More Background...

Today a couple folks from the US Embassy led an excellent session on the recent political history of Moldova. Here’s what I learned…

What is now known as Moldova has at one time or another been a part of various empires. Within the last century, it has gone back and forth between Romania and the former Soviet Union and it is still pulled in both directions as well as toward embracing its new independence. A couple important dates:

1812 – Moldova (called Bessarabia) becomes part of Russia
1917 – The Bolsheviks take control in Russia and agree to withdraw from Moldova to appease Germany
1920 – Moldova becomes part of Romania again, as it was before 1812
[Russia and Romania do not maintain diplomatic relations during WWI over dispute about ownership of Moldova/Bessarabia
post-WWII: Romania takes over Moldova and Transylvania, doubling its size
1924 – The USSR creates the Moldovan Autonomous Soveit Socialist Republic (MASSR) comprised of parts of current western Ukraine and current Transinistria (a currently disputed territory on the east coast of Moldova – see more on Transinistria below). The MASSR is essentially set up to allow the USSR to continue to lay claim to the rest of Moldova/Bessarabia, which is still controlled by Romania. The MASSR claims the city of Chisinau as its capital even though it lies within the borders of the Romanian controlled Moldova.
1941 – The Romanians attack as part of the Axis powers during WWII. They take much land in the MASSR and Ukraine
post-WWII: The USSR reclaims all lost territory. Current boundary of Moldova and Ukraine is set, with Transinistria as part of Moldova
1991 – USSR collapses and Moldova becomes an independent nation.

When Moldova declared its independence, two parts of the new country also declared their own independence – Gaguzia in the south and Transinistria in the east. These two areas were concerned that the newly independent nation of Moldova might wish to rejoin Romania, which they did not wish to do being more aligned with the former-USSR and Russia. In 1992 a civil war broke out between Transinistria and Moldova in which 300 people were killed before a cease-fire was negotiated. In 1994 Moldova officially adopted its Constitution and Gaguzia agreed to accept a special status as a semi-independent part of Moldova; Transinistria does not accept the same deal.

Transinistria still remains in a sort-of limbo. This tiny sliver of land between Moldova and Ukraine claims independence, but is not recognized by any other nation. It has its own currency and Russian troops act as peace keepers. It’s sort of like an open sore on Moldovan’s border and I do not think the nation can move far forward – and it certainly cannot gain entry into the European Union – until this issue is resolved.

The Routine

Life has settled into something of a routine. – up everyday at 6:45, eat breakfast and walk 30 minutes to language class (or occasionally take a marshutka, but that somehow feels like cheating when the weather is nice), 4 hours of language, then lunch, and then spend the rest of the day either studying language or doing some other kind of work. I recently found a gym at which I can work out 3 times a week – plus 75 cents for each additional visit – for about $7 per month. There’s also a somewhat daily basketball game on a pretty terrible court behind a local school. Some of the Moldovans are pretty good, but they haven’t really mastered the pick yet, which I’ve been using to my advantage. Evenings are for dinner with the fam, shower, homework, reading, practicing the guitar (if I have the time), or entertaining guests and neighbors who stop by. I usually hit the sack pretty worn out by 10:30, but have yet to sleep through the night on account of the neighbors’ dogs who think it important to bark at everything between the hours of 4 and 6am.

One non-language assignment that has been taking up my time is to essentially explore your town and report back on what you found. My friend Adam and I have taken some artistic liberty and are making very hard-hitting a “mockumentry.” Highlights thus far include an interview with the 9-year old leader of a deadly gang of ruffians that rule the streets and my attempt to interview a dentist while he performs a root canal. [What can I say? I knocked on the door and he told me to come in!]
Two days a week all the PCTrainees come into my town from neighboring villages for our “Hub Days.” These include sessions from PCAdmin on everything from preventing diarrhea to opening a bank account. On our last Hub Day, we gave feedback on the training thus far. I give the staff a lot of credit for opening themselves up to constructive criticism, but that’s the best way to get better. Overall, we all thought PC was doing a bang-up job. Their organization and language teachers received very high marks and hopefully our suggestions for additional language classes and time to get to know the PCTs in villages besides our own will be implemented.

Background

Last Thursday part of my training included an excellent presentation by an employee of the Urban Institute. He is a former PCV himself, and later served as a PC Country Director in three nations. Anyway, it was one of the best non-language trainings I’ve received.

The part that most interested me concerned the Moldovan economy and how it can move forward, or at the very least out of its current position as the poorest nation in Europe. Currently 6-900,000 citizens of Moldova work outside the country. Considering that the national population is only slightly more than 4 million, a considerable percentage of the workforce is employed outside the national economy. Essentially, there are no jobs to be found here – or at least not high paying ones – so Moldovans go abroad to get them.

Case-in-point, my host father earns about $100 per month working at a phone company, and my mother makes $40 per month as a music teacher at a school. Currently, my host father is on “vacation” from his phone job because there happens to be a construction job available right now that pays better. When the construction job is over, so will be his vacation and he’ll return to the lower-paying telecom employment. A few years ago, he spent a year in Portugal working construction and both of his parents are there now also employed in construction.

The money earned overseas finds its way back (legally or illegally) to Moldova - $1 billion in 2004 alone – usually to support family living here. If this money were invested it might help pull the nation out of its downward economic spiral, but most of it is spent on food and other necessities of life, and not infrequently on large houses. This last commodity is often viewed as a sound investment, for the government has not (yet) taken peoples’ homes, whereas investments in businesses are subject to the expenses of corruption, arcane tax laws, and sometimes the whims of local and national officials.

[Incidentally, in a couple years (I think) Romania will become part of the EU and because Moldova and Romania used to have overlapping borders, some Moldovans are entitled to Romanian as well as Moldovan passports. Should Romania become part of the EU, Moldovans with Romanian passports will be able to travel and work freely in virtually any European nation, as opposed to the current necessity of securing work visas from host countries (if the work is going to be done legally). This is both good and bad. Good because some Moldovans will be able to secure better jobs more easily and potentially send more money home; bad because more Moldovans may flee their homeland, perhaps permanently.]

One suggested reform by the Urban Institute is for the government to make it more attractive for locals to invest locally in things that will provide ongoing sources of revenue, i.e. small businesses. This doesn’t necessarily mean that the government should create large business parks or tax breaks, but at least a fair shot at making a profit. In a sense, “If you build it, they will come.” In American, 65% of local taxes are spent locally, for which citizens receive police and fire protection, decent roads, schools, and hospitals. In Moldova, 5% of local taxes are spent locally. Meaning, there is a very top-heavy government system in this former Soviet republic and little chance for even the best local officials to drastically change things for the better.

Internet

Posting pictures to this blog is becoming difficult because Microsoft, which hosts this blog on MSN Spaces, requires you to download some sort of program in order to post a picture. But, many internet cafes don't allow you to download anything for fear of contracting a virus. And my Apple computer can't work with Microsoft software even if I could hook it up at an internet cafe (which I can't). All of which is an excuse to say - as my brother recently put in an eloquent email to me, "Have pics, will post, trying. So don't ask."

Rockstars

Turns out this M-17 group is quite musical. There are at least 5 people who know how to play the guitar, 2 harmonica players, and one pianist. [We’re thinking, only somewhat jokingly, of forming a band.] Anyway, at the welcoming party for the 6 PCVs in my town after a round of Moldovan songs and dance, we were asked to perform. Sadly, I must admit that our first foray into expressing our American heritage through the arts was none other than the Electric Slide performed to some live Moldovan accordion and drum music played by an 10- and 12-year old boy, respectively. Next we fetched my guitar and rallied with sing-a-longs to Home on the Range, She Was Just 17, some Russian song that another PCV knew, some blues and harmonica duets, Hotel California, and closed with Yesterday.

I returned home with my family and fellow PCV Adam for a long dinner and discussion, followed by more blues performances for neighbors who stopped by.

Tomorrow starts work in earnest with my first full week of language classes. Looking forward to settling into a schedule and giving up some of my newly found groupies for some quality time with my Russian/English dictionary…

Settled

I’ve moved in with my new host family, where I’ll live for the next 3 months of training. I’m living in a regional capital about 30 minutes outside Chisinau, the capital of Moldova, but for all intents and purposes it’s a tiny village surrounded by farmland.

My host family – Vadim, Oxsana, and their 9-year old daughter Katrina – is wonderful. I’m their second PCV, but the first to have my Russian skills at a conversational level right off the bat. My first dinner went a lot more smoothly than the charades game I played for my first month in Uzbekistan and I think things will only get better from here. Vadim built this house himself, and I must admit I’m happy to see he included a hot bath and indoor toilet… There’s also a small sitting area where we eat outside when the weather is nice, though it seems I’ve brought the cold with me. After our first day in the 70s, the weather has turned cool and I usually wear a sweater. Oxsana is a music teacher who was pleased to see I brought my guitar and knew the piano – I’m hoping she’ll teach me some Russian songs.

A total of 6 of the 38 new volunteers are learning Russian, and all save one have previous experience with the language. As a result, we’re able to start at a much higher level and I think between 4 hours of language most days and living with a (talkative) Russian family, I should progress fairly quickly. Perhaps I’ll try my hand at Romanian after a year or so. Unlike Russian and similar to English, Romanian is derived from Latin and thus shares many similar words and in general is an easier language to learn.

Moldova is a lush farming nation. One difference between here and UZ I noticed immediately as we were flying in is the lack of lights at night. So much of the country is farmland that you don’t see headlights or streetlights or even lights coming from houses or apartments. Even the capital city seemed dark by comparison to Uzbekistan.

Quick story about the soil: When God made the earth, he was handing out pieces of land to the different peoples. Everyone wanted the best land and it was given out first. Gradually, the less fertile land was distributed until every part of the earth was given out. Then the Moldovans came (late), so God decided to give them a piece of heaven instead.

Sleep still comes in fits and starts. I’ve yet to adjust completely to the new time zone – I keep resisting the desire to take long naps around 10am and have yet to sleep through the night – I’m actually writing this entry after tossing and turning for a good couple of hours.

I'm Here

Just a quick note to let you know that I've arrived safely in Moldova and things are going great. There was a slight... OK, major SNAFU with our bags in Istanbul. Instead of resting in a comfortable bed at the airport hotel we were scrambling to buy a Turkish visa so we could get our bags (which were stuck in baggage claim because they were only checked through to Turkey), then re-check-in and go through security with all of our luggage in order to get it to Moldova. Somehow we made it. Welcome to the Peace Corps, eh?

I meet my host family tomorrow and will try to post some pictures when the office isn't crowded with all the new volunteers trying to email their friends and families messages just like this one.

A Heartbreaker

As yet another final hurrah, my friend Hal and I and our two fathers attended the last of a three game series between the division-leading, World Series Champions, and all-round excellent Boston Red Sox and the Evil Empire (aka NY Yankees). It was a beautiful day, we had a fine tailgate in the parking lot outside Yankee Stadium, and then the pitching duel began… Tim Wakefield worried us for a moment when he let up a solo homer in the first inning, but the knuckle-baller then proceeded to strike-out a career high 12 batters over the course of the rest of the game and held the Yankee sluggers scoreless for the remainder of the game. Sadly, despite a promising article I read in that day’s newspaper about a disappointing season for Yankees pitcher, Randy Johnson, the Big Unit was in the zone. He held our beloved Sox scoreless through seven solid innings. The game got exciting as the Sox rallied in the 8th and 9th innings, but alas it came to naught and I was forced to endure many a taunting by (misguided) Yankee fans. Still the Sox hold a 3-game lead over the Yankees in the AL-East. Go Sox!

The Final Bagna Cauda

Saturday brought a renewed sense of urgency to packing. The spare bedroom that had become a disaster area of suitcases, clothes, and assorted piles of “definitely taking,” “maybe,” and “to send” began to regain some semblance of order as my assorted belongings seemed to march themselves into their proper pieces of luggage – a la the brooms in The Sorcerer’s Apprentice. I think the urgency came from knowing that my extended family would be arriving at 5pm for my going away party and a feast of bagna cauda. “Bagna-what?” you ask? Bagna cauda (pronounced bon-ya cow-da, and literally means “hot caldron”) is a northern Italian dish that my family has been making for years. It’s basically a fondue in which one cooks cubes of steak, onions, cabbage, mushrooms, peppers, etc. The fondue is made of oil, butter, LOTS of garlic, and a secret ingredient that I cannot blab to such a large online audience. Suffice to say, it’s pure ambrosia. Of course, the food was only the icing on the cake, which was getting to see my family one last time. It was also the first time I saw my 6-week old cousin, Jett, (yes, that’s right, his name is Jett). He is, of course, adorable. I can’t imagine how he and my 3-year old nephew will look and act 2 years from now. Saying goodbye was hard.

Glory Days

On Friday I returned to my alma mater, Kittatinny Regional High School, to speak about my 6 months with the Peace Corps in Uzbekistan. One’s job as a PCV continues even after returning from abroad. Then, we are to share our knowledge and experiences with American citizens in order to promote a greater understanding between the peoples of the world. I have to admit when I first made the offer to speak over a 6am breakfast with two former teachers, I thought I’d be speaking to one or two classes. Instead I spoke non-stop for 7 of the 9 periods and was pretty hoarse by the end of the day. Nonetheless, I’m glad I was afforded the opportunity to speak. At the very least the students know a little more about Uzbekistan and a handful seemed very interested in potentially serving in the Peace Corps after college. [If you’re a student or teacher at Kittatinny and have questions about Uzbekistan, Moldova, or Peace Corps, feel free to drop me a line.] Special thanks to Scotty and Tommy for hooking me up on the speaking circuit.

The Long Wait

I'm posting today from the Apple Store in the Rockaway Mall. I brought my new Apple in because I was having some problems making movies of my 3-year old nephew (not those kinds of problems, you sicko), and though the folks here have been very helpful, we're essentially at the stage now where we have to let the computer attempt to make another movie - about a 3 hour process - to see what exactly is wrong. To amuse myself, I'm surfing the web on their in-store computers, reading exiting novellas like, "Mac OsX Tiger Edition - The Missing Manual" and the back of every software box or game in the store. [This is a good reason to always carry a book with you - you never know when you'll have to sit in the same place waiting with nothing to do for long periods of time] Unfortunately, to leave my computer here would cost $150, so that option is definitely closed.

A Billion and 1 Things

The countdown to Peace Corps Moldova has begun and I've got some shizzile to do.

1. Mom is anxious to have me use my newfound wicked awesome decking skills to replace a broken stair on our deck.
2. Buy a hammock, socks, a sun shower, and a winter hat.
3. Finish making 9 more DVDs of my nephew - including a few pictures from our recent Scottish festival (see below)
4. Mentally prepare for attending the Sept. 11 Red Sox / Yankees game.
5. Uh, pack.
6. Start a blog for my Mom and her artwork - keep your eyes peeled on the "links" for (you guessed it) a link to her website.
7. Get new lenses for my glasses.
8. Find a good used book store and go crazy. Sadly, all the books that were sent via an M-bag to Uzbekistan arrived the week after I was evacuated. They were sent back to the States, but haven't made it yet and I'm pretty sure never will. [Suggestions for good reads are most welcome]
9. Figure out my new camera.
10. Cancel my car insurance and AAA membership - no driving for this guy in Moldova!
11. Lots of other little things - buy some canned pumpkin to bring to Moldova for a big PC Thanksgiving meal, send in rebates for various new purchases, attend a going away party, etc.

Sorry for the slightly mundane nature of the post, but I felt I had to do something due to recent beratings by friends who shall remain nameless (Graham and Krista) about the infrequency of my postings.