6 Month Mark

Can you BELIEVE it?  I have been in Romania for 6 months...I swear, it feels like 6 weeks.  Life is moving so fast - before I know it it'll be time to go home.  There is so much to do, so much to get done, where is the time going??


So, you may ask...what has Barbara REALLY been doing for 6 months in Romania?  Well...here's a brief rundown of my time here thus far (if you haven't been reading my blog, this is a great way to catch up in one posting!):

• I Spent 10 weeks in Targoviste in pre-service training - training every week day - eight  hours(+) a day - exhausting!
• I Learned (and still learning) to speak Romanian at an Intermediate Low level.
• I Learned about Romanian history, culture, food, education, holidays, dancing, etc.
• I Lived with a great family in Targoviste and enjoyed listening to their stories and hanging out with them.
• I Ate a LOT of pizza and drank a LOT of beer with my new group 28 friends.
• I Learned to watch out for cars trying to run you down!
• I Learned to love all the stray dogs - and they were everywhere in Targoviste.
• I Became a real PC Volunteer - got officially sworn-in, got a cool pin, got to hang at the Ambassador's house - no biggie!
• I Was sad to leave all my new friends in group 28 as we all headed to our new homes.
• I Moved all my crap to Drobeta Turnu Severin!
• I Moved into my cool apartment.
• I Moved out of my cool apartment (a slight bug problem)
• I Moved back into my cool apartment - no more problem!
• I Got to travel down the Danube River and see the beautiful sights.
• I Had a few day trips and meals with families of soon-to-be students.
• I Took many walks throughout town and in the forest with my new friends.
• I Traveled on the Romanian train system, a lot - slow, but reliable!
• I Conducted two week long 1/2 day camps at my schools...met some students...had fun!
• I Tried to teach the kids kickball...FAIL!  Will try again!!
• I Went indoor rock-climbing...sucked at it!
• I Walked around Severin, figuring out where everything I need is located.
• I Picked up lots of packages from the USA at the main post office - woohoo!!
• I Traveled to the following cities:  Tărgu Jiu - București - Orșova - Timisoara - Sinaia - Vladeni - Botosani - Suceava - Iași (I have a lot more to go!)
• I Started School - teaching 17 classes per week (that means I see about 200+ kids a week!)
• I Started an English Club.
• I Started a correspondence with a grade school in Wisconsin.
• I Went sightseeing in București - stole two beer glasses from a bar (thought of Mado & Chris!).
• I Went to Ikea in București (with my good friend Grant!)- doesn't matter where you are...people LOVE swedish meatballs!
• I Went out for pizza with a bunch of my students - Romanians seriously LOVE their pizza!
• I Got caught up in Halloween celebrations (exhausting!).
• I Have walked EVERYWHERE...seriously, no car...walk everywhere!
• I Have tried to occasionally stop, take a deep breath, and remember why I'm here...As my good friend Ferris always says:  "Life moves pretty fast. If you don't stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it."
• And most importantly, I have done what seems like one million loads of laundry...by hand!  :)

Well...that's a BRIEF description of my life here.  There is so much that happens every day I could go on and on and on.  But, I won't (you're welcome!).  I have a lot of new pictures to post, but I'll do that later.  For now, I just once again want to thank everyone for their constant support and interest in what I'm doing here.  Romania is a wonderful country, I love what I'm doing here, and if the next 21 months go like the past 6 I will be one luck gal!