Landing in Krichim

The adventure continues...feels a bit like a roller coaster ride right now, with a lot happening and something new everyday. Our big group of 50 has split off into 'clusters' of 5 or 6 to learn Bulgarian in different communities. Before we left and went our separate ways, it struck me that I've never been so sought out by Americans because of my Bulgarian roots. It's ironic that this thing of my Bulgarianism, this thing which brought me ridicule and isolation in elementary school, this thing which made me the object of mockery because it made me different, is now admired and considered 'cool' even, as a valuable resource in a group whose goal is to integrate into Bulgarian society. Funny how things can change and transform...once again life shows how nothing is entirely 'good' or 'bad'...it all depends on the context and even that can change in an instant...of course, sometimes it may take a few years, but it all comes back around in some way or another. Maybe :)

Currently, I'm living with a beautiful Turkish family in the town of Krichim, a little slice of paradise, which envelops communities of Roma, Turks, and Bulgarians living in relative harmony. It's surrounded by mountains and proud home of preserved ruins which have been around since Byzantine times. Since I already pretty much know Bulgarian, I'll be learning Turkish during the three-month pre-service training. My host mama is called Atije and she's been teaching me Turkish words here and there, which I instantaneously forget...i'm hoping that with continued repetition, it'll stick...well, i'll be pretty stuck if it doesn't stick...so, send me wishes of 'stickness' rather than 'stuckness' :)

Atije's sister, Oshgyun, will be my Turkish teacher...she also has a volunteer, Andy, who apparently looks a lot like someone in the community called Memmet...everyone's excited about the American twin. It's become somewhat of a full-time job for me to translate between Bulgarian and English so the PC volunteers can understand what's going on and so the families can understand the volunteers. Oshgyun's daughters, Gyuchen and Villi, understand some English, so we're all helping each other to understand what's going on. My inherited younger sister, Berin, busted out her cards yesterday, and all of us 'kids' played, "Gledai si rabotata", i.e. "Mind Your Own Business".

Afterwards, my host-mom, Atije, sister Berin, and host-dad, Oktai, all went to a little mineral water pool up the mountain and played in the water for a bit. Then, we visited some friends of the family and ate ice cream. Bulgarians tend to be extremely hospitable, always ready to make tea, bring out snacks, and chat into the wee hours of the morning. So, we chatted for a while, went back home, watched TV, chatted some more, and then went to bed.

There are six of us PC volunteers here in Krichim...Andy, me, Jack and Rhonda (the beautiful couple who had their anniversary on August 14th, the day we left DC), Trevor, and Fred. This town is quite interesting...it's a place where modernity meets rural life. We wake up in the morning to roosters crowing, walk on the same streets where cows and goats walk, hear American pop and techno music blaring from houses or cars, watch as our families greet everyone on the street and in the neighborhood, and then come home to 50-channel television and very modern appliances. It also seems to be a place of East meets West, influenced both by Turkish pop and folk culture and American commercialism.

That's it for now,
Blessings from the Balkans!
Ciao!