Admittedly, my December 25th was a muted affair here in Moldova. Considering everyone else in my village holds December 25th to be a normal day, my quiet Christmas shouldn't come a big surprise. To expect carolers and feasts and presents under the tree would be like expecting to see a group of Native Americans celebrate St. Patrick's Day.
However, the following week the Moldovan holidays arrived and the party scene really started to heat up. Let's start at the school. My host brother, Vitalik, and his best friend, Seroj, were tapped to alternate dressing up as Деть Морож (dyet moroj), sort of the Moldovan equivalent to Santa Claus, and my friend Anna and Maria were Снегорчка (snegorichka), translated as snow-girl, who is supposed to be the grand-daughter of Dyet Moroj. They all had to memorize this long poem that they would recite for children who came to school for a few hours worth of games, singing, and dancing. It was a little like Halloween, with most of the children wearing costumes - the girls as princesses and the boys as everything from Spider-man to a doctor.
December 28 and 29, the school hosted a kind of winter ball for the high school juniors and seniors. It was nice to see everyone all dressed up, though I felt sorry for the girls who sometimes wore their coats over their strapless dresses. The dance differed from what I remember of American proms and such in a couple ways. First, there were games. Volunteers were picked from the crowd to compete in funny competitions. These were interspersed with the prerequisite lengthy (sometimes seemingly endless and melodramatic) toasts and then dancing to one song. Then everyone would sit down again and start the next round of game/toast/dance. Second, all the teachers were there. It seemed to be just as gala an event for them as it was for the kids. They also dressed up and participated in the games. Third, the evening was over pretty early - I think by 8 or 9pm.
Lastly, I'd like to talk about New Year's in Copceac. This was my second time in the village, and despite not having anyone to kiss at midnight, I enjoyed this time around better than the first. Why, you ask? Well, first of all the weather was a lot warmer this year. That meant more people came to the center for meeting and greeting, dancing, and watching the fireworks. It also meant I didn't have to sleep with all my clothes still on. Second, I was invited to a party this year at the home of one of the village teachers, who prepared a real feast. There were all these salads and cakes and two roast chickens. Vitalik asked me to prepare some games to play - Moldovans really like party games. I MCed (1) charades, (2) a race between two girls to open a matchbox wrapped in multiple layers of paper while wearing oven mits, and (3) a kind of dating game where all the couples had to answer nine questions about their respective partners - like favorite color, where he/she wants to live, favorite meal, etc. - and then they had to see how well they actually knew one another. And we danced. Before the girls arrived, it was just me and three other dudes, but that didn't stop us from cutting up the rug. It was actually really nice to be in a place where it is acceptable - or rather completely normal - for men to dance. In America, particularly in high schools, I always felt like it was somehow uncool or feminine to dance.
I called it a night around 3am, and everyone asked me if I had somehow been offended and that was why I was leaving early. EARLY?! It was three in the morning! Of course, having lived here for a year-and-a-half, I was prepared for this. I know that Moldovan celebrations, particularly at weddings, usually go until sunrise. I just don't have the energy for it. I think my hosts know that as an American, I have different standards and likes and dislikes and I told them I was definitely not offended and had had a great time. [And I wanted to do laundry and clean up before my host-mother returned from her month-long vacation the following day...]
That about sums up. Hope you all had a happy and healthy New Year's. С Новым Годом!!!
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