Monday, December 18, 2006

A Day With The Orphans

12-18-2006

I managed to force my pathetically lazy self out of bed quite early on Sunday morning. I took an early bus to Stara Zagora to meet up with my friend and fellow PCV Alex Porto. Alex and I have been talking about working with orphans for quite some time; so we were both excited about the day ahead of us. After a quick cup of coffee we were prepared and eagerly anticipating the day ahead of us. We were then on our way to join up with a small group of High school kids to plan our trip to the orphanage. Our plan was to visit a nearby orphanage and bring a group of developmentally disabled orphans gift bags including: a banana, 2 oranges, a stuffed animal, a rubber ball and some balloons. It doesn’t sound like much, but the combination proved to be the perfect recipe for smiles. After a 20 minute walk through the hills of Stara Zagora, we arrived at a small orphanage near the Roma Mahala. We were greeted warmly by the staff and then guided into a room where the kids were waiting. As I entered into the room my heart sunk; I could not help but feel an overwhelming sense of sadness. I was not expecting to feel this way and was taken back by the appearance of some of these kids. It just made me sad to see a bunch of parentless children with Down syndrome, disfigurement, blindness and other physical and mental conditions. These kids were most likely cast aside and discarded by their parents because of their conditions. After the kids sang a couple of songs for us, and introduced themselves, we passed out the gift bags. The smiles I saw when we passed out the gift bags were priceless. After the banana and orange snack, the kids were ready to play. Alex, the High School kids and I really enjoyed playing with the orphans. The Bulgarian teenagers showed a remarkable amount of kindness and compassion while playing with the kids. I could not help but to feel a bit shy and uneasy at first, but I eventually loosened up and had a great time. The kids really enjoyed our company and appreciated all the extra attention and affection. I will keep this blog short; it makes me feel a bit uneasy and sad when I think about those kids. I can however rest easy knowing that the staff of this orphanage is full of love. It was heartwarming to see how the staff interacted with the orphans. The staff often hugged the kids, and displayed a great deal of warmth and kindness.
Sorry for the sappy blogs I think the lack of rugby in combination with a bit too much alone time depletes my testosterone levels. The Following are a few pics. Three more days until I am in America!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
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Kids in orphanage
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I told him he could wear my watch as long as the master masseuse worked for it

Saturday, December 16, 2006

The Other Side Of The Tracks

12-16-2006

Everyone tells me not to give begging Roma kids money because if you give them money once they will keep coming back for more.(ok…….. its true) And also there is the argument that I am not in this country to give money to the poor or to supply food for all of the poor kids in my community. I don’t exactly agree with this; it is not like I am giving money to the local drunk, or handing out bundles of cash. I think that giving poor, cold and hungry kids a bite to eat is not that big of a deal. I say no from time to time, but I always feel better about the situation when I say yes. This mostly happens when I am coming out of the grocery store with bags of groceries and small change clanging in my pocket; this as you can imagine makes me an immediate target.
It seams like every time I leave my house and walk through the center of town Checho finds me. Checho is the Roma orphan I have mentioned a few times. He is a 15 year old kid who comes to Chirpan during summers and holidays to stay with his grandmother. He lives in a small orphanage in the Rhodoebe Mountains. Checho usually walks with me(follows me around asking me questions) to wherever I am going, which more often than not results in Checho receiving a hand full of change or a sandwich from the store. This kid has a very kind and sincere heart, and truly hangs around me for friendship and not just a free lunch. This becomes quite apparent when I see the look of shame in his eyes when he asks me for food. About half the time I see Checho he walks with me and leaves without asking for anything.
Today was quite an eventful day; I had an adventure I will not soon forget. The initial game plan for the day was to walk around Chirpan and take interesting pictures. I have not taken many pictures in the last 6 months; so I figured it would not be a bad idea to take a few photos to show the family when I return home next week.
After about 3 minutes into my walk I suddenly heard loud footsteps behind me, as I turned to look I saw Checho running toward me. As he approached I told him that I was going for a walk around town and that he was more than welcome to join me if he wanted. He immediately joined me without hesitation and was visibly excited to accompany me on my journey. We then began to walk toward the edge of town in hopes of finding something intriguing to photograph. Checho suggested to me that I could take some great pictures in the Mahala(Roma slum). I agreed but told him that it would not be safe for me to enter the mahala because I was not Roma. He persuasively guaranteed my safety and assured me that I would be perfectly fine because I was to be accompanied by him. With enthusiasm, eagerness and a dash of safety uncertainty, I said “let’s do it”. As we walked through the soggy garbage and manure littered field that separates the mahala from the rest of the town, I began to feel uneasy about the situation I was about to be in. Here I was about to walk into ‘no mans land’ accompanied by an orphan I hardly know. To an outsider the mahala could be a very dangerous place to visit; especially if you are unexpected and uninvited. I was now only 100 meters away from a place that no Bulgarian I know had ever been. Your average Bulgarian would never consider going into a Roma mahala; the age old segregation seems to be in the interest of both sides. Both groups have a deep tradition of segregation and a strong sense of cultural pride and unity. The Roma and The Bulgarians though living in close proximity; have not historically meshed well together as a community. Checho showed me the mahala’s water supply which consisted of a stream of water coming out of a concrete block. With a voice of pride he assured me the water was in fact mineral water and very good for consumption, but the heaps of manure and garbage surrounding us told me otherwise. The next thing that caught my eye was the large pigs that were wandering around the edge of the mahala digging through the heaps of garbage(definitely a Kodak moment).
After crossing over the heavily polluted stream and walking up a muddy road, I had arrived. Upon arrival I was greeted with concerned and puzzled looks that soon turned into warm friendly faces after I nervously spoke a few words about my intentions and reasons for being in the mahala. I told my new friends that I simply wanted to take pictures for the viewing of my family and friends in America. The people I met were more than willing to allow me to take photographs; so the journey continued. I then walked around the muddy streets with Checho by my side; greeting all the Roma and taking pictures. The Roma people I met became very excited about my camera and happily posed for pictures with warm smiles. The Roma I met on my walk were all very warm and kind people. It just proves that stereotypes should not be believed as fact; it is always important to form your own opinions and not to judge or make assumptions based on the views of others. As I was leaving I received many invitations from various Roma I had met to return to the mahala. One man insisted he give me a haircut (he was a barber) and come to his home for a nagosti(dinner party). While I was there I became involved in a few conversations about problems the Roma people are facing(mostly listened). They told me that the plumbing is almost non existent within the mahala and that the water runs only about an hour a day and is often shut off for weeks at a time. One Roma man spoke about violent run-ins with police officers who had harassed him and tried to fine him for things he claims to have not done. I took a picture of Checho’s relative’s home, and was quite surprised that it was even inhabitable. Some of the homes I saw in the mahala were so small and poorly put together; it was difficult for me to imagine anyone surviving a harsh winter in such a place.
After leaving the mahala I felt a sense of accomplishment and hope. I had made a few contacts in the mahala and was now able to enter the community without any foreseen conflict. I have decided that the next time I visit the mahala, I will bring copies of the pictures I took and hand them out to all the people in the photographs. I think this will prove to be an easy way to regain their trust and to make friends with these people. I never realized how self sustaining the mahala was. The mahala contains make-shift mini markets, a small internet café, and even a hut with a pool table in it. I was under the impression that the mahala only consisted of brick and mud homes intertwined with dirt roads. But in fact this neighborhood proved to have more than meets the eye; it contains everything this community needs to survive and live their own unique lifestyle. However, truth be told; I have never seen any place quite as poor and primitive. There were people using broken down Russian cars to sell cigarettes and gum that were on display on the dashboards. I saw a man and his infant son burning a wheel to get the metal from it for recycling. It is difficult for me to put the things I saw today into words. I feel like this blog has no real format or consistency. It is just a bunch of jumbled sentences thrown together in hopes of accurately describing the exotic world that I recently saw for the first time. The following are photos I took today, perhaps you will find them as interesting as I do.
Trevor

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Roma kids
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Checho's grandmother's house-where he sleeps
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Roma Kid playing in field that seperates the Mahala from the rest of Chirpan
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Roma Man and his kid - he is trying to seperate metal to recycle for money
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This is the water supply for the Mahala- apparently great for consumption
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Checho's uncle gathering firewood outside his house
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Pigs on the edge of the Mahala, (must be at least 20)

Wednesday, December 13, 2006

The Slow Ticking Clock

12-1-2006

It is another Friday in the office; 19 days until blast off! From the looks of my itinerary; this has the makings to be a very grueling travel experience. However, I think if I can handle an 18 hour bus ride to Munich; I can handle just about anything travel experience. But suffice to say I will be a bit tired when I arrive in Seattle. I am hoping that the adrenaline rush I will have from being on home soil will get me through the fatigue and jet lag. I am very tired for some reason, so I will finish this when I am in a better mood.

12-5-2006

Two more weeks and I will be on my way home! The weather has cooled down quite a bit, I pulled the long johns out of a storage bag today; it’s about that time of the year. I don’t even know why I started writing today; I have nothing significant to say. I will continue this some other time.

12-13-2006

Well…………only 7 more days until my journey begins. The last two weeks have felt like two years. I have been so anxious to leave this country, that I have been losing sight of the reasons why I am here in the first place. I originally did not want to come back to America at all during my PC service. I knew that if I went home it would be very difficult because I would be constantly reminded of all the things that I am lacking in Bulgaria. Now days it does not bother me as much, I am exceedingly ready for a trip home.
I finally received my grant money from the USAID; unfortunately it is about 3 months too late. So now I am forced to postpone all the planned construction work for early spring. This pretty much destroys my project schedule and timeline; but at least I no longer have any hurdles to jump over to get this thing done………the money is in the bank! My Project CURE project is 90% completed……….which is nice. I started working on it Last April, and now all the difficult parts are completed. The 40ft container will leave Houston Texas December 22nd which means that it will arrive in Bulgaria sometime in Early February. I officially took over control of the Peace Corps ‘At Risk Youth Fund’ so I have been busy managing that committee lately. When I get back from vacation I will start up my kindergarten classes again. I now have a bit more free time; and am looking forward to working with kids again; it helps break up the work week.
I have not had much motivation lately………not sure exactly why that is. I pretty much have to force myself to write in this thing. I am starting to feel like the guy from office space, I just don’t feel much of a drive to do anything. I think this just means I am ready for a vacation and a little breather from the Bulg. Of course…. as I mentioned earlier; it doesn’t help that all I have been thinking about lately is what I am going to do once I step foot in America. I often space out for long periods of time just fantasizing about Mexican food, hot wings, steak, central heating, beer that doesn’t taste like metal, smoke free buildings, …….. and so on. Alrighty……..I should probably stop wasting time at work, and fantasizing about the near future. See you all soon

Trevor Lake