Reporting for Duty

Hello my faithful millions! It is I, your dear giver of wisdom. Or in this case, an update in how I am doing over here in the eastern edges of Europe. In short, I am doing swell. Spring is finally coming. I have come to the conclusion that I hate winter in a city. Well, correction, I hate it if I do not have the opportunity to travel to other places and do things, such as ski or hike or whatever I have grown up doing in the states. It is really actually quite boring without being able to do these things. I spent the whole winter sitting in cafes, but not, the sun has been shining and it has been steadily getting warmer, with a colder day thrown in there every now and then. The trees are about to pop, with the buds showing the first of their leaves and the flowers on some trees and bushes already blossoming. It has instilled a new enthusiasm for me. I have spring fever I guess. And I am so very grateful that is getting warmer. As I told in my last post a while ago, I have switched families again. This is my third and final family. The badita family. I have a mom, lily, my dad, titi (real name is Constantine) and my host brother Andrei, who is in the tenth grade. They are a really awesome family, as were the previous two. I think I really got lucky on this exchange. I live in a house a ways off the main drag and let me tell you, it is so nice! It is quiet, though when the dogs get excited and start barking, it can become pretty chaotic, and also it is bigger and has a room just for me! That’s right, no more Hannah Montana or Disney channel forever residing in the background of my life. It was a truly liberating feeling to shake off the weight of the Jonas brothers, Selene Gomez and the rest of the Disney gang. Living in a house is also a little more like home. I can go outside and shoot some hoops, I can read a book out on the wooden swinging chair, or I could just relax in my room. It was definitely a nice transition. Also, before moving I was worried about how far away it is form my school. I am no longer worried about that. Turns out my host dad drives us in the morning, and I do not mind walking back in the afternoon. It can be a pleasant head clearer after a day of school, especially since the weather is becoming warmer.
BIG NEWS!!!! The Europe tour is coming in less than a week!!!! Right now I would like to thank David O'Clair, who was the financier of this excursion of mine. Without him, I do not know what I would have done. So a big thank you to him. I hope he gets my letter. Anyway for those poor souls who don’t know the itinerary yet, here it is
Slovenia-Veneţia-Munich-Strasbourg-Paris-Amsterdam-Berlin-Prague-Vien.
Pretty freaking awesome! Also, it isn’t written, but I believe Budapest is in there too. It will be my second time in a few cities, and I am curious how I will like them the second time. I cannot wait though. This is truly a trip of a lifetime. I do not mean to make you all jealous, I am just really excited. I am most excited for Paris, Venice and Amsterdam I think. I am hoping I will be able to see my buddies when we go to Vienna, but that remains to be seen. I will have my laptop, but I do not know how the internet will be and I do NOT want to spend all my time on it, so I will be posting pictures on Facebook and that’s about it. Don’t worry mom and dad; I will call every now and then. So I will post again when I get back on the 19th, to let you know all about it. I am sure you will all be curious. For now, that is my life. Less than three months left, exciting/sad. Still cannot wait to see home again, but at the same time, I most def do not want to leave.
Goals: keep up the language learner and have a blast on the Eurotour

Routine.... again

Hey guys. Another post! This past month and a half or whatever it has been since I last updated has been one of those wake up, go to school, come home kind of months. Routine, routine routine. It is all soooooo..... Normal. I know that every second of the exchange can’t be completely full of excitement and new adventures, but I am starting to get bored. I think that is a sign that I am a naturalized Romanian of sorts. I am no longer finding as many new things, and it is my normal life. It is just as though I was doing my senior year back home, only without the work. I am so glad that I don’t have to do much work for school though. Trust me. This year is mine, and it makes me so glad that I can focus on the country and not on trying to remember a math problem or something like that. I think in all honesty I have benefited from this year off, so to speak. It has given me the opportunity to discover myself, a new land, a new language and a new culture in relative peace and quiet (Alexia often has the Disney channel on full volume). Oh! Speaking of that, I am changing families again this Sunday. It seems like only a few weeks ago I came to live here at the Stancius but here I am again, switching families. This time I will be going to the Badita family, who has a son in Colorado at the moment. Their other son, Andrei, will be my host brother. My first experience with having a brother in my life. We will see how it goes. This is one of the major things I do not like about the program. Having to switch to three different families in such a small space. We have about three months with each family, and it seems as though I establish myself in their family just in time to move again. It is not pleasant to have to recreate all of the relationships that I just spent so much time creating. But I guess I have done it once, so I will have to do it again. It was really cute/sad. About a week ago, at dinner, when we discussed my departure, alexia started crying. As much as she can bug me, I mean, she talks ALOT, I am going to be sad to leave. I will be glad to get my own room, but in a way I will miss the sounds of the Jonas brothers or Hannah Montana in the background as I shout to Skype with people. I am leaving behind yet another family as I move on. I will get used to it, I will adapt to my new family just as I have adapted to just about everything here over the past 6 months.

Prom is coming up on Friday! It is different than the prom in America in many ways, but it is all basically the same thing. The seniors get together to dance, show their stuff, and have fun. One of the major differences (the other being it is in March) is the fact that the prom king and queen is chosen based on a performance they must give. For example, my friend Valy is nominated to be prom king. He must participate in the group dance that my class is putting on and he must have a partner dance or skit. I believe he is doing a tango for that. I got sucked into this whole thing. I am partners with Cosmina, a prom queen candidate, and I must also participate in all this stuff. UGH! I cannot dance! We are having rehearsals with a professional dance teacher a couple times a week, practicing the dance to a song by a Romanian singer who does a special and famous Christmas program every year live on TV. It is an interesting dance, kind of like a fifties rock and roll song with the same idea in the dance moves, with heel clicking, dips, air guitaring and the like. I am doing ok, but you all know me. I am on of the least graceful people ever to be born, so I have to work at it quite a bit sadly. Then I have to work with Cosmina on a partner presentation. We decided not to dance, but instead do a pantomime set to a selection of music that tells a story. I spent a while yesterday creating this montage of movie quotes and music and all that remains is for me and Cosmina to come up with what we are doing. I had been worrying about this, about getting everything perfect, then Cosmina reminded me, we are just there to have fun. If we are having fun, the judges and audience will as well. I have to keep this in mind. I always worry unnecessarily, just ask anyone who knows me. Especially two weeks ago, when we had a rotary district conference in Bucuresti, and all of the students were required to give a presentation on their home country/district/town. There were about seventy Romanians in the room, and then there was me and my presentation on the wall, and I had to get my spiel out in Romanian. It is safe to say my nerves were shot. I got through it, and the presentation I had to a week later here in Slatina, though luckily to a much smaller crowd. So figure, why the heck worry about something as trivial as this. It really doesn’t matter a heck of a lot.
The eurotrip is coming up and I can hardly wait! I depart with the others on April 8th and we begin our travels across the great continent of Europa. The tour will include Slovenia-Veneţia-Munich-Strasbourg-Paris-Amsterdam-Berlin-Prague-Vien. Quite the itinerary no? :D :D I really cannot wait. I won’t keep rubbing in how awesome it is.

Ok, I again do not know when my next post will be. But I will write on my Facebook Page when I do post. As always, goals are to keep progressing and completing my integration into Romanian society. Wish me luck in my new family.

Another post?!?!?!?!

Hey everyone. I know, this is becoming a monthly blog. Whatever. I have been having way too much fun to write a post. A month has gone by since my last post. And alot has happened. First thing i should talk about is my new family. I am staying with the Stanciu family. There are two daughters, adina and alexia, my dad mihai, and my mother gabi. Adina is currently doing her exchange in Pennsylvania, near pittsburgh. So i have a little sister again. I forgot how much nergy it takes to have a six year old in the house. It is truly truly exhausting. She talks all the time, and of course, it is in romanian. All in all this is probably a beter thing. in fact i know it is. I am learnign so much romanian. I have to, or else i am in trouble. no one in my family speaks english, unlike at my last family. I now know why the rotary has kids change families throughout the year. The experience i am having with this family is soooo much different! It is more of a traditional family, with my sister here. I was an only child at the Jijaescu household (sometimes i wish i still was but hey, whatever) and it took some readjustment to fit into a family where i wasnt the only one. My room is actually my sisters playroom, so during the day, ti belongs to her, and at night, sometimes she sleeps in the bunkbed above me, sometimes i have to room to myself. It can be hard sometimes. I got used to alot of privacy at my old house, and I kind of miss it. I have very little time to myself. Still, i am enjoying myself here, and the Stancius are incredibly kind to me. For example, over the christmas break, as manyof you know, i went skiing in the mountians of romania, in a town called Ranca. The slope itself (yes slope singular) is serviced by a t bar, and i can make it down in about 20 seconds. but hey it was skiing. It felt so nice to be back out there on the slopes. especially after living the city life which involves alot of sitting in cafes and the like. It has been hard not to have access to the outdoors like i did back home, where i could go to the mountain after school, or got out in the woods for a walk if i wanted. I am used to it now, but it would still be nice to go for a hike when i wanted and not have to worry about getting mugged or lost or something. :D The city during the winter is very pretty. the lights were up for christmas, snow covered the ground and winter was definitley in the air. The weather is very strange. one day it will be blistering cold, and then the next it will be 50 degrees. a bit like new england i guess, i should be used to it. New years was a blast, as usual. I went to my friend sergiu's house and there were probably 12 to 15 of us there. We danced and ate and had a good time. I ended up getting home almost at 8 o clock in the morning. Yeah, i know, doesnt sound like me does it. I had a blast though. We toasted even for new years back in the states, i watched the ball drop and life was good. I walked home and the city was so beautiful. It was a bright clear day, and the air was so fresh. the city was silent, as everyone was falling asleep from the nights festivities. The remainder of fireworks and bottles were all over hte place, and i felt very content. It was great. And then, just as school started the next wedenesday, I got to go to AUSTRIA! on a ski trip. for those who know me even remotley, you would knwo that this is kind of a dream come true for me. and it did not disappoint. The alps are GORGEOUS! Austria is a truly diverse and beautiful country. we drove across it, so got to see everything, from the fields and flatness next to hungary, to the alps of the west. I went to visit my brother Tobi and my friends in Salzburg, and for how short it was, it was a great visit. I love Salzburg so much, and I am so glad i have friends there that are like family. The skiing, as i said, was phenominal. There was 45 + kilometeres of ski trails, with as much as you want off trails. It was sad though, I didnt have the best skis, and my mom wouldnt let me go off trails. but hey, it is a reason for a return trip! anyone want to come with? On the austria trip we also stopped in Budapest, which believe it or not, beats Vienna and Munich on my list of beautiful and awesome European cities. It is absolutley gorgeous! It is a city split in two by the river, with beautiful bridges, elegant buildings and tight, european roads between very pretty buildings. I am definitley going to have to go back there so i have more time to do what i want, as i was limited to what the group wanted to do. I highly recommend it to anyone! SO now that i am back in romania, things are winding down again for a while. I do not have any big plans on the horizin, though i think that there is one again a short vacation coming up. The in between semester vacation or somthing. I am not complaining. I do not know when my next post will be. Just check periodically. Hope you all are well, and La Multi Ani!

Schimb

So today i ahve officially changed to my second host family. It is strange, to have gotten used to a family, stayed with them, shared their food, their stories, played tennis and such with them, leanred romanian with them and the like, then all of a sudden start all over again. It is a good thing, and also an uncomfortable thing at the same time. But hey, i am not doing this exchange to be omfortable. :P I want to thank dan and laura for putting up with me for these past three months. i know it must have been a pain to have to try and talk to a kid who doesnt know your language and customs. I am grateful for the paitience and love they gave to me, and i hope that i was a good son for you guys too! So my new family is different than my old one. I am currently living with the stanciu family, across town. My dads name is Mihai, my mothers name is Gabi, and i have a six year old sister named alexia, who is a little cutie. :D I believe i am going to have a good time here. It is different because it is more of a complete family, i am no longer an only child. I am once again a big brother, and i have to get used to that job again, especially since my little sister is alot younger this time. My room is once again extraordinalrily girly, but whatever, i do not care, it is alot bigger than my last one. MY new house is alot farhter away from school this time which makes it a necessity to wake up earlier, bummer. they also dont speak any english, so it makes it alot harder when there is something i do not understand, i no longe have my english transltor. it is like i have gone from romanian I to Romanian II or III and i am thoroughly confused. again it is somethign that i will get used to, and in the long run, it will pay off for me. I have found out when i am going to be going to austria to ski. January 8th. I am soooooo superbly excited i can hardly contain it. Those of you who know me at all will know what this is for me. i am hoping it worksout that i can see my salzburg friends, but if not this time, i am pushing for a salzburg stop on the europe trip in the spring. dont worry, i am working my hardest to make it work! :D
So i sang karaoke again, last ngiht, in a crowded establishment. sometimes i even surprise myself. haha. Sure i was with some friends, but the fact that i did it in the first place is cause for celebration among those who know my shy personality. so yeah, i am coming out of bubble still, but the fact i am coming out at all means this trip has had success! :D ok, i really do not have much to say, but everything is still going well, and I am still having a good time! Christmas is coming, and the air is becoming festive! merry chirstmas, if i do not update again!

WOO NEW STUFF!!!

So it has been just about a full month since i have last updated, wow, that is a new record of laziness even for me i think. I dont know why i didnt update, but i didnt. But this morning, i have the day off from school, i decided something must be done. so actually quite a bit has happened since my last post i have jsut realized. I have had my birthday, rehearsals have started for my play, the baddest angel band, and yesterday was thanksgiving! woot woot! Let me start with my birthday, which was absolutley incredible. Ok, so it was a monday, whcih kind of is a sucky day to have a birthday. You have to wake up to go to school, and it is the first day of a long week of school, you all know what i am talking about i think. I got up, totally not remembering that it was my birthday until my mother said to me as i was walking like a zombie into the bathroom, "La multi ani!" which is surprise surprise, how romanians say happy birthday. i think it means something like many years. That was cool, i totally like say it that way, for some reason it sounds cooler than aying happy birthday. :D anyway i brushed my teeth, got ready for school and headed out. My friends had texted me the night before and asked me to meet ehr a little bit early out in front of the donut stand. so i did, and it was so cool. For those of you who do not know, our family has a tradition where we wake up the birthday person with a muffin and a candle in it, along with a loud, rousing chorusof happy birthday. Each of us always has a particular muffin that we get too, usually from dunks. Mine happens to be coffee cake for all those who are curious. :) anywho, i got there, and she had something behind her back, and she told me to close my eyes for a second. So i did, i heard her ask for somethign from another friend i was talking to and when i opened my eyes there was a candle stuck inside a muffin. I forgot that i had told her i was not going to get my yearly muffin, like 2 weeks prior. It was awesome, i smiled wide, gave her a huge hug and gulped down my muffin after making a birthday wish. :) so we went to pe, the first class of monday morning, whoever was n charge of making vlasses is truly evil, and went through the day. Everyone, knowing that i am american, said happy birthday to me as i passed. Way more people than i thought knew it was my birthday. It was actually kind of weird. Literally 75 percent of the school or more said happy birthday to me. i am ok with it, i was just curious how they all know so much about me all the time. :P anyway, we went through the first few classes, and it was fine, just another day at school. Actually my birthday happens to rest on the day of st. mihai, the name of many people in my class, and therefore it is an occasion somewhat similar to their actual birthdays, everyone sings happy birthday to them too, so we did that. Then during the large break we have at 10 or eleven, i can not remember which right now, me and my friend deea went to the store to get our ritualistic snitel sandwich, delicious piece of work from the "fast food" restaraunt next to the school, owned by "tante claudia" who is aweosme. :D we stayed outside on a bench eating it, just a normal break, me thinking about hoow boring the next class was going to be. We went back after i had finsihed my sandwich, and when i opened the dorr, the lights were off, there was a mass of people in the center of the room, their faces light ominously by the candles on a massive birthday cake. Then started the romanian birthday song, much longer and much more interesting than ours, i wish i learned it, and they all came towrds me at once. I was taken completley by surprise. As well i should have! It was my first surprise party ever, and it was soooo awesome! they sang in romanian, then they sang in the english version. I was smiling so wide at this point. I blew out the candles and they gave me a present from the class. A nice watch, and a toy version of a mini cooper, which they learned was my dream car. :D The school also gave me a traditional romanian rug, which is to grace my dorm room if i have my way. :D i cut the cake, hugged and thank many many people, iincluding my head teacher, my principal, and importantly my english teacher, who had a large part in orchestratign it. we ate, drank soda, and had a dance party. I taught them the cotton eye joe, which they seemed to find more difficult than their traditional dances, which they tried to teach me, like a hora and some other ones. I was thoroughly confused by them. But whatever. It was fun. This went on for the last two classes of the day and it was a grand time. After that, i went home, talked to people on the phone and on skype and later that evening i went out with two of my best friends and we hung out in a park for hours just talking and having a good time. It was an amazing experience. What could have been a sad, homesick filled one, turned out to be amazing because i have awesome friends here. I really do. :D
Ok, in other news, my play rehearsals have started. If you do not remember, i was asked to direct a play, in english, for christmas. I, being the fool i am , accepted, totally not knowing what i am getting myself into. I had to choose the play, cast it and produce it. So i held auditions, seeing who would turn out, which there were around thirty girls and then 6 boys. I chose my play, the baddest angel band, a short play about three angels who get kicked out of heaven for screwing around and to stay in they have to find a reason for earth to keep on turning. lucky for them it is christmas. yadda yadda yadda, much hilarity and witty comment later, christmas and earth are saved. It is a good play, and the casting was ok. Then as rehearsals went on, less and less people started showing up, even my friends, who said in the beginning they would help with what i need, stopped showing up. Anywho, i started with 17 or so, i am now down to i think 9. But it is ok, i making do. there are more lines for people, and those who continue to show are talented and very fun to be with. THANK YOU GUYS! we wstil have time to work ont he ply, as it is dcember 20th, but i am getting slightly nervous alreay. My cast is working hard, and i am sure it will be fine, but i do not want my baby to be a flop, you know?
Yesterday was thanksgiving! hooray! i said happy thanksgiving to people yesterday and they were like oh, is that today? and went about their business. Haha, whatever, i do not mind. It is another cultural difference that is both interesting and expected. :D In lieu of turkey and gorging myself, i made egg and cheese sandwiches, blated music while i ate them, and watched evolution. It was actually ook, i didnt mind. :D OH! by the way, it is good that the pats finally got their buts in gear yesterday and decided to be the lions. I would have been rather angry if they lost to the lions. :P So i hope you all ate much and had a grand time yesterday. :D
I am just about used to romania. It is ok now. I am used to school, i am used to the way you do things at restaraunts, i am used to dinner and lunch. It is good. I am proud of my self. I have had several conversations in romanian, and i am still trying to learn as much as i can. I am worried that i do not know as much as the other exchange students, but whatever. I can still deal and i know quite a bit. I am happy with what i have got. One of the biggest things that i am sad about is harry potter. I still have yet to see it, as there are no movie theatres in within reasonable distance. There is actually one opening up in slatina (maybe today?) but i am not sure exactly what movies are going to be playing, and for that matter if i will even be able to get in, because everyone has been waiting years for this. whatever, i am sure i will see it. I am re reading the book just so i can remember things. It is as excellent as i remember. :D
Ok, i really havent anyting to talk about. :D sorry i havent updated for so long. Maybe i will fix that. ;)

:P SOrry!

Hey everyone, i am really sorry i havent posted in a verrry long time. I have been extraordinarily busy, and also extraordinarily tired. I have seriously not felt well rested since coming here. In some ways, that is a good thing, because it means i am out doing things and getting to be part of this place, but in another way, it sucks, because i am constantly on the verge of having a nasty cold. :P UGH! but! enough about such depressing topics. That is not fun to hear about. GUESS WHAT! i got stuck in an elevator yesterday! and this is a romanian elevator! the are maybe 3 feet by three feet and are quite sketchy. We were coming down from the top floor of a bloc and we had four people in the elevator. That was a dumb move, but it would have been ok if one of my friends hadnt started to jump. It was terrifying. Three jumps in, the lights went out and there was a nasty slam sound. It sounded like we slipped out of something. Truly terrifying. The light said we were now on the second floor, but according to our friend who could not fit in the elevator, we were still on the eighth. Well between the eighth and the ninth actually. So there we were, four boys squeezed in a tiny area, suspended 8 floors above the ground, stuck between floors, without the ability to get the door open. Fantastic. So what do we do in this case? TAKE A PICTURE! it was really quite fun. We were in there for a total of five minutes, nothing as compared to what it could have been. We managed to get the door open and jump out. Before jumping out i remembered the fact that the elevator might slip while i am crawling out and cut me in haalf. GREAT! But i made it out alive, and i am going to try and post the video of our escape.
In other news, i am going to be directing a play, for which auditions are on monday. :P haha. I do not know what i got myself into. It is going ot be december 20th, which is kind of a bummer, because it limited my selection to christmas plays, which can be boring. I found a really funny one, but it is both short and maybe not the easiest to understand. It is going to be in english, as it is for my english class, and all of the people in the school who can speak english in the school. I am trying to find a christmas play that is interesting and easy to understand, harder than it sounds. I am very excited however. It will be so cool to see my final production. I am hoping someone will tape it in december, so i will post it if so. WIsh me luck, as it may be the endeavour of a lifetime. Trying to get a bunch of romanian kids to concentrate and come to rehearsals, and make a set. All in about a month and a half. :P
Halloween is comign up, and our class is celebrating by having a party tomorrow. I am excited. Iam going to dress as the joker. I went to thrift stores today and put together a decent costume. Not like the one from the movie, but still very jokeresque i feel. I cannot wait. I am going to be the "guest of honor" and i am even going to get a little certificate. They give out alot of certificates here. They call them diplomas. For example, I wrote and essay on the holocaust with my friend deea, and we were recently invited to a little ceremony to give out diplomas to those that wrote exceptional essays. I got a certificate and a book with pictures of SLatinas historical district. Ifelt honored. :D It was very cool. It is nice to know i can still do good things while i am here. It is frustrating not being able to do the school work very well, so to have a sign of progress is good.
MY friends have been teaching me new games too, which i WILL be teaching to people upon my return. They are so fun, the kind of games a bunch of teenage boys would play. They often involve pain. There is one, called lapte gros, or hard milk. It involves jumping in the backs of other guys, who are bent over with their heads in each others crotche for protection. It is so fun, depsite the previous description. I will also be posting a video of us playing that, when i get it. It is awesome. :D
I had tacos with my family the other night. It was like a bite from heaven, that first taste. IT was delicious, and it was a memory straight from home. OH! by the way, if any care packages are on the way, Kettle brand salt and vinegar chips or taco seasoning. I have quite a bit of peanut butter, but those two are what i need/ want, if interested. :D I will be sending my package out soonish, i just have to get somemore things, but it is going to be like a big, one time thing. SOrry if i have owed you for a while, chances are i have your present, i just need to buy the others to send it. :D
I PROMISE that i will update more frequently. I feel bad. :P DOnt give up hope on me!
Goals ,continue to leanr more vocab, and order somethign from a restaurant besides a drink.

Weeeeeeeeeeeee

This week has been another one full of, surprise surprise, new things! I continue to gain valuable new insight into the curiousities of the romanians concerning America and what exactly it is we do there. I am still hearing things that give me the mpression that it is a "grass is greener on the other side" type thing. The movies and tv shows that come form america are a huge influence in their preconcieved notions. I have been in two other classes thus far, one a fifth grade class and the other another twelfth grade class. The two were surprisingly similar. The fifth graders asked amazing questions, not just "have you met the jonas brothers or hannah montana" which i did get asked, but also questions about how relationships are different, what the difference between teenagers here and there were, and many questions about school. What did i like about school and what did i not like. They were very curious and there lust for knowledge was very apparent to me. It was a great experience. I know have a posse of shortlings. The follow 20 feet behind me and my friends, and they always kind of hide when i look back at them, giggling the entire time. It is strange, i feel like some sort of celebrity, akin to the jonas brothers. It is a cool feeling. But i am not going to let it get to my head. ;) The twelfth grade class was also interesting. They were much more terrifed of asking me questions it seemed. Only a handful of students felt comfortable enough to do so. Yet i could tell that they all were interested. They wanted to know if i was like the people in the movies too. They knew i hadnt met the jonad brothers, but other than that, they asked the smae or similar questions as the fifth graders. It was another ownderful experience though. I love sharing my culture with them, as much as i can anyway.
Today i also had my first experience with romanian theatre. I have to admit. I left disappointed. Not in the theatre or the eactors or anythin glike that, in fact i admired them for what they endured. I was disappointed in the audience. Immensly. It was a disgrace. The audience members, most of whom were high school aged kids, were talking loudly, they were jeering at the actors while they were onstage, they were moving around, there were cameras going off, there were cell phones ringing and people answering said cell phones. By the end, during the bows, one of the actresses was close to tears, either that or close to murdering the whole lots of us. I felt ashamed, ebarassed for the audience. My friends assured me that it was just the people who came to this show that made it bad. If i were to go to craiova or bucuresti there many a respectable folk who attend the theatre and it is enjoyable. It was just such a difference. I couldnt imagine being able to do that to people who were performing a rehearsed show for you. It was simply appalling. I wish to go again somewhere else, just to see if it was an anomoly. I hope it was. I would be really sad if it wasnt. This weekend i am going with geo to Rinca, a small town in the mountains, where we will be staying overnight in a room belonging to to one of my friends, andrei badita, who also happens to be my host brother in my third host family. I cannot wait. I have been dying to see the rest of the country. The only other chance i have had is to go to alba iulia, and that was with rotary. This will be different, probably more fun! I will tell all about it when i return. For now i am going to cut this post a little short. I will be getting to your requests in the next blog. I am completley exhausted. This week was busy for me, which is not a bad thing, but i am still completley drained. Goals for the next couple of days: Have fun and take awesome pictures in rinca, leran more vocab, continue work on my essay. I found a person to admire btw. Bode miller. I will be posting the final draft when finished for all of you sceptics out there to read when i am finished. Trust me, i can justify my admiration. ;)