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Kate in Bulgaria

Experiences as a Peace Corps Volunteer and some adventures on the side

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Name: Kate
This blog is really nothing more than me putting my rantings down on paper; amazing how cathartic that can be. It chronicles my time and experiences living and working in Bulgaria and gives you a little insight into the mysterious world of Peace Corps Volunteers. Enjoy the read - Oh yes, I am required to say that this is not an official Peace Corps Website (as if that was a mistake you would make) and the views and opinions expressed here are my own (but of course they are.)

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Mo'nonymous on A Final Farewell

 

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Home » August 2006
Tuesday, August 15, 2006

I guess I should start with a big ole SORRY for not posting in such a long time.  I really have no excuse other then to say I've been busy.   The funny thing however, is that I actually have been sort of busy (Bulgarian busy at least.) 

July just flew by without my notice as I found myself going back and forth to Sofia with more frequency then even I like.  My group (B16) had our final Close of Service (COS) conference the first week of July.  This is the time when those of us who have made it to this point, 31 for my group out of the original 60, find out how we go about officially stop being volunteers.  This of course involves massive amounts of paperwork, interviews, more medical tests and dental checkups.  I have however completed it all and passed with flying colors thank you very much.  I swear it takes just as much to get out of the Peace Corps as it does to get in it.    The rest of the month was pretty much spent going back and forth from Letnitsa to Apriltsi and spending quite a bit of time with Matt and our friends there.

The last of my group at our COS conferene in July


 Speaking of Matt, he is now officially a RPCV (returned Peace Corps Volunteer) seeing as how he up and left me here on August 3rd. The real reason for his early departure is the very imminent arrival of his first nephew.  So, while I wish he were still here till the end with me, how can you be mad at a guy for wanting to go home so he can be around for the birth of his brother’s first baby. Speaking of babies and nephews, I received the most wonderful news this past Thursday. As I was sitting on a bus I received a phone call from Rachel. She said it was good I was sitting and asked me how I felt about being an Aunt. That is right, you have read right, Rachel is going to have a baby. I suppose I should say Rachel and Jeff are having a baby, and the little bump (as we lovingly refer to the future Sension/Sierpien) will be making her (or I suppose his) grand appearance sometime in mid April. I’m thinking girl if for no other reason then her decision to be born during April which as most women know is the Diamond month. Of course if we get a little Jeff instead of a little Rachel I will be equally pleased and will just encourage them to go for another one. 
 
So, back to Bulgaria… The weather, as in most of the world it seems, has been unusually hot these past few weeks. I suppose this is good timing for me so that I can readjust to the heat of coastal North Carolina after my stint here in the high lands of the Balkans. I’ll be making my grand reappearance in the land of seafood and beaches in just 4 short weeks and just my luck - in time for hurricane season. Nonetheless, On Monday September 11th I will arrive in Jacksonville, NC to the elated arms of Terri and Bob and maybe a few others. I admit I am ready to be back on that side of the pond, no surprise there for most of you. What is surprising though is a new found fondness of my little town and its people. Not all of them mind you, but there certainly are a few I will be sad to say goodbye too. Tanya in particular will be missed. Never thought I would say that considering how she and I started off, but somewhere along the road she became a great friend. These past few weeks she has more then once started crying while working on some paperwork or another for my departure. I have promised to keep in touch and to even write my emails in Bulgarian so that I don’t’ forget how to speak it and make it impossible to communicate with her. Mr. Mayor called me into his office today to talk about my departure date.   He told me that I was no longer just an American, but a Bulgarian who just happened to have lived most of my life in America. I think he had hopes I would meet a nice Bulgarian and settle down here. Not likely but sweet I suppose. I realized that while it is not likely that I will be back here any time soon, Bulgaria is a place I will visit again. It has left its mark so to speak. Somewhere along the way I started thinking of this place as home. I have never had to say goodbye so permanently to anyone before. I didn’t think it would be difficult to do it, I was wrong.
 

It seems my two years here have come and gone so quickly. It didn’t always feel that way, but right now, as I stare at the calendar on the wall and realize this time in 4 weeks I’ll be in Beaufort, I have to wonder where the time went. They tell us that when we arrive in Philadelphia for our pre-departure training. They say it will fly by and you will get to the end of your time and say that things had just started to really click. Who would believe that, certainly not me?  I’m not sure I can say things at work ever really clicked for me, but I will certainly admit that I have no idea where the time went. So much has happened, so many adventures and experiences, amazing friends, Matt. Not to mention the amazing fact that I actually like peppers now.   Peace Corps and Bulgaria have not always been the easiest place to be, but do I regret my time here? Would I have done things differently or changed anything? I can, without any hesitance or doubt, say that this experience has been the biggest adventure of my life and that I wouldn’t have changed a thing. Ups, downs, ruts and extreme highs – it has been two amazing years.

Some of my favorite pictures of Bulgaria

 













posted by: ksension at August 15, 2006 17:03 | link | comments |