Hey ya'll,
I hope January was good for everyone. It's been kinda cold here but it isn't nearly as bad as last year. Or so it seems. It's still single digits when I get up in the morning, but I prepared for the winter this year and insulated my windows in the apartment to kill the draft. This year my thermometer in the bedroom sticks at around 55-65 degrees Fahrenheit for now. Last year is was around 40. I also have a better stove to burn wood in so we can actually get the living room up to warm temperatures. I have been spending a lot more time outdoors too. Plamen and I go out to the river on walks for a few hours a week.
Here in Koynare, the longest river in Bulgaria passes through the town. Plamen and I get in his car and follow the dirt roads out to the river where we find ourselves in the nature. The river is a wonderful place but unfortunately the tough times here are really taking it's toll on the nature. The area is littered with tree stumps and garbage. The illegal farming of trees for firewood is rampant. Every time we go out to the river, it depresses me with all the freshly cut down trees and evidence of late night tree harvesting. I would be surprised if there is a single tree left after 10 years. Plamen has lived in Koynare almost his whole life and he loves nature. He feels more at home alone in the woods than he does surrounded by people. He tells me stories of what used to be here and how much wildlife there used to be within the forest. There is one place he showed me that is nearly barren now and he told me that when he was young they used to refer to it as "the jungle". Now there are only a handful of trees there and wildlife is scarce. The river also brings garbage. When the waters rise, and then retreat, they leave behind giant piles of trash. The beautiful islands in the river are completely blanketed with bottles, boots and tires. The river also brings wood and leaves it along the shores. Plamen and I have started gathering this wood and filling his car with it to use as firewood. We would rather collect the wood the river has already brought than contribute to the chopping down of the live trees. It really is a shame that this is the situation that has fallen upon this town. Electricity is too expensive, there isn't enough work, legal firewood is expensive and hard to obtain, and there are few trees left nearby. So they unfortunately have no choice but to harvest the locally available resources to survive the winter. And after a few years of this, they will exhaust everything.
After one hike that Plamen and I went on, we started a campfire. It was cold and we had been out all afternoon. The sun was setting as we made it back to his car. Plamen had brought some fresh pork, bread and wine so we could cook dinner over a fire. We sat down amongst some stumps of recently chopped down trees. There were plenty of small branches littering the area from the felled trees so we gathered them and got the fire going. Plamen and I sat on the ground, skewered some pork on sticks and added some onion in there as well. We stuck the meat directly into the hot coals and toasted the bread over the fire. It was freaking awesome. I really think that few things in this world compare to sitting out in the wilderness, making a fire and cooking dinner over it. The food was fresh and delicious and the wine was red and homemade. It was a good end of a hike.
My project for the track team has been fully funded and almost everything is already purchased. For the past few weeks, the coach and I have been buying all the equipment we put into the budget. The track team here was using very old, broken equipment. The kids did not have running shoes or uniforms and inadequate practice equipment. With my project, we have purchased starting blocks, hurdles, shot puts, discs, javelins, uniforms, running shoes, track spikes, track suits and more. The kids are ecstatic. When they went to track meets, they were intimidated by the other teams. They didn't know how to use the starting blocks, proper form for jumping hurdles, their shoes and uniforms were mismatched and old. Now they look sharp. The confidence is increasing and I could feel the excited energy from them when I was at practice yesterday. They have their new track suits and shoes on and they look good. I watched as they were running laps while smiling and laughing. This weekend they are at their first track meet with the new equipment.
Cveti is now at the end of her first semester and she is taking her finals. She already has taken three of them and has a few more in the upcoming weeks. Of the three she has taken, she is has 2 A's already and we are still waiting to find out the grade for her English test. I am pretty confident that she did well on that one...
I don't really want to get into details on a public blog, but there are a lot of issues going on at the organization where I work. All day while I am here in this small office I listen to people yelling at each other and arguing about who did what and where things have disappeared to. It's really starting to wear on me and I find myself dreading sitting here and listening to this. Even though I am not really in the middle of it or involved at all, I am still sitting here listening to the yelling. I can't concentrate on anything and find myself just wandering the internet and lost in my own thoughts. Not the most productive environment. Hopefully it will pass but I don't think it will.
So that's all I got for now.
Rory
Friday, January 28, 2011
Monday, January 10, 2011
In the land where the streets are paved with gold
I'm back in Bulgaria after a wonderful trip home. The trip back to the states started off absolutely terrible though. I will get to that in a moment.
Before I left, Cveti and I spent a couple days in Sofia together. We went shopping for gifts as well as spent some good time together. We went and saw Megamind at a 3D theater in Sofia. It was Cveti's first 3D movie and it was a lot of fun. The movie was dubbed in Bulgarian but I understood basically everything and very much enjoyed it. We went out to some nice meals and at one dinner, Cveti and I sat next to a woman that used to be the host of a popular TV show here. We had a great time together just hanging in Sofia.
On Wednesday, the 22nd, Cveti and I got up at like 4am to get to the airport to catch my early plane to Munich. Well, when we got there, the whole airport was covered in fog and all flights were cancelled. Cveti and I waited in line for the single computer at Sofia Airport available to Lufthansa. We waited for 4 hours before they got me on another flight. The flight was to leave at 1:50pm and it looked hopeful that it would actually fly. I said goodbye to Cveti around noon and went through security. I then waited until about 5pm before they finally cancelled that flight too since the fog never lifted. Well, I got booked on a flight at 6am the next morning. So I left the airport, went to the hostel and slept for a few hours. Then got back to the airport bright and early and the fog was still there. They said the flight had a green light though. My itinerary had changed though and I would fly to Frankfurt, then Munich, then Chicago. Well. My flight out of Sofia was delayed again but it did fly. I missed the flight to Munich. I got on the next one which was also delayed a few hours. In turn, I missed my flight to Chicago from Munich. Finally, in Munich, they got me on a waitlist for a flight to Chicago that went out that afternoon. And thanks to the Lufthansa people at the gate, I got on the flight and they upgraded me to business class. :) It was the most comfortable 10 hour flight I've ever been on. It felt so good to finally fly.
Well, I got back to Chicago to be greeted at the airport. We got my bags and drove to Britt and Catherines where the rest of the family was waiting. I made the mistake of taking off my boots which housed my feet who were covered in the wool socks I'd been wearing for 3-4 days... This resulted in a quick shower, changed clothes, airing out of the house and a lot of moans and groans from my loving family about my stinky feet. After that we did a quick dinner and I went to sleep. The following day was Christmas Eve and celebrated by being lazy. Although I woke up at the wee hours of 4ish in the morning due to jet lag, I had a great day with the family. Everyone was there and all the kids too.
On Christmas, I woke up again at like 4am so I went downstairs, got on the computer and started writing Christmas letters to my friends here in Bulgaria. I ate breakfast and drank about a pot of coffee. When I heard the kids running around upstairs getting all excited at about 6am, I knew it was time to celebrate! I had the most energy ever. After all sorts of nauseating amounts of caffeine pumping through my veins. Christmas morning was wonderful and I am thankful we had two trees. One for the kids to tear through, the other one for the adults to sit back and take our sweet time.
That night, I almost died at the table from exhaustion. I left before dessert to go to bed. I missed pumpkin pie.
On the 26th, there was about a foot of fresh snow on the ground. Britt, Dad and I went to the Bears game where we had an amazing time. The game was great and the Bears destroyed the Jets. But it was a good game and we had great seats. We even got to sit out in the snow while watching the game. After the game ended, we had so much fun that we basically didn't leave until they kicked us out.
I could take this thing day by day, but I'll just sum up the rest. I had an amazing time. I got to hang out with my family, meet Molly's boyfriend Paul, see the kids and how much they had grown, share stories and laughs, drive a car, see friends, and eat nasty American food that gave me all sorts of heartburn. I can't thank my parents enough for making the trip so great.
On the 4th of January I got on a plane with over 125lbs of baggage to bring back. The flights went without problem and I was greeted by Cveti at the airport when I arrived. It was great to see her there! When Cveti and I went back to Koynare, I opened the door to my apartment and noticed that the lights weren't working. So I checked the fuses and everything looked good. Then I remembered that I didn't pay my electricity before I left... So Cveti and I spent that first night back at the apartment in the cold and dark. Welcome home.
Since then I paid my electricity and we are back online. I have gotten used to the time difference again and kinda getting in the swing of things. Cveti is back in Sofia getting ready for exams.
So here we are, in the cold again, sleeping and living in rooms where ice crystals form. I forgot how hard it was to get rid of the chill after you wake up in the morning. Hats help.
Be good and stay warm
Rory
Before I left, Cveti and I spent a couple days in Sofia together. We went shopping for gifts as well as spent some good time together. We went and saw Megamind at a 3D theater in Sofia. It was Cveti's first 3D movie and it was a lot of fun. The movie was dubbed in Bulgarian but I understood basically everything and very much enjoyed it. We went out to some nice meals and at one dinner, Cveti and I sat next to a woman that used to be the host of a popular TV show here. We had a great time together just hanging in Sofia.
On Wednesday, the 22nd, Cveti and I got up at like 4am to get to the airport to catch my early plane to Munich. Well, when we got there, the whole airport was covered in fog and all flights were cancelled. Cveti and I waited in line for the single computer at Sofia Airport available to Lufthansa. We waited for 4 hours before they got me on another flight. The flight was to leave at 1:50pm and it looked hopeful that it would actually fly. I said goodbye to Cveti around noon and went through security. I then waited until about 5pm before they finally cancelled that flight too since the fog never lifted. Well, I got booked on a flight at 6am the next morning. So I left the airport, went to the hostel and slept for a few hours. Then got back to the airport bright and early and the fog was still there. They said the flight had a green light though. My itinerary had changed though and I would fly to Frankfurt, then Munich, then Chicago. Well. My flight out of Sofia was delayed again but it did fly. I missed the flight to Munich. I got on the next one which was also delayed a few hours. In turn, I missed my flight to Chicago from Munich. Finally, in Munich, they got me on a waitlist for a flight to Chicago that went out that afternoon. And thanks to the Lufthansa people at the gate, I got on the flight and they upgraded me to business class. :) It was the most comfortable 10 hour flight I've ever been on. It felt so good to finally fly.
Well, I got back to Chicago to be greeted at the airport. We got my bags and drove to Britt and Catherines where the rest of the family was waiting. I made the mistake of taking off my boots which housed my feet who were covered in the wool socks I'd been wearing for 3-4 days... This resulted in a quick shower, changed clothes, airing out of the house and a lot of moans and groans from my loving family about my stinky feet. After that we did a quick dinner and I went to sleep. The following day was Christmas Eve and celebrated by being lazy. Although I woke up at the wee hours of 4ish in the morning due to jet lag, I had a great day with the family. Everyone was there and all the kids too.
On Christmas, I woke up again at like 4am so I went downstairs, got on the computer and started writing Christmas letters to my friends here in Bulgaria. I ate breakfast and drank about a pot of coffee. When I heard the kids running around upstairs getting all excited at about 6am, I knew it was time to celebrate! I had the most energy ever. After all sorts of nauseating amounts of caffeine pumping through my veins. Christmas morning was wonderful and I am thankful we had two trees. One for the kids to tear through, the other one for the adults to sit back and take our sweet time.
That night, I almost died at the table from exhaustion. I left before dessert to go to bed. I missed pumpkin pie.
On the 26th, there was about a foot of fresh snow on the ground. Britt, Dad and I went to the Bears game where we had an amazing time. The game was great and the Bears destroyed the Jets. But it was a good game and we had great seats. We even got to sit out in the snow while watching the game. After the game ended, we had so much fun that we basically didn't leave until they kicked us out.
I could take this thing day by day, but I'll just sum up the rest. I had an amazing time. I got to hang out with my family, meet Molly's boyfriend Paul, see the kids and how much they had grown, share stories and laughs, drive a car, see friends, and eat nasty American food that gave me all sorts of heartburn. I can't thank my parents enough for making the trip so great.
On the 4th of January I got on a plane with over 125lbs of baggage to bring back. The flights went without problem and I was greeted by Cveti at the airport when I arrived. It was great to see her there! When Cveti and I went back to Koynare, I opened the door to my apartment and noticed that the lights weren't working. So I checked the fuses and everything looked good. Then I remembered that I didn't pay my electricity before I left... So Cveti and I spent that first night back at the apartment in the cold and dark. Welcome home.
Since then I paid my electricity and we are back online. I have gotten used to the time difference again and kinda getting in the swing of things. Cveti is back in Sofia getting ready for exams.
So here we are, in the cold again, sleeping and living in rooms where ice crystals form. I forgot how hard it was to get rid of the chill after you wake up in the morning. Hats help.
Be good and stay warm
Rory
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