1. Cumetria.

    Let me define a cumetria to you to the best of my knowledge.  The literal translation is ‘sponsorship.’ So here, the baptism happens close to a baby’s birth, as in Catholicism.  But to my understanding, no godparents are appointed at that time.  So as far I can tell, there are two cumetrii, or ‘sponsors.’  These are like the head godparents.  Then there are as many godparents, or nașii, as one wants.  (In fact, there is a Moldovan song about 99 godparents.)

    I am telling you this because I had my opportunity to attend my first cumetria this past weekend.  Held at La Bunica, the premium (read: only) sala (events hall) in town, it was a pretty big deal.  I was invited by Sergiu and Nadea, two good friends of Oxana and Ion’s who work in Moscow (you may remember them as half of the four individuals who arrived at my house with music blasting the night before the first day of classes and proceeded to incite a night-long dance party). 

    Arrival and the first hour or so was awkward. We all stood around waiting for the blessing of the godparents to begin.  I didn’t know anyone outside of the parents of honor, Ion and Oxana, and a woman who works at the local shop.  After the head godparents ran around with a flame blessing the building and then blessed each of the sixteen godparents, we were all invited to sit down and begin to celebrate the way Moldovans celebrate, well, everything - eating and drinking.

    I sat in discomfort for a bit.  After all, I’m not exactly the party mingler in my native tongue.  But then Oxana and Ion had to run home to get something, leaving me at the table all alone. I worked up some courage and began talking to the couple next to me.  By the time Ion and Oxana had returned, I had met half a dozen new people and already danced with a handful of men (I will boast that by the end of the night, I think I danced with almost every man in that joint, and even had a conversation with one who only spoke Russian.  In other words, I somehow maintained a Russian conversation.)

    I ended up having an excellent time - right up until 6am in the morning (normal for cumetrii).  I met tons of people and really came out of my shell.  Multiple people came up to me to deliver one of the highest compliments in this country (right up there with ‘You will make a great housewife.’): ‘You dance the hora like a Moldoveanca.

    And this, my friends, is one of the ways you define success in Peace Corps Moldova.

    [I may look like the sad 11th wheel in the middle of these five happily married Moldovan couples (all right around my age, of course) but if you look more closely, you will see my main dance partner of the night in the orange shirt.  Truly a quality time with that guy.]





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