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!