Dec 23, 2005 - Tomorrow I start my trek to spend Christmas with Katia and Ivan. I am looking forward to seeing them, but I still have no idea what to get Ivan for Christmas. Last night was the Teacher's Christmas Party. We have a brand new restaurant in town now. Finally, someplace to go. The Party was it's debut and it is really nice. The family that owns and runs it, are great. They also own the TV and Internet services in town. I play volleyball with there sons and their youngest daughter is in my class. Their oldest daughter in at the university and works in their TV / Internet office. All of the children speak very good English and they are a great representation of the modern Bulgarian family. Anyway, the party was fun. I gave out the candy canes to the teachers. They were a big hit. I finally left around 1am, but there were many still going strong.

Dec 19, 2005 - Well we just had our second snow and today it is cold. Yesterday we had slush everywhere so after the temp went down last night, now everything is very slippery. As it turns out, my school ran out of fuel for the heaters today too. Let me tell you, it’s cold in there. The kids are all wearing their coats in class and if we don’t get fuel soon, we may not have classes this week. But then again, this week is a strange week due to the fact that Christmas is on Sunday.

Olivia and I are headed to Trud for Christmas to spend it with Katia and Ivan. I am very excited to spend the holiday with them and see how Christmas ( or Kolada in Bulgarian) is celebrated here. Thanks so much Mom for the needlepoint you sent for Katia. Then off we will head to Istanbul for New Years. I'll write all about it when I return in January.

Dec 17, 2005 - My students made me promises to come to the local Disco tonight. It is clearly only a place the students go. I couldn’t believe it; my 5th and 6th graders were smoking and drinking like they were 25 years old in some trendy bar. I wanted to go around grabbing cigarettes and bottles out of their hands. I know it is different here, but they were so young to be doing these things. I didn’t stick around long. Just made my appearance for my students, and left. I now know why the teachers and adults do go there.

It really amazes me how fast these kids grow up here. The way some of the girls dress would even shock someone like Madonna. And for some reason my love life is always at the top of their interest. I just pretend I don’t here the question. And then I got the biggest shock one day. While I was taking roll in my 8th grade class, one of the girls was not there. When I asked where she was, I expected to here the usual. She’s sick, or she had to work at home today. But instead, I was told, as a matter of fact with no surprise in their voice, that she got married and won’t be back to school. I was in shock! I really didn’t know what to say.

Now some of my students are a bit older than other than the others, due to repeating a grade or two or from starting in school late, so I asked how old she is. They told me 14. Can you believe that? 14 and married! They went on to tell me that this was normal for Roma people. Now most of the time I can’t tell the difference between a Bulgarian and a Roma, and the fact is that Roma’s are as much Bulgarians as anyone too. Anyway, I was told that she will not go to school anymore and will now stay home and take care of her husband and children yet to come. And throughout all of my amassment, my class just looked at me as if I was the insane one.

Dec 9, 2005 - Karen, a great friend and ex-colleague from Denver, is going to come over this summer and travel with me through Eastern Europe. I am very excited about this. Although I have decided that trying to get in St. Petersburg and all the other cities is going to be too much, so I will wait to go to Russia until after my service is up. Instead, we will start in Warsaw, then Krakow, on to Prague and then Vienna, and then to Budapest and back to Bulgaria. There is a rail pass that is good in all of these countries that should make our traveling simple, easy and on our terms. Now if I could only talk Sharon into it too. Come on Sharon! Even Mom said you should come!

Dec 1, 2005 - Just finished up our first In Service Training or IST since we left our host families 4 months ago. And eight of us decided to plan a trip to Istanbul for New Years. Nancy’s friend and Jen’s Mom from the states are coming over and they along with Ted, Annie, Olivia and me are going. So we stopped at the Sofia Train Station to secure our tickets. We decided on a sleeper train that will get us in very early on the 30th and another sleeper coming back. This way we get four full days in Istanbul but only have to pay for two nights in the hotel. We found a great little hotel with private bathrooms for only $40 per night per person. For Eastern Europe, this is living in style. But what an ordeal to get those tickets. It took us almost 2 hours to book them. Thanks to Annie and her wonderful Bulgarian for doing all the talking. The clerk had to call someone for availability, another person for pricing, someone else for country taxes, another for reservations, etc… Everything is still paper here. Even though they had a computer, I think it is only used to play solitaire. But we have our tickets now. $60 for round trip 2nd class sleeper car tickets.

This will be my first "out of Bulgaria" excursion and I am very excited. With four full days, I hope we really get to see everything. And since Istanbul spands two continents, this will be my first trip to Asia too. I am planning to travel to other Eastern European cities this summer and maybe I will have some company from the states for that trip too, right Sharon? Planning these trips really helps me get through the tough times when I am down and wondering why I am here. It’s a good thing that doesn’t happen very often. I can’t afford to go everywhere I keep planning to go.

Nov 28, 2005 - First I want to thank Mom and Laura for sending all the great food and decorations. They really made our Thanksgiving. We were unable to celebrate until the Saturday after because we all had to teach on Thursday as Thanksgiving is not an observed holiday here in Bulgaria. I invited many of my Bulgarian friends, but only two came and they even came late and missed the accual dinner. Bulgarians don’t regard time the same way we do. I guess it’s partly because all they do is work, drink coffee and bear at the café, and drink coffee and bear at home. As someone who drinks neither, you can see just how much of a fish out of water I am.

Anyway, Olivia, Wendy, Irene, Carin and Nancy all traveled from their towns and we all gathered in my little village. We all live in the North West region of Bulgaria. Everyone brought goodies that they received from home or had access to in their towns. This included stuffing and gravy, Mac & Cheese, green beans, mashed potatoes, and thanks to Irene, a turkey. She found a local farmer in her town that was willing to slaughter and prepare a 14lbs turkey for us. I have never had sucj a fresh bird and I have to say it was very different than I was used to. It may have been the age of the bird or that is was a free range bird, but it was very gamy. I ussually love the dark meat, but in this case, not so much. However, the point was we had turkey for our Thanksgiving, even if we are living in an obscure country in Eastern Europe, and we were all together.

Now imagine six people who have never really cooked a turkey before in the states, let alone trying it here. For starters, my oven is about the same size as a small microwave back home and I can’t even fit a large chichen in it, let alone a very large turkey. Luckly, I live right next to my school and their caffeterea and my school’s director is a very nice man. He allowed us to use the industrial ovens in the caffeteria. So now imagine six very intelligent and highly educated people trying to not only cook a turkey for the first time, but use these industrial ovens. Thanks to the woman who works their for coming in on a Saturday just to help us out. Especially since it took four of us just to figure out how to unlock the door earlier that morning.

So we made enough food for twenty people and I’m sure I personaly ate enough for four. And to top it off, Stephaine, who was unable to join us, baked us a real home made apple pie. It was increadible; she is my hero. Then after my Bulgarian friends and fellow IT teachers showed up, we all ate some more and played cards. It’s amazing that everyone seems to know how to play Uno. Then, for some unknown reason, the girls decided to act out the first Thanksgiving for my Bulgarian friends. They had no idea who the Pilgrams and Indians were, and although I thought it was more comical than informational, I think they got the point. I am greatefull to be here with such wonderful people. We had a great day.

Sept 29, 2005 - For the first time, I really felt homesick. It had rained for 4 days straight, which didn't help. So I started thinking about everyone at home and really missed everyone. I know I have mostly lived fairly far away from family and friends, but I was at least in the same country. Now it really hits me that I am so far away and that I can't just buy an airplane ticket and visit for a long weekend when I need a family fix or to hang out with my best friends in New Jersey, or to play Pinochle and talk smack or to go shopping with my good friends in Colorado. I miss going for drives in the mountains just to get out of the house. This does not mean I would trade this experience here for anything, only that I am missing home a bit.

I am very fortunate with my classes though. I teach grades 5th thru 8th. Each grade has two classes, so I teach a total of 8 classes, twice a week. I was lucky to be able to make my own schedule, with only one catch. All my classes are electives and must be after school. So I teach from about 2pm to 6pm Monday thru Thursday. I put each class' 45 minute periods back to back so I get each class once a week for 1.5 hours. I can do so much more with the longer time with each class. And having my Fridays off isn't so bad either. I have been volunteering my time on Fridays in another town setting up a computer lab for their school, but that will not be all winter. I do like being able to sleep in everyday too. You see, teachers here are not required to be at the school when they don't have class.

My kids are great. I have anywhere from 15 students to 22 students in each class. Some of my classes the kids have had a few years of English and don't have any English. I do have one 8th grade class that understands English well and I can almost teach in English only. For the other classes, not even close. Try explaining the concept of the Internet only using the high school French or Spanish that you have mostly forgotten and you might get an idea of what I am like. I tend to act things out and use body language which always gets laughs from my classes. I don't have any discipline problems per say. They talk a little too much, but they are just excited to show what they know or to explain what I just tried to say to their classmates. I have told them that for every class that they are good, they get a point and when they have a point, we will watch a movie and have snacks in class. They seem to be excited about this prospect. I don't think they get to do things like this in there other classes. It should be fun.

Sept 25, 2005 - This is a special entry for my favorite nephews, Alec and Ethan. Some of the other countries the PC have volunteers in are Moldova, Romania and Armenia. During my "Techsperts" conference, there were representatives from each of these countries. I need your help. Can you find out more about these counties and how they are different or the same than Bulgaria? What languages do they speak? Are they close to me? When I travel to these countries, what should I see? Ask your Mom to help you research this on the internet and I expect an email with all of your great advice. I also found a great website for you on the history of Bulgaria. I learned allot from it. Take a look at it.

http://www.nationmaster.com/encyclopedia/History-of-Bulgaria

Sept 19, 2005 - The 15th was the first day of school. This is a day celebration more than education. Most of the teachers dress up. After the teacher's meeting, which I understood nothing, we had some speeches by the Director of the school and some officials from the Municipality. Then the students sang some songs and demonstrated traditional dance. Then after the festivities, the kids went home and the teachers went to the cafe. There we had several tables reserved and talked and ate for a couple of ours. Not a bad first day.

The rest of the week, there were no classes due to construction on the school. All schools in my area of Bulgaria replaced all the windows with funds given by the government. My school started this hugh undertaking only a week before school started, so there were many classrooms with no windows by the 15th. And on the 16th, representatives from the "Techsperts" visited me and my school. "Techsperts" are Peace Corps advocates of improving and using technology in education. There is one for each country the PC has volunteers within Eastern Europe. It was a very valuable conference for me and I made some great contacts. I think they were impressed with my school's computer labs too.

Sept 6, 2005 - Over the weekend, about 23 PCVs gathered in the town of Berkovitsa to have a big picnic. Berkovitsa is nestled in the mountains and is absolutely beautiful. Everyone brought food and I shared the Mac & Cheese and Pizza stuff that Mom sent. They were a big hit. It's amazing how volunteers who have been here for over a year go crazy for the simple tastes of their youth. Some people made cookies and brownies and even pies. Devin made real hamburgers and that cheddar cheese was great on them. We eat, played softball and just had a great time. The downfall of the day was when Karin broke her hand in three places playing softball. Actually, she was tackling Devin as he rounded second. It was a very relaxed game. She took it really well and even joined us later for dinner. Then we all went to the disco! Sounds exciting right? Well discos here or as the are called, discotechs, are just bars that play all sorts of music including the local pop called Chalga. It's pretty bad in my opinion, but that is all they ever play here, except for rap which is even worse. Anyway, everyone was out dancing while I was perfectly happy guarding the coats, bags and purses. Even Irene and Tracy (the over 30s PCVs ) got out there a few times. We didn't leave until 2am. I am much too old to do that. And many of the PCVs were still going strong when I left. It was a great weekend. If you are wondering why there are few guys in these pictures, well, I am one of the few in my region. It seems that more women volunteer for the Peace Corps than men statistically and my group was no different. Here are my fellow B17s in the North West.

Aug 22, 2005 - The 18th was my birthday. Yea, way over the hill now. I didn't tell anyone here for two reasons. First, I never liked celebrating my own birthday, never liked the attention I guess. And the second, they do it differently here. When it's your birthday here, you buy chocolates and give one to everyone. It doesn't matter how early in the morning it is, everyone will take one. It is considered rude not to take one. In addition the the day you are born, there is what they call your naming day. You see, most Bulgarians are named after famous Bulgarians. So say your name is Ivan, you share the name with Ivan Vasov, a very famous Bulgarian. So one his birthday, you celebrate your naming day. This is when you receive gifts from close friends and family.

But do not worry about me, I celebrated my birthday in my own way. Olivia visited me for a few days and thanks to Laura and Mom, we made spaghetti and had Tasty Cakes. For this 6 month deprived person, we eat until we could not move anymore. It was great! Then we went to Plovdiv to visit our host families. Olivia and my host families are pretty close to each other. My host Mom, Katia, also remembered my birthday and made me one of my favorite meals. I really miss her cooking. It was great to see her and Ivan again. They have a new PCT named Holly. She is very nice and they are all doing well. Although I had to make sure Holly new that I was their favorite adopted Son and how wonderful they are. I think Holly will be as close to Katia and Ivan as I have become. They are just so incredible.

Aug 1, 2005 - I'm back in Iskar after spending a week in Lom with Rachel and Brandon. Just when you think you have met the nicest people in the world, you meet even nicer people. Well, Brandon and Rachel are defiantly in that category. So they held a baseball camp for a couple of hours each day for a week. It was so much fun! The kids were great and we actually played a very basic version of baseball. They loved it, kept asking when they could play again.

While I was in Lom, there were four South Koreans working with a local Internet Cafe through a program with the UN. It was great talking with them and we found out they play baseball, so we all got together for a game. If someone had told me a year ago that I would be living in Bulgaria and playing softball with Bulgarians, South Koreans and fellow Americans, I would have said you were nuts. We had a blast.

Being so close to the Danube, I had to go take a look. The Danube separates Bulgaria and Romania and Lom sits right on the river. It is an impressive river and many people still sit on the banks fishing for dinner. Unfortunately, Lom is not s boarder crossing point, so we were not permitted to cross over into Romania. I'll get there yet, though.

July 22, 2005 - It's been two weeks now in my new town. Everyone's great and very helpful. I'm still getting settled into the house. But I have discovered I not alone. In fact I have many roommates. I have evicted over 50 so far, but not to worry, there are always new tenets showing up. So if cockroaches aren't your cup of tea, you might not want to stay with us. I think I'm winning the battle though. Maybe the word go out that there is a new lord of the manner.

There is not much to do at the school yet so basically I have few places to be everyday. A bunch of us play volleyball every Tuesday and Friday night. The only other thing to do in town is hang out at the local cafe, which seems to be what the majority of the town does for recreation. So I have started to run again. 3 miles 4 times a week for starters. There is a trip that many PCVs want to take in November to Athens for a Marathon. But not just any marathon, but for only the second time in modern history, this marathon will be the exact course that the very first olympic marathon followed. What an opportunity! Even if I walk most of it, I really want to go. I need to get more details. I should know more in the next few weeks.

On Sunday, I will be visiting two volunteers in Lom. Rachel and Brandon are a married couple and have been here about a year now and they are doing a baseball camp for a week and asked me to come stay with them and help out. I'm looking forward to the camp and to see how some veterans do it. I thing I will learn allot from them, and the chance to see another city.

July 11, 2005 - I made it! With great help from Ivan and Katia. They drove me to my permanent site so I didn't have to take the bus with all my stuff. And it's a good thing, because I somehow accumulated allot of stuff. Katia went shopping for me too and set up my new house very well. I have everything I need from pots and silverware for the kitchen to sheets and blankets for the bedrooms. She even knitted me some very warm socks for the winter. She is great! They even brought me some fresh vegetable from there garden. I am going to miss them very much. I plan to visit them for Christmas and maybe in October for Katia's Birthday. They signed up for another PCT in August and I hope they get another one because they are wonderful. I was very sad when they left.

July 9, 2005 - Well, after a crazy few weeks, I am finally a full fledged Peace Corps Volunteer. Let me start at the beginning. We had our last meeting at trainees yesterday and today, and today we were sworn in as full fledged volunteers. The ceremony was very nice. The director of Peace Corps Bulgaria and the US Ambassador to Bulgaria swore us all in. But it was Annie who got the standing ovation after her speech in Bulgarian. She was amazing. All of our language trainers were there to cheer us on too. So we're official now. In many ways these last two and a half months have gone by so fast, and in other ways, so slow. Either way, we are happy to head out to our permanent sites and get settled for the next 2 years.

July 4, 2005 - Today we had a little celebration to honor America's Day of Independence. Olivia, James, Ted and Annie came over from Hissar to join Brandy, Lynne, Nancy and me in Trud. Brian and Kate made it too. They are PCVs who have been here for a year living in Plovdiv. We even talked Mariela, the English teacher from the local school to join us. After a comical ordeal getting everyone from the bus stop to my host families house, we had a great time. The day before, Brandy and I trekked into Plovdiv to gather the supplies. We found ground beef (not that common here), real ketchup and even an American like cheese similar to Kraft singles. Thanks to Mom for the great mustard she sent. We made cheeseburgers, BBQ chicken, deviled eggs, cheese dip and James made apple crisp. All in all it was a great time and after 2 months, it's amazing how much you miss the simple things in life. Now if only I could find some pepperoni, mozzarella and some pizza sauce, I'd really be in business. We didn't have many activities but we managed to find a bat mitten set and Ted and James made good use of it. Overall, it was a fun day and even Katia and Ivan, my host parents joined us for a little while. Here is Olivia and Katia, my host mother.

June 20, 2005 - Over the weekend, a bunch of us went to the Radopi Mountains to a city called Trigrad. There we explored two caves. They were incredible. I have pictures, but I have not had the opportunity to post them. I am losing my internet access soon and my not be able to post again for some time. After I get settled into my new city in July, I will post all of my latest adventures. Sorry this is so short.

June 12, 2005 - Well, we're half way through our training now. The language is really becoming difficult for me. In July, I will got to my permanent site and have a few months to work on it with a tutor, one on one. That should help. This past weekend, I went to Sofia and met up with some other PCTs. Olivia, Jen, Eric and I had a great time. I think we walked a good 15 miles all over the city. We found a great Indian restaurant and I ate way to much. Another PCV turned us onto a great Hostel that we plan to use again. Sofia is a big city, the largest in Bulgaria. We saw the President's house , the Alexander Nefski Cathedral , a Russian Church and a Moslem . We saw statues from the communist era that Olivia really liked. We also saw a church that is the oldest in Bulgaria. Built over 1700 years ago and still in use as a church today. We had a great time.

June 7, 2005 - I found out today that the Director of the school in Iskar, where I will be teaching for the next two years, has died. I don't know the details, but I'm told he was sick. I only knew him for a few days when I visited Iskar, but I liked him very much. He was the heart and sole of the school and everyone is very sad. I canceled my scheduled visit for tomorrow because I don't want everyone to feel the need to entertain me in any way. My counter part Villi was quite sad when I talked to her and to top it off, Iskar is experiencing sever flooding from all the rain they have been getting. They are really going though some tough times right now.