle it just fine. This was true for both accounts. I rarely turned my heat on knowing that once I started, it would go on every day and I didn’t want to pay for it. As you could’ve guessed I wore several pairs of socks, leggings, slippers and two sweatshirts regularly. This type of cold is different than what we all are used to. We are guarded from the outdoor chill by the warmth of our homes. This past winter the liquids in my kitchen would freeze because of the cold. It was too cold to cook so when I did, I had to have much energy and desire. However, I am a fortunate volunteer. Other volunteers went weeks without water due to frozen pipes and had to keep their homes lit through a wood burning stove. One challenge was walking to and from wherever I needed or wanted to go. Walking on pure ice for 40+ minutes in the freezing cold is less than pleasant. On the plus side, I never was short of hot chocolate and have become more of a morning coffee and tea drinker.

My colleagues and I took an excursion a couple weeks ago! We traveled to Thessoloniki, Greece for the day! It was gorgeous and a welcomed break from Bulgaria. Anne, the other American in my town, was able to come with before she returned to the states. We decided, since we had such little time, to spend our day eating all sorts of new foods. We started out by asking some local people where a good, authentic restaurant was and they pointed us in the direction of a hidden store that served only tapas. We ordered eight different tapas including spinach, fish egg sauce, fish, shrimp, baked potato, eggplant, a pasta dish and a spinach casserole. After that we had a delectable dessert of gelato with three different flavors each. We then bought a gyro and baklava to eat for later. We were so full but it was so delicious! Below is a picture of the White Sea...

The work load has been different this semester versus last semester. Many of the kids haven’t attended kindergarten because of the cold and illness. They will graduate from kindergarten in May. As of now, most of them cannot afford to pay the taxes to go to school and therefore they don't attend. Due to the melting of the snow, Svetlina’s (my organization) roof has been damaged. Because of this there isn’t electricity which means no light or computers. When the weather is poor the kids do not come. When the weather is warm we have been playing games outside such as volleyball and soccer. School will end in June and I know the kids are anxious for summer – what teenager isn’t? Below is a picture of one of the students making a kite:

The kids and I have done several life skill activities such as learning to say no when presented with peer pressure, how to respond to people who are talking poorly about others and how to control temper in an argument. I love doing these kinds of activities and with increased language proficiency I am able to understand their responses and contribute to the conversation. Yesterday the kids celebrated Earth Day by doing games, making dresses out of used plastic bags and partaking in a presentation created by one of my colleagues. 

I was fortunate enough to spend the Easter holiday traveling to Popitsa; my old training village. I spent a long weekend with my dear friend and fellow volunteer, Joe. We were able to nagosti with our favorite families and were treated like loved ones who had come home on a college break. We ate many, many eggs, kozonak (sweet bread), chocolate, salads and chicken. It was delicious and so refreshing to be taken care of! My host mother had made me new socks, a sweater and a wool vest. She can knit so well and spends all winter making clothes for her loved ones. She just turned 70 years old and is as strong as ever! Below are pictures of the gorgeous, colored easter eggs, kozonak and my host mother. 

The next couple of months will be busy ones. School ends in June and my groups of volunteers also have our mid-service conference. Rumor has it that it will be at an old communist youth training camp on the Black Sea. They will tell us in a month or so. And speaking of mid-service – that’s exactly where I am! I have completed one year of volunteer service in Bulgaria and I will have about a year or so left. The group prior to mine also just had their close of service conference. These volunteers will be leaving in June and July. When they have departed there will be about 40 volunteers left to finish out Peace Corps Bulgaria. 


Hopefully it won’t be so long until my next update. Until then, take care.