Midnight in the church

I could never imagine saying this-“I was in a church after midnight.”

But, guess what-I was in a church after midnight.

Sounds intriguing, funny, strange, like a cult thing? Yes, it kind of does, but it wasn`t. Romanians have this tradition-yes, another one (one of many many many) that to me-a Latvian-sounds strange.

So, I was standing on a stage and a priest was cutting my wrists to collect my blood to summon dead spirits..

Wowowow. I`m just kidding. Yeah, but one thing was correct. No-nobody was cutting my wrists.

But, first, how I got to this point-standing with Praise and my mentor and experiencing one of many Romanian traditions.

Here it goes.                                                                                  

A normal day in Segarcea.. As usual we were stealing Dan`s WIFI, surfing a bit and, of course, working.  Suddenly doors open, my eyes were not sure what I was seeing, but, yes, it was Praise. She came to visit us and Iuli(our mentor). Greetings, greetings, chitchatting, and finally Praise and I went to surprise Iuli. Anna and Sara as usual vent to Craiova to let off some steam by breaking the dance floors all over the big city.

So, we entered our third house (home home, our home and Romanian mama`s home), haha, no surprise, she was sleeping. On the TV was “Mireasa pentru filul meu” -Iuli`s favorite TV show.  So, Praise woke her up and the conversations started. After few hours we decided to go to Texas. After 10 min we were there. What is Texas? It`s a place where you can buy the best pizza in Segarcea. Om nom nom. Of course, each one of us had one. Sooo, after our tummies were full of deliciousness we went back at Iulianas.

One thing lead to another.. Iuliana told us that she has to take mamaie (mother in law) (translation-grandmother) to church after midnight. Ha. Imagine our faces when we heard this.

-Whaaaaaat? Why?

So, I`m sorry, but I`ll have to disappoint you. I don`t know the full and detailed story, but, what I know is that women write names of their family members-dead and living- on a piece of paper and take it to church along with a basket full of good stuff-cookies, cakes, vine etc-to give to the priest, who will pray for the dead and living.

We entered the church and in front of us was an unseen sight, many mamaies standing along the walls, baskets with the good stuff and lighted candles on the floor and we could hear the priest saying some prayers and other guys singing…

Of course for some minutes the attention from ladies was turned on us, but that`s fine, because after this Iuliana explained that it is unusual to see other people, that was already there, coming to this event, because the visitors are usually the same mamaies .

Okay, we stood there, made some crosses (had to switch hands after few crosses, because my tactic wasn`t correct), listened to the priest and then went home to sleep. Before that we found out that there is a room in the church where no woman can enter… The natural reaction was-I want to break in. But, yes, the mystery of the no-woman-room will be there for a long time.

Oh, I almost forgot. They do this thing not that often. One month before some celebrations, like Easter etc.

And it`s a pity that I couldn`t take any pictures (my morals didn`t allow it). But, I can say you this- the sight was amazing, also because the church was old and the drawings on the walls and ceilings were very beautiful.

And so our day ended with one more story to tell.

…

Musetesti and a bit of Segarcea

So, we were in Musetesti for Monthly evaluation from 23.-25. What we did there? Talked about the things we did in our communities in December and January, planned, planned, planned.. Well, simply-lots of planning. Yes, now I’m motivated to do great things, but the feeling will go away soon-I’ll get down to earth, because “You shouldn`t have high expectations”.

Okay, an hour has passed and my motivation is gone, I feel desperate and disappointed in myself.

Hmm. Telling you about what we planned in Musetesti wouldn`t be so interesting, that’s why I`m going to tell you about coming back.

On the third day we got up at ~8.30, ate some breakfast, packed our bags and went on our way back to Craiova and then to our communities. For the first time I saw snow, that was actually holding on the ground more than few hours (it started to snow the previous day). Had a snowball fight with the volunteers, of course. On the way we heard (actually Serban heard and translated it to us) that there is a small snow storm in the country.. Yeah, it was a small one, it looked like one also. So, on our way back we dropped of Marion and Elin, who went hitchhiking to Arad (also meet Silvia-a volunteer we met in Predeal who is volunteering in Arad). Then we passed Rovinari (don`t really remember the correct name of the town) and saw again TES. It really all the time feels like the end of the world, when you drive by it. The smokes, which came out of the concrete thingies is just amazing (in a bad way). Can`t even imagine how it would be living there, with all the pollution and the building itself (really reaaaaaaaaaaaaallllllllllllllllllly big building) reminds of a pretty scary scary-movie, where a huge guy with a triangle face comes towards you with an enormous ax (it`s from “Silent hill”). Wjeh. Really makes you think about the Global Worming and that there are so many these thing all over the world and they all produce a big amount of smoke in the atmosphere (is the world going to get rid of us soon?). And found out that two volunteers from Gorj County actually were/are doing their EVS in that city. Amazing.

Okay, after that-back to Segarcea. Arrived, got wet feet (because the snow is a bit wet, bišk` slapjdraņķis ). In the evening we went to the market. On our way, of course-snow man. Hehe, Anna and I are really talented in it. It is so beautiful outside at this moment (25.01.2012 22:57), everything is white, still snowing and once in a while the electricity disappears. I hope the snow is going to stay at least for few days, so I don`t miss the home so much.

…

Well, well, well. Next day in the morning I woke up, looked out of my almost white window and saw…beauty. .Everything was white, everything!!! But, oh no, no water, no electricity, no school.

…

So, lots of snow here. J Even the temperature is like -15*C. I kind of like it.

Enjoy!!!

Is winter coming?

Today woke up at 10 in the morning. Why so early in Saturday morning? Because I didn`t go to Craiova to party.. Again.. Why? A bit short of money and, actually, I`m not such a party person like my too lovely roommates ... Next month I`ll catch up! How did I spend my Friday evening in Segarcea? Hahahaha. Well.. Slept in the bed all the day, watched movies, cooked and.. that sums it up.

So, woke up, made some breakfast.. Then I realized that it`s too cold in my room. Made a plan to go to the room outside, where the dry wood is, and chop it, to start the fire. Looked outside the window-boom! Snow. Nice.

Okay. Went to the room and saw, that there is no wood left. ANNA!!! He,he,he. Okay, no problem. Took the wet wood from our wood storage. Chopped some of it and tried to star the oven ( soba ). Miracle. Actually succeeded in it. With a smile on my face went to bed to make some friendship bracelets-had to remember how to do that because of our plan.. The plan is to make many bracelets and then go to important persons to exchange them for donation in order to collect money for a projector.

…

No more boring details.

Winter here is a bit different than in Latvia (nothing new). You ask why? (Probably not, because everything is clear) Because it`s a bit wormer, no snow so far (yes, some snow for few hours, but that doesn`t count). The only ice I saw was in the puddles in front of the secondary school. The temperature is not so low ( no -24 or -20) but the wind gets pretty strong in this small town. I think it`s because the main road is straight and there are not so many trees also, so the it has some space to pick up the speed.

All the time when the strong wind is in the town, Diānas eyes are running some water. But, again. Who am I to complain, should be thankful that it`s not freeeeeeeeeezing cold.

What else.. Yes, my motivation is very very very low, but I`m meditating to get it back.

But the most important thing is……….in few days it will be 4 months in Romania (31.09.11). Cannot believe it. Just yesterday I said goodbye to my parents and talked with Elgita in the airport. Hmm.

So, see you soon Lettonia! But until that, still have some business in Romania!  

So, i think that winter is not coming, because today it feels like spring outside! Worm and sunny! :)

New Year’s Eve in Segarca, our apartment

Day 1

Sitting in the kitchen and waiting for the pīrāgi to get ready. Other people are in the living room, laughing about my yesterday’s performance- I sang “Bine bine foarte bine” .Very funny for them. I was just being a party person. Or not.

So. Woke up at 11 o’clock. Went to sleep at 4. Ruff morning (I was in the new Segarceas bar called “Black”. Music-not my cup of tea, but the atmosphere is nice). Went to the market to buy stuff for baking and went home to actually start baking. Second time was better, because the yeast actually was working better this time.

And now, at this moment, we don`t have water, also the electricity is always going on and off. Cool, right?

And now is only 20:21 and Praise and I are already tired, because we didn`t sleep so much.

And now? Now all of us are just having fun in the last day on the year-Romanian style. Some manele, some modern music, some Latvian music (only Cūkas driķos and Ziema). Everybody likes this dance so far and it`s fun also. Hehehe. But exhausting.

Everybody ate pīrāgi very fast, just like my mother`s picmaizītes. Čings and they are gone. Good, because that means, that they were kind of good (a bit burned again, but now I know that it`s the ovens fault, because I saw it this time).

We had petardes and fireworks for the big event. Ah. I was so thrilled actually to blow up petardes, adrenalin a bit, not to blow my fingers off.

Went to bed very early, at 2 o`clock, because I had the worst headache you could have on the New Year`s Eve.

And the party ended too fast. A bit disappointed, but it was okay! I liked it.

Day 2

Broke my laptop. No comments.

Christmas in Romania “Sarbatori fericite”

Christmas is coming and I am here, not there where I supposedly want to be.  But, as I am staying here, I have to think of something. In the Christmas Eve Justine and Luis visited us (Praise and me). We had a nice Latvian dinner-rasols and piragi. My first time baking piragus, but in the end it turned out pretty good. A bit burned, but eatable. And rasols-oh my God! I missed it so much, but more than that I miss my mom’s salty cake-sala torte(bez silkem).

So, we ate, exchanged gifts. Justine and Luis gave me a CD with 150 manele songs. What is manele? Even I can`t really understand, because some says that only gypsy`s have manele-gypsy manele, but some says that there is also Romanian manele. So.. It`s a traditional music. (A hint-when I come home-a manele party is guaranteed)

Next day Praise and I went to our mentor’s house.

T

iganii vin cu capra-three gypsy`s, one is playing drums and singing, one is dressed in bright colorful clothes, holding in his hands goats head made from wood , dancing along, the third one is a woman, who is simply standing in  the background and after this show-takes the money (because all of this is made in order to earn money).

I was sitting in Catalins (mentors son) room and talking through Skype. Suddenly i heard some kind of singing outside. Not giving any attention and continuing the previous thing with Skype. After a minute my mentor comes in and tells me to go outside and look. I went outside and saw the situation i described in the beginning. It was fantastic. After this performance my mentor gives them some money and with this it ends.

B

abele impart colaci-an old lady is sharing with round(looks like hamburger) bread (and in the bread is a candle),vine, meat, in order to honor the dead. They believe that when we eat these things, the dead are eating also. Exactly this i experienced today. Then, when you take these things from the old woman’s hands, you have to say „Boda proste” (God, forgive the dead).

I`m sitting by the table with Praise and our mentor and we`re eating sarmale. Suddenly somebody is knocking on the door. An old lady comes in, holding in her hands a basket. In the basket there is everything I mentioned before. (We found out about this tradition few minutes before it happened to us, because our mentor put on the table round bread and explained why they baked the bread round today)  We took the things and thanked the old lady.

Unfortunately no snow for Christmas in south and that really is bad, because the feeling is not so strong without the snow on the ground and in the air.

But the grate news is that it snowed here, not much but still. First time was when we had an activity in Clubul Copiilor (Children Club)-Pictura si jocuri (Painting and games). We were making Christmas cards for the kids in hospital, suddenly kids started to scream ???„nindja”??? (Don`t know how to write the word correctly) and ran out of the room. Of course i heard “ninja, ninja” and thought “What the hell? Is there an actual ninja outside?”. So, it turns out that ?nindja? is a synonym for zapad which is snow. 

Good to know now!

A picture from a fast food restaurant next to gara in Craiova.

Life in my community-Segarcea

It is bigger than Salacgriva, but still nothing really to do in it. Landscape-ups and downs. For the eyes it is good, but for walking up the hill and down the hill-not so much. I`m always drawing similarities with my hometown, even if I don`t want to. “Oh, the tower reminds me of the tower in front of my house.” “A park! OH! Like there.(Yes, the only par in Salacgriva which is unknown by most of the people)” And so on. Sometimes it gets tiring, but, maybe it`s my self-defense mechanism against really big homesickness..

Many bars and pubs here (5)-although not really a good thing to drink in them, in order not to ruin the picture of us in eyes of older people. Buts that`s okay with me, because even in here I’m not much of a party person.

Old people

The news founding is that, the lady that lives under us, has a really good imagination because

• ·         after two months she tells me that she has a daughter in Lettonia (probably not true)
• ·         every night after 22 o`clock I`m moving my furniture in my room and throwing wood on the floor (yes, actually it happened once,  a piece of wood fell not on the floor but on my leg and of course it was not on purpose)..Scuze ma!

What can I say, the old lady or as we say baba can do some serious stuff. She is 85 years old but chops wood as if she was a bit bit bit younger.

Old people on the street mostly look at as with a gossipy eye, as if they knew something that we didn`t know about ourselves.

Lidz sim.

            Rit jau tresa nedela Segarca. Ciemata iepazisana ir procesa. Bijam iepazities ar pilsetas meru, policijas prieksnieku un bibliotekas vaditaju. Ko lai saka. Pagaidam visi ir pozitivi noskanoti un atbalsta mus un musu idejas. Sanemam jau pirmos piedavajumus piedalities pasakumos.

Tagad klausos Prata Vetras dziesmas un meginu sakopot domas. Ir gruti,ja neraksta katru dienu,bet megina visu,kas noticis pedeja laika sakopot domas un uzakstit,jo viss nak prata tik haotiski.

            21.10 ieradas musu jauna istabas biedre no Ugandas-Preisa. No sakuma abas ar Annu bijam mazliet noraizejusas,jo nezinajam kadatad isti vina bus pec rakstura. Mes abam ir 19, bet vinai ir 23, varbut vinai mes liktos mazliet par nepiezemetu un tada gara,bet..Ne.Ta nav. Mums visam ir kopigas lietas, domasanas veids(nu ne gluzi pilnigi vienads,bet uz to pusi jau ir).Meitene ir forsa un patikama sarunu biedre.

            Taja pasa diena pie mums ciemos ieradas Britta,Jusine un Elina. Aizbraucam uz kafejnicu paest(mentore mus visas aizveda). Pasedejam,parunajam un pasmejamies. Pasutijam picas.. Un,ja,daubju picu ar tik daudz senem un olivam,ka likas,ka tas ir pavares milakas piedevas. Nolasijusi tos nost, uz picas palika tikai mikla un dazas desas skeles. Nu ja,tagad zinasu,ka no sakuma japasaka,ka velos bez tam piedevam. Britta pasutija vegetaro picu. He,nu ja..Nezinaju,ka uz picas liek ari fri kartupelus. Nu nebija garsiga ta vegetara pica(pagarsoju). Kafejnica paradijas dauz rumanu puisu. Sedeja pie blakus galda. Nepierasti redzet ka kadus12 gadus jauni puiseli dzer alu,bet te tas esot ierasti.Ja velies nopirkt alu,neviens tev nejauta,cik gadu.

            Nu ja. Pienaca laiks visam doties uz musu dzivokli. Alkoholu pirkt pasas nevaram,jo tad ciemata baumos,ka mes esam dzerajas..Katra zina,mes pasas to pirkt nevaresim. Tam mums ir citi cilveki,kas ir uznemusies so “atbildigo” procesu. Ta,pasutijam 4 pudeles ar alu (kopa 8litri),atveda mums 10 liturs(2,5l pudele). Noteikti,ka prata ienak vards “bambalis,diucis” un citi vardi. Ja, mums ari ar Justini ta scita,kad pirmo reizi redzejam tas litrigas pudeles,bet alus ir labs, ne ta ka Latvija, ka, tas alus,kas ir tik lielas pudeles, ir pilnigs mesls.

            Ieradas mentore ar savu delu, un vel vienu puisi(nezinu,kas tiesi vins vinai skaitijas,bet tas nav svarigi) un vina draudzeni.Nu,neko,sedejam spelejam kartis un dzeram alu. Tad pie durvim kads klauveja..Vel 4 puisi. Ha,mums seit nav nevienas draudzenes pagaidam,tikai draugi.Nu,mani tas ipasi nesatrauc.Pienaks laiks un ari meitenes bus draugu loka.

            Pulkstenis raidija 00:00 un lidz ar to ari visi viesi pazuda. Ta nu mes,6,sedejam un pratojam,ko lai dara talak. Kadam ienaca ta gudra ideja doties uz Kraijovu(30km no sejienes) un doties uz baru paballeties. Sacits-darits.Sadabujam masinas,2, un devamies cela. Nokluvam Pabs pub vai kaut kas tamlidzigs. Tur bijam jau otro reizi,pirma reize bija,kad bijam ciemos pie Marcello un Mikaelas. Bars atkal pilns ar cilvekiem, uz pireksu tikt ir pagruti,bet nonakam bara dzilaja gala. Muzika laba, atmosfera ari. Sak skanet kads rumanu gabals,kaut kas no tautiska stila, un mes sakam dejot un lekat pa apli.Pievienojas rumani un lec ar mums kopa.Pec tam saka mums macit rumanu dejas. Ko lai saka,vieglas,bet sakombinet kaju kustibu ar rokam-nav nemaz tik viegli,ja ritms ir atrs.

            03:00-musu vienigais labasi draugs Segarca -Ovidiu-saka,ka laiks doties..Aizved Justini un Brittu uz majam un tad ari mes 4 dodamies uz musu majam. Ierodamies majas un dodamies gulet,jo            esam pargurusas.

Parejais viss noptiek ka parasti.

Ka mes tikam pie Kurta

            Kas ir Kurts?Vins ir musu mazais kakjis. Kurtam gan ir vel divi vardi (viens vacu, latviesu un ugandas)-Kurts Janis ***(neatceros).

            Ka mes vinu dabujam?Tas notika 17.10. Braucam no kaut kurienes uz majam ar musu mentori, gandriz vinu nobraucam..Tad mentore,Juljana, apstajas cela mala un pajautaja sievietei,kurai,laikam kakjis piedereja,vai nevelas vinu atdod un tada gara.. Vards pa vardam un kakjis peksi pa logu tiek ielikt masina. Nu neko..Man jau patik. Izmagajam un pabarojam. Tagad vins ir tirs un labs,bet uz kasti gan vel ta isti visu laiku neiet, vienmer no rita kada sturi vai visos ir mesli. Un tad mes vemstidamies visu vacam,bet tagad jau es vinu esmu mazliet izdresejusi. Cerams,ka paliks vinam atmina,ka TO darit var tikai TUR un nekur citur.