1. End of the road for classic Russian car

    CNN

    Noooo, not the Lada!  I was planning on bringing this iconic car back to America with me…  Fortunately they have a 30+ year life span so I’ll get my hands on a used one.



  2. Playing the Moldovans at Tennis.

    Search Amazon for ‘Moldova’ and you’ll get about 6 search results.  There’s the sole Lonely Planet guide, some guy delving into the politics of the language situation here, and thenPlaying the Moldovans at Tennis.  I’ve been hearing about it for a while since it is one of few in this literary canon, but I finally got around to reading it this week in preparation for the release of the film, also this week.

    If you are able to get your hands on a copy of the book, or if the film ever makes it to wherever you are, I highly recommend it.  It paints its own portrait of Moldova, accompanied with a sense of humor only a British man like Mr. Tony Hawks can offer.

    The premise is that while watching a football match between England and Moldova, Tony is put to a bet by his friend that he can’t beat the entire Moldovan squad at tennis.  A little arbitrary, yes, but Tony takes the bet to heart and finds himself in Moldova on his own little zany adventures, public transport catastrophes, encounters with cynical Moldovans, and a loving host family.

    All proceeds from this book and from the movie go toward an organization that Tony later founded in Moldova, the Hippocrates Children’s Centre.  Tony lived with two doctors while he was trying to figure out how to play all those Moldovans, and after seeing the state of their hospital and in general experience the economic conditions here, he set this up for children with chronic conditions from socially vulnerable families.

    You can read more about all of this on his website.  Otherwise be on the lookout for this film maybe being released in America, maybe… it is produced by British people and the vast majority of it is in English, with some Romanian and Russian thrown in there but translated.

    As for my experience.  We found ourselves at this little ‘artsy’ theater further out in Chisinau.  I expected for us to be the only movie-goers, especially since for its week-long run at the theater there were 21 showings. But the theater was packed with Moldovans!  I kind of enjoyed sitting there as the theater erupted with laughter at the parts that kinda made fun of Moldova (in the most loving nicest way possible) - it showed how much Moldovans can laugh at themselves too and make light of their situation. 

    So there’s my little sales pitch.  It’s about all you’re gonna get if you want some reading on Moldova, and it’s something I think that would be enjoyed by all, not just people who have been to Moldova, or people who like tennis, or people who like British humor.





  3. Saw this on PostSecret this morning, and in honor of the fact that this is my LAST WEEK OF SCHOOL, I thought I’d post it.  Not English III Honors but my 11th formers… thank you for keeping ME sane and making me feel like I am a teacher and not a failed disciplinarian or a waste of space.  These kids are really the highlight of my week and I am looking forward to teaching them as 12th graders.

    Saw this on PostSecret this morning, and in honor of the fact that this is my LAST WEEK OF SCHOOL, I thought I’d post it.  Not English III Honors but my 11th formers… thank you for keeping ME sane and making me feel like I am a teacher and not a failed disciplinarian or a waste of space.  These kids are really the highlight of my week and I am looking forward to teaching them as 12th graders.



  4. Last night was the event of the century, or at least of the year, as it is an annual event - Eurovision 2012, this year in Baku, Azerbaijan.  In this thrilling competition, each country of Europe sends an elected performer to represent their country in a head-to-head song contest.  While I’m generally disappointed by the overall winner, the competition often brings to light other talents across Europe (such as Moldova’s own Sunstroke Project) and some pretty bizarre performances. This year, Sweden took the crown (and Moldova placed 11th) but I feel one of the must-see performances, continuing along the lines of babas partying, is Russia’s.  I’ll let it speak for itself.



  5. O familie de 58 membri (A family of 58 members)

    That aforementioned baba’s 80th birthday party that kept me up all night long?  Well, here is a 30-minute interview with said baba.  Since you’re not going to understand nici un cuvint, this probably won’t be all that thrilling (even if you understand it all, it’s not all that thrilling, except when she describes Taraclia in 1930 and when she answers the question, ‘How did you and your husband meet?’ with, ‘Well he slapped me on my wedding day.’  Uhh.) but you can at least check out this local celebrity.



  6. Haven’t shared music for a while.  For an easy final exam, I had my 11th formers answer questions like ‘What is your favorite song and why?’  One student’s response prompted the posting of this song:

    My favorite song is ‘Sus Paharul - Up Glass’ by Ian Raiburg because it is near to my heart.  He sings the reality of peasants.

    Poftim.



  7. Nighttime sounds.

    I’ve taken to leaving my window open every night now.  It hasn’t been all that hot, but I like the fresh air, and the sounds that used to drive me crazy and keep me up all night have now become somewhat of a comfort.

    The all-night cross-village dog-barking marathon.

    The neighbor unable to get his motorcycle to start and the subsequent vroomvroomvrooms lasting for hours.

    The other neighbors’ loudly vocalized marital problems.

    The roosters, who contrary to popular belief, cock-a-doodle-do (or here in Moldova, koo-kor-ree-koo) at all hours of the day.

    The recent onslaught of heavy rain and thunder storms.

    The never-ending moos of our neighboring cow.

    But there’s still one thing I will close my window for - weddings.  No matter where in the village, this is load music and drunken sing-alongs guaranteed to last until the wee hours.  If you’re really lucky, you’ll get a wedding with a live singer competing with a baba’s 80th birthday party (also with a live singer AND a trumpet player) for maximum decibel-age and minimum sleep.





  8. What Happens When You Live Abroad

    Chelsea Fagan,Thought Catalog


    As you settle into your new life and country, as time passes and becomes less a question of how long you’ve been here and more one of how long you’ve been gone, you realize that life back home has gone on without you. People have grown up, they’ve moved, they’ve married, they’ve become completely different people — and so have you.



  9. On Sunday, my brother Brian graduated from Villanova.  It was also the day of my alma mater Hamilton’s commencement, and thus a lot of my very close friends there graduated as well.  Usually, I’m able to keep my homesickness in check, I think mostly because my home is no longer clearly defined.  The people I care about are spread all over the globe and there’s no one place I could be where I’d see everyone I love.  But my family and Hamilton College come the closest.  This past week has been a lot of me moping around on Facebook as people post graduation pictures and status updates, and me feeling like I should be there too.  For different reasons in both situations, Brian’s being clearer.  He’s my brother.  I should have been there.  He doesn’t live with my parents now so even with them there’s no one location where we’d all be together all the time, but still… and seeing the pictures of the three of them together made me miss them so much that I lamely photoshopped a picture of me with them (see above). As for Hamilton, seeing this group of graduates go feels like it’s just one more level of separation from that place I once called home.  As they go on, it leaves Hamilton with even fewer familiar faces, and I know when I go back to the US and am able to visit, I won’t know a single student.  It won’t even feel like my Hamilton anymore, the place I grew to love over four years and that really defined me as the person I am today. Some people miss their siblings having their first babies, they miss their best friends getting married, they are unable to make it home for the funerals of loved ones.  I suppose I’m lucky in that regard.  I’m able to make it to Alaska for my best friend Erin’s wedding, and to my knowledge no one I know has a baby on the way.  But it still hurts to miss these big and important events in people’s lives, to feel almost as if I am drifting further away.  Well, not much more to say on that.  I just miss people.  I hope that over the next year someone discovers the secret to Harry Potter-style apparating and I can just hop on over to any place I want… without even having to use my precious vacation days.

    On Sunday, my brother Brian graduated from Villanova.  It was also the day of my alma mater Hamilton’s commencement, and thus a lot of my very close friends there graduated as well.  Usually, I’m able to keep my homesickness in check, I think mostly because my home is no longer clearly defined.  The people I care about are spread all over the globe and there’s no one place I could be where I’d see everyone I love.  But my family and Hamilton College come the closest. 

    This past week has been a lot of me moping around on Facebook as people post graduation pictures and status updates, and me feeling like I should be there too.  For different reasons in both situations, Brian’s being clearer.  He’s my brother.  I should have been there.  He doesn’t live with my parents now so even with them there’s no one location where we’d all be together all the time, but still… and seeing the pictures of the three of them together made me miss them so much that I lamely photoshopped a picture of me with them (see above).

    As for Hamilton, seeing this group of graduates go feels like it’s just one more level of separation from that place I once called home.  As they go on, it leaves Hamilton with even fewer familiar faces, and I know when I go back to the US and am able to visit, I won’t know a single student.  It won’t even feel like my Hamilton anymore, the place I grew to love over four years and that really defined me as the person I am today.

    Some people miss their siblings having their first babies, they miss their best friends getting married, they are unable to make it home for the funerals of loved ones.  I suppose I’m lucky in that regard.  I’m able to make it to Alaska for my best friend Erin’s wedding, and to my knowledge no one I know has a baby on the way.  But it still hurts to miss these big and important events in people’s lives, to feel almost as if I am drifting further away. 

    Well, not much more to say on that.  I just miss people.  I hope that over the next year someone discovers the secret to Harry Potter-style apparating and I can just hop on over to any place I want… without even having to use my precious vacation days.



  10. Transnistrian Time-Slip

    Frank Jacobs,New York Times


    Moldova made the New York Times!  An interesting article on Transnistria and how its impeding Moldova from entering the EU.  Much better, more informed perspective than I could give you on the Transnistria situation.

    11. 1 note

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