-A Day to Remember-

Well it is 5:30pm………and I am feeling a bit exhausted. I have been cleaning the bachelor pad all day long; getting ready for my long awaited guest. It has been miserably hot here lately…..but the weather will later be a blessing when John and I make our way to the seaside. I have a ridiculously busy itinerary scheduled for us………so after the 3 weeks of constant travel, I may have to hibernate for a week or so.
Well Monday was a very exciting day for me here in Bulgaria. I was invited to a ‘meet and greet’ at the US Embassy with President Bush and first lady Laura Bush. I was not expecting to get invited to the event, and was pleasantly surprised when I received an invitation to attend the event late last week. My political opinions aside; I was very excited to attend a very private function with the President of the United States of America. All in all I was not expecting very much from the event……the highlight I assumed would be standing in the same room as the president and listening to some sort of VIP speech. We were told beforehand that the security at the event would be very tight (video cameras were strictly forbidden at the event, as were cell phones). I felt that a group photo with the other attending Peace Corps Volunteers and the prez was appropriate. My dreams were shattered when I found out that Bush was not able to take a group photo with us (there were about 30 PCVs in attendance).Ohh well……….I was still excited about the event.
I made my way to the rendezvous point at about 9am on Monday morning. The other PCVs and I were then escorted into the embassy at about 10:30am. This is when it gets exciting……jk…..we had to wait in the center room of the embassy for the next two hours; thank God the room was air Conditioned. At 12:30pm all the people attending the ‘meet and greet’ (about 120 people) were escorted outside onto the tennis court for another security inspection. After I made it through security I was able to make my way to the event area. It must have been about 90 degrees outside! The situation became a bit rough after we realized that we all had to wait another hour and a half for the president to show up. The time seemed to go by like the last day of school……however in a way the waiting made the event more exciting.
The scene was like one out of a movie……..There were military snipers on the roof tops and secret service all over the place. There were actually over 3,500 police officers on duty in Sofia while the president was in town. It was crazy; the center was completely locked down. Streets were closed and even pedestrian traffic was halted in the center of the city. I also noticed that the roads in the center of Sofia were lined with American flags. I think it is safe to say that the Bulgarian Government was thrilled that Bush was visiting their country.
There were a surprisingly small amount of people attending the ‘meet and greet’ and this made it more than possible to get a great view of the president. The entrance and the area surrounding the stage was only about 3 people deep; so basically you could get at least 5 feet from the president without effort. I took advantage of this, and ended up standing center stage front row!
As I heard the deep rumble of an entourage of V12 Cadillac limo’s; I knew the time was drawing near. I immediately began to feel anxious and excited, when I realized that I was moments away from standing face to face with the president of the United States of America. Well I was maybe not going to be face to face literally……..but I figured; -front row center, -8 feet away, meant that he would at least make eye contact with me at one point, and that I would get a few great close up photos of the guy.
I was grinning ear to ear when they welcomed George and Laura Bush onto the stage. Wow…………I was now looking directly at the president from 8 feet away. It seemed a bit surreal to be at such an intimate event with the president.
After a quick intro by our US ambassador, George gave a short speech. The president then took a few group photos with the embassy kids. I was feeling very pleased to be at the event, and truly expected Bush to walk away from us immediately and be on his way home. To my surprise, after the photo with the kids, the president happily walked straight to the beginning of the crowd. He began shaking people’s hands and warmly greeting everyone. As he came closer to me I was almost shaking with anticipation. He was now about 5 feet away from me, and I could not think of anything to say….. my mind was completely blank………..Well, as he Approached me and held out his hand I shook it and mumbled…”welcome to Bulgaria” I was visibly nervous and while holding firm to my hand he chuckled and said “ now..how are you doing?” I responded with “very well”. At that moment I was so nervous and excited I could barely stand it. Bush then asked the PCVs around me and I what we were doing in Bulgaria. We then talked with him for a few minutes and listened to him make a few humorous wise cracks at us. He told us that we were the best dressed PCVs that he had ever seen, and said that this must be the first time in the last two years that we have all worn ties. Haha………this was pretty much true by the way.
Well after he spoke to me and the other PCVs and was making his way around the crowd; I could not believe what had just happened. I was in complete shock and glowing with excitement. I guess I was a bit star struck by the situation. I had not expected anything more than the opportunity to attend; so shaking the president’s hand and actually talking to him was quite a treat for me. Well….. I don’t know what else I can really say about meeting the president except that it was an experience of a lifetime. Monday June 11, 2007 will be a day I will never forget.
Also I will note that Bush definitely has charisma; he was always smiling, joking and seemed to be having a great time when meeting and talking with us. In spite of his villain like reputation; I found his personality to be quite likeable.
Here are a few photos of the event, it was hard to get good ones…I am hoping that a few more surface later on.





And here are a few photos of the Roma camp I worked at last week.