Craig in Moldova

Are the houses made of wood?

This is my latest message to my second grade class. If you read this and noticed that I am incorrect or have made unsubstantiated assumptions, please let me know!

Hey 2nd graders,

I hope you had fun at your Halloween party and are excited about Thanksgiving. A bunch of Volunteer friends and I are having a Thanksgiving dinner together in the south of Moldova, not too far from where I live. Other Volunteers will be having similar dinners around the country (and around the world). I hope I have good answers to your questions.

Did you hear that we had three days off last week because so many people had flu?

I did hear about that. Schools in Moldova were closed for two weeks because the of the flu although I don’t think as many people here had it.

Are all of the houses made of wood?

Houses here are usually made with wood frames and thick  brick walls. People often make the bricks themselves out of straw or hay, mud, and clay. I’m not exactly sure how they are made, but I’ve seen people make them!

What kind of money do you have over there?

In Moldova, we have the Moldovan Lei (ley). Although the exchange rate fluctuates, usually about 11 or 12 lei equals one US dollar. Many things in Moldva are cheaper than in the US. I can buy a notebook for $.20, a beer for $.90, and a kilogram of apples for about $.20, depending on the time of year.

Are you celebrating Halloween tomorrow?

I missed Halloween this year because I had to travel back to my work site from training. I know other Volunteers had Halloween parties in their schools and villages and had a lot of fun with the kids in their towns.

Do you sleep in an inside hammock?

I do not. It would be too cold to sleep in a hammock here. I sleep on a pullout couch with a lot of blankets!

Do you have pools there?  Do they have any lakes?

There very few pools in Moldova and I have never seen one at a person’s house. There are a lot of lakes in Moldova and two large rivers the Dniester and the Prut.

What is your favorite part of the town?

The bazaar/market is a very interesting part of town because it is different from anything I’ve ever seen in small towns in America. There are shops and stands for fruit, clothes, books, tools, soap, vegetables, games, electronics, cheese, and all sorts of things that people grow or make at home or from factories in Eastern Europe. There are always a lot of people there and I like being able to ask for things in Russian.

Lately I’ve been trying to take time to walk around my town to see more things. I took a walk to the monastery the other day and it was beautiful. (There are pictures of the walk up on the website.

Is there a lot of people in your host family?

In my house, I live with a couple in the 60s and a three year old little girl. The little girl is my host parents’ great niece that they watch several days a week and she is the sweetest little girl I’ve ever met.

In our house we always have lots of extended family come visit. The little girl’s parents, my host mom’s sister and her husband, my host brothers (in their 40s) and their families, and many more people often stop by.

Are the barns red?

No. In fact, even though many people have fields, farm animals, and gardens, most people in my town don’t have large barns like we do in the US. Instead people have storage sheds and cellars. Animals don’t usually live in barns but spend most of their time outside.

I’m sure things are different all over Moldova, but I haven’t seen a barn in my town!

How many gallons of water do you have to collect a day?

I am lucky and have running water in my house so I don’t have to collect water for bathing. Water for cooking comes from a well in the center of town that my host brothers collect and bring to our house a few times a month.

Do you have any free time? What is your favorite color?

I have a lot of free time that I spend reading and studying Russian. My favorite color is green although I’ve been wearing a lot of grey here in Moldova.

We play video games, soccer, or watch TV for fun.  Do people do any of these activities for fun? Do they have TVs?

In Moldova and all over the world people love soccer (although Americans are the only ones to call it soccer. Do you know what most people in Moldova, England, the Czech Republic, and many other parts of the world call it?).

I have not heard of anyone playing video games here and have never seen one. Some people have TVs. I have only watched it once or twice since I’ve been here since it’s very confusing. A TV show can be in English with Russian dubbed over top with Romanian subtitles!

What kinds of candy do they have?  What are your favorite treats from home that you miss?

The candy in Moldova is very good and they have a lot of chocolate and cookies. I eat Snickers candy bars a lot, something I never did in the US, because it reminds me of home.

I miss burritos, vegetarian sushi, American-style pizza, tacos, ranch dressing, lasagna, eggplant parmesan, and a million other things. Food is what I miss the most I think. I also miss granola bars. A box of granola bars was sent to me a few weeks ago and I ate all of them in two days!

How do you get your hair cut?

I shave my head. I’ve done this for a while. Other Volunteers have to make trips to bigger towns to get their hair cut or have another Volunteer or host family member cut it for them.

Are there police in your village?

Yes. In Moldova actually there is one national police force with branches in towns and villages throughout the country. In the US there are many different police forces at the county, state, and local levels.

Thanks for writing to me. I will talk to you all again soon!

-Craig

4 days ago | Tags: 2nd graders america US moldova peace corps work third goal life food | Comments

My name по-русски

I’ve always thought it was funny the way people create nicknames with “Craig”. I’ve been called Craig, Craigy, Craigles, Craigathy, Crayg, Craigiana… Anyway, in Russian, with the diminutive (pet naming, tenderizing?), the system of declension (nouns change depending on what part of speech they are in the sentence), and general love of nicknames, I’m never entirely sure if someone is talking to or about me. Now mind you, these are all things that I have heard at least a few times or, in the case of cases/declensions, the way anyone would say my name should they say those sentences in Russian.

If you don’t care about Russian, just read the italicized words. If you speak Russian and you notice mistakes, feel free to correct them.

In cyrillic

• Крэг |  Craig

Diminutive/nicknames

• Крэгушка  |  Craigooshka
• Крэгчек |  Craigchek
• Крэгка |  Craigka

Declensions

• Нет Крэга.  |  Not Craiga. (As in “Who was there?” “Craig wasn’t.”)
• Дай Крэгу  |  Give it to Craigoo.
• Нам доволен Мы довольны Крэгом.  |  We are happy/content with Craigom.
• Все говорят о Крэге.  |  Everyone talks about Craigye (Craig-ye).

And I’m a dork.

Еdit: Thanks, Артем. I’m pretty sure someone only tried Крегка once. Крэгушечка (Craigooshechka) is ridiculous.

2 weeks ago | Tags: language moldova russian i've accepted the fact that i am a dork | Comments

Five months down (almost)

Meat in the kitchen

From my own experience and what I’ve heard from other Volunteers, in Moldova people in a household tend to eat when they are hungry and don’t usually place much emphasis on sitting down to meals together regularly. This works just fine for them as they spend time together drinking wine, watching television, or doing chores. I’ve noticed, however, that in my house, my host parents would wait until I left the kitchen to start eating and would sometimes eat at the same time as me but in another room.

The other night we sat down together to eat dinner and I, hoping to make a point, said “for me is nice we eat together as if we were to be a family”. To which my host father replied “this is a good meal without meat”. After a little questioning I found out that my family thought I couldn’t even watch them eat food that had meat in it and had been eating when I wasn’t around. I felt awful and explained that it did not matter to me what they ate or where they ate it and that although I really appreciated their concern, I would much rather spend my dinners talking to them!

As it turns out, there will be a few long stretches of vegetarianism in my house in the near future as my family observes пост, which is two or three long periods of time over Christmas and Easter during which no meat and only certain dairy products can be eaten.

It’s dark now

Anway, the days here have become grey and short. My host mom yelled at me the other day for coming home at five because it was already dark and there aren’t any street lights besides the few along the main road in town. The darkness, my endlessly flexible schedule, and Russian have made it hard for me to shake the surrealness of this experience and I’m beginning to wonder if I’m going to spend the next 21 months living in a dreamworld. The fact that I notice fewer and fewer superficial cultural differences on a daily basis simply makes the ones that still stand out (the ones that are perhaps bigger or fundamental) harder to deal with or brush off.

Long story short

November is well under way. On November 8th (five months in country), all probationary restrictions on the M24 COD and AgriBusiness Volunteers will be over and we’ll be able to travel outside the country, use vacation days, and visit other Volunteers in Moldova. I’m contemplating a trip to Turkey in December to visit my friends Emily and Hesham. My friend Sinziana is also coming home for Christmas to Romania and it would be great to see her while she’s nearby. So much time, so much to do.

As Vince would say, “Craig, you’re looking jazzy in your jazzy hat and sweater vest.”

2 weeks ago | Tags: cold family food peace corps photo travel vegetarianism jazzy fashions | Comments

So now I'm really really a Volunteer (really)

Five months since I left Michigan, “pre”service training is finally over. The M24 Community and Business Volunteers are the first group in Moldova (and maybe in the Peace Corps?) to have a three part preservice training. We trained for 8 weeks when we first arrived, then went to site for 10 weeks, and finally returned for two more weeks of training.

During these last two weeks of training I:

• Lived in the same village as the rest of the COD Volunteers
• Memorized a Russian poem
• Froze
• Presented on the importance of operationalizing project goals (do it!)
• Learned some Romanian words
• Missed running water (only to return home to find out that running water at site is out)
• Took too many insanely packed minibus rides
• Met the US ambassador to Moldova
• Received a (real) text message warning Volunteers about an escaped criminal with tuberculosis - not to mention the fact that I haven’t mentioned the texts from a few weeks ago
• Attended sessions on the politics and economy of Moldova, strategic planning, working with host country partners, and presentation skills
• Went to meetings of the PC Gender Workgroup, Trafficking in Persons, and Volunteer Advisory Committee
• Started a google group for the M24 CODs to improve collaboration and communication

Now I am back at site excited and daunted by the work I have in front of me. I will have another post and some pictures up in the next few days.

3 weeks ago | Tags: training peace corps moldova russian romanian cod | Comments

My 1st email response to the 2nd grade class

Dear 2nd graders,

I am also very happy to be sending emails to you. This week and last week I will be at training in a new village and living with a new family. I will be returning to my regular family soon, but miss them anyway. To answer your questions:

Are you having fun there?

I am having fun here although I’m very some days and can’t leave the house when it gets dark because there are no street lights. Soon it will be dark at 5 o’clock and I will only be able to go outside for a little part of the day.

How many cars do you see in a day? We saw mostly dirt roads.  Are there many paved roads?

I see cars here, but fewer than in America. A lot of people don’t have cars. Most of the roads are dirt or are old so a car can get worn out very quickly (kind of like in Michigan!). I’m not allowed to drive here and so I take the bus. Moldova has a public transportation system that is a lot better than in Michigan and I can get almost anywhere in the country without ever using a car. Do you think you could do that in the US? How would you get to the grocery store? To a nearby town?

Are you making a lot of new friends?

I am making Volunteer friends from all over the US and a few Moldovan friends. It is hard to make Moldovan friends because I don’t speak Russian very well yet. It takes a long time to learn a new language.

How much dinner do you have?  Do you like the food?  Is it different than what we eat here?

I eat too much dinner here! In Moldova if you have a guest (or you are a parent) it is important to show hospitality to your guest (or make sure your children are well fed). My host family thinks of me as a guest AND as a son and so they make sure I always eat a lot. The food here is pretty good. I mostly eat potatoes, cabbage, eggs, borsch, and noodles. Different people in Moldova eat different things, just like people in your town.

What is your job?  How long is your work day?

I work with the mayor’s office in my town and for an organization that works with poor women and children with disabilities. Right now I spend most of my time studying Russian and talking to people around town. Later, when I know more about my town and my organizations and can speak Russian better, I will help them with community projects.

My work day is different every day. Because part of my job is to meet and talk to Moldovans about their lives and about life in the US, I spend a lot of time walking around town and practicing my Russian. Usually I spend a few hours in the mayor’s office, a few hours each day with my other organization, a few hours talking to my host mom, and a few hours at the library. I go different places different days of the week and am usually gone from the house between 10 AM and 6 or 7 PM every day. Officially, I am on duty or “at post” 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

Do they celebrate Halloween there?  Christmas?  How about other holidays that we celebrate?

Not everyone in Michigan celebrates Christmas or participates in Halloween. The same is true in Moldova. Many people in Moldova are Russian Orthodox (which is a type of Christianity) and celebrate Christmas in January. The biggest holiday for Russian Orthodox Moldovans is Easter, which happens in the spring every year. During this time of year, people have a feast at the cemetery to honor their relatives who have died. In Moldova, there are also many people that celebrate Turkish, Russian, Bulgarian, and Romanian holidays or Christian, Muslim, Jewish, and Roma celebrations. Remember that wherever you live, people may celebrate different holidays than you do!

What is the weather like where you are?

The weather in Moldova is almost the exact same as in Michigan but Moldovans don’t usually have air conditioning in the summer and keep the house much colder in the winter. We usually wear our coats and hats when we are inside. It is usually very cozy!

Do you see airplanes?

There is one commercial airport in Moldova and it is in the capital city, Chisinau (”Kishinow”).  I never see airplanes where I live.

Do you have different bed times than us?

I go to sleep when I am tired, sometimes really late like midnight and sometimes really early like 6 or 7. Sometimes I get good ideas for projects late at night and stay up working in my room. Sometimes when it gets dark and cold early I just decide to go to bed.

How many cows have you seen?  Do they always walk in the streets?

In my town many many family homes have chickens, cows, goats, ducks, geese, or rabbits that they raise for food. Many families walk the animals through the streets to take them to the fields. I see animals walking around every day.

Do all the homes have electricity?

I think that most houses in Moldova have electricity at least some of the time. In some places the electricity is only on during the night or the afternoon. Some houses do not have running water and instead families go to the well with buckets to bring water back to the house. At my house our water is shut off from 10PM until 8 the next morning.  At my training house, we do not have running water.

Thanks for your email! I will have more pictures up soon.

- Craig

4 weeks ago | Tags: school moldova peace corps 2nd graders michigan animals life food | Comments

The cold has arrived

I will not complain, I will not complain, I will not complain, I will not complain. But it is now cold in Moldova. Last night I had my first real doubts since coming. I know it doesn’t get quite as cold here as it does in Michigan, but that cold - those 10s-30s temperatures - when it never goes away, even when you are inside, can be a bit difficult to handle. How do you wash your face when it is 40 degrees? How do you bucket bathe? How do you change your clothes?! Who knows?

Anyway, today I’m doing much better. I sat down at the table, which is now in the much warmer kitchen where the gas stove can be lit and left open to keep us warm, and, while wearing a pair of long johns, fingerless gloves, a stocking cap, and a hooded sweatshirt (that I have not removed in almost 72 hours), studied Russian and worked on my workshop on program evaluation. It is cold, but it will be ok. The cold makes us all hang out in the same room together and drink hot wine and coffee. These are good things and I think they will be enough to overcome the 9 o’clock bedtimes and pervasive cold.

Anyway, this is me on an October Friday in Moldova:

1 month ago | Tags: moldova peace corps family photo | Comments