O Solo Mio

Last night we went to the opera to see La Traviata.

It was all in Italian, of course, but there were helpful translations posted on a screen above the stage. Because we are in Bulgaria they were in the fascinating, yet challenging language of Mandarin Chinese.

I kid.

They were in Bulgarian.

But since I still am working on learning the language (which I wisely accomplish by browsing the Internet all day long and trying to come up with ideas for my next blog entry), it might as well have been Chinese.

Since I had no earthly idea what was going on, in order to make the experience an interesting one for me, I came up with my own story using my vivid imagination and spot-on intuition. It went sort of like this:

Act One: There's a girl. She's rich and definitely a tease, right? And maybe a little sick, too, since she coughs and rests her hand on her chest rather frequently. But being sick sure doesn't stop her from liking parties! And everyone at the party likes the parties too because they sing a lot! Her parents want her to marry that bald guy. I wonder if that's real champagne in those glasses? I wouldn't mind some champagne right now... and maybe a cheeseburger to go along with it... Hmmm... I don't think she likes the bald guy very much... although he's kind of hot... For some reason she seems to really enjoy the company of the older guy with the beard... but wait! She totally dissed him! I'm getting pretty hungry... I wonder where we'll go to dinner after this.... Man, I'd really like a cheeseburger right about now...

Act Two: Someone writes the girl a letter and it looks like she's writing one back. She's mad! At her dad! And they are singing about how pissed off they are! She likes the guy with the beard! Not the bald guy! No Bald Guy, Dad! I know he's hot, but no! And there's a bowl of fruit! On the table! It looks yummy! But not as yummy as cheeseburgers!

Act Three: Wow. This chick sure likes parties. And - hey! - there's more singing... Lots of singing.... okay, so it's good singing... but still, there's a lot of it... and because everybody needs more Flamenco dancers at their parties there's some of them too. And cheeseburgers! No, not really. Dammit. Some guy just threw his glove on the floor! Figgghhhttt! Fiigghhhttt! Oh wait. It's over? Is it over? I think it's over... Yes! We can go EAT!!!.... Oh wait. No one else is moving.... hmmm... isn't it over?

Act Four: Act Four?? Are you freakin' kidding me? GOD, I'm hungry! Can't a girl get a cheeseburger in this joint? Aw, the girl is sick. And possibly dying. And someone really likes to write her letters because she just got another one telling her the guy with the beard is dead. But he's NOT dead! He's there! And she coughs a lot and sings about how she's not in love with the bald guy... she loves him. And then she stands up, spins around, falls on the floor and dies! Yes! Yessssss!!!!! Let's eat!!!

In all seriousness, the opera was an enjoyable experience that I plan on repeating, although I might have to do some work convincing Ryan of this. I do, however, plan on eating beforeheand next time as you might have gathered I was a little obsessed with food. Specifically cheeseburgers. This sucks since you can't really get them here, at least in this town. Instead, I had a salad. And french fries. And some hot peppers. And also some vodka mixed with a sour cherry juice that is pronounced something like Vishni. Tasty stuff, that. Almost made up for the complete and utter dearth of cheeseburgers.

And, evidently, I was also a little over-preoccupied with the bald guy. I later found out he actually had nothing to do with the story at all. I looked up La Traviata this morning (you can find it here) and learned that while I am not entirely certain what I want to be when I grow up, I can cross one thing off the list for sure. I so do not have a future in opera writing.

However, given my fledgling career as a business mogul here in Bulgaria, I am now considering using my nonprofit to bring the wonderful world of cheeseburgers to Stara Zagora.

Working for a Living... (or at least trying to)...

Here’s the thing. As a United States citizen, I have 90 days out of every six months to stay in Bulgaria. Now, I can spend these 90 days as I choose. I can come in and out, enjoying 10 days here, 5 days there, another 20 over there… and so on… over the course of six months. I could frolic happily in Bulgaria for 30 days in December…. another 30 in March… and yet 30 more in June. I could even - you're going to be shocked! - come for 5 days in December and the other 85 in June!!!

…Or I could do it as I have chosen to, namely fly here on a one way ticket in December and pray to the gods and goddesses of Bulgarian employment that I find a job by March 22 thereby earning my right to stay longer. Perhaps you have noticed I have been in Bulgaria now for two months, two weeks and six days. To save you the trouble of calculating this, this amounts to exactly 80 days. Theoretically, I would have had 10 days left before I had to leave the country, returning in July for another 90 days. Naturally, this whole leaving thing did not cause me to do jumping jacks and cartwheels of joy. Mostly because, as I've learned, I miss Ryan terribly when he's thousands of miles away, but also because my bank account currently bears a strong resemblance to the piggy bank of an eight year old child and, given that, I anticipated having to explore the exciting world of hitchhiking across Europe followed by an invigorating swim to the States.

As I’ve previously mentioned, finding a job here is not easy. I’ve had a couple of offers on the table for some time, but as these companies have learned, proving (as they must) that hiring an American for the job is the best and only option is slightly more difficult. A Human Resources company tried to get me a work permit to no avail, but informed me recently they hope to start my own company for me, bringing me on board in the capacity of Consultant. I got excited until I learned that in order to use this method to obtain a D visa I would need to hire 10 – 12 Bulgarians, also paying their Social Security.

This, my friends, is hilarious. Seriously, yo, I almost wet myself. I mean, it’s cheaper to live here – sure! – but let’s be honest. I am not going to be rolling in the dough. I’ll barely be able to support myself, let alone 10 additional employees. And if I merrily handed over to each hypothetical staff member (and myself) approximately 30 leva ($20 US dollars) every month… well, let’s just say I would not be met with smiley faces and giddy hugs.

So, realizing that while I’d likely found a way to financially support myself in Bulgaria, I still hadn’t found a way to actually live here whilst doing so, I hired a lawyer who first outlined a lot of what I already knew. First step – get a D visa. (Yep, yep. I knew that.) In order to get a D visa, one must comply with one of sixteen criteria. Most of them, like being a member of the foreign mass media or, um…. say, the parent of a permanent resident, I have no hopes of meeting.

Fortunately we have determined that starting my own nonprofit/foundation is a viable course of action. It’s not the cheapest option… but it is one that allows me to stay here without hiring a host of people I can't begin to afford. So, soon I will be the CEO/Director/President/All Powerful Supreme Ruler and Queen (I’m still deciding what title I want) of my very own nonprofit agency. As it turns out, this endeavor is very exciting for me because I’m starting to consider what efforts I can put forth in conjunction with other nonprofits in Bulgaria, which in turn allows me to continue to do work I find meaningful, pleasing and important. This, while not exactly inspiring those aforementioned cartwheels (at least not yet) does make me inordinately happy and far more relaxed than I’ve been in ages.

Anyway, as I previously mentioned I went to Thessaloniki, Greece to apply for my D visa the other day. (As an aside, it is impossible to apply for a Bulgarian visa here in Bulgaria, but since I’d never been to Greece I can’t say I really mind.) Once I have the visa in hand, not only will I be running my own nonprofit, but I will also be able to apply for my lichna carta (i.e. residency card) which allows me to stay here for a year… or longer if I reapply again this time next year.

In which case those somersaults and other gymnastic feats just might ensue after all…

Back in Action

Fret not, my dear and loyal friends!

Contrary to popular belief, I have not fallen into a bottomless Bulgarian pit, thus disappearing from the blogging universe forevermore. Nay! Instead I have spent the past month taking a course in Sofia. Specifically, I was in the process of obtaining the Cambridge Certificate in English Language Teaching to Adults (CELTA) at AVO-3 in Sofia. As you will ascertain, due to this and other circumstances, there was not much time to be had for typing up self-indulgent (but delightful?) blog entries.

But now that I find myself once again with that elusive but much desired concept known as “free time”, I hereby present you with an informative update categorized with the aid of popular movie titles! (Exciting, yes?)

Back to School

If only I hadn’t left my camera in the back of a taxi, I’d be able to take pictures without having to borrow Ryan’s far less superior model.

Let’s evaluate this sentence, shall we? What tense is it? How about the form? Can you identify the subject, verb and object? What type of conditional clause would you say it is? And, most importantly, which camera would YOU say is better… the Canon PowerShot SD700 …. or the Casio Exilim EX Z60? Discuss, please.

Yeaaaahhh… So let me first make a confession. Up until recently I thought I knew how to speak, read and write English pretty well. Ryan teases me about being the grammar police, but the truth is I really do sometimes feel like I should have some sort of honorary badge or something because when people write things like “your funny” or “The dog ate it’s breakfast” I have to struggle not to launch into detailed descriptions of the proper use of contractions and possessives. I mean, I know I’m not, like, Hemingway or Shakespeare or Dr. Seuss or anything. I like big words, long sentences, too many commas and tend to overuse fragments to convey certain points. I’ve even been known to accidentally use “too” instead of “to” from time to time. But on the whole, I felt I had the English language pretty well under control.

To my eternal dismay, the CELTA class proved me wrong. I do not wish to bore you with the details, mostly because reliving the experience triggers my gag reflex, but I learned that those of us who use English as our native language really have no clue about all the nuances of our mother tongue. Considering I had previously thought we only had 3 tenses (past, present and future), discovering that with all of the forms we actually have closer to 12 or 15 came as a bit of a shock. It was quite humbling, actually. One of my roommates, Marina, is from Macedonia and fluently speaks a number of languages (including English). I would ask something like “So this future continuous, right?” And she would smile and gently tell me “No. That is present perfect.” As it turns out the individuals who learn English as a second language actually learn it better than those of us who learn it as a first language and much to our chagrin many of the students we taught knew grammar better than we did. This is probably not funny to you, but I assure you it is. Mostly because I envisioned myself completely at a loss, standing in front of a class saying “Um. This is a sentence. Here is the verb. And the object is here somewhere…. uhhh… okay, class dismissed! For homework write me an essay on the merits of, ummm… cheese! Yes! Tell me all about cheese!”

But I prefer not to dwell on that too much.

Anyway, we had class Monday – Friday from 9 AM – 6 PM, complete with detailed lessons on how to be an effective teacher. Additionally, we engaged in 6 hours of teaching practice and the subsequent oh-so-lovely feedback sessions where we got to hear what we did right… as well as just how badly we sucked. Because we also had to develop detailed lesson plans for the classes we taught, write thorough descriptions of 6 hours of observed lessons and come up with 4 papers on various assigned topics, there was limited time for anything but living, breathing and sleeping CELTA and gorging myself nightly on bread and picked vegetables because there had been no time to eat earlier in the day.

However, to my good fortune the people with whom I was taking the course were very supportive, enthusiastic and fun. (There was one notable exception, but I won’t go into that too much here. Let’s just say that if upon facing constructive criticism you feel the urge to disagree vehemently with the instructor, then spend the next month alternately pouting, complaining exclusively about how you're being singled out, accusing your fellow students of not supporting you and saying derogatory things about the size of the said instructor’s manhood, this class is probably not for you.)

So it was challenging… but it is also thankfully complete and the good news is we all passed and are now certified (if not entirely qualified) teachers of English!

The bad news is… I really did leave my camera (the completely awesome Canon PowerShot) in the back of a taxi and therefore, until my new one arrives, must battle Ryan for the use of his Casio. (Just kidding about the "far less superior" comment, baby! But I still maintain I am the better photographer!)

Nurse Betty

About a week or so after I got here, I came down with bronchitis. This is not unusual for me. For some reason my body tends to avoid most other illnesses such as the Bird Flu, Ebola and Sleeping Sickness pretty well… but seems to simply love bronchitis and embraces it wholeheartedly several times a year. To top it off, this time I also managed to catch the flu my first weekend in Sofia and spent two whole days in bed. Ryan was great and hung out around my apartment all Saturday and part of Sunday helping take care of me until I sent him off Sunday night to have dinner with friends and watch his beloved Bears play in (and sadly lose) the Super Bowl.

Anyway, as the flu tends to do, it went away very quickly, but the bronchitis kept getting worse and worse until I had to be forcibly urged to enter the mildly alarming world of Bulgarian Medical Care. Luckily the instructors at AVO-3 were fabulous and one of them went with me to serve as translator and, if necessary, hand-holder. Approximately 12 prescriptions, 7 doctors’ visits, 400 leva, 1 traumatic chest X-ray and a partridge in a pear tree later, I was told I had borderline pneumonia and needed to have a shunt installed in my arm so I could have daily injections of heavy antibiotics and cough suppressant administered directly into my vein.

Super!

This was not absolutely the most fabulous experience of my life, but luckily I paid for a nurse to come directly to the school so I didn’t have to spend a few hours a day at the doctor’s office, thus jeopardizing my standing in the class and forfeiting the money, time and energy I had put into the CELTA. And I tried to have fun with it! Even when the nurse had to move the shunt from one arm to the other because the first was really bruised and her (ungloved) hands were shaking so hard she couldn’t find my vein and wound up spilling my blood all over the table, I tried to view the experience with a bright spirit and a good natured sense of humor. (Ryan was there for this instance and he felt so bad for me it earned me a tasty meal at a local Chinese restaurant so dare I say it was worth it?).

At any rate, the shunt has since been removed from my arm, the drugs worked their magic and I am now feeling much better and moderately more confident in my ability to obtain quality medical care here. Huzzah!

A Clockwork Orange

You’ve heard about my driving, yes? Or perhaps you have ridden with me and are personally aware of my propensity towards speed, lots of cursing and heavy horn usage.

Have you also seen the movie A Clockwork Orange? This charming flick, brought to us by Stanley Kubrick, is about a seriously disturbed man who favors classical music, violence and rape. During a robbery (that also winds up being a murder) he is summarily caught and essentially forced into submitting to aversion therapy. He is drugged and his eyes are held open with clips while he is subjected to images of extreme and graphic violence set to Beethoven. Needless to say after this treatment he is unable to engage in any form of aggression (including self-defense) or, for that matter, acts with naked women. There is a lot more to the story, but that’s all you need to know for now.

Bulgaria’s roads are my Clockwork Orange. Every day. Cars speeding through red lights. People leaning heavily on their horns. Dogs, cats and pedestrians nearly getting run over. The sounds of gunning engines, the screech of brakes and, often, metal crunching against metal. I offer now to everyone who has ever ridden with me or come into contact with my driving in any way, shape or form a heartfelt apology because... boy do you deserve it!

You will be happy to learn that when I come home I fully suspect I will be virtually incapable of the following activities: speeding, using my horn, aggressively passing other vehicles, swearing at the driver in front of me, swearing at the driver behind me, swearing at the red light, swearing at animals that cause me to slam on my brakes, etc., etc., etc.

Aversion therapy worked for me.

Love Actually (or Planes, Trains and Automobiles)

Ryan wound up having business to take care of at the Peace Corps office the day after Valentine’s Day, so we were able to celebrate the holiday together. However, we vastly underestimated the all encompassing power of the Hallmark Corporation because evidently in recent years February 14 has become quite a popular day here in Bulgaria. When Ryan tried to get reservations a few days ahead of time, his coworker looked at him like “Uh, smoke crack much?” and advised him we were out of luck. Still, he persisted, but after a few phone calls it was revealed that the coworker was right. The entire population of Bulgaria (except us) would be dining out that evening.

Initially nonplussed, we solved the problem by getting take-away from the Taj Mahal, a fabulous Indian restaurant just up the road from my apartment in Sofia and cuddled on the couch watching movies. It was a most special Valentine’s Day after all.

We’ve also gotten to do a bit more traveling. Last Saturday the staff at AVO-3 arranged a field trip for the CELTA students to the Rila Monastery and Melnik as well as the St. Petka Church and Baba Vanga’s house in Rupite.

The Rila Monastery is located in none other than the Rila Mountains and is, as you’ll see, simply breathtaking. My fellow students, Ryan and I enjoyed wandering around the courtyards, taking pictures and dining on mekitsi (sort of a hot fried donut reminiscent of funnel cake).

Melnik, on the other hand, is the smallest town in Bulgaria boasting about 200 – 300 people, steep, winding roads, sandstone cliffs and lots and lots of wine. We had lunch in a typical Bulgarian Mehana, drank vino that was a little too grapey for our tastes, but on the whole not bad, and toured a really cool winery complete with barrels and caves (but not the bats I had been told we might see). We also got to hang our martenitsa on a blossoming tree in a courtyard overlooking the town. (Martenitsa are red and white yarn bracelets handed out on the 1st of March to celebrate the coming of spring. Ryan's blog offers a much better description here: www.ryaninbulgaria.wordpress.com)

As far as баба Ванга (Baba Vanga) is concerned, she was a woman apparently blessed with the ability to foretell the future, heal people using herbs and travel places around the world using only her mind. Whether or not they agree with the true nature of her alleged gifts, most people seem to revere her and although she died in 1996, Rupite is still a much visited place in Bulgaria featuring a church, Baba Vanga’s house and hot springs.

On Wednesday I also traveled to Plovdiv to meet up with Ryan. I really got a kick out of this city as you can find anything from Prada handbags to awesome pizza to ancient amphitheaters to roadside artists there. I loved it and I can’t wait to go back.

Despite all the fun we’re having, I’m not gonna lie; living 3 hours away from Ryan (as I did during the CELTA and probably will for the next year and a half) is not exactly easy. But it sure beats living 5,000 miles away! At the risk of sounding cheesy, I feel so lucky to be here with him. Challenges notwithstanding, we are really enjoying being here in Bulgaria together and are having fun living in the moment… as well as planning “what happens next” after Ryan finishes with the Peace Corps. Now, no firm decisions have been made, but the consensus seems to be that some time in the States is definitely in order! Our future home may be in Orlando, Florida… perhaps San Diego, California… or possibly Macomb, Illinois… who knows?

So friends and family please plan to come and visit us here before this limited time offer expires!

Employee of the Month

Wow, this is getting long and if I include details on my impending employment here in Bulgaria, I fear your eyes may begin to bleed from the tedium of reading so much in one afternoon. I will save this for later… but offer you a bit of a teaser.

I went to Thessaloniki, Greece on Monday and Tuesday to get started on my D-visa. While I will have to return one more time to pick up the necessary documents, I don’t have to leave Bulgaria long term and should soon be an upstanding (and employed) member of society. So tune in tomorrow (or maybe the next day) for more details!

I Really Need to Learn This Language...

Warning: I have discovered how to turn on the Bulgarian language feature on my computer, so in reading this you have thus been warned you are now at the mercy of my burgeoning language skills. It’s way more fun if we all learn together anyway, right?

So last week Ryan had IST (In Service Training) whereby he traveled to the town of Kazanluk to participate in engaging and educational activities with his fellow B-20s (so named because his is the 20th group of PCVs to come to Bulgaria). Although I’ve been attempting to sort out employment and absolutely love living here, I’m still left with a lot of free time. It’s been a good learning experience for me, though, as I’ve come to the conclusion that I am just not cut out for the role of “housewife” and, as such, am growing rather bored with my daily schedule. Primarily it consists of:

7:45 AM – The alarm goes off; Ryan hits snooze.
7:55 AM – The alarm goes off; Ryan hits snooze
8:05 AM – The alarm goes off; Ryan hits snooze.
8:15 AM – The alarm goes off; Ryan hits snooze.
8:25 AM – The alarm goes off; Ryan decides it is time to get up
9:15 AM – Ryan goes to work.
9:20 AM – Time to check e-mail! Let’s see who loves me today!
9:22 AM – Errr… how about I scour the Internet for items of interest…
9:45 AM – Hummmmmmm….
9:46 AM – Maybe I should tidy up or something….
10:20 AM – You know, Spider Solitaire is sort of fun. I think I’ll play that for a bit.
10:30 AM – Oooh! I know! I can paint my toenails! Won’t that be fun?!?

And so on. I confess I really like the part of the day where Ryan comes home for lunch. That's always nice. But - and my former roommates Jenn and Laura knew this already - I really do not like doing the dishes to begin with and here it involves washing everything by hand. In fact, it sorely tempts me to reenact the much loved Shel Silverstein poem "How Not to Have to Dry the Dishes". (The only thing that stops me is Ryan only has, like, four plates total and I think he'd be a little distraught if I deliberately smashed them into tiny little pieces.) And since I still haven’t figured out how to operate the washing machine and Ryan is ever so much better than I am at wringing out the clothes and hanging them up to dry, I let him take care of that. However, it must be said, I am truly a genius in the kitchen and I thoroughly enjoy the cooking dinner part of my domestic duties. Most recently, we were super thrilled with the meal of buffalo chicken strips, boiled potatoes with butter and shopska salad I made last week. Ryan is a lucky man indeed.

Ahem. (For the record, I am very, very, VERY lucky too… particularly since he puts up with me telling him how lucky he is.)

Needless to say, I was quite excited about the opportunity to travel outside of Stara Zagora to see a new locale, as well as meet some of Ryan’s friends. This is when it occurred to me that I really need to work on learning Bulgarian. I did a fine job of making it to the bus station and asking for a ticket to Kazanluk. Incidentally, if you ever find yourself in a similar position, you should say “може ли един билет за Казанлък” (pronounced roughly “Mozha lee adeen belette za Kazanluk”, meaning “May I please have one ticket to Kazanluk.) So that went fine. I got my ticket. I boarded the right bus. I didn’t wind up in Mongolia or something.

But when I got to Kazanluk, I inadvertently got off at the wrong stop, which meant a slightly longer walk. Ordinarily this would not be a problem since I really do like all the walking I am doing, being that I don't have a car and I'd be scared to drive anyway since everyone here drives like me. But I misunderstood Ryan when he told me I needed to turn left once I got off the bus and so kept looking for the appropriate side street to turn down. (I later found out he meant as I come down the stairs of the bus, I should turn to my left as opposed to my right. Whoops!) This confusion, of course, resulted in me asking a bunch of people I couldn’t begin to understand for directions.

It was vastly entertaining, actually. I would approach a pleasant looking person and say in an upbeat and hopeful manner, “извинете. къде е хотел Казанлък” (“Eezvanetay. Caday ay Hotel Kazanluk?” or, in case you’re curious, “Excuse me. Where is Hotel Kazanluk”) They, in turn, would respond in a friendly and enthusiastic manner: “анохъсугв ьяавхэ ьасехов ьванесохфвл”. (Cyrillic gibberish.)

I understood absolutely none of it.

I decided at this point unless someone raised their eyebrows and said in a horrified manner “какво? хотел Казанлък?” (“Kakvo? Hotel Kazanluk?” or – for the non-Bulgarian speaking among you - “WHAT? Hotel Kazanluk?”)… followed by wild gesturing in the opposite direction, I would just smile and say… “мерси” (“Merci.” Same as in French. "Thank You")… and keep on going. It went on like this for a while. I’d stop. Ask someone where the hotel was. Nod my head exuberantly as they explained it to me. And continue walking in the same general direction operating under the assumption I'd know it if I headed right on out of town.

As an aside, I now need to explain that the nodding, in itself, is poor form, since here people nod sharply to indicate “no” and either shake their head or bobble it from side to side to say “yes”. So by waggling my head up and down at everyone, I was essentially saying “No. No. You’re wrong. That is NOT the way to Hotel Kazanluk.” or perhaps, “No. Please don’t give me directions. No! I said NO!” Fortunately for me, I gather most Bulgarians are used to idiot Americans doing this, so it wound up being okay since I also beamed widely to show everyone I was a nice person. Absolutely clueless, perhaps… but totally harmless. No, not dangerous at all. Really.

So it went until finally I came across two women crossing the street and I asked them – say it with me now - “къде е хотел Казанлък.” They looked at me like I was clinically insane… and pointed directly behind them. “Right here,” they said in English.

Oh.

As it turns out, it was a pretty big building right in the center of town and I probably couldn't have missed it if I tried. Anyway, I was actually staying at Hadzhi Eminova Kashta, a quaint (read: cheap!) little hotel near the Thracian Tombs, but Ryan and the rest of his group had accommodations at the now infamous Hotel Kazanluk, so that’s where we met up. At this point I was immensely pleased that Ryan skipped out on his luncheon to help me check in to my hotel, since it wound up being rather challenging to locate and - given my recent history - I would have likely wandered around for weeks before finding it. Also, I stupidly forgot the guide book, so I had absolutely no idea where I was staying. As you might imagine, Ryan just loved this part. Through our superior investigative skills, we did manage to track down both the name of the hotel, as well as its location (We used Ryan’s cell phone to call the number through which we’d made our reservations). It turned out that although the hotel was not as nice as where Ryan had been staying, it definitely had character and I was overall extremely pleased with my choice of lodging. I will confess I was initially a little unnerved by the padlock on the door to prevent unwanted midnight guests, as well as the blaring chalga music throughout the afternoon, but I got over it pretty quickly since it really was a cool little place.

Ryan headed back to training then, and I took a jaunt up to the Thracian tombs. A tour of the actual tombs is challenging (and expensive) to arrange, and they were closed, it appeared. This I gathered from all the bars covering the windows. I briefly debated paying to see the full-scale replica, but in the end opted not to. Following Ryan’s day of training, we took a walk through Old Town and then returned to my hotel for a quick nap, meeting up later with some B-20s for dinner and drinks. Everyone I met was very friendly and I enjoyed myself immensely. All in all, I had a great time during my brief stay in Kazanluk and look forward to returning – perhaps during the Rose Festival in the spring. And, most importantly, I was successfully able to duplicate my hotel-finding strategy on my way to the автогара ("Avtogara" i.e."Bus Station") the next day! Woo freakin' hoo!

The traveling is just beginning, too. This past weekend Ryan and I went to Veliko Turnovo... an absolutely spectacular town north of Stara Zagora. Although the weather has taken a turn for the decidedly cold, we had a great time traipsing all over the Tsarevets Fortress.... as well as frequenting the myriad (warm!) restaurants of Veliko where the food is delicious, the beer is plentiful and the views are breathtaking. I highly encourage everyone to visit me so I can return repeatedly to see more of this fabulous city.

In closing, I leave tomorrow for my month-long stay in Sofia for CELTA training. This experience should be good fun and hopefully advent the beginning of the end of my career as "Housewife Extraordinaire". Let's hear it for the possibility of gainful employment!

Mother Nature and Red Tape

I freely admit I am a temperature wimp.

I love crisp, cool mornings and warm, breezy afternoons, which is why, living in Florida for the past five years, I relished October – the segue from almost unbearably hot, muggy weather to the reason for which the term “snowbird” was coined. I spent as much time as possible during the Floridian falls, winters and springs outside.

Now, summers… summers, I firmly believe, are meant to be spent in the luxury of air conditioning. Or, if I must (for the sake of female bonding), lolling about on the beach slathered in SPF 30 lotion, sipping a cold beverage and reading a book while secretly fretting over whether I’ve yet crossed the fine line between “delightfully rosy” and “positively charred”.

I have not had to really think about true winter for some time. When I first moved to Florida, I laughed at the people who moaned about the cold whenever the mercury dipped below 50 degrees Fahrenheit. The next year, I was one of them. And so I remained until I decided to move to Eastern Europe.

And when I initially arrived in Bulgaria, it occurred to me that Karma can be a wicked thing… because here? It was cold. Numb toes, runny nose, wish to God you had brought thermal underwear or tights, I don’t know, maybe leg warmers or something… really, really freaking cold. But since that first week we have been enjoying what I’ve been told is the warmest winter in years. We’re talking 50s every day. The nights can get chilly and dip into the upper 20s or mid 30s… but for the most part this has not been nearly the frigid winter I thought it was going to be. Of course lower temperatures could still be in store for us, but I’m holding out hope that I brought a bit of Orlando with me when I moved here and it is here to stay.

It’s not just the cooperation of Mother Nature… everything else is going well here, too. Er, for the most part. Specifically, there seems to be quite a bit of that proverbial red tape as it pertains to the job hunt, but hopefully that will all get sorted out shortly! I’m certain of it! Yesiree!

Okay, so it’s in fact been very frustrating. Although Bulgaria has recently joined the EU, it’s still tremendously difficult for a non-Bulgarian to actually work here. If I were a resident of one of the EU countries, things might be moderately easier, but since I am not, I must abide by the myriad rules and regulations that govern the hiring of an American. First hurdle – no more than 10% of any Bulgarian company may be a foreigner. But I really can’t find fault with this as the unemployment rate is fairly high (albeit declining) and, by all rights, a Bulgarian also meeting the needs of the organization should be hired before me. Second hurdle – I do not (yet) speak Bulgarian. I may be qualified in all other respects for a position, but unless the company deals extensively with English speaking clients, or involves actually teaching English, I do not stand a chance. Now, despite this, I’ve found a few companies/schools that are willing – and eager! - to bring me on as an employee, but as it turns out there are third hurdles and fourth hurdles… and also even fifth, sixth and seventh hurdles.

While I can understand the reasoning for the bureaucracy, it doesn’t make it any less aggravating. The biggest thing I am trying to accomplish now is to have my diplomas (both undergraduate and graduate) notarized and affixed with what is known as an Apostille by the Secretaries of State in both Florida (Masters Degree) and Maryland (Bachelors Degree). I had no idea this process even existed, but apparently it is designed to protect, rather than hinder. Luckily my totally awesome Mommy is aiding me enormously in taking care of this. Once that’s done, the documents can be sent to me whereupon I can have them translated into Bulgarian and legalized. Then they must be certified by the relevant Ministries in Sofia. At that point, I can have a school and/or company obtain a work permit on my behalf. The good news is, with a work permit in hand, I can go about obtaining a D-visa which is the gateway to being able to stay here in Bulgaria. But there’s a catch… I cannot get the D-visa here… I have to leave and visit a Bulgarian Embassy outside of the country. This means traveling to Bucharest or Istanbul or Thessaloniki… and probably staying there for the two weeks to a month that it takes to process it. After getting the D-visa, I can finally pursue obtaining my lichna karta (a national identification card required for long-term stay) which means I get to remain in Bulgaria. For little awhile, at least.... until I have to renew it, that is...

But here is yet another challenge. Without that magical lichna karta, I can only spend 90 days out of every six months in Bulgaria. Because these things take time, I’m trying to figure out some sort of a game plan if all of these processes take longer than hoped. I may wind up having to spend a month or two in Israel with my godparents as it’s much cheaper to fly there than the States… but I guess I’ll cross that bridge when I get to it. For now, I’m just trying to enjoy myself without stressing too much about the details… Ryan keeps telling me it will all work out… and I believe he is right (Although I definitely have my moments where I envision myself clinging desperately to a border guard pleading with him to let me hang out in Bulgaria for just a few more years!) At the very least, I’ll get to do some really cool traveling… and I can’t complain about that!

Frustrations notwithstanding, the rest of my stay here has been amazing. Stara Zagora is terrific… and naturally I am thoroughly enjoying spending time with Ryan. In recent weeks I’ve hung out at the Peace Corps Country Directors’ house with some of Ryan's fellow PCVs indulging in arguably the finest chili and guacamole in creation… gone to a Bluegrass concert at a bar in Sofia… engaged in some exceedingly bad bowling (on my part) at Caribi, a super cool disco bowling alley…

...and completed a 10-mile hike through the hills of Stara Zagora with Alex, one of Ryan's site mates...

This afternoon I am going to Kazanluk to meet up with Ryan who is there for his In-Service Training. Also, this upcoming weekend we have a romantic and fun weekend planned in Veliko Turnovo, purportedly one of the most beautiful cities in Bulgaria (and possibly all of Europe).

And the adventure is just beginning. I’ll be heading to Sofia next week for a month to attend class at AVO-3 in my goal of obtaining my CELTA TEFL certification. At the very least it will be both an interesting and intense experience, but with any luck, this will broaden opportunities for me. Keep your fingers crossed! And while they are crossed, as Sofia can be quite a bit colder than Stara Zagora, let’s hope this gorgeous weather holds out!

I'm loving it...

…First - A Public Service Announcement: I had every intention of updating this sooner and more regularly. Truly I did. But as it happens, time (made swift with the excitement of a new experience) has gotten away from me. I do upload pictures fairly frequently, so if you scroll down a bit to click on the Flickr Pics! link on the left hand side or any of the pics here in the blog, it will take you directly to my Flickr account featuring many more photos that are hopefully as interesting for you to view as they have been for me to take. It's also my goal to try to update at least once a week as Bulgaria is a tremendously fascinating place... and if I do my job right, perhaps I will persuade at least a few of you to visit me...

Now onto your regularly scheduled programming…

I left Maryland on December 21 having packed everything I possibly could into two suitcases, a backpack and a laptop case… not a lot of space for what I presume will be two years, but, overall I was pleased. I became slightly less pleased as I trudged my way through the myriad lines and security checkpoints and downright concerned as I waited at the gate for United/Lufthansa to assign me a seat. Apparently the flight was overbooked. For a few anxious minutes, I was worried that I would be left behind, and briefly pondered if pleading my way into the cockpit might be an option… would cleavage work… or would I have to resort to a cash tip? Gosh, maybe if all else failed they could strap me to the wing and provide me with a blanket and an oxygen mask? Perhaps, if I was really lucky, a pillow too?

But all the worrying was for naught because eventually one of the representatives handed me a boarding pass. As it happens, they had even upgraded me free of charge and I excitedly made my way onto the jet ahead of all of the coach passengers feeling oh so rich, undeniably suave and, it must be said, very, very sexy. Until, that is, I arrived at my seat and realized almost instantly I was going to have to work really hard to keep my cool as my first instinct was to jump up and down, grab my cell phone and call everyone I know squealing, “I am in first class! I am IN FIRST CLASS!!” They checked our coats. They gave us champagne and a little dish of warm nuts at take off. They plied us with free wine, green salad, crab salad, filet mignon, potatoes, fresh asparagus, ice cream and a goody bag with warm socks, a toothbrush and one of those sleeping masks. We had even had what amounted to Air Beds with fluffy pillows, extra long blankets and our own private TVs. Later I learned I was actually in Business Class. I can’t even begin to imagine what the First Class passengers had that we didn’t… probably they got to take home, like, Prada handbags, Sony Play Stations or, I don’t know, maybe Plasma screen TVs or something. Regardless, I thus decree this should be my new method of travel forever and ever... provided it is free. I knew I was missing out on something by opting to pursue my career in the nonprofit sector.

Anyway, following a nice (albeit brief) rest and an incredible breakfast of croissants and fresh fruit, we landed in Frankfurt. I have to say I detest this airport. It’s positively sprawling… it took me forever to find a place to buy a water… the bathrooms are super tiny… and people are smoking everywhere. Welcome to Europe! However, my distaste of my layover location was strongly tempered by the knowledge that I was but a two hour flight away from my ultimate destination.

The second flight was not nearly so luxurious… and I had the dreaded middle seat… but I chatted amicably with the two Bulgarians on either side of me and proceeded to get more and more excited as we flew over the Alps. Once we landed, I traversed easily through the passport checkpoint and made my way to find my bags. After watching the same bags circle aimlessly for 45 minutes, presently I realized, unlike me, my suitcases evidently had not made it to Sofia. Given the number of people grumbling unhappily at the luggage carousel, I was not the only one in this predicament. Regrettably I could not find someone who could explain what I needed to do in English, so I fretted and paced and fretted some more hoping that I could somehow spontaneously learn to speak fluent Bulgarian. After about ten minutes of this – and still no miraculous Bulgarian skills gained - I changed some money so I could use the pay phone, but as it turns out – go figure - all of the pay phones are in Cyrillic, so I couldn’t decipher what I was supposed to do or, for that matter, how much I was supposed to pay. I should clarify, I place the blame for this confusion solely on my shoulders. A few months ago I took pains to learn the Cyrillic alphabet and a few important phrases, but under pressure, everything I had learned simply disappeared from my head and I grew more and more agitated. I knew Ryan was waiting for me, but I couldn’t call him to tell him what was going on, nor could I exactly gaily sail on past Customs to tell him in person. To add to my stress, for all I knew some hairy, sweaty, burly man in Frankfurt was now happily sorting through my sweaters and trying on my lingerie.

Swell.

Thankfully, several people who spoke English took pity on me. A young girl of about 12 or so took me by the arm, leading me to the line of people waiting to claim lost luggage and a man kindly let me use his cell phone to inform Ryan that I was here, but was officially immersed in lost luggage hell. Ultimately I was told my suitcases had been left behind in Frankfurt, but that they would deliver them to our hotel at about midnight that evening. Satisfied with this outcome, I made my way through Customs... and through the crowd of people milling about, Ryan stepped forward and gave me a huge smile, hug and kiss. Call it cheesy if you will, but after five months of separation, the reunion absolutely made everything worth it!

We checked in to the Hotel Jasmin, which was excellent, and enjoyed a very nice dinner... not to mention just being with each other. I was so excited so see Ryan… and to actually be in Bulgaria… that I wasn’t even tired. We stayed up as late as possible, catching up, making a valiant (and, as it turns out, successful) effort at helping me avoid jet lag. The next morning, Ryan and I headed to the bus station. It was jam packed and we wound up having to wait about four hours for a bus to Ryan's site in Stara Zagora, so we sat on my suitcases and munched on slices of pizza. The ride from Sofia is quite scenic as you drive past mountains, rivers, small towns and lovely (but bare, given the season) countryside. Additionally, my fears of sharing bus-space with chickens or other domestic animals were completely unfounded; in Bulgaria public transportation is generally clean and, on longer trips, may also include a beverage service and movie.

Since my arrival in Stara Zagora, we have spent a lot of time just hanging out… as well as introducing me to the local establishments. Stara Zagora is a truly beautiful city of about 180,000 people and features Neolithic dwellings, the Roman Forum, an opera house, and numerous outstanding restaurants and bars. Additionally, Ryan lives right off a tree-lined street close to the center of town, making it very convenient. If you click on the videos below, you can catch an idea of what the elevators are like in his building (scary)…

…and his apartment (huge)…

Christmas was wonderful; we spent much of the day just being lazy and opening presents and stockings generously sent courtesy of Santa and Ryan’s mom (Thanks Gloria!) Later we joined Shane, one of Ryan’s site mates, for dinner at Venezia, an Italian restaurant with tasty pizza and cheap wine.

New Years Eve was one for the proverbial record books. A few of Ryan’s friends and fellow Peace Corps Volunteers came to Stara Zagora and we spent some time trying to find an open restaurant. Most, however, were either closed or designated for private (and expensive!) parties, so we wound up grabbing some duners and heading back to Ryan’s apartment. For those of you who are curious, duners are one of my new favorite foods and are composed of a warm pita filled with a spicy yogurt sauce, French fries and rotisserie style chicken or lamb shaved off a spit… similar to a gyro, they are yummy and cheap! Anyway, we came back to Ryan’s apartment and shared some laughs, as well as wine, homemade rakia (Bulgarian moonshine), and a few games of Apples to Apples.

Shortly before midnight we went onto Ryan’s balcony to watch the absolutely amazing fireworks unfold. The most spectacular displays were launched from the roof of the Municipality, but enthusiastic amateur pyrotechnics fired off their own fireworks all around the city so we were presented with a 180 degree show for at least 30 – 40 minutes. The clip below is only a small portion of what we saw. I had to cut out a great deal as I tended to repeat myself over and over again with articulate and enlightened phrases like “Wow!” and “This is incredible!" and "Wow!" and "It's, like, 360 degrees!” and “Sh*t it’s cold!” And, of course, the ever popular "Wow!" Plus a smattering of very creative and emphatic curse words. (It really was very cold). Anyway, in the interest of editorial conservatism, I ended up with what you’ll find below.

After the show ended, we went down to the town center to find live music and everyone dancing the horo. It reminded me very much of Greek dancing and in my inebriated state, I felt certain I could join in… so we grabbed hands with fellow Stara Zagorans and horo we did. It was great fun, although I was hardly Dancing with the Stars material…. as it turns out my memory of the exact steps was somewhat faulty, so a lot of what I did was smile and kick my legs around as I moved in a circle, much less competently I assure you, than the folks in the video below.

Anyway, our night ended with us heading back to Ryan's place to crash. And the fun hasn't ended there... all in all I am having a terrific time here. Trying to get a job is somewhat challenging as I sort out work permits, D visas and long term residency. It is a complicated process, but I feel confident it will all work out. I do have a cell phone, as well as an address to which you can send stuff (if you’re so inclined)… big thanks to Laura and Jessica/Nick who have sent a package and card respectively, so if you’d like to join in with mailing long distance love, send me an e-mail and I’ll give you the info! However, that aforementioned long distance love also comes across quite well via Skype - and that's free, so sign up for an account today so we can chat!

I have quite a bit more I want to share, but this is running obnoxiously long at this point, so for now I will sign off with a hearty "приятна вечер"(pronounced "Priatna Vecher" and meaning, naturally, "Have a Good Evening").