TABLE OF CONTENTS: ApRiL to SePtEmBeR 2009

Habitat for Humanity trip - to Bachet (small town south in Romania near Craiova) with other Peace Corps volunteers for about 1 week of hard but fun fun labor.

Danube River Appreciation day - so I was invited to take about 5 kids from my village to the Nature and Aquatic Museum in the city for some games and free tickets to see the whole museum and aquarium.

Sharing Culture in another town at 2 schools with Nancy - I went to her site and talked to a couple of her English classes about my life.

Then Katie from the US came! and we went to explore some cool places - Hunedoara Castle (aka Corvinesti castle, or Corvinlui Castle), Vienna-Austria, Salzburg-Austria, my site and a International Environment workshop in Galati, Budapest-Hungary, Bremen-Germany, Hannover-Germany, Bucharest airport-Romania

Summer Camp 2009 - kids representing all 4 schools in my community, the red cross came for the first time to teach first-aid to about 40 kids, the ex-ex mayor talked about how to be a good leader in the community, and I was so proud of this camp and my co-coordinator Miss Mariana Onu! I couldn't have done this without her and she pushed me to get this project moving! It was hard going...for real

Then my Family! My mommy, and Sissy, and brotherlysy came to Romania to visit me!! AND we were together for 3.5 weeks!! for 24 hrs/day (almost) and that in itself was an adventure. This trip was probably the most adventurous trip of my whole summer = there are lots of stories to tell, so many stories. And it being my family...soo many pictures too.

captions: Sister bradishing success at reaching the park in Croatia. Brother walking alone on the dried lake in my swampy village. Family picture in front of a waterfall.

After my family left me/I got rid of my family, I was invited to attend a "conference" at Costanta on the Black Sea - here I danced, and ate well, and played beach volleyball and my team lost, but I had lots of fun. Tune in to find out the purpose for why I was there (this picture is a clue).

Then I came home to site for a bit and some village kids wanted to take me out to the canal for a picnic - *giant giant grin* It was fun and I was proud of them for preparing all they did! The oldest kid was maybe 12!

Amazing Race! Roxana's idea, and it was a lot of work that took all Summer to prepare. It started as an idea, then an art project, then fundraiser in the village market, and in the big city of Galati.

Amazing Race did happen! Hurray! It was 4 instead of 5 days, and it's cause Roxy and I have work and traveling and etc.. and I give us credit for pushing and actually doing it and having it turn out decently well. The kids loved it a lot.

Then came CHARM! AND SCOTT!! and we went to Cinque Terre (where the retired people hang out, and all the British girls, and honeymoon couples) and to Venice and a thunderstorm followed us all the way from Romania.


and now I'm home. Taking care of my cat and birds, and cleaning and I have this list of stuff to do, but I'm pumped to work again! yay! my vacation...er...summer fun that had relaxing moments but was busy also. I'm tanner and skinnier and a vegetarian now <= that's what happened over Summer.

At my site - but WF....**

I'm at my site, in the Mayor's office, excited to move into my apartment today, going to the school to plan my teaching schedule with the school director, but yet.... I miss Wildflower.

It was last weekend, and though I'm here using skills I learned from being a volunteer and on committee from WF, and Trical, I do miss the memories, the fun, the stress, and the people.

There are lots of photos on Facebook thankfully, and I called Scott and Charm during the event on Sunday from Skype in Romania, so I got to "be there" for a few minutes. Oh well!!! I'll be back there soon enough...

I won't forget about it, but I'll build crazy fun experiences here too. Not the same, but it will do for now.

Odd how perspectives change throughout life.
De examplu: Before college and into my first 2 years of college - I wanted to save the world!
Part way through college - I realized that "saving the world" really isn't that easy and maybe I can make small changes to help preserve the world and maybe improve the lives of some people. Still in college - I figured out I wanted to join Peace Corps to fufill many of my desires and goals: to travel, to save the world, to meet new people, to understand how it is to not have all the luxeries I've grown up with and to maybe get a perspective on how my parents and grandparents grew up with, and more.
Now that I'm here...- I've been thinking about what I want to do when I get home. My future house, spending time with family and friends, traditions I want to start, events I want to help with: Tricaliforna triathlons (Lol)...

Odd aint it. I want to live my life with no regrets. I am happy I'm here, I would have regretted it for the rest of my life if I didn't go to Peace Corps (or a very similar program) to try and make the world improved or myself improved.
Though, if someone I cared about were sick, or etc...I would have regretted leaving them for my PC adventure, so in my circumstance Peace Corps was the choice for me.

Okay, enough reflection, time to sit and watch other people in the mayor's office and figure out my niche in this village/organization/etc..

Reflection pictures:

(Escape for Alcatraz, in SF) (Only time in my life I took Advil for muscle pain, 50 boxes of water through sand)


(WF Aid Stations, my committee, and I think the best committee in WF history! in central CA)
(Bag check ladies at Nike Women's Marathon in SF)

(Treasure Island, in SF, my last even before going off with Peace Corps)
Those shirts= amazing. Romanians mostly have washers but no dryers.

It's also great to have amazing friends, who show that they still care about you, even when you left them and traveled to the other side of the planet. It's good to feel loved and missed. =)

Scott and Charm are AWESOME! (and thanks..dude guy, for holding the plate!)

My gazda family

My gazda dad asked if I've told my family in SUA about them yet.

I have said bits here and there, but here's photos of the whole family.

They don't speak any Englez really, they have to learn 2nd and even 3rd languages while growing up, but my gazda father learned Spanish and I don't know about the mom.

I help do chores around the house. I have my own room. I can't do homework at home because the little one wants my full attention when I'm there. I play cars with him, we watch the jungle book, and I eat and sleep and try to speak a little Romanian.

The little one calls me: Cynthie mea (my cynthia) along with mama mea (my mom) and tata meu (my dad in a masculine possessive way).