I am absolutely amazed at how full my calendar has been during my first month at site and how quickly the people of Brod have made me a part of their community.
I have attended two performances given by school children. The primary school was in the second week of December and a showcase of prose and music, while the preschool and kinder garden children had a holiday performance complete with jingle bells and presents under the tree on December 30. Santa Claus and lighting of the tree here is associated with New Years and not Christmas. Working as a community development volunteer my presence at the schools is limited. I took the initiative to attend the performance of the primary school alone without invitation, because I felt I am bound to meet parents and teachers from the community.
When I attended the annual dinner with the women’s organization “Luna” I was pleasantly surprised to recognize four ladies from previous encounters. My friend, who had invited me, was unfortunately delayed and couldn't come at all and I went alone to the restaurant. Now my circle of acquaintances’ has grown exponentially. That is how I received the invitation to the performance of the preschoolers.
Earlier in the month, I met with members of the environmental club “Treska” and was invited to a caving expedition, which was canceled due to an unexpected heavy snowfall accompanied by below zero temperatures on the scheduled date. I do have a rain check for the next trip, though.
I was invited to accompany the municipality employees to (1) attend a community forum of needs assessment sponsored by an ngo and (2) a presentation of the Slatinsky Izvor caves in the municipality for which an application for UNESCO World Heritage site was filed in 2004. I look forward to seeing those caves in the next two years.
At the municipality, I started conversational English lessons in order to get to know the employees, which has helped in making for a congenial relationship with everyone. Even though I speak Macedonian haltingly, I am making headway in increasing the content of the conversation and they are starting to share their work projects with me,along with helping me with my language skills, just as I help them with theirs! I have a class daily and sometimes, due to their work schedule repeat the content with the ones who miss the 'class'. When we wee struggling with pronunciation earlier this week, it was real pleasant to hear a peer say, we have two years, ima vreme! Even though I hadn't planned to teach English when I signed up as a volunteer, these classes offer an opportunity for conversation, which will lead to collaborative projects!
To further communication and cultural exchange opportunities, I invited all my coworkers to a Christmas party at my home – sharing our way of a celebration with theirs and with the help of two of my Macedonian friends baked cookies and American style pasta and tomato sauce. It was well received with close to 20 people. My friends and I wrapped the evening in a sing-a-long with my friend’s son playing the guitar and singing both Macedonian and English songs!
Meanwhile, not to ignore my volunteer colleagues, I thoroughly enjoyed Hanukkah in Skopje and loved the girls night out for Boxing Day in Gostivar. I still keep up with my language tutoring and daily walks with my tutor, not to mention the long hikes during the weekends, alone or with friends.
It has been quite a roller coaster life emotionally and there are times I really miss being back home with family, but this choice to work as a volunteer has allowed me to experience and grow in ways that staying in my comfortable cozy environment at home would not have done. So to my nuclear and extended family, a big thank you for your support and encouragement. May the New Year bring you good health and uplifting experiences.
Wednesday, December 30, 2009
Monday, December 14, 2009
Intercity Transportation
In the few months I have been here, I have discovered that the decentralized transportation works.
Every local community has drivers’ who have figured out the needs of their communities. Entry to meet this demand starts with ‘wild taxi’s’. These are unlicensed driver’s with personal cars who ‘hang’ around the main street, often calling out the names of the town they are headed and will drive passengers to their destination in the neighboring villages and towns at the same rate as the fixed bus rate and charge by the passenger. So if you are alone, they may stop and pick up 3 other passengers. In big cities they tend to prey on tourists and charge inflated rates, but in the smaller towns where there are no tourists, like my site, they are okay. The louder they yell for passengers, the more careful a tourist needs to be!
The next step up is the licensed taxi driver, followed by the licensed combi driver. The combi, small minibus’ holding about 6-8 people to larger ones with a capacity of 21-30 people is most efficient. They operate like buses with a fixed schedule based on their knowledge of the needs of their community. For example, in my town the people who go to Skopje on a regular are usually going to shop for the day, maybe for a job related meeting and return at night, as well as students who live in Skopje and return home for the weekends. The journey is not short – 2 plus hours, so the two combi driver’s leave every weekday morning around 5 am and return in the evening, leaving around 4pm. Their mission is to transport people, so they will take people who may not want to all the way to the final destination and drop them along the way. If they have space they will pick up passengers along the way to their final destination.
The combi I took midweek was leaving after a holiday and packed with students. That morning, we doubled up and took on more passengers than there were seats! On the return home there were only 3 of us and I observed he stopped and picked up and dropped passengers along the way, meeting the need of the community in a way a centralized bus service would not be able to administer! So this weekend, when I went to Skopje for Saturday evening, I was able to visit and have lunch in Gostivar (a city about an hour from Skopje and in the same direction as my town) and still return on ‘my combi’ back to Brod, as he made a slight detour from the main highway to pick me up. Truly I feel the priority of the system is to transport people from place to place. If you combine these combi’s with the centralized inter-city bus service, the flexibility gained makes it a very efficient system. It also provides a space for entrepreneurial activity for a public service.
The starting point of this system - the ‘wild taxis’ presents a challenge – as it takes away from the efficiency of the system, and is often exploitative of tourists and newcomers to the community. The centralized system is also not a single bus company and thus you can only buy tickets in the last hour prior to the bus arrival to the station, from which you are departing. This is a new mindset for travelers from countries such as America where, we make plans and reservations way ahead of time, constrained as we are with time commitments. The quality of the intercity buses, combi’s and taxi’s is also a bit of a problem, ranging from modern to ancient equipment, so often the published schedules reflect the timings of those companies with little newer equipment.
As volunteers, we see this side of equation simply as we are given no choice – we are not allowed to drive and don’t have enough money to rent a car for our travels! I have experienced the value of this rule in our slower paced environment.
Every local community has drivers’ who have figured out the needs of their communities. Entry to meet this demand starts with ‘wild taxi’s’. These are unlicensed driver’s with personal cars who ‘hang’ around the main street, often calling out the names of the town they are headed and will drive passengers to their destination in the neighboring villages and towns at the same rate as the fixed bus rate and charge by the passenger. So if you are alone, they may stop and pick up 3 other passengers. In big cities they tend to prey on tourists and charge inflated rates, but in the smaller towns where there are no tourists, like my site, they are okay. The louder they yell for passengers, the more careful a tourist needs to be!
The next step up is the licensed taxi driver, followed by the licensed combi driver. The combi, small minibus’ holding about 6-8 people to larger ones with a capacity of 21-30 people is most efficient. They operate like buses with a fixed schedule based on their knowledge of the needs of their community. For example, in my town the people who go to Skopje on a regular are usually going to shop for the day, maybe for a job related meeting and return at night, as well as students who live in Skopje and return home for the weekends. The journey is not short – 2 plus hours, so the two combi driver’s leave every weekday morning around 5 am and return in the evening, leaving around 4pm. Their mission is to transport people, so they will take people who may not want to all the way to the final destination and drop them along the way. If they have space they will pick up passengers along the way to their final destination.
The combi I took midweek was leaving after a holiday and packed with students. That morning, we doubled up and took on more passengers than there were seats! On the return home there were only 3 of us and I observed he stopped and picked up and dropped passengers along the way, meeting the need of the community in a way a centralized bus service would not be able to administer! So this weekend, when I went to Skopje for Saturday evening, I was able to visit and have lunch in Gostivar (a city about an hour from Skopje and in the same direction as my town) and still return on ‘my combi’ back to Brod, as he made a slight detour from the main highway to pick me up. Truly I feel the priority of the system is to transport people from place to place. If you combine these combi’s with the centralized inter-city bus service, the flexibility gained makes it a very efficient system. It also provides a space for entrepreneurial activity for a public service.
The starting point of this system - the ‘wild taxis’ presents a challenge – as it takes away from the efficiency of the system, and is often exploitative of tourists and newcomers to the community. The centralized system is also not a single bus company and thus you can only buy tickets in the last hour prior to the bus arrival to the station, from which you are departing. This is a new mindset for travelers from countries such as America where, we make plans and reservations way ahead of time, constrained as we are with time commitments. The quality of the intercity buses, combi’s and taxi’s is also a bit of a problem, ranging from modern to ancient equipment, so often the published schedules reflect the timings of those companies with little newer equipment.
As volunteers, we see this side of equation simply as we are given no choice – we are not allowed to drive and don’t have enough money to rent a car for our travels! I have experienced the value of this rule in our slower paced environment.
Jottings
My first two weeks at site has been packed with new impressions of the place and the people! As I started my daily walks immediately, through the section of town that is buzzing with activity – people heading to work and children to their school, my presence in the community is very visible. While doing no more than smile and greet the children in English and the adults in Macedonian, I have become a familiar figure in this short time. Much to my delight, I am often greeted with a smile of recognition during these walks.
This morning, I met one of my personal goals - that people will be able to keep time with my morning walks. This personal goal was based on a book about an English teacher living in Nepal, whose routine was well established in her community. I thought it would be cool to do that, because on days when I don’t feel like going out or am not meeting my walking partner, there will be expectation that I will walk by that particular combi stop at 7 am! So today, when I approached the spot where teachers wait for the combi to take them to primary schools in the neighboring villages, one of them looked at his watch and said, it must be seven to my walking partner!
My time in these first two weeks is packed with learning the ropes of living alone after years of living with the companionship of a husband and children. I buy a small loaf of bread at the bakery, standing in line with the young primary school children and much like them, pointing to the item I will buy that morning –not having enough language to name the items displayed. To date, I have made a big pot of soup, without any starters and was delighted with the outcome. It was my mainstay for a week! I have attempted to make broccoli with cheese sauce and succeeded, but made a mess of a pot of rice! I have yet to get a feel for all that is available and love the Macedonian phrase “ima vreme” (there is time) as it reflects my attitude towards my settling in period.
Meanwhile, I am becoming comfortable at my work site – slowly understanding their work and responsibilities with my limited language. As my co-workers hear me struggle with speaking in Macedonian – mixing up sentence structures with verb conjugation, nouns and expressions, they feel less anxious about their own poor English speaking and vocabulary and have started tentatively responding with a few words that they know! My morning greeting is now “Good Morning” followed by “Dobro Utro”. I have also backed of from having my coffee or tea at home and share that first cup at work. I still have my cereal breakfast before arriving though!
I know it’s only a week, but I have asked that we start English conversation hour twice a week and we start tomorrow! I suspect many of my co-workers have studied English and are nervous about speaking. I was nervous too, of sounding silly, of being judged about my abilities, but after our intensive training before arriving here, some of that nervousness disappeared and there are many phrases in Macedonian that I speak with confidence. So my goal is not so much to “teach a new language – heaven knows I have never taught a language class in my life, but to make everyone comfortable with hearing themselves speak the language they have learned, but lost it because of lack of use. I am nervous too, of leading a conversation hour, having never participated in one that I can model. Cie la vie! We will all learn together.
Meanwhile I have made friends with some community leaders. I attended the “preredbata” – kind of a musical evening at the primary school last Monday. When I heard about it, I figured I should just show up – as it will be filled with parents of the children. It worked – not only did I run into a few parents, who happened to work at the worksite, but also a few other teachers who I know through my visits with my landlady and her friends. Later that night the PCV volunteer teaching at a neighboring village, invited me to the teachers party in town. I was reading a book when her sms reached me. I dropped my reading and walked out the door immediately. We both joined in dancing the traditional ora and had a great time. Now my circle of friends has become bigger and I know the names of many of these teachers, some of whom I see during my morning walk and around town.
I have met a few other community leaders and though I have made two trips to Skopje, midweek for a secondary project and over the weekend to attend a Hanukkah celebration, I am quite content in my new town. The hiking trails and walking playing a big part in my settling down, as it matches my routine back home. There is time enough during my service to really get to know the country was visit the other places that are recommended by the people and the tour guidebooks!
This morning, I met one of my personal goals - that people will be able to keep time with my morning walks. This personal goal was based on a book about an English teacher living in Nepal, whose routine was well established in her community. I thought it would be cool to do that, because on days when I don’t feel like going out or am not meeting my walking partner, there will be expectation that I will walk by that particular combi stop at 7 am! So today, when I approached the spot where teachers wait for the combi to take them to primary schools in the neighboring villages, one of them looked at his watch and said, it must be seven to my walking partner!
My time in these first two weeks is packed with learning the ropes of living alone after years of living with the companionship of a husband and children. I buy a small loaf of bread at the bakery, standing in line with the young primary school children and much like them, pointing to the item I will buy that morning –not having enough language to name the items displayed. To date, I have made a big pot of soup, without any starters and was delighted with the outcome. It was my mainstay for a week! I have attempted to make broccoli with cheese sauce and succeeded, but made a mess of a pot of rice! I have yet to get a feel for all that is available and love the Macedonian phrase “ima vreme” (there is time) as it reflects my attitude towards my settling in period.
Meanwhile, I am becoming comfortable at my work site – slowly understanding their work and responsibilities with my limited language. As my co-workers hear me struggle with speaking in Macedonian – mixing up sentence structures with verb conjugation, nouns and expressions, they feel less anxious about their own poor English speaking and vocabulary and have started tentatively responding with a few words that they know! My morning greeting is now “Good Morning” followed by “Dobro Utro”. I have also backed of from having my coffee or tea at home and share that first cup at work. I still have my cereal breakfast before arriving though!
I know it’s only a week, but I have asked that we start English conversation hour twice a week and we start tomorrow! I suspect many of my co-workers have studied English and are nervous about speaking. I was nervous too, of sounding silly, of being judged about my abilities, but after our intensive training before arriving here, some of that nervousness disappeared and there are many phrases in Macedonian that I speak with confidence. So my goal is not so much to “teach a new language – heaven knows I have never taught a language class in my life, but to make everyone comfortable with hearing themselves speak the language they have learned, but lost it because of lack of use. I am nervous too, of leading a conversation hour, having never participated in one that I can model. Cie la vie! We will all learn together.
Meanwhile I have made friends with some community leaders. I attended the “preredbata” – kind of a musical evening at the primary school last Monday. When I heard about it, I figured I should just show up – as it will be filled with parents of the children. It worked – not only did I run into a few parents, who happened to work at the worksite, but also a few other teachers who I know through my visits with my landlady and her friends. Later that night the PCV volunteer teaching at a neighboring village, invited me to the teachers party in town. I was reading a book when her sms reached me. I dropped my reading and walked out the door immediately. We both joined in dancing the traditional ora and had a great time. Now my circle of friends has become bigger and I know the names of many of these teachers, some of whom I see during my morning walk and around town.
I have met a few other community leaders and though I have made two trips to Skopje, midweek for a secondary project and over the weekend to attend a Hanukkah celebration, I am quite content in my new town. The hiking trails and walking playing a big part in my settling down, as it matches my routine back home. There is time enough during my service to really get to know the country was visit the other places that are recommended by the people and the tour guidebooks!
Sunday, December 6, 2009
First Day at Work
Glorious day for Monday morning! This is the first day at my work site and what better way to start than with my usual morning walk. I returned home at 8 am. After a breakfast of coffee, cereal with flax seeds and dried cranberries, I walked to work. Have I told everyone that work is less than 5 minutes away and I can see the building from the gate of my house? This is the kind of work commute I have dreamed about many times, especially when during my early days of working in downtown Chicago, I had an hour-long commute by train.
The group I sit with were there drinking coffee when I arrived at 8:45am, giving me enough time for socializing and skipping the actual cup of coffee. I had been warned there would be more coffee during the day. I offered chocolates as this was my first day at work and it is a Macedonian tradition to share one’s good fortune with everyone.
After about 15 minutes, I accompanied one of the workers whose job is to record encroachments on the streets and other public spaces in one section of the city. The city is divided into three sections. They walk to and through their areas and I went with the English speaking one who monitors the area that includes the original village before it grew into a city and is the farthest from the office. These streets were paved about 5-6 years ago with the ‘stone-brick’ material and not the usual asphalt we see today, giving it a picturesque look. There are still many homes made of the mixed clay and hay brick with a stone and wood frame construction. The homes are not laid out in the modern geometrical fashion and so offer many fascinating angles to the street.
His job was like officer friendly and he spoke of the encroachments in a neighborly fashion and no resident was given a citation. Some areas had been cleared of the encroachment since his last round. Surprisingly many homes that we crossed had still not demolished the old outhouse structures, though each home is equipped with indoor plumbing. It is my understanding that outhouses are built, understandably during the construction of the home and have to be taken down upon completion. There is no manpower to enforce the demolition and they end up staying as eyesores.
We also stopped for coffee with one of the residents, who had remodeled his house fairly recently with a modern paver stone driveway. His patch of garden, approx 15 square feet, has a little section planted with salad greens. Using twigs and plastic to form a greenhouse, he had enough to sell some heads for cash income. The remainder of his garden was tilled ready for the next crop, with the exception of a corner, also covered with an even smaller greenhouse about 1 sq ft filled with cilantro and/or parsley. Two and half hours later, we stopped at a fresh bakery near the high school on our way back to the office and I picked up fresh bread and some “burek” for lunch. It was a great way to meet many residents of the city, see it with a colleague and observe one of the ways the municipality works.
Afternoon was a little slow and I was a bit tired having walked before work and during work all morning. I spent the remainder of the time at the computer using google translate to read some of the Macedonian documents. We had another “pausa” (break) at 2 pm and soon it was time to go home.
I did some more laundry, sort of with the idea that if I do a little everyday, I will not have a pile of clothes for the weekend. I had to wash my nice pants as they had picked up mud during my walks. Dinner, de facto became left over burek, an apple and a banana topped with a cup of coffee. I spend another hour on language, transferring my scribbles during the day in a coherent fashion in a new notebook I had purchased and preparing for the tutorial for the next day.
The group I sit with were there drinking coffee when I arrived at 8:45am, giving me enough time for socializing and skipping the actual cup of coffee. I had been warned there would be more coffee during the day. I offered chocolates as this was my first day at work and it is a Macedonian tradition to share one’s good fortune with everyone.
After about 15 minutes, I accompanied one of the workers whose job is to record encroachments on the streets and other public spaces in one section of the city. The city is divided into three sections. They walk to and through their areas and I went with the English speaking one who monitors the area that includes the original village before it grew into a city and is the farthest from the office. These streets were paved about 5-6 years ago with the ‘stone-brick’ material and not the usual asphalt we see today, giving it a picturesque look. There are still many homes made of the mixed clay and hay brick with a stone and wood frame construction. The homes are not laid out in the modern geometrical fashion and so offer many fascinating angles to the street.
His job was like officer friendly and he spoke of the encroachments in a neighborly fashion and no resident was given a citation. Some areas had been cleared of the encroachment since his last round. Surprisingly many homes that we crossed had still not demolished the old outhouse structures, though each home is equipped with indoor plumbing. It is my understanding that outhouses are built, understandably during the construction of the home and have to be taken down upon completion. There is no manpower to enforce the demolition and they end up staying as eyesores.
We also stopped for coffee with one of the residents, who had remodeled his house fairly recently with a modern paver stone driveway. His patch of garden, approx 15 square feet, has a little section planted with salad greens. Using twigs and plastic to form a greenhouse, he had enough to sell some heads for cash income. The remainder of his garden was tilled ready for the next crop, with the exception of a corner, also covered with an even smaller greenhouse about 1 sq ft filled with cilantro and/or parsley. Two and half hours later, we stopped at a fresh bakery near the high school on our way back to the office and I picked up fresh bread and some “burek” for lunch. It was a great way to meet many residents of the city, see it with a colleague and observe one of the ways the municipality works.
Afternoon was a little slow and I was a bit tired having walked before work and during work all morning. I spent the remainder of the time at the computer using google translate to read some of the Macedonian documents. We had another “pausa” (break) at 2 pm and soon it was time to go home.
I did some more laundry, sort of with the idea that if I do a little everyday, I will not have a pile of clothes for the weekend. I had to wash my nice pants as they had picked up mud during my walks. Dinner, de facto became left over burek, an apple and a banana topped with a cup of coffee. I spend another hour on language, transferring my scribbles during the day in a coherent fashion in a new notebook I had purchased and preparing for the tutorial for the next day.
Settling In
The following day, Friday November 27, I left my village for my assigned site, settling in as the first Peace Corps volunteer for the local self-government unit in the community. This community however, has had previous volunteers working at the primary schools in the municipality. I was fortunate enough to get a choice between a high-rise building apartment and a single family home with the second floor modified to enable an independent entry and bath and kitchenette. I chose the recommended home. As far as creature comforts go, living in Macedonia is very comfortable, most homes are equipped with many labor saving devices, and have a continuous source of electricity, indoor plumbing and broadband! All I have to figure out is which internet package to subscribe to, a couple of labor saving devices for the kitchen, as it comes with a refrigerator, stove an oven. I am set.
As a PCV, I am still unable to comprehend the necessity of a continuous internet connection. Yes everyone in Macedonia is connected, so it is understandable that it is not a luxury. Though I have my laptop to journal as well as to blog, I decided not to get a connection and spend those evening hours in the community instead of on the internet. Learning to cook for one (just myself) is difficult after raising a family especially as memories of cooking for myself during college and before marriage colored my vision. The first and the easiest item I have settled on is the boiled whole-wheat grain cereal I wrote about earlier – simple, yet a good whole grain bread substitute doubling up as a breakfast cereal. Albeit it takes longer to cook than the cereal in a box, it is far more satisfying and very nutritious. With the availability of a wide array of vegetables, vegetable soup with cabbage as the mainstay is my next choice. Both can be made in quantity, once every few days. I have not yet found whole wheat flour in the local store – may need to pick it up when in Skopje. I hope to make chappatis, poories and paratha on weekends to have with yogurt and other Indian style vegetables.
Shopping will be at the small vendor stands and at the local “prodavnitsa”. There is no word to distinguish between a small neighborhood grocery store with a medium sized store or a supermarket, other than calling it “malo” (small) and “golemo” (big). The main store in town is a medium sized, split-level store grocery, hardware and clothing store. The grocery section is on the main floor and the mezzanine with clothing and household dry goods. Below the mezzanine is a hardware store that also included household appliances, such as stoves, washing machines, refrigerators etc.
Prem’s presence also blunted the shock of living alone and made settling in easy for me. He will know understand my ramblings about my place now that he has seen the beautiful mountainous region my house is in. Friday evening, we not only ate with my landlady, but also met her extended family.
The next day, we walked about and purchased fruits and vegetables and odds and ends not only at the ‘prodavnitsa’ but also at the small neighborhood shops.Gave me an opportunity to introducing myself as a new resident of the town. Though there were big gaps in language, we understand each other and giving a nice feeling of getting along and being welcomed. Along with our purchases we were also offered refreshments at the small shops, reminiscent of shopping in stores in India. Lunch with my colleague was scrumptious with a variety of traditional Macedonian dishes– local trout lightly battered and fried; palachinka (crepes, layered with serenje; burek (flaky pie filled with cheese); sarma (cabbage leaves stuffed with rice and meat); fresh baked white bread; ajvar (pepper-paprika relish) to name a few. Served with home made sour cherry compote and topped with a variety of desserts, including baklava!
Later that evening, we had another round of hospitality at my landlady’s home with freshly baked hot ‘tikva’ a squash similar to pumpkin and used by other volunteers to make pumpkin pie! It was too late in the day for setting up my landline telephone – internet connection so we left it for later. A common expression in Macedonia is “ima vreme” there is time!
Soon it was Sunday and after breakfasting on the whole grain cereal, it was time for Prem to leave! It was only 9:50 am. As he departed by taxi, I left for a walk, because I couldn’t imagine what I’d do alone inside my house! It was a lovely day with blue skies dotted with white clouds. I walked about for 2 hours, across town and finally on an open road to the next village. I greeted everyone, including a few people in their yards or out hanging out the laundry. A couple people knew where I was staying and seeing their faces light up when I said hello made it easier to keep at it, even as I met a few who gave me blank stares.
On my return I washed my clothes for the first time since I came to Macedonia, as my host Mom always took care of laundry back at the village. I have no working washing machine – which is not a problem, yet when my landlady saw me hanging my wet clothes on the line, she insisted that I go down and use her washing machine the next time I wash. Hanging clothes to dry in the sun gives them a nice crisp feel.
At about 2 pm, I met my language tutor and to my delight soon to be walking partner. Both of us need the exercise and just as I need a partner to motivate me to get up, get dressed and go out every day – rain or shine for a walk, so does she. On my return after walking her halfway home, my landlady was waiting for me to take me along to visit her friends. It was a busy Sunday and I am off to bed.
As a PCV, I am still unable to comprehend the necessity of a continuous internet connection. Yes everyone in Macedonia is connected, so it is understandable that it is not a luxury. Though I have my laptop to journal as well as to blog, I decided not to get a connection and spend those evening hours in the community instead of on the internet. Learning to cook for one (just myself) is difficult after raising a family especially as memories of cooking for myself during college and before marriage colored my vision. The first and the easiest item I have settled on is the boiled whole-wheat grain cereal I wrote about earlier – simple, yet a good whole grain bread substitute doubling up as a breakfast cereal. Albeit it takes longer to cook than the cereal in a box, it is far more satisfying and very nutritious. With the availability of a wide array of vegetables, vegetable soup with cabbage as the mainstay is my next choice. Both can be made in quantity, once every few days. I have not yet found whole wheat flour in the local store – may need to pick it up when in Skopje. I hope to make chappatis, poories and paratha on weekends to have with yogurt and other Indian style vegetables.
Shopping will be at the small vendor stands and at the local “prodavnitsa”. There is no word to distinguish between a small neighborhood grocery store with a medium sized store or a supermarket, other than calling it “malo” (small) and “golemo” (big). The main store in town is a medium sized, split-level store grocery, hardware and clothing store. The grocery section is on the main floor and the mezzanine with clothing and household dry goods. Below the mezzanine is a hardware store that also included household appliances, such as stoves, washing machines, refrigerators etc.
Prem’s presence also blunted the shock of living alone and made settling in easy for me. He will know understand my ramblings about my place now that he has seen the beautiful mountainous region my house is in. Friday evening, we not only ate with my landlady, but also met her extended family.
The next day, we walked about and purchased fruits and vegetables and odds and ends not only at the ‘prodavnitsa’ but also at the small neighborhood shops.Gave me an opportunity to introducing myself as a new resident of the town. Though there were big gaps in language, we understand each other and giving a nice feeling of getting along and being welcomed. Along with our purchases we were also offered refreshments at the small shops, reminiscent of shopping in stores in India. Lunch with my colleague was scrumptious with a variety of traditional Macedonian dishes– local trout lightly battered and fried; palachinka (crepes, layered with serenje; burek (flaky pie filled with cheese); sarma (cabbage leaves stuffed with rice and meat); fresh baked white bread; ajvar (pepper-paprika relish) to name a few. Served with home made sour cherry compote and topped with a variety of desserts, including baklava!
Later that evening, we had another round of hospitality at my landlady’s home with freshly baked hot ‘tikva’ a squash similar to pumpkin and used by other volunteers to make pumpkin pie! It was too late in the day for setting up my landline telephone – internet connection so we left it for later. A common expression in Macedonia is “ima vreme” there is time!
Soon it was Sunday and after breakfasting on the whole grain cereal, it was time for Prem to leave! It was only 9:50 am. As he departed by taxi, I left for a walk, because I couldn’t imagine what I’d do alone inside my house! It was a lovely day with blue skies dotted with white clouds. I walked about for 2 hours, across town and finally on an open road to the next village. I greeted everyone, including a few people in their yards or out hanging out the laundry. A couple people knew where I was staying and seeing their faces light up when I said hello made it easier to keep at it, even as I met a few who gave me blank stares.
On my return I washed my clothes for the first time since I came to Macedonia, as my host Mom always took care of laundry back at the village. I have no working washing machine – which is not a problem, yet when my landlady saw me hanging my wet clothes on the line, she insisted that I go down and use her washing machine the next time I wash. Hanging clothes to dry in the sun gives them a nice crisp feel.
At about 2 pm, I met my language tutor and to my delight soon to be walking partner. Both of us need the exercise and just as I need a partner to motivate me to get up, get dressed and go out every day – rain or shine for a walk, so does she. On my return after walking her halfway home, my landlady was waiting for me to take me along to visit her friends. It was a busy Sunday and I am off to bed.
Tuesday, December 1, 2009
Becoming a Volunteer
Though I left home on September 12, I was officially sworn in as a Peace Corps Volunteer on Thanksgiving Day. I was an invitee from the time I was given an assignment, then became a trainee when I left home for Washington and only now on completion of language and culture training, I took the oath to become a volunteer.
Swearing in for our group coincided with Thanksgiving Day and to our delight we were blessed with a turkey dinner, complete with stuffing brought to us from stateside. Our host country families with our help, were responsible for the other offerings at the table – a true meaning of thanksgiving between the Macedonian and American people. My family took “shopska salata” a salad made with a mix of tomatoes, cucumbers, small macedonian onions and peppers, salt, and oil and the mix topped with “serenje” a local cheese.
The location of the ceremony was a banquet hall in a small village on the other side of Kumanovo, the city closest to our training site. During training, the staff arranged transportation and as our group of volunteers was scheduled to leave home almost 2 hrs before the start of the program, my family decided not to come with the group, but later in time for the ceremony. It worked out for the best, as everything has so far because “mojot soprug” (my husband) Prem was here in Macedonia to witness this memorable moment and join in the Thanksgiving meal.
It was a wonderful day, sunny and not too cold and the banquet hall was very elegant from the inside. The tables were laid out by the name of the training site and with the head table facing the stage – which was just an open area. Just before the start of the ceremony we, the volunteers, were assembled in single file along the stairway down to the main floor. After the arrival of the PC Country Director and his guests, the American Ambassador and the Macedonian Minister of Education, we walked in a single file into the room towards the front and sat down in alphabetical order, at an angle to the stage and the head table, facing the room.
The program started with the singing the two national anthems and after some speeches, we took the oath, that was followed by a more speeches, including a thank you given by two volunteers, one in Macedonian and the other in Albanian language. We filed out, again in a line and received our PCV certificates from our individual language and cultural training facilitator.
The meal was not as orderly as the first part of the ceremony, but that too was okay. Our table had enterprising families, bringing in “rakia” “vino” and “hot peppers”. The hot peppers a contribution from my family who like them as much as we do.
After dinner, the six training groups presented a 5-minute thank you to the families and pre-service training staff, many groups using slideshows, including our group. I also had written a poem and here are the first two verses.
“We are but passing ships in the night –
A bright star * guides us from the darkness to the light.
Mired in an unknown stony bay
Learning a language to steer us away.
Seven souls with no common plans –
Reaching out for an end; now in sight,
Leaving behind those helping hands
With sadness clouding the light.
After dancing and merry-making, we were done and on our way to our sites!
Swearing in for our group coincided with Thanksgiving Day and to our delight we were blessed with a turkey dinner, complete with stuffing brought to us from stateside. Our host country families with our help, were responsible for the other offerings at the table – a true meaning of thanksgiving between the Macedonian and American people. My family took “shopska salata” a salad made with a mix of tomatoes, cucumbers, small macedonian onions and peppers, salt, and oil and the mix topped with “serenje” a local cheese.
The location of the ceremony was a banquet hall in a small village on the other side of Kumanovo, the city closest to our training site. During training, the staff arranged transportation and as our group of volunteers was scheduled to leave home almost 2 hrs before the start of the program, my family decided not to come with the group, but later in time for the ceremony. It worked out for the best, as everything has so far because “mojot soprug” (my husband) Prem was here in Macedonia to witness this memorable moment and join in the Thanksgiving meal.
It was a wonderful day, sunny and not too cold and the banquet hall was very elegant from the inside. The tables were laid out by the name of the training site and with the head table facing the stage – which was just an open area. Just before the start of the ceremony we, the volunteers, were assembled in single file along the stairway down to the main floor. After the arrival of the PC Country Director and his guests, the American Ambassador and the Macedonian Minister of Education, we walked in a single file into the room towards the front and sat down in alphabetical order, at an angle to the stage and the head table, facing the room.
The program started with the singing the two national anthems and after some speeches, we took the oath, that was followed by a more speeches, including a thank you given by two volunteers, one in Macedonian and the other in Albanian language. We filed out, again in a line and received our PCV certificates from our individual language and cultural training facilitator.
The meal was not as orderly as the first part of the ceremony, but that too was okay. Our table had enterprising families, bringing in “rakia” “vino” and “hot peppers”. The hot peppers a contribution from my family who like them as much as we do.
After dinner, the six training groups presented a 5-minute thank you to the families and pre-service training staff, many groups using slideshows, including our group. I also had written a poem and here are the first two verses.
“We are but passing ships in the night –
A bright star * guides us from the darkness to the light.
Mired in an unknown stony bay
Learning a language to steer us away.
Seven souls with no common plans –
Reaching out for an end; now in sight,
Leaving behind those helping hands
With sadness clouding the light.
After dancing and merry-making, we were done and on our way to our sites!
Tuesday, November 24, 2009
Winding Down
Two years from now, these first few weeks in Macedonia may just be a blip in our memories, as the focus changes from learning coping skills, including language, cultural nuances, family and community building, etc. This afternoon we had our formal oral language assessment and the next three working days will be filled with typical end of year time filling activities.
Before arriving here I had vague notions of what was to be expected of me and what was it that I will contribute. This acclimatization period accomplished far more and in greater depth than one would imagine, while at the same time meeting two of the three goals of the Peace Corps. One, bringing about an understanding of what an American is, divorced from the image presented on television and two, bringing about an understanding of Macedonian family life that I have shared with you. Learning to speak the language, which is really a reflection of the culture of the people is one of the more important ways in my opinion, to learn a culture. Certain words and the structure of sentences show indirectly of the evolution of the society and on which emotions and nouns it puts its emphasis.
I had written about Slava in an earlier post, but this weekend most of the families in our community have been preparing special dishes and getting ready for the most popular Slava this evening weekend -starting on Friday and ending on Sunday. Helping my family make some of the ‘sweet table’ dishes brings with it a sense of belonging and loss. Over the course of 9 weeks, we have established a functional comfortable rhythm in our daily movements. This time next week, living in my own space will be a loss of this rhythm and an opportunity to create a new one.
Travelogue
My visit three weeks ago to the city, which I will call home for two years, triggered the lifting of a cloud, unbeknown to my conscious self. This sense of freedom opened an opportunity to see new places in the country and I tapped into it to travel and visit cities during the last two weekends.
Albeit small, Macedonia is varied and diverse and as I was travelling alone, it was both challenging and invigorating to take these two trips. Of course along the way and at my destinations, I met fellow volunteers and their host families, experiencing this variety and diversity in lifestyle as well as the topography of these cities.
Skopje, the capital is located in the valley of the River Vardar, which is a visitor itself, coming from the mountains without Macedonia in the northwest and flowing into its southern neighbor before reaching the sea.
The first day I travelled on a morning train, reaching Skopje when the shops were still shuttered and the city had a drowsy, mellow look. The central city plaza, on the south bank of the river and its well-known landmark – the Stone Bridge is a short 5-minute walk from the new train/bus station. Small roads radiate south of the plaza and the kilometer long wide pedestrian walkway all the way to the old train station (now a museum) is one of them. This is an outdoor living museum is flanked by upscale shopping reminding me of city centers in paces as diverse as Barcelona and Glasgow. The memorial honoring Mother Teresa, a Skopje born philanthropist revered in Calcutta where she worked with the poorest of the poor for the greater part of the 20th century, as well as works of newer artists and their works are scattered on both sides of the walkway.
I reached my next and final destination for the weekend by bus, crossing a wide plain covered with farmland. As soon as we came near another much smaller mountain range, not more than ½ hour by bus, I was in Sveti Nikole, named after its patron saint. This city is much smaller than Veles yet urban and sophisticated. The center and the nearby bazaar charmed me. I stayed it what I presume was a newer part of the town as the houses were neatly laid out in a geometric grid as much as a hilly topography will allow. The perimeter of the garden was enclosed with fences, some stone & some brick unlike many homes back home where the green lawns between the homes flow into each other.
The next weekend, I made my way to another city, Kratovo. Whereas the city itself was a collection of tightly clustered homes ranging in age and upkeep and also built on the banks of a narrow river gorge, the surrounding hills captured my imagination. I hiked with a friend for the major part of the day on a trail and discovered the remnants of a camp fire in a meadow. This was a regular hiking trail, where the hikers had packed out their debris! The stream closeby was uncluttered with plastic, quite different from what happened to it as it reached the city. Later that day we celebrated the Slava with her family and stepped out for a night walk to discover a midnight black sky glowing with stars. there was no city light wash to dilute the brilliance. The following morning, before returning to my village we took a trip to a monument known as the ‘Stone Dolls’. Fascinating lava rock formation, which reminded me of the solid ash pillars outside Crater National Park in Oregon. Whereas, those still stand 200 and more feet in a sheltered valley, these older formations have been eroded forming shapes reminiscent of a wedding – a bride and groom at the altar surrounded by guests. The monument was obviously a source of pride for the community as it was well maintained with stone walkways, elegant wooden benches and a area for tourists to picnic - complete with picnic tables and trash collections bins.
Sunday, November 8, 2009
Slava
It’s been a while since I wrote down anything and now two posts in a row!
Yesterday I attended a Slava at a friend’s house. This is Macedonian custom celebrated once every year. Families in this neighborhood, on completion of the building of the family home, open the bible at random and take from the opened page the name of the saint. This family holds dear St Demetrius as their patron. They have an open house in their home every year on this day, serving no meat or dairy products, only the bounty of their farmland.
Yesterday I attended a Slava at a friend’s house. This is Macedonian custom celebrated once every year. Families in this neighborhood, on completion of the building of the family home, open the bible at random and take from the opened page the name of the saint. This family holds dear St Demetrius as their patron. They have an open house in their home every year on this day, serving no meat or dairy products, only the bounty of their farmland.
Yet in Rebecca West’s book about Yugoslavia, first published in the late 1930’s ‘Black Lamb and Grey Falcon’ she writes when she attends one such celebration in Ohrid “I was also enchanted at the opportunity of seeing a Slava (the word means ‘Holy’), which is a distinctive social custom of the Serbs. It looks like a birthday on a very generous scale: all day the family keeps open house and offers food and drink and amiability to all friends and acquaintances and even passing strangers. But it is an inherited date, which never varies from generation to generation, and it is said to be the anniversary of the day on which the ancestor of the family who first forsook his paganism received baptism. This is plausible”.
As time goes on, I am sure I will be offered more meanings for why Slava is celebrated, as I recall that one was being celebrated later this month at my new site and one at another volunteers site
Bits and Pieces
At most of the family dinners that I have been invited to in the villages, the dinner plate is roughly about 7” in diameter compared to the larger American dinner plates, which start at about 8 1/2”. This size plate of plate is what we once used as a breakfast plate, later becoming a side plate accompanying the larger dinner plates. This size of plate has virtually disappeared in American homes for daily meals. The first few times I was invited out, it seemed at first, that the family eats out of a common dish, but after a few months I see that they actually take little bits of serving in their small plates. The celebration meal is therefore eaten over an extended period of time especially as no one item is taken all at once. Maybe for everyday meals they do eat out of the common dish, eliminating the need for the individual plates, much as we eat more informally with only the family present. I have had eaten from a communal dish in other cultures, which are truly eaten out of a common platter.
However, as a guest I not only spend time a lot of my free time with the family but with limited language skills of each other’s languages, food acts as a filler for conversation. There is erroneous assumption by my friends in the US that all PC volunteers lose weight. Here in this farming community, this is not so and I am out of shape and my dream about getting placement at a site close to either an indoor pool/gym or a fitness center, which I could use on a regular basis remains a dream as my site is a small municipality struggling to make itself attractive for its younger residents to stay.
Transportation by road and train is worth mentioning. Trains here are quite an experience – ranging from one was built more in style of the BritRail - seats with rigid high backs, facing each other, with two seats on each side of the aisle to the closed compartment with the corridor running along one side. Upkeep is also varied, more on the lack of upkeep, but as our village is connected by train to Skopje it is very convenient and we have travelled often by train. Most intercity buses look like regular Greyhound buses, though like trains the upkeep is varied. Even though intercity transport is entirely private, the bus stations are maintained by the central government. Rates are uniformly set. My trip to my future worksite was a combination of both forms of transport and with similar range of upkeep, including an intercity bus that had a city bus interior!
The volunteer community here is very cohesive and because we are in a small country, there are more opportunities to meet each other. During my first trip to Skopje for the welcome to the country get-together organized solely by the volunteers, the welcome started off with a speed dating concept – two concentric circles with the newer volunteers in the inner circle and the established volunteers outside, spending a minute or two with each other, after which the outer circle moved one spot over. I felt real warm and fuzzy, when many of the currently serving volunteers welcomed me to Macedonia, remembering me in spirit if not personally from a year ago. For so many years Halloween to me was spent decorating the house, carving pumpkins and setting out candy as well as making and costumes. I would wear my favorite black and white skeleton costume at the last minute! This year I was ‘Doc’, one of the seven dwarfs accompanying snowhite and had the added pleasure of purchasing and sewing the caps for the group at the get together organized by the training staff during the day and by the volunteers after hours!
Thus, not only is our scheduled time full and intense, the ‘after school’ activities as mentioned above, don’t allow my overloaded mind to fully comprehend and reflect on the many cultural experiences as and when they happen. Sometimes, I wonder if I will ever have the often talked about free time. I do want to write about the 'industry' that has grown around International Aid or Development. After learning some of the jargon in a workshop last month; the importance of separating the overarching goal of the NGO from its objectives: which should follow S.M.A.R.T. specific, measurable, achievable, realistic and timely guidelines to meet those goals, matrices, etc., I have observed that it is not only developing its own language, but is creating a set of expectations among both: the people who receive the aid, and the people who work in this field!
However, as a guest I not only spend time a lot of my free time with the family but with limited language skills of each other’s languages, food acts as a filler for conversation. There is erroneous assumption by my friends in the US that all PC volunteers lose weight. Here in this farming community, this is not so and I am out of shape and my dream about getting placement at a site close to either an indoor pool/gym or a fitness center, which I could use on a regular basis remains a dream as my site is a small municipality struggling to make itself attractive for its younger residents to stay.
Transportation by road and train is worth mentioning. Trains here are quite an experience – ranging from one was built more in style of the BritRail - seats with rigid high backs, facing each other, with two seats on each side of the aisle to the closed compartment with the corridor running along one side. Upkeep is also varied, more on the lack of upkeep, but as our village is connected by train to Skopje it is very convenient and we have travelled often by train. Most intercity buses look like regular Greyhound buses, though like trains the upkeep is varied. Even though intercity transport is entirely private, the bus stations are maintained by the central government. Rates are uniformly set. My trip to my future worksite was a combination of both forms of transport and with similar range of upkeep, including an intercity bus that had a city bus interior!
The volunteer community here is very cohesive and because we are in a small country, there are more opportunities to meet each other. During my first trip to Skopje for the welcome to the country get-together organized solely by the volunteers, the welcome started off with a speed dating concept – two concentric circles with the newer volunteers in the inner circle and the established volunteers outside, spending a minute or two with each other, after which the outer circle moved one spot over. I felt real warm and fuzzy, when many of the currently serving volunteers welcomed me to Macedonia, remembering me in spirit if not personally from a year ago. For so many years Halloween to me was spent decorating the house, carving pumpkins and setting out candy as well as making and costumes. I would wear my favorite black and white skeleton costume at the last minute! This year I was ‘Doc’, one of the seven dwarfs accompanying snowhite and had the added pleasure of purchasing and sewing the caps for the group at the get together organized by the training staff during the day and by the volunteers after hours!
Thus, not only is our scheduled time full and intense, the ‘after school’ activities as mentioned above, don’t allow my overloaded mind to fully comprehend and reflect on the many cultural experiences as and when they happen. Sometimes, I wonder if I will ever have the often talked about free time. I do want to write about the 'industry' that has grown around International Aid or Development. After learning some of the jargon in a workshop last month; the importance of separating the overarching goal of the NGO from its objectives: which should follow S.M.A.R.T. specific, measurable, achievable, realistic and timely guidelines to meet those goals, matrices, etc., I have observed that it is not only developing its own language, but is creating a set of expectations among both: the people who receive the aid, and the people who work in this field!
Sunday, October 25, 2009
Village Weddings
I woke up to a wet, cold grey sky feeling a little down as I had chosen not to visit one of the larger more established touristic cities with some of the other volunteers. I went downstairs to the sounds of host mom’s friend’s voice to find that she had come for a favor – to shorten the trouser length that her son, was to wear at a village wedding this afternoon. I enthusiastically accepted her invitation to go and watch the wedding.
It was early afternoon and raining and cold before we made our way through rivulets of water, mixed with silt and mud, gingerly stepping on stones and /or broken asphalt on the many angled roads to the groom’s house on the north end of town. After standing around for quite a few minutes in the rain it made more sense to go directly to the bride’s house near the church as the groom and his family were going to drive down. There was no one else there but us. At the bride’s house we would have opportunity to see the bride and groom just before they made their way to the church and some of the festivities. I felt a bit awkward at first standing among the women and children, either just inside the yard taking shelter from the rain under the awning of the garage and or storeroom or just outside the gates with our umbrellas. However, I was soon to share my umbrella with another women, who was getting wet and I loved the way she grabbed my arm with glee proud of her ‘Americanka’ friend in the rain! The village children were also there and came up a few times to say hello. When I could understand a word or two, it appeared to mirror what happens at many weddings – gossip about the many young people in attendance!
We stood for about half hour just watching the male guests come out of the second floor of the house to help themselves to beer from a chest on the covered terrace. I was able to ask one young man about the corsage on his left lapel and was informed that unmarried men from the groom’s family sported a corsage on the left lapel, whereas the married men were identified with the corsage on the right.
Since, I had no idea what was happening inside while I tried to keep myself as dry as I could under the shared umbrella, I was glad when the three-man band – with an accordion, a sax and percussion/drum, started the music. The drum was elliptical, slung around the neck of the musician who beat on what looked like an 8-10 surface with his fingers! It took the family about 15-20 minutes to descend from the second floor of the house with their arms laden with gifts/trousseau/dowry of the bride, which was packed in the waiting cars. At the foot of the steps, they started the ora-traditional dance with the rich baritone of the accordionist singing wedding songs. The bride came down led by her young brother and joined the dance, only after everyone else in the family wedding party was dancing. As soon as she started her descent, a man started firing shots in the air from a long barreled rifle soon joined by another man firing pistol shots! I am quite sure a young woman borrowed that pistol to fire a shot! After circling twice doing the ora, the bride delicately stepped towards the fancy white Land Rover all dressed up to take the couple to the village church for the wedding ceremony.
Seeing no point in standing outside the church, we stopped at the ‘prodavnitsca’ more like the village seven-eleven for a tasty treat – chocolate rice crispy treats, followed by a visit to another friend’s home close by. This was the silver lining to the grey clouds that greeted me in the morning.
It was early afternoon and raining and cold before we made our way through rivulets of water, mixed with silt and mud, gingerly stepping on stones and /or broken asphalt on the many angled roads to the groom’s house on the north end of town. After standing around for quite a few minutes in the rain it made more sense to go directly to the bride’s house near the church as the groom and his family were going to drive down. There was no one else there but us. At the bride’s house we would have opportunity to see the bride and groom just before they made their way to the church and some of the festivities. I felt a bit awkward at first standing among the women and children, either just inside the yard taking shelter from the rain under the awning of the garage and or storeroom or just outside the gates with our umbrellas. However, I was soon to share my umbrella with another women, who was getting wet and I loved the way she grabbed my arm with glee proud of her ‘Americanka’ friend in the rain! The village children were also there and came up a few times to say hello. When I could understand a word or two, it appeared to mirror what happens at many weddings – gossip about the many young people in attendance!
We stood for about half hour just watching the male guests come out of the second floor of the house to help themselves to beer from a chest on the covered terrace. I was able to ask one young man about the corsage on his left lapel and was informed that unmarried men from the groom’s family sported a corsage on the left lapel, whereas the married men were identified with the corsage on the right.
Since, I had no idea what was happening inside while I tried to keep myself as dry as I could under the shared umbrella, I was glad when the three-man band – with an accordion, a sax and percussion/drum, started the music. The drum was elliptical, slung around the neck of the musician who beat on what looked like an 8-10 surface with his fingers! It took the family about 15-20 minutes to descend from the second floor of the house with their arms laden with gifts/trousseau/dowry of the bride, which was packed in the waiting cars. At the foot of the steps, they started the ora-traditional dance with the rich baritone of the accordionist singing wedding songs. The bride came down led by her young brother and joined the dance, only after everyone else in the family wedding party was dancing. As soon as she started her descent, a man started firing shots in the air from a long barreled rifle soon joined by another man firing pistol shots! I am quite sure a young woman borrowed that pistol to fire a shot! After circling twice doing the ora, the bride delicately stepped towards the fancy white Land Rover all dressed up to take the couple to the village church for the wedding ceremony.
Seeing no point in standing outside the church, we stopped at the ‘prodavnitsca’ more like the village seven-eleven for a tasty treat – chocolate rice crispy treats, followed by a visit to another friend’s home close by. This was the silver lining to the grey clouds that greeted me in the morning.
Pioneer Days
While it is not surprising that wood is still used in many Macedonian villages to heat homes made essentially with concrete or slate blocks covered with a mortar-based plaster, modernized new stoves still used this form of fuel.
These stoves are approx 4x3 feet and the top is a steel hot plate with a hinged cover. When closed and covered with a pretty lace cloth, such as the one in my home it becomes a buffet and a place to keep the fruit bowl, my language books, vitamins, etc. The oven and the drawer beneath which served as additional storage for kitchen items is set to one side with two adjacent small 10”x10” compartments stacked one on top of the other. An exposed 5” sheet metal pipe cut into the side of the oven opposite the stacked small compartments vents the stove to the outside. Vents are ingeniously hidden behind ‘drywall’ back home. The top small compartment was used to burn the wood, and since the source of the heat is one side and the hot air escapes from the opposite side the entire surface of the hot plate is heated. I also presume the hot plate is not uniform is thickness or material as the heating is on side which had a small escape hole directly above the source of the heat to dissipate some heat. The large pot for slow cooking such as unpasteurized cow’s milk, sits on the far end and other cooking takes place on the hotter side.
It is a remarkable device, very 21st century in some ways and very traditional at the same time as it allows for cooking the ‘old’ fashioned way as well as a ‘modern’ oven, performing the dual functions of a cook stove and a heater for the home. This was used when the nearby mountains had a snowfall and temperatures dropped rapidly in the homes in the village. The electric space heater was put away while this took its place.
The appliance reminded me of Pioneer Days, when we taught the 3rd graders in school how a hundred tears ago women washed clothes using washboards and cooked in big kettles over a wood-burning wood stove that also served to heat the rooms in winter.
Even though I didn’t have enough vocabulary it was about this time that I asked why the bread was being made from refined white flour and not whole wheat. Whether we understood each other or not, I am not sure, but it was heartwarming to see Mom bring out a big bowl of whole-wheat grain. Pleasant thoughts of homemade whole wheat bread crossed my mind as we proceeded to clean the chaff from the grain. When I was about to toss the chaff and other contaminants we had picked out, they were mixed back into the remaining grain in the bowl. We were going to be served the clean grain, while the birds; ducks, chicken, pheasant, quail and the peacock got the leftovers!
I was quite sure she would produce a hand-mill to grind the grain from among her belongings and we will be making bread from the grain. However, that didn’t happen, but I learned something new. The whole-wheat grain was cleaned and boiled for over an hour on this stove – much more efficient that using the electric stove and served it with sugar – homemade cereal! May we have many more moments such as these! I now have whole-wheat cereal as an alternative to store bought cereal for breakfast. It also tastes better vastly better than wheat germ that we add to cereal.
These stoves are approx 4x3 feet and the top is a steel hot plate with a hinged cover. When closed and covered with a pretty lace cloth, such as the one in my home it becomes a buffet and a place to keep the fruit bowl, my language books, vitamins, etc. The oven and the drawer beneath which served as additional storage for kitchen items is set to one side with two adjacent small 10”x10” compartments stacked one on top of the other. An exposed 5” sheet metal pipe cut into the side of the oven opposite the stacked small compartments vents the stove to the outside. Vents are ingeniously hidden behind ‘drywall’ back home. The top small compartment was used to burn the wood, and since the source of the heat is one side and the hot air escapes from the opposite side the entire surface of the hot plate is heated. I also presume the hot plate is not uniform is thickness or material as the heating is on side which had a small escape hole directly above the source of the heat to dissipate some heat. The large pot for slow cooking such as unpasteurized cow’s milk, sits on the far end and other cooking takes place on the hotter side.
It is a remarkable device, very 21st century in some ways and very traditional at the same time as it allows for cooking the ‘old’ fashioned way as well as a ‘modern’ oven, performing the dual functions of a cook stove and a heater for the home. This was used when the nearby mountains had a snowfall and temperatures dropped rapidly in the homes in the village. The electric space heater was put away while this took its place.
The appliance reminded me of Pioneer Days, when we taught the 3rd graders in school how a hundred tears ago women washed clothes using washboards and cooked in big kettles over a wood-burning wood stove that also served to heat the rooms in winter.
Even though I didn’t have enough vocabulary it was about this time that I asked why the bread was being made from refined white flour and not whole wheat. Whether we understood each other or not, I am not sure, but it was heartwarming to see Mom bring out a big bowl of whole-wheat grain. Pleasant thoughts of homemade whole wheat bread crossed my mind as we proceeded to clean the chaff from the grain. When I was about to toss the chaff and other contaminants we had picked out, they were mixed back into the remaining grain in the bowl. We were going to be served the clean grain, while the birds; ducks, chicken, pheasant, quail and the peacock got the leftovers!
I was quite sure she would produce a hand-mill to grind the grain from among her belongings and we will be making bread from the grain. However, that didn’t happen, but I learned something new. The whole-wheat grain was cleaned and boiled for over an hour on this stove – much more efficient that using the electric stove and served it with sugar – homemade cereal! May we have many more moments such as these! I now have whole-wheat cereal as an alternative to store bought cereal for breakfast. It also tastes better vastly better than wheat germ that we add to cereal.
Friday, October 16, 2009
Toshe Proeski
Today is also a very special day for all Macedonians and it's diverse communities. They still remember that tragic day two years ago when they lost -Toshe Proeski a singer and pop star in a tragic car accident at the age of 26. He was an overnight sensation when he released his debut album in 1999 -" HeKade Bo Hokta" (Somewhere in the Night). Everyone loved him not only for his beautiful melody and songs but also because he was one of the rare persons who dedicated their talent and lives to help others and at the same time representing Macedonia, it's people and culture in its best light through songs. You should download and listen to him.
This week also gave us a taste of what to expect for winter. It was one miserable Tuesday this week. The sky was overcast - the wind whistling and whining through the windows bringing in the cold air from the mountain a little west of us, which were covered with snow. Time to bring out those winter garments. Yet at the same time, the mountain views are awesome and like a picture postcard real good to look at but not so much fun to live in without the right gear. I have started dressing in layers, put away my dress shoes for sturdy boots and the ever ready raincoat to ward of the rain. Ughh!The classroom remains pleasantly warm with the heater, so it is easy to forget the cold air outside, though the metal screen keeps rattling. The lessons this week were a little difficult, as we have started on future and past tense. Though it has made present tense feel and sound easy in contrast.
Even cold days have a bright side! With the windy days I don’t feel guilty picking up one or two walnuts fallen from the trees the night before. I have done this only on the way out as my host family has a container full of them inside. I enjoy using a random stone from the path to crack open the walnut just picked up with the seed cover barely fallen off. It had never ever crossed my mind that I will be living in an area where the black walnut trees are so abundant, that no one here has a “plantation” of trees, ready to be made into a cash crop or cares a lot about fallen walnuts. One or two trees per family take care of their yearly needs and more. One evening, my host mom crushed two cups of walnuts in a 21st century plastic mill most likely made in China. She made a batter with eggs, sugar, sunflower oil, a packet of baking powder, some water and approx 3 cups of flour with a pinch of salt. No measuring cups were used. She mixed in the walnuts and poured it in a large lightly greased and floured pie pan – the same pan used to make the traditional “burek”. She added handfuls of the apple-peach-pear-plum marmalade (made last month) to the batter – not mixing it, just left it to sink in some spots and baked the mix for approx 15 minutes! When she served this moist walnut cake-like bread for supper, I could not resist that extra piece or two I had watched carefully and hope to recreate many of these dishes without using recipes and measuring cups and spoons.
Though I promise myself I will not talk about food, it is inevitable that as long I live with a family and don’t cook myself, I have a lot to say about the meals. After a long day of class and site visits, it is so welcoming to walk into the parlor to find it heated with a space heater and my lunch. One day it was fried local fish (much like lake Michigan whitefish in taste but only 7-8 inches long), slices of lightly battered and fried eggplant, fresh tomatoes and cucumber salad. A slice of freshly baked bread finished the meal, with a dessert of fresh sliced apple.
When the sun is up and the day is at it’s warmest, I like walking about the many village streets. I have yet to find one that is not a cul-de-sac or that disappears into the field. None appear to connect to others, so one can walk in a grid like or criss-cross pattern. Each one comes down to the main street. This must be true of all villages nestled in valleys as this one it. From the main road these side streets look so inviting so I just take the plunge going up and down – often running into people I know, who don’t seem to understand what I am doing walking randomly up and down. This week I came across my first totally abandoned property – the main house had only one wall standing, ravaged by the changing seasons. One could make out the outline of what might have been the fire hearth. The house was made of stone and clay. On that same street up a couple of houses up stood a newer structure with a beautiful green lawn and what were riotous flower beds that the previous night’s frost had killed the plants, turning them black. I wonder if it is owned by the same family…..?????
Mother
Today is Mom’s birthday and this blog is dedicated to her memory. It is been a year since you left us a few days after celebrating your 92!
Mother is such a special word and exploited by so much sentimental writing, so I write this in simple words and as a mother myself.
Motherhood is one role, albeit an important one in the life of a woman. A mother is also the young girl with dreams; a young woman with aspirations; a woman with the responsibilities; a woman who may choose to raise a family with or without a career, a woman who is often a wife. Mother is a woman’s nurturing side, a role that often reshapes her view of life around her and may cause her to push aside her aspirations to meet the needs of those who depend on her – children, husband, parents and the community. Sometimes she is pushed into a role not of her own choosing.
Mom, I know you best in your role as a mother and...........I remember your use of prayer to help ease your burdens of day-to-day trials and tribulations, many of which may have been caused by my own behavior........... I remember you never starting the preparation of a dish without a Wahe-Guru! Your unwavering faith is a source of strength for your family today..........I remember that day when we lived in Kanpur and I biked to school. I was tired and took a nap in the afternoon. I remember getting ready and looking for me to get my breakfast and lunch box, which you always had ready for us before school and I found you sitting and chatting with neighbors on the verandah. You did not laugh like the others as you realized at once I had confused dawn with dusk!Today I am grateful for our morning walks two years ago among the flowers of the park, with the dew barely dry from the early morning rays........I remember your delight seeing the paragliders’ practicing their jumps and the billowing brightly colored ballooning fabric like large butterflies in the blue sky..........I remember your love of the view of the mountains and the brightly colored bougainvillea’s in many hues.........I remember your willingness to exercise your arms and legs even as you sat in your wheelchair, inspiring so many other people so much younger than you out for their morning walks.
I most certainly got my love of the outdoors from you.
I remember your other roles when listening to you sharing stories among your siblings, cousins and peers. When you shared your memories with your sister in law in my hearing two years ago, I learnt about the young woman with aspirations before becoming a mother. The light in both your eyes accompanied by the laughter is now a part of my memories of you.
Your love of the poets Shelley and Coleridge and Shakespeare always came through in the letters you wrote. Finding and reading the romance books you read before becoming a mother bespoke of the young girl with dreams!
When I decided to leave home to go half way across the world to follow my own dreams, you never stopped me, just encouraged me. Today your granddaughters span the continents, following their dreams and aspirations giving credence to the saying “educate a woman and you educate the world”. Look at me now; here I am in Macedonia achieving a 45 year old aspiration from my childhood! Credit for this lies directly at your feet.Saturday, October 10, 2009
The First Month
Can’t believe that one-month has gone by since our arrival!
This Friday, I had my formal first language assessment at the conclusion of 48 hours of language classes, plus 8 hours of review. Even though not the most advanced student, I realized that I can (even though I am not fluent) comfortably speak in Macedonian at a very elementary level, when meeting and greeting people and the accompanying social chitchat: such as asking about each others family, where they live and work, what to eat and drink and thank them for their hospitality on a visit. I can recite the alphabet and know numbers, occasionally drawing a complete blank. I also know all the primary colors, dozens of fruits and vegetables, days of the week, months and can tell time in Macedonian. I am already using simple sentence construction with about 10 of the most common verbs. Of course it is so easy in class as we all speak slowly, the real test will come when I can do all this with the general population. Meanwhile this evaluation is a big boost to my confidence and when, every once in a villager will slow down to say hello and ask a few questions I can answer!
I also started and then stopped counting after I reached 200, the number of new Macedonian words, including nouns, verbs, adverbs, adjectives and prepositions, etc. I have learned. I knew theoretically that immersion is the best way to learn a new language, and now I have experienced it and it works! I just don’t get to switch from Macedonian to English after class, so I repeat aloud many of the words to my family and we laugh till I get it right! Sometimes I remember those words and sometimes I still forget them!
A couple of nights when I was wide-awake I wished I had the wireless gadget for a true wireless internet connection (w-adsl), which I understand is available in Macedonia. My walk around allowance is not enough to pay for such a luxury item. Dreams are free, of course and I have plenty of time on the weekends to think about these things!
Rummaging in the PC medical kit when I had a cold accompanied with fever and chills last weekend, I saw and used for the first time one-time use flat thermometers to check my fever. I am planning not to get sick again so I can bring them home for a show and tell. This kit is so well stocked that though I called the doctor, I did not have to travel from my site to get any medication. I was in bed for almost 3 days and though I am back to my normal routine during the day, I don’t go back out after returning home and miss playing soccer with the kids.
For the time being, I am quite content with exploring the paths surrounding the village over the weekend, often walking for an hour or two. The air still feels unpolluted, though in the evening one can see many trash fires. The modern plastic wrapping is ubiquitous and coupled with the rigid packaging of products finds its way in the remotest of places, where there is no infrastructure for proper disposal. It is dumped or burned, polluting the planet either way.
This Friday, I had my formal first language assessment at the conclusion of 48 hours of language classes, plus 8 hours of review. Even though not the most advanced student, I realized that I can (even though I am not fluent) comfortably speak in Macedonian at a very elementary level, when meeting and greeting people and the accompanying social chitchat: such as asking about each others family, where they live and work, what to eat and drink and thank them for their hospitality on a visit. I can recite the alphabet and know numbers, occasionally drawing a complete blank. I also know all the primary colors, dozens of fruits and vegetables, days of the week, months and can tell time in Macedonian. I am already using simple sentence construction with about 10 of the most common verbs. Of course it is so easy in class as we all speak slowly, the real test will come when I can do all this with the general population. Meanwhile this evaluation is a big boost to my confidence and when, every once in a villager will slow down to say hello and ask a few questions I can answer!
I also started and then stopped counting after I reached 200, the number of new Macedonian words, including nouns, verbs, adverbs, adjectives and prepositions, etc. I have learned. I knew theoretically that immersion is the best way to learn a new language, and now I have experienced it and it works! I just don’t get to switch from Macedonian to English after class, so I repeat aloud many of the words to my family and we laugh till I get it right! Sometimes I remember those words and sometimes I still forget them!
A couple of nights when I was wide-awake I wished I had the wireless gadget for a true wireless internet connection (w-adsl), which I understand is available in Macedonia. My walk around allowance is not enough to pay for such a luxury item. Dreams are free, of course and I have plenty of time on the weekends to think about these things!
Rummaging in the PC medical kit when I had a cold accompanied with fever and chills last weekend, I saw and used for the first time one-time use flat thermometers to check my fever. I am planning not to get sick again so I can bring them home for a show and tell. This kit is so well stocked that though I called the doctor, I did not have to travel from my site to get any medication. I was in bed for almost 3 days and though I am back to my normal routine during the day, I don’t go back out after returning home and miss playing soccer with the kids.
For the time being, I am quite content with exploring the paths surrounding the village over the weekend, often walking for an hour or two. The air still feels unpolluted, though in the evening one can see many trash fires. The modern plastic wrapping is ubiquitous and coupled with the rigid packaging of products finds its way in the remotest of places, where there is no infrastructure for proper disposal. It is dumped or burned, polluting the planet either way.
Sunday, October 4, 2009
Cops, fever and food
This blog covers a period of a week and is not necessarily in chronological order, as the greater part of the week was spent on training, training and more training! Language classes, field visits for technical training, history and politics of the region! Add to this mix language homework and there is very little free time.
It is absolutely amazing to me how a brisk walk outside has a way of uplifting one’s spirits. When I woke up to an overcast sky on Saturday morning after a night of continuous rain that continued into most of the day. I felt quite lethargic as I had a scratchy throat and the start of a cold. So at first I didn’t want to step outside at all.
I do walk in the rain back home so I did go out, adequately clad against inclement weather with a pair of warm pants and jacket, boots and a raincoat.
I set out on the main road up a steady incline covering approximately one mile. On my way up I encountered a black dog and when I didn’t stop or show any fear, he just turned around and went back into his yard. I was on a public road and he had wandered out of his yard! On my way back, the police car that I had seen making it’s way towards the village was stopped and the two policemen were busy stopping cars speeding towards the village. On close inspection, there appeared to be a hand held radar detector that was laying on top of the hood, while they were engaged in conversation with the drivers of the three stopped cars. I would’ve missed all this excitement had I stayed indoors!
By this time the rain had stopped but the clouds still lay across the hills and farther away the mountains, like grey necklaces. Closer the fields had the fresh washed look, the greens, browns and yellow hues blending in at random with haystacks (actually they are made up of corn stalks). I really knew nothing about this part of the world till I was given the option to come here as a volunteer. The little reading I did was more to do with historical perspective and never really spoke of how nature has made this place a combination of harsh stony rocky environment mixed with fertile soil set in rolling hills with extremes of temperatures! I have yet to see most of this country and yet it is already tugging at my heartstrings during my walks!
My recent adventure at the local bank to withdraw money was funny. Since, I couldn’t use the ATM as I had kept my PIN number documents in such a safe place that I couldn’t find it readily, I stopped by the main bank. The teller spoke enough English to let me know it will not be a problem to withdraw money without the PIN. However, after a lot of keystrokes at his computer he tells me in officious sounding words that my registration wasn’t complete, and proceeded to pass my passport and debit card to a personal banker. At this time, all my Macedonian deserted me and I could only converse in English. I really didn’t need the money that moment anyway! Fortunately, a colleague rescued me. I had better find that PIN number if I ever needed any money!
My host family coddle me when my tongue twists and I have trouble with conjugations, verbs and nouns. Age is a great leveler in understanding culture and value, especially in this situation. Last week when the father asked me to make coffee for his guests (the mother was in the backyard finishing up making her aivar), just saying ‘Happie’ and ‘café’, I understood at once, without elaborate sentences! My host mother understands me enough and helps me by articulating the correct way to say it back to me and I repeat it back till it sounds right! With a mix of pantomime and picking up objects, I was able to convey to her that with the fever and cold that I was nursing over the weekend, the heater in the room would draw all the moisture out and will make my coughing worse. We found a way to increase the humidity by placing a pan of water next to the heater, something I remember doing as a graduate student!
More on Macedonian food! One of the host families in our village is an excellent cook. We had heard so much about her food that word got back to her and she invited all of us to her home for rucheck (lunch). She served a salad with roasted (?) pickled (?) sliced eggplant marinated in olive oil, garlic, parsley, salt, on a plate with marinated cucumbers and pickled peppers. They were so delicious that I had 2 additional helpings. Other items were moussaka, a potato salad dressed with tomatoes, grilled chicken and meat kabobs (meat, onions, and?), freshly made apple pie (pita e yabonka). There were baskets of fresh bread, plain and filled and aivar that seems to accompany every table at this time of the year in this region.
I bet I haven’t tasted the full variety of foods of Macedonia! All this was followed by the generosity of her neighbor who had us over for coffee right after the meal and in addition to more apple pie; she served crepes filled with mixed fruit jam sprinkled with powdered sugar similar to the crepes served in France!
It is absolutely amazing to me how a brisk walk outside has a way of uplifting one’s spirits. When I woke up to an overcast sky on Saturday morning after a night of continuous rain that continued into most of the day. I felt quite lethargic as I had a scratchy throat and the start of a cold. So at first I didn’t want to step outside at all.
I do walk in the rain back home so I did go out, adequately clad against inclement weather with a pair of warm pants and jacket, boots and a raincoat.
I set out on the main road up a steady incline covering approximately one mile. On my way up I encountered a black dog and when I didn’t stop or show any fear, he just turned around and went back into his yard. I was on a public road and he had wandered out of his yard! On my way back, the police car that I had seen making it’s way towards the village was stopped and the two policemen were busy stopping cars speeding towards the village. On close inspection, there appeared to be a hand held radar detector that was laying on top of the hood, while they were engaged in conversation with the drivers of the three stopped cars. I would’ve missed all this excitement had I stayed indoors!
By this time the rain had stopped but the clouds still lay across the hills and farther away the mountains, like grey necklaces. Closer the fields had the fresh washed look, the greens, browns and yellow hues blending in at random with haystacks (actually they are made up of corn stalks). I really knew nothing about this part of the world till I was given the option to come here as a volunteer. The little reading I did was more to do with historical perspective and never really spoke of how nature has made this place a combination of harsh stony rocky environment mixed with fertile soil set in rolling hills with extremes of temperatures! I have yet to see most of this country and yet it is already tugging at my heartstrings during my walks!
My recent adventure at the local bank to withdraw money was funny. Since, I couldn’t use the ATM as I had kept my PIN number documents in such a safe place that I couldn’t find it readily, I stopped by the main bank. The teller spoke enough English to let me know it will not be a problem to withdraw money without the PIN. However, after a lot of keystrokes at his computer he tells me in officious sounding words that my registration wasn’t complete, and proceeded to pass my passport and debit card to a personal banker. At this time, all my Macedonian deserted me and I could only converse in English. I really didn’t need the money that moment anyway! Fortunately, a colleague rescued me. I had better find that PIN number if I ever needed any money!
My host family coddle me when my tongue twists and I have trouble with conjugations, verbs and nouns. Age is a great leveler in understanding culture and value, especially in this situation. Last week when the father asked me to make coffee for his guests (the mother was in the backyard finishing up making her aivar), just saying ‘Happie’ and ‘café’, I understood at once, without elaborate sentences! My host mother understands me enough and helps me by articulating the correct way to say it back to me and I repeat it back till it sounds right! With a mix of pantomime and picking up objects, I was able to convey to her that with the fever and cold that I was nursing over the weekend, the heater in the room would draw all the moisture out and will make my coughing worse. We found a way to increase the humidity by placing a pan of water next to the heater, something I remember doing as a graduate student!
More on Macedonian food! One of the host families in our village is an excellent cook. We had heard so much about her food that word got back to her and she invited all of us to her home for rucheck (lunch). She served a salad with roasted (?) pickled (?) sliced eggplant marinated in olive oil, garlic, parsley, salt, on a plate with marinated cucumbers and pickled peppers. They were so delicious that I had 2 additional helpings. Other items were moussaka, a potato salad dressed with tomatoes, grilled chicken and meat kabobs (meat, onions, and?), freshly made apple pie (pita e yabonka). There were baskets of fresh bread, plain and filled and aivar that seems to accompany every table at this time of the year in this region.
I bet I haven’t tasted the full variety of foods of Macedonia! All this was followed by the generosity of her neighbor who had us over for coffee right after the meal and in addition to more apple pie; she served crepes filled with mixed fruit jam sprinkled with powdered sugar similar to the crepes served in France!
Sunday, September 27, 2009
Remembering home
One evening, around 6 pm I headed towards the fields east of the village for my walk. I met many villagers’ working in the field or herding sheep home. I went east, and then turned north to link up to a farm road I had been on. I had to cut across some fields in order to do that. Meanwhile it had became dark and though I made my way home, it became a source of concern to those who had spotted me that I did not return back the same way! The next day I tried the opposite direction in the afternoon, in broad daylight. The hill to the west is much higher and one can see about 4 villages in the distance. If I was a painter I would like to capture this vista on a canvas with the red tiled roofs seen at a distance and the rough stony farm road at my feet. I think I will make this my daily route. I wish I could send you a picture but a photograph with my amateur camera will not capture the essence of the place.
The local bus service between the village and the city appears to be private, as there is no uniformity among the buses. Neither are the buses painted with firm name nor are there signs at bus stops. A single wooden bench or a wave of the hand along the route will stop the bus. The price though is fixed at 20 denari’s from this village to the city center, a distance of approximately 5 km. These buses are called “combi’s. They are extended minivans with most of them having 3 rows of seats. One combi owner had modified a sliding door in a garage type operation to hinge it adjacent to the front door. One could see the work of the mechanic, as no attempt had been made to finish it for cosmetic reasons.
I went with the family in the combi to the city over the weekend. This is the same place where we will be having our site visits. As wew are expected to use public transportation or the combi for travels during our training, I now know the pick up and drop off points, as well as an orientation to the city center from the village. The hotel we stayed at last week was northeast to the city center, while the village is more south, southwest. Going to the center was like going to a familiar place. Visiting the green market, reminded me of a flea market, with open stalls. There did not appear to be any bargaining being done, as many vendors had rough had written signs on stiff brown cardboard atop the vegetables. I spotted, cucumbers, carrots, eggplant, leeks, cauliflower, spinach, cabbage and dill pickles along with the staples, like potatoes, onions, garlic as well as the dried white bean. Flat leaf parsley was the only spice. I remembered the fennel growing by the wayside and in some home gardens near the hotel, but there was none at the market, neither did I see any basil, though in one of the gardens in the village, the family has planted a couple of basil plants. From this, I venture to guess salt, parsley and peppers are the common flavorings used. We ventured in a regular grocery store to pick up butter and yogurt – along with the usual meats and cheese that my family favors.
The feeling of being far away from home is settling in my gut as I am unsettled by constantly reaching for my dictionary or notes to compose simple sentences!
There are four trainees in our CD group, with one living with a family in another village. I am fortunate that my partner is in this village, so in addition to reviewing our homework assignment made available to us in electronic form, we were able to spend a few minutes Saturday morning preparing for our practicum; site visits to two different organizations on Monday and Tuesday afternoon. Our assignment is to focus on the physical & human resources, as well as the sustainability and funding aspects of the organization. After each team visits each of the 2 ngo’s and one municipality twice, a total of 6 site visits, we will be able to put all the information we have gathered together for a written a case study featuring these 3 organizations. The case study is to be presented to the big group mid way through training. My surmise is that this practical experience is designed not only to dispel some anxiety of actually working with an organization after the conclusion of training, but also to expose us to the culture of these three organizations, which in the future may be selected as a PCV site based on the information collected.
Back to my Macedonian adventure! Today my breakfast (loosely translated as poyadok) consisted of boiled fresh quail & chicken eggs, diced tomatoes picked just before serving and bread and marmalade (made on Monday with apples, pears, peaches and plums) with some coffee. If only this could continue…….it will change when I’m in an apartment, so I am making the most of it. Lunch, which sounds like ‘rucheck’ in Macedonian is often was a meal of Maedonian peppers cooked with eggs (a ratio of about 10 peppers to one egg), white cheese and sliced tomatoes. Dinner is usually fruit, currently grapes are in season, and bread with aivar. Cold cuts and yellow cheese is always set out, but is optional. Last night they served honeydew and a locally grown watermelon from the farm of one of the relatives!The local bus service between the village and the city appears to be private, as there is no uniformity among the buses. Neither are the buses painted with firm name nor are there signs at bus stops. A single wooden bench or a wave of the hand along the route will stop the bus. The price though is fixed at 20 denari’s from this village to the city center, a distance of approximately 5 km. These buses are called “combi’s. They are extended minivans with most of them having 3 rows of seats. One combi owner had modified a sliding door in a garage type operation to hinge it adjacent to the front door. One could see the work of the mechanic, as no attempt had been made to finish it for cosmetic reasons.
I went with the family in the combi to the city over the weekend. This is the same place where we will be having our site visits. As wew are expected to use public transportation or the combi for travels during our training, I now know the pick up and drop off points, as well as an orientation to the city center from the village. The hotel we stayed at last week was northeast to the city center, while the village is more south, southwest. Going to the center was like going to a familiar place. Visiting the green market, reminded me of a flea market, with open stalls. There did not appear to be any bargaining being done, as many vendors had rough had written signs on stiff brown cardboard atop the vegetables. I spotted, cucumbers, carrots, eggplant, leeks, cauliflower, spinach, cabbage and dill pickles along with the staples, like potatoes, onions, garlic as well as the dried white bean. Flat leaf parsley was the only spice. I remembered the fennel growing by the wayside and in some home gardens near the hotel, but there was none at the market, neither did I see any basil, though in one of the gardens in the village, the family has planted a couple of basil plants. From this, I venture to guess salt, parsley and peppers are the common flavorings used. We ventured in a regular grocery store to pick up butter and yogurt – along with the usual meats and cheese that my family favors.
The feeling of being far away from home is settling in my gut as I am unsettled by constantly reaching for my dictionary or notes to compose simple sentences!
Friday, September 25, 2009
Impressions
Life is quite busy in the village for my family – certainly not at the leisurely pace that I heard is quite the norm here. On Monday, after spending so much of her day making Aivar the day before, not to speak of the big meal of the day with everything handpicked and cooked in different spaces in the house, she started on a apple, pear, plum and peach marmalade, which filled 10 8” jars! Every fruit, but the plum was handpicked in her garden, then washed, peeled, grated in preparation for the cooking. I am truly sorry that I was in class while all this activity took place, as I had truly enjoyed participating in making the traditional Aivar.
In addition to all these time consuming, labor intensive farm activities, taking up a PC trainee in their home, with very clear cut instructions to what is to be provided – especially the meals is humbling. I am truly pampered by the running hot water and an indoor western style toilet and their total attention to meeting my needs and comfort.
However, when I was ready to leave home for class at 7:45 am, everyone was sleeping and as the kitchen cum living room cum dining room also served as sleeping quarters, I skipped breakfast. I was hungry when I returned at about 12:30 pm and found no one at home. Fortunately, I had been given a key to the house and let myself in and made myself a meal of bread, salt and Macedonian peppers with some fig preserves, which her friend had brought the first night I was here! She was mortified and yet it was an incident that cleared the air a bit. It had not bothered me that no one was at home and though I had been puzzled when I was given the key, I realized that not only are they busy but sometimes when they are in the backyard, the front door is locked (for my security?). My actions made it clear in a way no words could, that I did not expect to be waited on or that they need to worry about what I would eat –my choice of the traditional bread and salt saved the day.
In the evening about 5:30 pm, as I was studying at the kitchen table, I learned that one of the two exotic birds flew the coop and they were going to set out to search for it. I did not join the search as my priority has remained focused on learning the language and I am not familiar with the village as yet and it was late evening. The dusk turns rapidly to night and they didn’t need me getting lost or tripping somewhere in the dark. They managed to find it and secure it in the coop, after an intensive search.
In addition to all these time consuming, labor intensive farm activities, taking up a PC trainee in their home, with very clear cut instructions to what is to be provided – especially the meals is humbling. I am truly pampered by the running hot water and an indoor western style toilet and their total attention to meeting my needs and comfort.
However, when I was ready to leave home for class at 7:45 am, everyone was sleeping and as the kitchen cum living room cum dining room also served as sleeping quarters, I skipped breakfast. I was hungry when I returned at about 12:30 pm and found no one at home. Fortunately, I had been given a key to the house and let myself in and made myself a meal of bread, salt and Macedonian peppers with some fig preserves, which her friend had brought the first night I was here! She was mortified and yet it was an incident that cleared the air a bit. It had not bothered me that no one was at home and though I had been puzzled when I was given the key, I realized that not only are they busy but sometimes when they are in the backyard, the front door is locked (for my security?). My actions made it clear in a way no words could, that I did not expect to be waited on or that they need to worry about what I would eat –my choice of the traditional bread and salt saved the day.
In the evening about 5:30 pm, as I was studying at the kitchen table, I learned that one of the two exotic birds flew the coop and they were going to set out to search for it. I did not join the search as my priority has remained focused on learning the language and I am not familiar with the village as yet and it was late evening. The dusk turns rapidly to night and they didn’t need me getting lost or tripping somewhere in the dark. They managed to find it and secure it in the coop, after an intensive search.
Classes are fast paced and each one of us was asked to share 2 new Macedonian words with everyone. Writing them down is becoming a little easier, though I still mix up the letters and the sounds – for example the sound of English B is bat but in Macedonian it is vat; an X in English is an H and P in English is R in Macedonian and so on. In order to keep it clear in my mind, I have cut out little one-inch squares of paper and written down the Macedonian alphabet. I mix them up and then sing along as I sort them in order – it certainly made it a little easier to find the words in the dictionary and is helping me with the sounds at the same time.
In the afternoon, we split into our two main sections TEFL (Teaching English as a Foreign Language) and CD (Community Development). TEFL volunteers’ met at a site outside our village while the CD section met at this village. TCL trainers brought all our material on a computer, which was loaded on the 2-gig flash drives that were issued to each one of us last week!
Later, I walked around the village with sis to get a little perspective and become familiar with the neighborhood - it is a mixed Albanian and Macedonian community. The streets have no names, per se and people just know who lives where – not unlike a village in Punjab, India! I have roughly mapped the area with points of interest like the post office, about 4 of the few village markets, the mosque and church, the village school, our own little schoolhouse and the homes of the volunteers! It has made me feel more settled in as I am oriented not only to the location of the village but also where it sits in relation to a north south orientation as well as Skopje and our training site of Kumanovo.
The village school has been rebuilt a couple of years ago with an EU grant from the Norwegian government. It is built on the grounds of the old school, which has not been torn down with the material hauled off to a landfill. It remains on the property in a ruined state and I feel it is a hazard, as it seems to me that it will be a magnet for a place to “escape” or “hide”.
We also stopped at a home of a family friend, whose front yard was torn up to lay a new water line. All the digging was being done by picks and spades and I spotted a concrete mixer, so I presume they would rebuild it reusing some of the material. Later I joined in playing a spontaneous game of football with the young village kids on a rough (thorny) and grassy field. It was fun and soon there was enough of a crowd that gathered to watch the Americans play with the kids.
Sunday, September 20, 2009
Settling In
Saturday morning we assembled at our site and with our LCF, spend the day visiting each other’s homes. It was a leisurely walk around the village, giving us a familiarity with the environs, sampling the hospitality – lots of coffee, along with juice and water as an alternative, homemade pies as well as fresh fruit namely – figs, apples and grapes from their gardens. Our families are very patient with us as we spend a lot of time writing down the spoken word in Macedonian in our little notebooks or paper that we are carrying around. This is a spontaneous activity, and re-writing many of these words at night has not quite doubled my vocabulary, but has made me so comfortable in greeting others. When we arrived at my house, my host was still away registering my passport at the police station, as a temporary resident. I will have to do this myself when I reach my assigned site. I am expected to carry my passport whenever I am not in the village – exempt from this only in the village or town that I am registered.
After a rainstorm, I headed back to my home while the others made their way to the internet café – I was lucky that my family had a laptop connected to the internet. Having missed the lunch hour, I ate my second proper meal at around 6 pm and that was it for me. Again a traditional rice and meat dish, which was really tasty, with a cabbage and carrot salad and beans mashed and refried in tomatoes! Later, I helped Mom (she is younger to me) clean 3 ducks from their menagerie, which I am guessing will be our meat next week.
There were no scheduled activities on Sunday – the day for personal stuff like washing clothes in the washing machine and hanging them up to dry, washing my long hair – I think shorter will be the way to go, as so much of it fell out during shampooing. Mom made yeast white bread dough and I helped pat and shape some of it for frying and she prepared 4 loaves with the remainder of the dough for baking. After a late breakfast at 10:30 am, the outdoor wood grill was lighted and the red peppers were first washed and then roasted – the first step in making Aivar, a Macedonian sauce/condiment. I would guess it was approximately a bushel, yet it would barely make about 5 bottles. Each pepper was turned over by hand and collected in polythene bags and then individually peeled, and deseeded - a pretty long process, which took up the major part of the afternoon. Most of the food we are eating is from the garden – including the meat! Sheep, calf, chickens, the remaining 5 ducks, pigeons and the exotic birds – peacock and a couple of brilliant dominant yellow plumed birds, needed to be guarded, so each home has a dog. Here is a picture of a Macedonian Shepherd.
Meeting my Family
Friday lunch is over and we are asked to wait upstairs for the host families to arrive. A welcome poster is prepared each of us signs our names in Macedonian. After making sure the volunteers going to three specific sites have water distiller kits recommended for these sites, we wait for the host families to arrive and assemble downstairs. Cards games, phone number exchanges, last minute packing create a palpable atmosphere of anxiety mixed with excitement.
Soon I find myself trailing behind the others, hanging onto my slip of paper with the clue in case I get tongue-tied. There is pandemonium in the big hall, yet somehow I am able to find my host without any problem. She is there with her teenage daughter with such a welcoming, yet nervous smile. I try out all the phrases we learned, so few (about 4 to 5) that the conversation was largely conducted with smiles and nods! After refreshments and some entertainment in which we all joined in dancing a traditional folk dance, my host joins me in bringing my two big suitcases, two backpacks, water distiller box and a bag with two pairs of shoes (which I just couldn’t stuff back into my suitcase) down the stairs to load up the car and leave.
It is a short 20-minute drive to the village of about 6000 inhabitants south of Kumanovo, nestled in the a valley. Leaving the main road, which cuts through the center of the village, up a fairly steep hill off the narrow main road, just wide enough for the car, we turn right and I see my new home for the next 10 weeks. The rains have all but washed away the asphalt leaving a heavily rutted track from the main road to their property! A two storied home with a balcony and the entrance up a few steps, we park under a black walnut tree filled with nuts. There are chickens running about the yard and I believe they have a peacock, birds and a couple of farm animals that I don’t see from the front yard.
It is a common custom to remove your shoes by the door, as it is farming community, no different than leaving our snow boots by the front door in Chicago! I leave my shoes in the rectangular entrance hallway that has two washing machines and a bathroom at one end. This hallway also functions as an airlock. The inner hallway divides the house in two, with the living/dining/kitchen to the right and a workroom on the left. Straight up are stairs leading to the backyard at the mezzanine level and the bedrooms on either side of the landing. It is a hillside home.
My new sister, who came to pick me up is in 8th grade has given up her room for me. It is has a large picture window facing a south-easterly direction, towards the main road, but I cannot see it at all as it is obscured by trees. Short evergreen firs and pine as well as fruit trees. The apple, figs, pears and black walnut are laden with fruit. My room has a sofa bed, a table with two chairs, a book shelf with a 2 shelf cabinet for storage, a low 3 drawer dresser, a tall mirrored dressing table area and my very own TV (which I probably will never turn on, possibly breaking an American stereotype). Some posters remained on the wall to which I added family pictures! This will be my space for the next ten weeks – perfect as the bathroom downstairs is fitted with a western style toilet.
We spend next 4-6 hours settling in, including unpacking and sharing a traditional lunch – of bean stew with bread and Macedonian peppers dipped in salt between each bite – finger hot’s which are not really hot but give such a nice flavor to the meal. When friends come visiting, she brings freshly prepared whole fig preserves and I sample everything that is served including lots of Turkish style coffee! The coffee is served in small cups and though we have lots, the amount in 3 cups here in my village, is about one tall Starbucks. Though it has not been easy to have a back and forth conversation, I have surprised myself that I remember so many words and expressions already. I used mime together with a mixture of copying words from the dictionary (thoughtfully provided by PST staff) stringing nouns together, while my hosts were enunciating the words slowly, pointing and using mime to enable me to follow. My new sister speaks enough English to help out. Pantomime is more effective for personal needs and quite difficult when talking about work and life back home.
I manage to convey my love of walking so later we walk around the village for a bit before dark. As with all hilly towns, dusk turns to night very quickly! Supper consists of cold cuts and cheese, bread and fruit and I settle for some chai (tea). It is green tea and I have found the best alternative to the coffee drinking culture!
Soon I find myself trailing behind the others, hanging onto my slip of paper with the clue in case I get tongue-tied. There is pandemonium in the big hall, yet somehow I am able to find my host without any problem. She is there with her teenage daughter with such a welcoming, yet nervous smile. I try out all the phrases we learned, so few (about 4 to 5) that the conversation was largely conducted with smiles and nods! After refreshments and some entertainment in which we all joined in dancing a traditional folk dance, my host joins me in bringing my two big suitcases, two backpacks, water distiller box and a bag with two pairs of shoes (which I just couldn’t stuff back into my suitcase) down the stairs to load up the car and leave.
It is a short 20-minute drive to the village of about 6000 inhabitants south of Kumanovo, nestled in the a valley. Leaving the main road, which cuts through the center of the village, up a fairly steep hill off the narrow main road, just wide enough for the car, we turn right and I see my new home for the next 10 weeks. The rains have all but washed away the asphalt leaving a heavily rutted track from the main road to their property! A two storied home with a balcony and the entrance up a few steps, we park under a black walnut tree filled with nuts. There are chickens running about the yard and I believe they have a peacock, birds and a couple of farm animals that I don’t see from the front yard.
It is a common custom to remove your shoes by the door, as it is farming community, no different than leaving our snow boots by the front door in Chicago! I leave my shoes in the rectangular entrance hallway that has two washing machines and a bathroom at one end. This hallway also functions as an airlock. The inner hallway divides the house in two, with the living/dining/kitchen to the right and a workroom on the left. Straight up are stairs leading to the backyard at the mezzanine level and the bedrooms on either side of the landing. It is a hillside home.
My new sister, who came to pick me up is in 8th grade has given up her room for me. It is has a large picture window facing a south-easterly direction, towards the main road, but I cannot see it at all as it is obscured by trees. Short evergreen firs and pine as well as fruit trees. The apple, figs, pears and black walnut are laden with fruit. My room has a sofa bed, a table with two chairs, a book shelf with a 2 shelf cabinet for storage, a low 3 drawer dresser, a tall mirrored dressing table area and my very own TV (which I probably will never turn on, possibly breaking an American stereotype). Some posters remained on the wall to which I added family pictures! This will be my space for the next ten weeks – perfect as the bathroom downstairs is fitted with a western style toilet.
We spend next 4-6 hours settling in, including unpacking and sharing a traditional lunch – of bean stew with bread and Macedonian peppers dipped in salt between each bite – finger hot’s which are not really hot but give such a nice flavor to the meal. When friends come visiting, she brings freshly prepared whole fig preserves and I sample everything that is served including lots of Turkish style coffee! The coffee is served in small cups and though we have lots, the amount in 3 cups here in my village, is about one tall Starbucks. Though it has not been easy to have a back and forth conversation, I have surprised myself that I remember so many words and expressions already. I used mime together with a mixture of copying words from the dictionary (thoughtfully provided by PST staff) stringing nouns together, while my hosts were enunciating the words slowly, pointing and using mime to enable me to follow. My new sister speaks enough English to help out. Pantomime is more effective for personal needs and quite difficult when talking about work and life back home.
I manage to convey my love of walking so later we walk around the village for a bit before dark. As with all hilly towns, dusk turns to night very quickly! Supper consists of cold cuts and cheese, bread and fruit and I settle for some chai (tea). It is green tea and I have found the best alternative to the coffee drinking culture!
Saturday, September 19, 2009
First Week
Since our arrival in Kumanovo, our days have been packed with activity from morning to night. Over 9 hours of language classes alone! Though the country has broadband available across the length and breadth of the country, it doesn’t mean that every establishment is either Wi-Fi or wired yet! We have to go to the internet café’s in the town center to get online! With such a busy schedule, my blog updates may be spotty.
In addition to the language sessions, I repeated the introductory anthropology session on culture and values that I had earlier this year as a museum resource person at the Social Justice Education course held at the Field Museum, Chicago. I love the exercise with the iceberg as it gets the participants engaged in the process, leading to a spirited discussion over a series of behaviors and expectations that are culturally reflective of American and Macedonian values.
My first impressions of the residential area around the hotel was one of neatly fenced homes with a small patch of grass or none at all, but gardens full of ripe tomatoes, red peppers (not bell peppers or the hot Thai chili peppers, but milder Macedonian peppers), daikon radish, ripe corn stalks, black and green grapes, ripe apples, pears, figs, apricots and flowers tucked in here and there. The homes are made with a red-slate like brick block covered with mortar and red tiled roofs. Most of these homes appeared to me 40 to 50 years old in construction and almost all were two storied, so I surmised this to be a new ‘suburb’ of Kumanovo. Seeing a homeowner making Rakja (homemade wine) in his yard, under the open garage one morning brought home the much talked about wine and how it is mostly homemade, though urban dwellers have to purchase it in the store. However, when I passed his house the following day, he had dismantled his equipment and I hoped I would have another opportunity for a photograph. Rakja appears to be a national cure for every ailment. I have yet to taste it.
There are sessions clarifying PC policy; security and safety issues and medical policy sandwiched between the other sessions. The mid-morning and mid-afternoon breaks along with an hour or so for lunches, gives time to visit with and befriend other MAK-14’s, as we are known collectively. One evening, some of the volunteers organize a dance party, as there is no scheduled activity in the evening.
Listening to the early experiences of a few of the currently serving volunteers helped break down some of the anxiety I had of which town I was going to for my homestay and PST training and adjust to my Macedonian family as an older volunteer. Meeting a few of the MAK-13 was very pleasant, as they remembered, how medical had sent me home to recuperate from my arthroscopic surgery from staging last year!
Friday morning rolls around and I am packed once again! At morning meeting, at each of the language and cultural trainer’s alcoves, there appear to be blank tent cards on the table. In reality our names are facing away from us. As soon as morning meeting ends, the cards are turned around and we find our training site and the small group of 6 others with whom I will train for the next 10 weeks! MAK-14’s will be sworn in on Thanksgiving Day this year, with a real American Thanksgiving dinner (our family favorite) – turkeys and all arriving from the USA. How cool is that!
We concentrate on specific phases to help with conversation when we reach our homes. I receive a clue on a slip of paper that my host will also have and we will ‘discover’ them on arrival by matching the clues! Macedonian is a phonetic language, so I think I will find it easy to read and write the words, once I have mastered the alphabet. However, that doesn’t necessarily mean that I know what the word means yet!
In addition to the language sessions, I repeated the introductory anthropology session on culture and values that I had earlier this year as a museum resource person at the Social Justice Education course held at the Field Museum, Chicago. I love the exercise with the iceberg as it gets the participants engaged in the process, leading to a spirited discussion over a series of behaviors and expectations that are culturally reflective of American and Macedonian values.
My first impressions of the residential area around the hotel was one of neatly fenced homes with a small patch of grass or none at all, but gardens full of ripe tomatoes, red peppers (not bell peppers or the hot Thai chili peppers, but milder Macedonian peppers), daikon radish, ripe corn stalks, black and green grapes, ripe apples, pears, figs, apricots and flowers tucked in here and there. The homes are made with a red-slate like brick block covered with mortar and red tiled roofs. Most of these homes appeared to me 40 to 50 years old in construction and almost all were two storied, so I surmised this to be a new ‘suburb’ of Kumanovo. Seeing a homeowner making Rakja (homemade wine) in his yard, under the open garage one morning brought home the much talked about wine and how it is mostly homemade, though urban dwellers have to purchase it in the store. However, when I passed his house the following day, he had dismantled his equipment and I hoped I would have another opportunity for a photograph. Rakja appears to be a national cure for every ailment. I have yet to taste it.
There are sessions clarifying PC policy; security and safety issues and medical policy sandwiched between the other sessions. The mid-morning and mid-afternoon breaks along with an hour or so for lunches, gives time to visit with and befriend other MAK-14’s, as we are known collectively. One evening, some of the volunteers organize a dance party, as there is no scheduled activity in the evening.
Listening to the early experiences of a few of the currently serving volunteers helped break down some of the anxiety I had of which town I was going to for my homestay and PST training and adjust to my Macedonian family as an older volunteer. Meeting a few of the MAK-13 was very pleasant, as they remembered, how medical had sent me home to recuperate from my arthroscopic surgery from staging last year!
Friday morning rolls around and I am packed once again! At morning meeting, at each of the language and cultural trainer’s alcoves, there appear to be blank tent cards on the table. In reality our names are facing away from us. As soon as morning meeting ends, the cards are turned around and we find our training site and the small group of 6 others with whom I will train for the next 10 weeks! MAK-14’s will be sworn in on Thanksgiving Day this year, with a real American Thanksgiving dinner (our family favorite) – turkeys and all arriving from the USA. How cool is that!
We concentrate on specific phases to help with conversation when we reach our homes. I receive a clue on a slip of paper that my host will also have and we will ‘discover’ them on arrival by matching the clues! Macedonian is a phonetic language, so I think I will find it easy to read and write the words, once I have mastered the alphabet. However, that doesn’t necessarily mean that I know what the word means yet!
First 2 days
Chapter One.
It is almost 4 am! The sunrays have yet to penetrate the dark sky and it is time to make those two final calls across to the other side of the planet, before loading the packed bags in the trunk of the station wagon. Every journey is anchored by conversations with loved ones before actually setting forth. I have spoken with everyone except my sister in Australia and our daughter in China. A final goodbye, even though I know the world is totally connected via internet, ichat, gchat, sms, etc., I find solace in those conversations wishing me a bon voyage. These conversations are followed by our family tradition of meditative minutes with our spiritual self in front of the altar. I am ready to leave Lake Forest. From now on the journey will take on a life of it’s own, with just one preplanned stop in D.C.
The bags are loaded and the world still sleeps as the car glides out of the driveway around 5:30 am. A last glance at Otis who has no words, but is standing in the hallway hesitantly wagging his tail, because those suitcases in the car somehow are connected with at least one person not coming back. This is the sixth set of suitcases that have been packed and loaded in the last 4 weeks!
At Milwaukee airport, the baggage charge is reduced and upon boarding the Midwest Airlines flight, when I see someone else in my assigned seat 17C, I find I have been bumped up to first class! After a complimentary sightseeing tour by the Blue Shuttle bus, I arrive in time for lunch at the staging site in Georgetown.
Chapter Two.
There is one personal stop to make before assembling for the flight to Skopje at 11:30 am. I leave the hotel at 6:50 am and hail a taxi to take me to Arlington National Cemetery. Reaching a good 45 minutes before it opens, I walk to the Iwo Jima and Carillon Bells Memorial Park. After visiting Uday’s resting place in Arlington, I am ready to leave for my new home for the next 27 months in Macedonia.
Wow! Moving 37 volunteers, each with approx 100 lbs of luggage, from the hotel to the airport is no small task. Once the bus is loaded, we are on our own till we meet the Pre-Service Training Staff at Skopje. We left 40 minutes behind scheduled time of 12 noon for a 5:40 flight and found that a little extra time makes sense for such large groups, especially after unloading we found that our code share flight meant we check in at Austrian Airlines and not at United Airlines, for a UA coded ticket! Dulles terminal is organized alphabetically so we ended up hauling our luggage from one end “U” to the other end “A”!
Was this in mind by the architects when they chose marble floors for airports? I am sure it made hauling the mostly wheeled bags much easier. I am sorry I had one pick-up and go old-fashioned (39 ½ lbs) smaller suitcase. I owe the young man from Kalamazoo many wheels for cheerfully taking over my suitcase and letting me push his 4-wheeler! Then another young trainee offered to keep my toilet bag in his loosely filled duffle bag so that my 52 lbs large suitcase wouldn’t go over the weight limit of 50 lbs! This was a great group and all signs tell me that I am going to enjoy Macedonia with a great group of volunteers!
It is almost 4 am! The sunrays have yet to penetrate the dark sky and it is time to make those two final calls across to the other side of the planet, before loading the packed bags in the trunk of the station wagon. Every journey is anchored by conversations with loved ones before actually setting forth. I have spoken with everyone except my sister in Australia and our daughter in China. A final goodbye, even though I know the world is totally connected via internet, ichat, gchat, sms, etc., I find solace in those conversations wishing me a bon voyage. These conversations are followed by our family tradition of meditative minutes with our spiritual self in front of the altar. I am ready to leave Lake Forest. From now on the journey will take on a life of it’s own, with just one preplanned stop in D.C.
The bags are loaded and the world still sleeps as the car glides out of the driveway around 5:30 am. A last glance at Otis who has no words, but is standing in the hallway hesitantly wagging his tail, because those suitcases in the car somehow are connected with at least one person not coming back. This is the sixth set of suitcases that have been packed and loaded in the last 4 weeks!
At Milwaukee airport, the baggage charge is reduced and upon boarding the Midwest Airlines flight, when I see someone else in my assigned seat 17C, I find I have been bumped up to first class! After a complimentary sightseeing tour by the Blue Shuttle bus, I arrive in time for lunch at the staging site in Georgetown.
Chapter Two.
There is one personal stop to make before assembling for the flight to Skopje at 11:30 am. I leave the hotel at 6:50 am and hail a taxi to take me to Arlington National Cemetery. Reaching a good 45 minutes before it opens, I walk to the Iwo Jima and Carillon Bells Memorial Park. After visiting Uday’s resting place in Arlington, I am ready to leave for my new home for the next 27 months in Macedonia.
Wow! Moving 37 volunteers, each with approx 100 lbs of luggage, from the hotel to the airport is no small task. Once the bus is loaded, we are on our own till we meet the Pre-Service Training Staff at Skopje. We left 40 minutes behind scheduled time of 12 noon for a 5:40 flight and found that a little extra time makes sense for such large groups, especially after unloading we found that our code share flight meant we check in at Austrian Airlines and not at United Airlines, for a UA coded ticket! Dulles terminal is organized alphabetically so we ended up hauling our luggage from one end “U” to the other end “A”!
Was this in mind by the architects when they chose marble floors for airports? I am sure it made hauling the mostly wheeled bags much easier. I am sorry I had one pick-up and go old-fashioned (39 ½ lbs) smaller suitcase. I owe the young man from Kalamazoo many wheels for cheerfully taking over my suitcase and letting me push his 4-wheeler! Then another young trainee offered to keep my toilet bag in his loosely filled duffle bag so that my 52 lbs large suitcase wouldn’t go over the weight limit of 50 lbs! This was a great group and all signs tell me that I am going to enjoy Macedonia with a great group of volunteers!
Friday, August 28, 2009
14 days to go
Two weeks from today, I will have arrived in Washington D.C and meeting the other Peace Corps trainees leaving for Macedonia on Saturday, Sept 12.
Though I have been randomly putting clothes in a suitcase, today I started packing in earnest. What to take for two years to a place that has really hot summers and cold winters? It is hard to look at warm clothes let alone touch them when the weather here is hotter than usual. Daily temperatures fluctuate between a nice 60's at night to hot 80's during the days. In centigrade that is "nice 17's to hot 29's". I am going to have to get used to understanding the temperature in centigrade and for now will memorize the range - anything over 30's is very hot and below 15 cold.
My clothes are laundered and folded and placed on the bed waiting to go into 2 suitcases - one small 27x18x8 and one large 30x21x10! I will take my Spain hiking trip backpack as a carryon and a small school back pack for my computer and electronic gadgets! From the material the staff at Macedonia sent, I still need to buy a flash drive to tote data around as the internet is widespread and accessible, with lots of internet cafes. In order to focus on what I am going there for I gave up my iphone on Wednesday! I am planning to get a regular mobile phone instead of a smartphone, with voice and text (I dont want to give up text!). This blog will be my connection to all of you.
I also learned that I am among the 10% of volunteers over the age of 50. The volunteers are evenly divided between community service and education. I will be engaged in NGO (non governmental organization) development. Beyond knowing that I will be training in a location near the town of Kumanovo, northern border of Macedonia, I am glad I know nothing of the actual assignment. This was I don't build up any expectations of what I will be doing or not doing. The plan is to keep an open mind and just take each day - one day at a time.
Meanwhile, back to the task at hand - actually packing and not writing about it
Though I have been randomly putting clothes in a suitcase, today I started packing in earnest. What to take for two years to a place that has really hot summers and cold winters? It is hard to look at warm clothes let alone touch them when the weather here is hotter than usual. Daily temperatures fluctuate between a nice 60's at night to hot 80's during the days. In centigrade that is "nice 17's to hot 29's". I am going to have to get used to understanding the temperature in centigrade and for now will memorize the range - anything over 30's is very hot and below 15 cold.
My clothes are laundered and folded and placed on the bed waiting to go into 2 suitcases - one small 27x18x8 and one large 30x21x10! I will take my Spain hiking trip backpack as a carryon and a small school back pack for my computer and electronic gadgets! From the material the staff at Macedonia sent, I still need to buy a flash drive to tote data around as the internet is widespread and accessible, with lots of internet cafes. In order to focus on what I am going there for I gave up my iphone on Wednesday! I am planning to get a regular mobile phone instead of a smartphone, with voice and text (I dont want to give up text!). This blog will be my connection to all of you.
I also learned that I am among the 10% of volunteers over the age of 50. The volunteers are evenly divided between community service and education. I will be engaged in NGO (non governmental organization) development. Beyond knowing that I will be training in a location near the town of Kumanovo, northern border of Macedonia, I am glad I know nothing of the actual assignment. This was I don't build up any expectations of what I will be doing or not doing. The plan is to keep an open mind and just take each day - one day at a time.
Meanwhile, back to the task at hand - actually packing and not writing about it
Tuesday, August 25, 2009
Re-Thinking Soup
Great minestrone soup made from freshly harvested vegetables that very morning from the Jane Adams Hull House Kitchen garden! I attended this monthly public conversation at the Jane Adams Hull House - University of Illinois Chicago campus today, which focused on the sustainability food movements that are peppered across Illinois and the US.
The conversation was led by Josh Viertel of the Slow Food movement, which grew out of a protest to the opening of a McDonald's near the Spanish Steps in Rome, Italy! The small group of protesters showed up with a big cauldron of prepared penne pasta and soup bowls and distributed free soup to the crowds. This eventually led to the chanting of wanting slow food as opposed to fast food represented by the American fast food chain.
A majority of the sustainability food movements in the US are primarily manifested in community gardens in urban areas. Not big enough to have a real impact on the mono-culture cash crop food programs which have taken over the majority of the agriculture tax dollars. The structure of the Farm Bill has led to the demise of the small farmer growing food for consumption and the growth of growing food as a commodity!
The conversation was led by Josh Viertel of the Slow Food movement, which grew out of a protest to the opening of a McDonald's near the Spanish Steps in Rome, Italy! The small group of protesters showed up with a big cauldron of prepared penne pasta and soup bowls and distributed free soup to the crowds. This eventually led to the chanting of wanting slow food as opposed to fast food represented by the American fast food chain.
A majority of the sustainability food movements in the US are primarily manifested in community gardens in urban areas. Not big enough to have a real impact on the mono-culture cash crop food programs which have taken over the majority of the agriculture tax dollars. The structure of the Farm Bill has led to the demise of the small farmer growing food for consumption and the growth of growing food as a commodity!
Thursday, August 20, 2009
Disappointments, Opportunities, Milestones!
In September of last year, when my first assignment with the Peace Corps was delayed due to a sports injury, it seemed appropriate to research ways to expand our niche high voltage, industrial and commercial electrical design and install business; Electrical Systems and Services, Inc. Running an operation in 'bear market conditions' left Jay with very little time to research the field for clean energy, green initiatives to complement our business. So both Angeli and I were in a position to do this important research as our plans for graduate study/peace corps respectively, were delayed due to unforeseeable reasons.We organized our work to cover the market, incentives, training, certification and other related issues. We also took the first step of attending workshops, site visits and researching products and manufacturers before making any recommendations. The strategic decision Jay made based on this data was to add viable 'green, clean' power need solutions for our clients in our immediate area, who could not afford huge capital outlays, yet wished to participate.
He took the initiative immediately and installed an off-grid solar powered LED parking lot light, which comes on at dusk and turns itself off 6 hours later. Last Friday, Aug 14th he held a grand opening event to install the first small wind vertical-axis wind turbine in Wisconsin! It was so well received as it's wind needs are only 6-12 mph at a height of 30 feet, looks like lawn art and does not need heavy equipment to install and maintain. Check out the following two links: http://tinyurl.com/qswzxr with son RJ and http://tinyurl.com/ofuwhd featuring Jay.
Maybe, just maybe there may be an opportunity for this kind of small wind turbine in Macedonia!
Wednesday, August 12, 2009
Staging Information
At last the details for staging and departure arrive by email this afternoon!The next few days & weeks are going to be flurry of activity and all I can do is sit and stare at the computer screen, unable to think of a coherent sentence to express my feelings adequately. It is so much easier to share the information in the email with you.
Here are the relevant details.
"The Staging Unit is looking forward to your arrival for the Macedonia staging event. Please read this email and the attachments carefully, as the information here will answer many of the questions you have regarding your final steps prior to departing for Macedonia.
Please note that as a Trainee and Volunteer overseas, you will be expected to act and dress in keeping with your status as a professional and guest. At staging, business casual attire is required.
STAGING DATES: Friday, September 11, 2009 – Saturday, September 12, 2009
REGISTRATION:1:30 PM on Friday, September 11, 2009
DEPARTURE: 5:40 pm on Saturday, September 12, 2009"
I will miss you Otis!
Friday, August 7, 2009
Counting Down the Days
I have come to realize there are many ways to count the days. One is to do nothing and wait. Another is to remain engaged in activity. I chose the latter so that when I receive my flight itinerary and e-ticket from Sato Travel and be on my way to the staging city, I will have no regrets of things undone.
On the dining table lies the welcome packet, opened and spread out - with the piles increasing as I add the paperwork that I need to take with me. In the bedroom is my open suitcase - clothes just piled in, yet to be properly folded. My desk has been organized with neat piles of electronic gadgets and related wires, transformers, etc. which need to be inventoried for my Clement's Insurance application. My ipod is still missing......
Of higher priority is the other paperwork on this same table where all dining activity has stopped. Angeli, our third child has her admission letter, visa related paraphernalia, health forms and student handbook spread out. She is heading out to Peking University, Beijing for her Master's in International Relations on Sept 3! Rahul, Sheena and Gita are also home, so after Christmas holidays the family is together again.
The breakfast room table, large enough for the six family members, is now accommodating 5 additional visiting family members! Visiting us is my niece from India, who will begin undergraduate studies in fashion Design at Meredith College, Raleigh, N.C. on Aug 15 and my brother, who is here to help her with this transition. This weekend my nephew, a graduate student at UIUC working on developing some new material for the microchips so they are even faster, is here to join the family gathering and Jay's two nieces from UK - their first visit to the USA!
I have changed my profile picture to include that of my husband. This was taken at the July 21 John Legend concert at the outdoor Ravinia Park in Highland Park, Illinois. Before an invitation to his concert, I must admit I had never heard John Legend before! I must also admit that as long as the children lived at home, I stayed current with the music scene. They were surprised to learn that we were going a Legend concert! With so many house guests expected, it made sense to spend an evening together and this artist was playing at Ravinia.
On the dining table lies the welcome packet, opened and spread out - with the piles increasing as I add the paperwork that I need to take with me. In the bedroom is my open suitcase - clothes just piled in, yet to be properly folded. My desk has been organized with neat piles of electronic gadgets and related wires, transformers, etc. which need to be inventoried for my Clement's Insurance application. My ipod is still missing......
Of higher priority is the other paperwork on this same table where all dining activity has stopped. Angeli, our third child has her admission letter, visa related paraphernalia, health forms and student handbook spread out. She is heading out to Peking University, Beijing for her Master's in International Relations on Sept 3! Rahul, Sheena and Gita are also home, so after Christmas holidays the family is together again.
The breakfast room table, large enough for the six family members, is now accommodating 5 additional visiting family members! Visiting us is my niece from India, who will begin undergraduate studies in fashion Design at Meredith College, Raleigh, N.C. on Aug 15 and my brother, who is here to help her with this transition. This weekend my nephew, a graduate student at UIUC working on developing some new material for the microchips so they are even faster, is here to join the family gathering and Jay's two nieces from UK - their first visit to the USA!
I have changed my profile picture to include that of my husband. This was taken at the July 21 John Legend concert at the outdoor Ravinia Park in Highland Park, Illinois. Before an invitation to his concert, I must admit I had never heard John Legend before! I must also admit that as long as the children lived at home, I stayed current with the music scene. They were surprised to learn that we were going a Legend concert! With so many house guests expected, it made sense to spend an evening together and this artist was playing at Ravinia.
Friday, July 24, 2009
Welcome packet
Macedonia, here I come! After months of mental readiness and waiting, I have a departure date of September 15, 2009 and suddenly there is not enough time to tie-up loose ends, compete all the paperwork, meet all my friends and extended family and decide what to take and what to leave behind and pack before I leave! There are movies I want to see, foods that I want to savor, read the books that I have already purchased, leaf through the magazines and newspaper that come to my door and make that final visit to the beach, the library, the coffee shop and the ice cream shop in town! These are the familiar sights that I will miss, maybe even yearn for, though in themselves their hold is so tenuous that I have no qualms of leaving them behind.
Last night, we bid farewell to a Chicago Cultural Alliance Board member, at a typical American BBQ with the host providing the backyard and a grill to take care of the meats; the guests bringing the appetizers, salads, one too many sweet desserts, the wine, beer and the drinks in a formal/informal environment. This familiar culture setting and friends is what I leave behind.
Why do some people leave what we love for new unfamiliar horizons? What is it that drives some of us to stay and others to leave? It is more than the emotions of excitement of new seeking new horizons and unfamiliar environments or of casting aside the old to renew our faith in ourselves. When I have the answer I will share it in this space.
Back to the welcome packet! Lot's of reading and re-reading. There is the invitation letter, a number of bound books and a booklet which states "Your Assignment". There are a lot of words in my assignment, which can be said in a couple sentences! Though my work will be NGO development, my assignment is really an open mind and a flexible attitude towards anything that I will end up doing in Macedonia. Training will be primarily culture and language and some technical skills for working with a specific NGO.
I am instructed to be prepared to explain what my assignment is when I call within 10 days to accept the invitation. If I fail to call, another volunteer will be sent in my place! At this time however, I am overcome with emotions of loss and gain, of excitement and trepidation, joy and sorrow, so I quickly make that call. I am prepared to say more than those couple of sentences as I have not only read my assignment book a couple of times, but highlighted it extensively to help me recall what I have read. Excitement, emotions have a way of ruining my memory. During my call, I learn the name of my Country Officer, Rebeccah Gross and she is the person who has all the answers to my questions, which were limited to the medical team this past year while I was on medical hold! I have to introduce myself through the means of two documents - an aspiration statement and a resume. Both helped me reflect on all the work I was doing for the past year and also made me realize what I enjoy doing the most and what my professional attributes are! I will be sending these out today, within two weeks of receiving my welcome packet.
I called Sato Travel after accepting my invitation, as I have a Peace Corps passport from last year. Thus the fedex envelope contained only my visa application for Macedonia with 2 pictures with a sticky note to MB that I spoke with MH, who had tracked down my passport from last year and that this is all I have been instructed to send. MH also tells me that I am in trouble if I get a call from them! However, the following day, the email from peacecorps informs me, with the link to my toolkit that my application has been updated. I am all set - I filled out those forms correctly and they are pulling my papers together!
I have to concentrate on the other items in the welcome packet. I read about insurance for my belongings - that is what I am going to work on, as I am taking all my electronic gadgets, laptop, camera, cell phone which will need insurance. Macedonia is a broadband, internet country, with all it's 540+ schools on the web! So I am lucky, I might have 24 hr internet connection! That will mean more blog posts!
Last night, we bid farewell to a Chicago Cultural Alliance Board member, at a typical American BBQ with the host providing the backyard and a grill to take care of the meats; the guests bringing the appetizers, salads, one too many sweet desserts, the wine, beer and the drinks in a formal/informal environment. This familiar culture setting and friends is what I leave behind.
Why do some people leave what we love for new unfamiliar horizons? What is it that drives some of us to stay and others to leave? It is more than the emotions of excitement of new seeking new horizons and unfamiliar environments or of casting aside the old to renew our faith in ourselves. When I have the answer I will share it in this space.
Back to the welcome packet! Lot's of reading and re-reading. There is the invitation letter, a number of bound books and a booklet which states "Your Assignment". There are a lot of words in my assignment, which can be said in a couple sentences! Though my work will be NGO development, my assignment is really an open mind and a flexible attitude towards anything that I will end up doing in Macedonia. Training will be primarily culture and language and some technical skills for working with a specific NGO.
I am instructed to be prepared to explain what my assignment is when I call within 10 days to accept the invitation. If I fail to call, another volunteer will be sent in my place! At this time however, I am overcome with emotions of loss and gain, of excitement and trepidation, joy and sorrow, so I quickly make that call. I am prepared to say more than those couple of sentences as I have not only read my assignment book a couple of times, but highlighted it extensively to help me recall what I have read. Excitement, emotions have a way of ruining my memory. During my call, I learn the name of my Country Officer, Rebeccah Gross and she is the person who has all the answers to my questions, which were limited to the medical team this past year while I was on medical hold! I have to introduce myself through the means of two documents - an aspiration statement and a resume. Both helped me reflect on all the work I was doing for the past year and also made me realize what I enjoy doing the most and what my professional attributes are! I will be sending these out today, within two weeks of receiving my welcome packet.
I called Sato Travel after accepting my invitation, as I have a Peace Corps passport from last year. Thus the fedex envelope contained only my visa application for Macedonia with 2 pictures with a sticky note to MB that I spoke with MH, who had tracked down my passport from last year and that this is all I have been instructed to send. MH also tells me that I am in trouble if I get a call from them! However, the following day, the email from peacecorps informs me, with the link to my toolkit that my application has been updated. I am all set - I filled out those forms correctly and they are pulling my papers together!
I have to concentrate on the other items in the welcome packet. I read about insurance for my belongings - that is what I am going to work on, as I am taking all my electronic gadgets, laptop, camera, cell phone which will need insurance. Macedonia is a broadband, internet country, with all it's 540+ schools on the web! So I am lucky, I might have 24 hr internet connection! That will mean more blog posts!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
