-A Trip North-

5-30-2007

I slept until 11:30am today and it felt great! I have not had a good night sleep for a while and have been in great need of a bit of R&R. Not because I have been working extraordinarily hard; or have been doing anything athletically productive, but because I am still a bit worn out from the Romania trip. Hours and hours on slow jerky trains is not quite as relaxing and peaceful as one might think; in fact it makes for a tiring and somewhat exhausting travel experience.
My trip began after work last Wednesday; I took a 6 hour train to Gorna Orakovitsa and then took another 2 hour train to Ruse(Ruse is a town right on the Danube; and pretty much the only access point to Romania from Bulgaria). After a snack and a power nap at my friend Jen’s place in Ruse; I took a 330am train to Bucharest. I arrived In Bucharest at about 6:10am and was a bit worn out from the trip. Luckily my overwhelming fatigue was almost completely overcome by my excitement and fascination with this new country I was ready to explore. My first impression of Bucharest was sheer amazement. Here I was at a very modern, clean, and functional train station; and yet only 70km from the border of Bulgaria. The train station looked like the ones in Western Europe, not of one in a slowly developing Eastern European country. Sofia for instance has a train station that I would describe as unimpressive at best.
It is now about 6:25am, I have secured some strange plastic money(the money is plastic and even has a clear window on it; money you can swim with sounds great in my book!) from a nearby ATM and am ready to catch a train to Brasov. I took the first train I could find and ended up on a new high speed express train; which means I paid an arm and a leg for the ticket. The lesson was learned and I ended up taking the slow train back which took about twice the amount of time, but was a third of the price. I suppose you get what you pay for. After arriving in Brasov I met a cool Ausie named Trav and after some breakfast we made our way to a nearby hostel. Trav and I got along well and ended up sharing the same itinerary for the rest of our trip.
The Hostel was Awesome! The staff was cool and the kitchen, lounge, rooms were superb. The best part of this particular hostel was the people; they were very interesting and had fascinating stories to tell. Ohh and a few good looking lady travelers made good company for the nights out on the town. I spent most of my time With Trav, Ollie from Black Pool, Ezra from the States, Lisa from the states and Mary from the UK. Ollie was an interesting fellow with a strong UK-village accent. He owns a small bar in Peru and after the weekend, offered to put me up with a job for a while if I ever came through Peru. Hmmmmmmm well I now have the travel bug…….and am starting to think about exploring South America. First things first however!
I found Brasov to be quite fascinating, it is a relatively small town in Transylvania and is home to several old churches and historical buildings. I climbed to the top of a nearby mountain and was able to see the beautiful town of Brasov at a birds eye view-which was blissfully breathtaking.
Brasov-The famous Black Church is in the center

Brahn Castle-Below

Church near Hostel-

Peles Palace-below


During my second day in Brasov I took a tour to Brahn Castle(dracula’s Castle) in Transylvania. It was built in the late 1300s but has been restored several times over the years(which made it a bit less significant and attractive). I did not find this castle to be overly impressive but it was unique and interesting in its own way. We also visited a few other castles, ruins, and an old Palace on the outskirts of Brasov.
Brasov crew-


After a couple days in Brasov, Trav and I took a slow train to Bucharest. I will add that this train ride was absolutely painful in all aspects of the word. It was hot, the windows barely opened, people around us smelled horribly of an aroma I can describe as a mix of rotten garbage and unique and pungent mystery spice. And of course the train lasted 4 agonizing hours…………ahhhhhh I felt like it would never end. When we arrived in Bucharest things somehow changed……..Bucharest train station was no longer a model of excellence. In fact it was the opposite; it is hard to explain the things that I was now seeing. At 6am the Bucharest train station is clean, quiet, and lacking any sort of crowd. At 3:30pm the tables had turned; the true problems surfaced, and my new observations left me in a shocked and saddened state of mind.
The first thing Trav and I needed to do was to find the bus stop that was supposedly on the outside perimeter of the train station. We proceeded to exit the train station and to walk around the outside perimeter. As we were walking I immediately noticed; packs of wild dogs laying in the sunshine, a group of scandalous cab drivers, and a group of 20-25 Roma sitting on a cement sidewalk. Ok…..this is after all Eastern Europe, and this sort of visual is actually a bit normal and cliché for the outside of a train station. However the shocking part of this experience came as I drew nearer to the group of Roma. The group was large in numbers with ages ranging from 11-35. They all looked very down and out in appearance, shoeless, mostly shirtless, and very dirty and scruffy looking. They also shared a skinny impoverished appearance, with eyes that showed no true emotion. It was a look of confusion, numbness and blocked pain. I suppose I should mention that each and every Roma in this crew was clutching a small plastic bag lined with silver paint. Between conversation they would huff a potent and mind numbing amount of paint into their lungs. How can this be happening? In a public place there is a large group of people just hanging out and huffing paint like they are puffing on a cigarette. It was frightening for me to see this and it made my stomach clench with uneasiness and a disturbed sort of pain. As I walked within feet of these men and women I began to see just how large this problem was. As I walked by the group I noticed three different men with deep lacerations on their arms, and long deep scars all over their bodies. I had to look away because it was so disturbing for me to see. One man who I would guess to be in his early 20s had several 4 inch horizontal slashes on his shoulder that were at least a half inch deep and that must have been less than a day old. This was undoubtedly some sort of self mutilation, which was apparent when looking at the pattern of deep systematic looking scars that started at the top of his hands and extended to his shoulders. In the past I have read about people with self mutilation problems, but seeing this up close and in person had a very different effect on me. These troubled men and their self inflicted pain really showed me a dark, cruel, and painful side of life that I had not often been exposed to during my earlier life in a suburban paradise.
I will add that this huffing problem did not seem to be an isolated incident. As Trav and I took the wrong bus and walked around a rough part of Bucharest we kept seeing sketchy looking Roma, and Romanians huffing paint. Well I guess you could say that this is certainly a common occurrence in any large city. And I would say you are right; It is common knowledge that huffing, drugs and alcohol are quite prevalent in large cities all over the world. I am only writing this because I was so incredibly shocked at how visible and seemingly tolerated these problems were in Bucharest. Hundreds of thousands of people come in and out of he Bucharest train station every day, and yet large groups of people gather on the outside of the station regularly, to huff paint as if it is an ordinary part of some sort of twisted and sad yet generally accepted social gathering. What do the police think about this situation? What can the government of Romania do to help these people ? I do not have the answers to these questions but it did make me think about the possible answers.
Another interesting incident happened when Trav and I were waiting for a bus about 3 miles outside of the center of town. To make a long story short; we lost the address of the hostel we were staying at, took a wrong bus, and became horribly lost and displaced in a sketchy part of Bucharest. As we were waiting for our bus we saw four 13-15 your old guys stumbling down the sidewalk toward us. They were walking very slow and were displaying exaggerated mannerisms. The youngest of the crew kept waving his hands slowly in front of his face and periodically stumbling into the street. We were both puzzled by this bizarre behavior and immediately wrote the kids off as being part of some sort of adolescent drinking binge. When the kids stopped next to us and heard Trav and I speaking in English; the oldest kid turned around and began to stare at us. After a few minutes all four of them were staring at us with a non-threatening glazed look in their eyes. Their crooked stance and unsteady feet made their situation almost humorous. It was as if they were completely oblivious to their surroundings but had some sort of currious reaction to our voices. After a few awkward minutes of trying to ignore the strange kids, the oldest teen asked us where we were from. After a few minutes of mostly incoherent rambling we had learned that these kids had injected themselves with a drug called Ketamine (it is some sort of animal tranquilizer commonly snorted or injected). Again this situation is perhaps typically but I cannot say I have seen this sort of thing in Bulgaria or in my previous travel experiences. On the surface I would say that perhaps Bucharest has a bit of a drug problem, but what do I know I was only there for a day.
After a few more bus rides, a lot of walking and a bit of confusion we were able to find our hostel. It was a small hostel in the middle of town, and was decent beside the fact that the beds were a bit uncomfortable………….actually I would go as far to say that they were very uncomfortable.
So we toured around the city that night, checked out a few government buildings, including the Palace; which is the second largest building in the world. The business/ diplomatic district in Bucharest was brilliant. It was full of beautiful and articulately designed buildings and was intertwined with lovely parks. Overall I would say that Bucharest is a city worth checking out………but as I mentioned previously there is a very gloomy and ugly side to the city that can be very disheartening.
After seeing pretty much all I wanted to see in Bucharest; I decided that it was time for me to hit the road. Trav and I headed to the bus station around 9:00am and arrived around 9:30am. The first thing I noticed upon arrival at the station was a group of shirtless, shoeless, and raggedy looking Roma kids huffing paint on the front steps. There were about seven of them from ages 7-10. WTF!!!!!!!! It keeps getting worse! Eight year olds huffing paint, destroying their brains with each inhalation. It was so sad to see these kids and their predisposition. If a homeless Roma boy starts huffing paint all day at age 7, what exactly does the future hold for him? There are 5,000 Roma in my town and I have never seen anyone huff paint. I know for a fact that if a group of Bulgarians or Roma were huffing paint outside our municipality, the cops would come down on them hard and clear them out immediately. Obviously the goal should not be to clear them out and shove them to the side. Of course I know absolutely nothing about this problem/epidemic; and am only a stunned observer of something sad and very real that I will not quickly forget.
The train to get back to Bulgaria took 4 hours even though it was only a distance of 78km. We arrived in Ruse around 3:30pm and were looking forward to checking out some old monasteries built in a cave. The idea was abandoned after a flash flood soaked us to the core and forced us into the home of my friend Jen (PCV). Well basically the trip ended there………I parted ways with my Ausie friend Trav and headed back home.

5-31-2007
-Side Note-
I must add that my opinions of Bucharest are based on a short and minimal experience; therefore my reactions to the drug problems could very well be inaccurate / and based on isolated incidents. I will also add that it has come to my attention through a Romanian citizen that the police and the government of Romania have been actively working hard to deter drug use including huffing paint. it appears that the drug problem in Bucharest has been rapidly declining over the past 15 years do to these efforts. FACT: all big cities have major problems! Even the beautiful and important ones; Example WA DC!

-Ticking Clock-

5-22-2007

The clock is ticking and my time here is winding down; only about 3.5 months left in the Bulg. My site mate Melody will be leaving in about a week; and my kindergarten classes will be coming to a close very soon. Things have definitely slowed down at the municipality as well. I am struggling to find enough work to keep me busy; I feel that my productivity peaked a while back, and now my work is in a slow stagnant mode. To be completely honest…..I do not feel that I will be able to accomplish anything major for the rest of my time here. I will spend my days doing the simple day to day tasks; translating, teasing my colleagues, sipping rakia, and enjoying everyday Bulgarian life.
-This is one of my Kindergarten Classes

My day to day experiences here have been priceless, and I am not looking forward to the end of this journey. In many ways I am ready to move on and leave Bulgaria; but at the end of the day I know I will miss this place dearly. Well what can I write that I have not written 10 times already……..Bulgaria is changing. I can literally see the changes take place in this country. Bulgaria is in a state of drastic change and progression; it has definitely been a fascinating time to live in Bulgaria. The government to the surprise of many has taken drastic steps to try and clean out the organized crime and corruption throughout the Country. I personally feel that one of Bulgaria’s biggest problems is the organized crime ring, and how it has infiltrated all aspects of Bulgarian society and life. The corruption in this country is prevalent even in the small towns. I have avoided writing about this topic for the most part; because it is a bit to controversial. I have to edit this blog heavily in order to keep my writings low profile and stay out of the PC admin office. PC Bulgaria actually reads our blogs and will contact you if they feel that you have written anything that damages the PC program, US government, or our relationship with Bulgaria. I understand this of course; but am looking forward to the day that I will be able to write freely without editing my thoughts and opinions.
Anyways……back to the issue! So Bulgaria is being pumped full of EU money; and in my opinion will someday be as respected and visited as Prague, or Athens. Anyone who has visited Bulgaria will tell you that it is beautiful, full of history, and has endless potential. Beautiful Mountains, the Black Sea, Roman and Thracian ruins, Old monasteries ect ect ect. On the other hand we have a long way to go……Bulgaria is nowhere near where it needs to be in order to attract mass amounts of tourists from places outside of Europe. In hind site; you can look at the progression since communism ended in 1989, and be encouraged by the direction the country is taking. Privatization was a curse for all former soviet countries……..the ease of corruption was too high to resist. But now I see hope in the eyes of many Bulgarians; and optimist about the future of this incredible country.

The weather here was unbelievable for about a week, but has currently turned sour. It is actually flooding now in Bulgaria; which could prove to be disastrous for many Bulgarian communities. Only time will tell how much damage the rains will bring; but if it becomes anything like the rains of 2005 we are in trouble.
The Cyrill and Methodius holiday is this week; it is a holiday that celebrates the two men who created the Cyrillic alphabet. They created the alphabet in Salonika(modern day Thessoloniki, Greece). The nationality of these two men has been heavily debated, but since they are from a city that was formerly a part of Bulgaria; the Bulgars claim them to be their own(I am on the side of the Bulgars). I will be traveling to Romania for the holiday; it will be a quick trip to Brasov and Bucharest. I am sure I will have plenty to write about upon my return.
Chow
Trevor

-too lazy to write-

5-9-2007

I have not written much lately; but have jotted down a few notes and thoughts on occasion with intent to expand on the topic later. I really have to be in a certain type of mood when I write. My ideal writing mood includes a jumbled mix of boredom, hopelessly deep thought and often uncontrollable mental exploration.

-notes written various times during the last few days-

-While waiting for the bus in Colofer I saw a few kids riding around the city’s center on their bikes and dive bombing a local drunk with mouthfuls of water….. until the bum angrily chased them away. Mildly entertaining but- sad and cruel in many ways

-I hiked 35 miles last weekend (solo). From Karlovo to Vassil Levski Hizja where I slept, and then up and over the Stara planina(old Mountains) and then came back down into Colofer.

-Hiking alone is great. Peace of mind. My own pace. Tranquility. Quiet. Deep thoughts.

- It was interesting/flattering when I was at the hizja ordering a bowl of soup. I could hear the old woman talking to her husband about me while she was preparing my food. She told her husband that I spoke Bulgarian very well and that she thinks that I am German. It is funny when I overhear conversations like this.

- Yesterday 5-6 was St. George day so there were a lot of parties everywhere and the supermarket (the size of a 7-11) was pretty much bare. I tried hard to find some milk but was without luck.

-I think today 5-7 is Labor day in the states……..not sure though I don’t remember exactly when it is.

-I work with 3 women in there mid twenties so I usually curb my boredom by teasing them and bombarding them with practical jokes. The are a pleasure to work with; and we tease each other constantly. I have arrow shaped post it notes that I like to write goofy notes on, and place them on their desks with the arrow facing toward them. Example: Losha Zjena-Bad Girl. Somehow I find this amusing……….

-Am I ready for the fast pace of American life? It kinda makes me nervous to return to the US. But of course I am also excited for all the luxuries and practical conveniences. My grocery store is the size of a 7-11 and I of course do not have any access to wonderful things such as: Beef, Beef Jerky, Skittles, Peanut Butter, Gatorade(or any sport drink), canned Chile, Frozen Pizzas, year round Lettuce, American Beer, Barbecue Sauce, Hot Sauce, OK will stop there before I start getting Hungry and frustrated.

- People care about you here. You are part of something. Life is interesting

-crazy comie stories like the one about the 2cent elevator rides. And the one about a pcv getting stuck in the elevator. My buddy was telling me that in the commie days they had to pay 2 cents each time they used the elevator. And this was for the maintenance man to keep the elevator in the block running………



I am not in a writing mood but I will elaborate on the elevator story because I found it amusing when I heard it.

-note: most PCV’s/Bulgarians live in Commie era apartment blocks, they are usually plain looking, ugly, appear to be falling apart; and are usually surrounded by dirt fields decorated with a pleasant mixture of trash, and broken down vehicles. However the interior of these blocks are usually quite nice. Most apartments I have visited have been very clean, neat, finely decorated, and of course fully furnished

A fellow PCV I know was riding in the elevator of her block from her apartment down to the bottom floor………when all of a sudden she heard something snap and the elevator immediately began to excel at a rapid pace up the building. When the elevator reached the top of the building it stopped; and to her luck….. the door would not open. She began to yell help (in Bulgarian) at the top of her lungs. After a few minutes she began to hear a family through the wall. She heard the young girl of the family (maybe 10) walk into a room and tell her father “Dad, the American is stuck in the elevator”. The father paused for a moment and then ordered the mother and the daughter to help out the poor American so he could watch television in peace. The daughter and mother then began to wrench the door open with a screwdriver…….and eventually were able to pull and carry the PCV 6ft down into the hallway from the small crack between the elevator and the wall. This tale is not quite as amusing to me as now, as when I first heard it. When first heard; a great emphasis was put on the fact that the father was too busy watching futbol to help the PCV, and instead of getting off the couch……….he ordered his wife and daughter to do the (in most cases) mans job of rescuing a woman in need.

Toilet Humor

Things here have become so routine and normal that I find myself having to compare them to US standards in order to come up with anything unusual or relatively interesting. My day to day interactions are normal to me but may be abnormal and exotic to many people in the States. PC stories spread like wildfire……the good and the bad. We all seem to thrive on each others awkward experiences.
For Example……….

-About a week ago today, I traveled to the nearby town of Stara Zagora. I have a solid crew of friends there, and make the trip from time to time for a quick taste of the city life. On this particular occasion I was there to watch a semi-final European Premiere League match (Liverpool-Chelsea, soccer). It was a wonderful Wednesday night out with the crew, and after a close match and a couple pints; I headed to the train station. I was in a very pleasant and satisfied mood as I boarded the 1am train for Chirpan. After a short exploration of the train, I was able to find a free seat in a wagon filled with college aged kids. The train wagons are quite small and when crowded can feel uncomfortably snug (like a crowded elevator). On the plus side; a few smiles and a bit of small talk is for the most part inevitable in this situation. After a few words with my new ‘proximity crew’ I left my seat and headed down the hallway toward the Toilet……..nature calls……..SIDE NOTE -Train Toilets in the Balkans are notorious for being disgusting and almost unusable. I just wrote out a full description of a typical Balkan train toilet….but better judgment had me delete this as courtesy to the reader. So………anyways I made it to the toilet and found that the light was burnt out; there appeared to be a faint glow of moonlight coming through the window. So after some deep thought and analysis of the situation; I decided to live dangerously and step into the unknown. After I stepped into the WC and reached out to close the door; I realized that I was standing in a half inch+ of ________&________. As disgusting as this is, I figured that I am already in the puddle…so…… I may as well finish my business while I am here. The damage was already done, so I figured I would make the most out of the situation. As I walked down the hall toward my seat; I realized that the horrific smell was lingering a bit longer than it should have. As I inspected my pants I realized that there was about a two inch ring of saturation around the bottom of my jeans. AHHHHHH…….. not good I thought to myself. My jeans had soaked up a substantial amount of foul smelling mystery juice from the floor of the WC. So now what????? I am on a train……and wearing a pair of jeans that are putting off an appalling scent. So after a bit of contemplation I decided that I could no longer casually go back to my seat. The situation would be way too embarrassing. Lets see……….a 5x7.5ft room with 8 people, no open windows,…….. and one person is wearing jeans saturated with piss and sh#* water……..someone is bound to notice the smell. Ohh…..and when did this smell begin……..it was of course when the strange foreigner returned from the restroom. So….yeah……..action had to be taken….I decided to avoid this humiliating situation by standing in the well-ventilated hallway outside the wagon and pretending to ignore my own smell. It was only another 40 minutes until my stop, so standing was not a problem. Disaster avoided successfully!!!!!!!!


A friend of mine recently told me a story about a run in he had with an elderly Roma woman. As it goes………he was traveling in a familiar area and was held up at a bus station that he frequents. When nature called; he decided to make a trip to the restroom. He knew of a secluded restroom that was almost a secret to travelers (or so he thought). So he then smoothly ventured around the back of the building and walked down a tight stairwell. In front of him was the pathway to the secret toilet……barely in view from the secluded hallway was the small narrow door to the hidden Turkish toilet. Rather than touch the disgusting door, and feeling quite secluded…… he began to urinate……peace and silence was shattered abruptly when he heard the loud irate yell of an old woman, followed by a fierce and powerful slam of the door behind him. Shocked and a bit embarrassed he finishes up his business and then opens the bathroom door into the hallway. As he slowly stepped forward he noticed something out of the corner of his eye……….a swiftly moving Elderly Roma woman was rapidly approaching…….. Before he could turn around he heard a loud war like yell and felt a mouthful of spit slap across the side of his neck and face. This missile of a lougi was followed by the Roma baba’s excessive yelling and screaming…….which translated amounted to her telling him that he did not have any culture. She was offended to say the least, that she had caught him using the toilet without the door closed. – My friend’s reaction: complete shock…….. disgust…more shock……and some retaliatory screaming and cursing in English. After a brief yelling match, a few locals intervened and they were forced to separate, and part ways. My friend walked away from the incident trembling, sickened, and completely traumatized from the situation……but he lived to tell the story….. The moral of the story is to always carry around napkins and antibacterial gel………Oh and close the door behind you when you’re taking a piss.