Kate in Bulgaria

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

A Final Farewell

Well, today is it.  The day I have been anticipating yet now find myself oddly sad over.  Today is my last day in Letntisa.  I will head into Sofia tomorrow morning to finish the process of ending my service as a Peace Corps Volunteer.  Most of the difficult stuff is already finished (medical checks and tons of paperwork) so tomorrow will be about turning in any PC stuff I have and giving back my Bulgarian ID.   I fly out early Monday morning and will arrive in Jacksonville by 7pm (we are 7 hours ahead.)  I can honestly say I didn't think I would ever see this day.  But here it is, I made it the entire two years even though there were many times I wasn't sure I could.   The apartment is all clean and my bags are packed.  I have a couple more goodbyes to say this afternoon and a few more pictures of the town to take. 

My Municipality had a little going away party for me on Tuesday.  They gave me a few presents and talked about how difficult it must have been to leave my home and come to a strange place not knowing what to expect.  The funny thing is, that is what I feel like I am doing now.  For better or worse Letnitsa and Bulgaria has become home to me and to say I'm not a bit nervous about going back to NC would be a lie.   When I was home for Christmas I was able to treat it like a vacation.  At the end of the 2 weeks I knew I would be returning home.  But as of Monday, I'll be forever closing this chapter of my life.  People here have been asking me what specifically I will miss.  Whether it be food or certain places but the truth is, I will miss the life I have here.  The friends I have made and the family that has grown out of my closest friends. 

Part of me is scared about rejoining life in NC.  When we leave our homes none of us really think about the fact that while for us life at home has been put on hold, for those left behind, it keeps moving right along.  For these reasons and quite a few others, I am not planning to move back to NC.  I'll stick around for a few months of course, I have quite a bit of visiting to do.  But my life and myself require something new.  I left NC because I realized one day I was already not happy with the way my life was going.  Joining the Peace Corps might have been a pretty extreme thing to do to fix that, but it was the right choice.  I have found a new independence and strength that I didnt' know I was capable of.  For lack of a better way to explain what these last two years have done for me, I have grown up. 

So, as of December I will be leaving NC yet again for my newest adventure.  This time however, I'm not planning on going quite so far away.  Matt and I will be moving to the San Diego area.  I can honestly say I never thought I would live on the West Coast, but then again I never thought I would speak Bulgarian either. 

So, this will be my last entry from Bulgaria.  This blog has been a great tool for me to not only keep a record of my service, but to share with those interested my reflections of life in Bulgaria.  I'm not sure if I will keep up with it after I get back, but I will have at least a couple more posts to bring my service to an end.  After that, I'll have to see. 

Well then, I have a small list of things I have to finish before tomorrow, so I wish you all a fond farewell from Bulgaria.  I am so glad I have been able to share my experiences with you and I thank you for all of your support and encouragement. 

posted by: ksension at September 07, 2006 13:03 | link | comments (4) |

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

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.

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

Quick update

The trip was amazing, if you want to see some pictures go to Matt's site   www.claygolf.com  - he can post tons more pictures then I am able to and has broken them down by the city. 

Had my Close of Service Conference last week in the town of Bankya.  Was very nice to finally begin the official countdown till the end.  Matt's leave date has been approved, August 3rd, and mine has tentativly been approved for September 11th.  I'll have to figure out what to do here for 6 weeks by  myself, but if the past is any proof, that time will fly by as quickly as all the rest and I'll be back in sunny NC before I know it (just in time for hurricaine season as luck would have it.)

Hope everyone had a fun 4th of July

posted by: ksension at July 10, 2006 14:46 | link | comments (1) |

I had the opportunity last weekend to do something that I dearly love to do but haven't been able to do in many years.  For my birthday last year, Matt gave me one of the best presents I've ever received.  He arranged it so that I could use the pottery studio of one of the local craftsmen in Apriltsi. 

Now someone of you many have heard my mother tell the story of the time when I informed her I wanted to drop out of college and become a professional potter.  As I'm sure you can imagine this news was not received well and I was encouraged to rethink this and come up with a better plan.  That new plan involved 2.5 years of pottery classes, 3 independent studies and one summer as a pottery teacher.  Unfortunatlytbeing a potter these days is just not that easy (at least not as a profession) and I was forced to get a real job and a real degree.  My love for throwing pottery though never left me and as soon as I have the space, I'm going to have my own studio.  Until that day however, I will have to take the opportunites to throw wherever I can get them. 

So, back to that birthday present.  Last weekend I finally managed to get myself to the pottery studio of the local potter to take advantage of said present.  I must admit I was a bit weary of going, it has been more years then I like to think about since my last go at throwing anything on a wheel.  Well, as soon as Ivailo (the owner of the studio) got me set up with the necessary tools, it was as if I had never been seperated from the wheel or the pottery studio at Meredith College.  I can't express how much I enjoy the process of throwing.  Whether the piece I'm working out turns out to be what I wanted, something it has decided to become or just a heap of used clay, the process of making it is one of my most favorite things to do in the world. 

I was a bit rusty and it took me three tries before I made something I thought worth keeping, but it was wonderful.  I could have done it for hours if it weren't for the fact that my poor hands were not accustomed to the work.  After I was finished, Ivailo let Matt and I pick out a design for ourselves.  Watching a true master is awsome.  The way he was able to manipulate the clay and watching the transformation from a lump to a beautiful bottle amazed even Matt. 

Ivailo

After Ivailo and I cleaned up, he invited Matt and I to have dinner with his family.  His wife is also a potter, so you can just imagine the decor in their house.  I drank wine out of a beautiful goblet, while eating off of hand thrown plates.  All while being entertained by their too cute 2 year old daughter Nia.  I may try and get one more session in before Matt leaves in early August and there is always the glazing to think about. 

Nia

And the other exciting news is that Matt's parents arrive in Bulgaria tomorrow.  I wil head up to Apriltsi Saturday and come Tuesday we will begin our much anticipated trip around central/eastern europe.  We will start in Budapest then work our way through Vienna, Salzburg, Prague, Krakow, Kiev and finally Odessa.  We will get back to Bulgaria on the 30th then make our way back to Apriltsi.  THis will be the first time for all of us in each of the cities and I am more excited then I can say. 

So, this will be the last post for awhile.  Hope everyone has a wonderful Summer and 4th of July.

posted by: ksension at June 08, 2006 16:23 | link | comments (1) |

Magic in Greece

Ah, don't you just love that rejuvanated rested feeling you get after a really really good vacation.  That spell that comes over you for a week or so that just makes everything else seem not so bad and makes even the fact that there are no vegetable in town ok.  I certainly do, although I think its starting to fade, but I'll enjoy it while it lasts and keep up the count down for the next trip that will hopefully be just as excellent.

So, Greece.  What can you say about Greece.  Besides the fact that I walked in places that are thousands of years old or that I stood next to Zues' temple  the sheer power of being where life as we know it basically began is quite a humbling experience.  Athens is a city of amazing character.  It has managed to figure out a way to embrass its amazing history without letting it make its citizens feel above the rest of us.  The city is a thriving metropolis that has every modern day convenience you can think of; its just that while riding on the Metro to another part of town you just happen to pass by the Agora or Zues' temple.  In fact when they were building the metro the biggest problem wasn't the construction through a city as old as man kind, it was the fact that every couple hundred yards they would have to stop because some new tomb or archeolgical artifact was found and the excavators would have to come in to document it all. 

Of course Matt and I did our fair share to support the locals, how can you not when you have amazing street markets like the Plaka and more stores then even I could handle.  Bless poor Matt he is good at waiting and letting me get my eye full of all the gorgous things that I know I am just meant to own one day.  You can stumble around Syntagma Square or Monastiraki for hours and never see the same thing twice.  Its just such an amazing city for so many reasons ( i mean how many places can you eat at mcdonalds and have a view of the Parthenon?) 

The first leg of our trip was really the island of Mykonos.  Matt and I took one of the many many ferries that leave from the port of Pireaus and arrived on Mykonos a short 5 hours later.  The ferries are amazing and rival pretty much any mass transport ferry in the world.  We are talking lounges, internet, movies, resturants, berths and dont' forget the souvenier shop. 

Upon arrival in Mykonos and our short drive to the hotel we were staying at, it really hit me that I was in Greece and on vacation.  We had spent the previous day (Sunday) walking around a slightly damp Athens after having arrived that morning from Sofia.  So to arrive to this gorgous island on a beautiful sunny day was really the jump start of the trip.  The view from the hotel was wonderful and even included a lovely palm tree that we used as our daily weather report.  Our timing on Mykonos landed us there during 2 days of high winds so depending on how far over the tree was flying, determined the amount of clothing we took with us for the day. 

Mykonos is a gorgous place and is exactly what you expect a Greek Island to look like.  White washed buildings with crayola colors for trim, cobble stone walkways that wind you all through the downtown neighborhoods that also act as shops.  There are cafes everywhere that offer you everything from Ouzo to fried octopus to the all time favorite Greek Salad.  There are pelicans that roam the streets and are the official mascot of Mykonos.  In the 50s a pelican came to live on the island and quickly became the town mascot and earned himself the name Petros.  While the original Petros passed on many years ago, there have been subsequent Pelicans that have moved in and the one I met is probably Petros the 7th or something.  They are the largest pelicans i've ever seen and are an amazing color of pink.  Even there bills are a combination of purple, pink and orange.  They walk around looking for handouts from anyone and even have a regular walk to certain resturants that pass out free fish.  The pelicans walk right into shops and resturants and as you can imagine are really good for the businesses that welcome them.

Me and Petros

a view of Mykonos from the docks.  The fishing boats as you can see are as colorful as the old men who sit and drink Ouzo at 9 in the morning

The next stop on our trip was supposed to be the Island of Santorini but due to the wind our highspeed ferry was canceled and we had to take another that detored to the island of Syros.  With a 6 hour layover what else were we to do but explore the island.  One of the many good things living in Bulgaria has done for us is make us experts at killing time.  Syros is so unlike Mykonos (even though its only a 1 hour ferry ride North-West) you might forget you were on  a Greek Island.  Syros is not a tourist island in the traditional way you would think, but has its own charms for those looking for more of the "real life" sort of experience.  A nice place to have had to kill 6 hours, but I was glad to be leaving at 9pm and headed to our real destination of Santorini.

Due to our very late arrival (3am) on Santorini, we missed the famed Caldera (volcano) view.  No worries though,  the next day when Matt and I walked into the main town of Fira, we were smacked with one of the most beautiful sites I've ever seen.  The town of Fira itself is beyond cute.  Much different then Mykonos and in my opinion much better.  Fira sits right on the cliff of the crater and is like a town built on a mountain.  There are different layers of streets and each winds its way up to the top and for the hearty soles all the way down to the port at the bottom (600 stair steps down), or for the more adventurous, one donkey ride down.  We hadn't been in Fira an hour before I made the announcement I wanted to move there and work in one of the little shops.  Fortunatly Matt wasn't as easily swayed by the spectacular sites and kept us moving along to see the rest of the island.  Our 2nd day full day on the island we took a full day boat tour.  The boats take you to the active volcano (active as in it could not in it does) where we were able to walk up to the craters and walk on hardened lava.  We were carried to a hot spring and to another island that was cut off from the main island during the big eruption that created Santorini as it is today.  This small island is called Tharissa and only has about 250 residents.  Matt and I climbed up to the top (about 750 steps) and enjoyed our free packed lunch while looking out over a million dollar view. 

The Caldera View from Fira

a view of Fira from across the channel

After lunch we got back on the boat and went up to the northermost town on the main island.  The town of Oia (pronounced Ia) is renowned for its Sunsets and is the most expensive part of the island.  The sunset we saw while sitting on one of the white washed stone walls that winds up the island was indeed magnificient.  I'm sure the other 300plus people watching it also agreed.  It looks like you can reach out and touch the sun it seems so close. 

Sunset at Oia

Our last day on the island we went to one of the beach resorts that are famed for their black sand.  Now I admit I was a bit skeptical, but they are indeed made of black sand, or more specifically very small black pepples and rocks.  What it actually is is crushed lava that overtime wore down and formed a beach.   The sand is very hot, and as you can imagine becomes more so in the Summer and if you look just a little bit at the rocks you can find pieces of lava that look like they just came off of the crater. 

 Black sand beaches at Kamari Beach

After a very quick flight back to Athens, Matt and I spent the remaining 3 days of our trip touring the city.  We had opted to save this for after the Islands but part of me wishes we had done it first.  After the total relaxed pace of life we had on the islands, it was a little hard to force myself to get into museum mode and big city life.  Nevertheless we saw all the main sites and enjoyed our time in Athens.  Due to a transit worker strike the day we were to leave we ended up having to stay an extra night and then have a lengthy layover in the town of Thessaloniki.  They call this the 2nd capital, but in my opinion it doesnt' hold a candle to Athens. 

celebrating Zues

Matt and I at the Parthenon

The entire trip was wonderful and while Athens and the Islands were much more expensive then I had anticipated, it was well worth every penny we spent.  If I had to do it again I would probably spend less time on Mykonos and more time on Santorini; next time I think.

The pictures I've posted are just a few of the ones we took.  The rest are on Matt's site and you can access them by going to www.claygolf.com 

I encourage anyone who is able to go to Greece.  The sites of Athens are of course a must see, but the Islands is where the magic lays. 

posted by: ksension at May 17, 2006 16:15 | link | comments (2) |

An easy way to get to Matt's site to see the pictures fromf Greece is to go to  the " Links" section on the left side of the screen.  Click on  "Matt's Site for Bulgaria and Golf School" -  will take you right to his site.

posted by: ksension at May 13, 2006 10:56 | link | comments |

I'm back

I'm going to post sometime tomorrowish, but until then, you can go to Matt's site and see all the pictures from Greece.  

All I can say is Greece is an amazing and varied country and I am ready to move to Santorini.  It is one of those places that you have to see to really appreciate the absolute beauty of it.  The pictures we took can give you an idea, but there just isn't a camera in existince that can capture the breathtakingness of it all.

I'll go into details later, but for now enjoy Matt's site and all of our pictures.

http://www.claygolf.com/

posted by: ksension at May 12, 2006 20:10 | link | comments |

Begining of the End

 It is finally time for Matt and I to begin our vacation in Greece.  We leave Saturday afternoon for a funfilled 14 hour bus ride to Athens.  In reality it only takes about 12 hours to drive down there, but throw in about 2 hours for getting through the border (bulgarians do love their duty free shopping) and you've got yourself a 14 hour bus ride.

We will spend Sunday night in Athens then head to the Island of Mykonos first thing Monday morning.  We will be in Mykonos http://www.justgreece.org/greece/mykonos/   until Thursday then take a ferry over to the island of Santorini   http://www.justgreece.org/greece/santorini/.  We will be in Santorini until Sunday night, then back to Athens until Tuesday evening. 

We've been planning this trip since late January so its been a long time coming and what we always considered the begining of the end of our time here.  When we return we will have 4 weeks until Matt's parents arrive.  On the 13th of June we (matt, me and his parents) will begin our great Eastern Europe tour that will take us through Budapest, Vienna, Salzburt, Prague, Krakow, Kiev and Odessa.  The trip will last about 22 days out of country and another week here in Bulgaria showing Matt's parents the Black Sea and a few other Bulgarian cities. 

Once Matt's parents leave for home, Matt and I will head to our Close of Service (COS) conference in Sofia.  This is the last group conference we have and will begin the paperwork and process for our departure from Peace Corps.  Technically, our COS date is not until October 10th, but people can more or less ask to leave anytime between August and then.  We are thinking to leave sometime in early August.  Matt because he wants to be home in time for the birth of his brother's baby, and myself because quite frankly I am ready to leave Bulgaria and get on with the next adventure that awaits me. 

Things here in Letnitsa are starting to wrap up for me.  I know its still a bit early, but with all the traveling I am planning and deadlines looming, most if not all of my work will be done by mid June.  My SPA project will be finished by June 1 and the orphanage project I am working on is coming very slowly.  Still looking for funding opportunities, but I'm sure something will come up.  As convoluted as Bulgaria is sometimes, somehow things always seem to work out.

So that is all that is happening here right now.  I'll post lots of pictures and things once we get back from Greece. 

On another note, Sec. of State Condoleeza Rice is in Sofia today doing a meet and greet with people at the AMerican Embassy.  Seems the Bulgarian gov has agreed to allow the US to have 3 military bases here in Bulgaria.  As i'm sure you can imagine there is quite a bit of disagreement about this from the Bulgarian populace and especially from this particular group called Attika (literally translated as Attack.)  THey are holding a protest today in Sofia very close to the embassy and so therefore there is a travel warning for volunteers for the weekend.  Attika is not a pleasant group and gained in popularity with their message of extremist Nationalism and hatred of any group in Bulgaria that is not ethnic Bulgarian.  Thats right, its an anti-Turkish, anti-Roma and now, and anti-AMerican agenda these people have and scarily enough, their group grows larger and larger everyday.   If you want to read a good break down on what the Attika party is about, my friend Brett did a series of posts all about them and their mission.  www.brettnet.net  Its a scary thought to think that these people hold 8% of the seats in the Bulgarian gov and seem to be growing in popularity every day.

here is an article from the Washington Times about the US bases that will be coming to Bulgaria

BULGARIA OKS 3 BASES FOR U.S. TROOPS
By Nicholas Kralev
THE WASHINGTON TIMES
-----------------------------------------------------------
Bulgaria has agreed to open three military bases to permanent use by 2,500 U.S. troops who would be available for combat in the Middle East and
other nearby regions. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice will seal the deal whenshe  visits the country this week.

    Miss Rice, who leaves on a trip to the Balkans today, is expected to sign a broad defense-cooperation agreement with the new NATO ally that
would authorize the stationing of foreign forces on its soil for the first time in its 1,325-year history, U.S. and Bulgarian officials said.

    The final draft of the agreement, which was seen by The Washington Times, allows the United States to deploy troops from the bases for
missions in third countries without the specific permission of the Bulgarian authorities, a sensitive matter for many Bulgarians.

    "One of the key issues anywhere is our ability to use our soldiers  where we need them," said a senior U.S. official. "Otherwise, we would be
tying ourselves [down]. The old model [during the Cold War] was that we had forces in Europe because we thought we'd fight in Europe."

    The possibility that U.S. troops would use a country with a large Muslim minority as a base for an attack on a Muslim nation, such as Iran or
Syria, has provoked vocal opposition in Bulgaria. A nationalist party  represented in the parliament plans to stage massive protests against the agreement
during Miss Rice's visit.

    Another difficult issue during the negotiations involved jurisdiction over any crimes committed by U.S. military personnel in Bulgaria. It
was resolved in a convoluted 10-line sentence, which the senior U.S.  official said is standard for such documents.

    "The Bulgarians waive the right to primary jurisdiction, but, in cases of particular importance, they recall the waiver and reassert their
jurisdiction," the official explained in much simpler language. He  noted that most crimes committed by U.S. forces abroad "are fairly minor."

    A senior Bulgarian official said Sofia was satisfied with the arrangement and that the two countries would work together on a
case-by-case basis in the event of any serious crimes.

    Officials of both countries said the United States will not pay  rent for its use of the Bezmer and Graf Ignatievo air bases and the Novo Selo
army training range and storage facility. But, according to the agreement, it will cover "operational and maintenance expenses."

    "If we decide we need commercial property, we'll pay," the senior U.S. official said.

    The senior Bulgarian official said that any new facilities built by  the Americans will remain Bulgarian property during and after the
Americans' presence in the country.

    The Bulgarians are hoping the agreement will generate employment in the country, but may be disappointed.

    "We don't plan on having that many permanent workers," the senior U.S. official said. "But Bulgarian companies are eligible for contracts for
services if they meet our requirements and standards."

    There will be 2,500 U.S. troops stationed on the three bases in southern Bulgaria at any given time, although their number could reach 5,000
during rotation periods, the official said.

    The agreement, which has to be ratified by the Bulgarian parliament before entering into force, runs for 10 years and will be automatically
renewed. Either side can terminate it with one year's notice.

    Miss Rice signed a similar agreement with Romania in December. It has been ratified by the parliament's lower chamber and is currently
awaiting approval by the Senate, said Sorin Ducaru, the Romanian ambassador to Washington.

    Both Bulgaria and Romania are former Warsaw Pact countries whose strategic location at the crossroads of Europe and the Middle East
attracted Washington's attention after the September 11 attacks, ensuring their admission to NATO.

    Miss Rice will participate in a meeting of the NATO foreign  ministers in Sofia and will also visit Greece and Turkey.

So as you can see, things here in Bulgaria are changing rapidly.  I'm glad I was here when I was.  After they join the EU and these bases arrive, Bulgaria is going to go through some major changes and frankly, the Bulgaria I have come to know won't be around to much longer.  In some ways that will be a good thing, but in others, well I guess it could go either way.  Bulgaria is an ancient country that has gone through so much and survived through more foreign occupation then most.  It is a country going through growth and change, I just hope it can keep up with all of this change and still keep its character. 

posted by: ksension at April 28, 2006 10:20 | link | comments |

posted by: ksension at April 11, 2006 19:49 | link | comments (2) |

I know I know, its been awhile

              

             

posted by: ksension at March 19, 2006 22:09 | link | comments (1) |

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