through the eyes of a girl

The refrigerator of a hungry peace corps volunteer. Someone feed...

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 12:31:26 -0700

The refrigerator of a hungry peace corps volunteer. Someone feed me!

Let’s Dance Camp 2013 was a total success. We taught 20...

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 12:07:00 -0700

Let’s Dance Camp 2013 was a total success. We taught 20 girls from Kocani, Macedonia, a variety of different dance styles. They had only four days to learn dances including: Hip Hop, Jazz, Modern, Bollywood, Step and Zumba. The girls worked so hard and pulled off a great show. It was a great way to kick off my summer (eating Mexican food and ice cream every night/drinking an entire case of energy drinks). Not to mention a former Peace Corps volunteer returned to Macedonia in order to host the event, which was absolutely amazing. We had way too much fun taking all of the dancers out for pizza and then coming home to a brand new puppy. Next up Camp GLOW! Where has June gone?

This past weekend there was a cross cultural festival in the...

Mon, 10 Jun 2013 11:12:07 -0700

This past weekend there was a cross cultural festival in the nearby town, Kriva Palanka. Bulgaria and Macedonia partnered up to present differences in the traditional cuisine of the two countries. Each country prepared several different dishes and when the presenter finally said that the audience could start sampling the dishes everyone literally dove at the tables. The grandmas were pushing and blocking everyone else. I have never seen people act so viciously. It was like they had never seen food before. The food was gone within minutes. ]:

kriva palanka

Mon, 10 Jun 2013 11:05:12 -0700

kriva palanka

It's Past Their Bedtime.

Sat, 08 Jun 2013 11:46:14 -0700

Yesterday all of the 8th graders celebrated their graduation by having a mini-prom. My village’s prom was being held at the local gas station/motel restaurant. Fancy. I declined the invitation to attend their prom due to the fact that I did not work with the 8th graders this year. Alas, I did not get out of prom this year. My site mate, Justin, invited me to attend his school’s prom as a chaperone. Upon arrival we were welcomed by several scandalously dressed thirteen and fourteen year olds. High heels, short dresses…and plaid shirts seemed to be all the rage. We took our seats at the teacher’s table where we were an open bar greeted us. After living in this country for a year and ten months nothing seems to phase me anymore. I am fully integrated into the culture and the norms. It wasn’t until Justin (a newer volunteer to the country), mentioned that it was strange that all of the teachers were drinking whisky and beer infront of all of the children. It’s funny that a year ago when I attended my first school Macedonian school prom, I thought the exact same thing. I remember being shy and feeling really awkward about it. But now, a year later, it is just business as usual. It’s funny how drastically my mindset had changed.
After several hours of dancing the oro and eating salad the prom came to an end (12:00am). All of the students and teachers headed to the disco club for the after party. The whole club was full of tiny kids holding beers and swaying awkwardly to the overly loud music. Some of the kids weren’t even tall enough to reach the bar, but the bartenders still handed them beers. lele. About an hour later the club started to empty out because it honestly was past their bedtime. They all looked exhausted. The teachers stayed and danced all night. Justin and I laughed that the teachers outlasted all of the kids. Go us. And now summer has begun.

my two favorite little girls! дојди кај мене!!

Wed, 05 Jun 2013 05:26:04 -0700

my two favorite little girls! дојди кај мене!!

Photo

Wed, 05 Jun 2013 05:21:17 -0700

My second grant project was the formation of an annual science...

Wed, 05 Jun 2013 05:19:51 -0700

My second grant project was the formation of an annual science fair at my school. The grant funded over $2,000 worth of new science and math equipment. With this equipment the students of PS Христијан Тодоровски Карпош Ранковце conducted a series of experiements following the scientific method. At the fair they demonstrated their findings for their fellow students and teachers. The material will continue to be utilized throughout the curriculum.

JUNE!

Sat, 01 Jun 2013 03:10:40 -0700

June is finally here, which means I only have 5 more months until COS. This summer is going to be a crazy adventure and will go by faster than I can blink. Here are some of my upcoming summer plans:

June

Let’s Dance Camp!: Kochani, Macedonia
A week and a half intensive dance camp which teaches several different dance styles ranging from hip hop, to ballet to bollywood. The dancers will be taught the dances during the week and it will culminate in a performance. I will be teaching jazz/ballet and some yoga.
Camp GLOW: Tetovo, Macedonia
An all girls leadership camp which focuses of cultural awareness and understanding. Girls from all over Macedonia are invited to take part in this event.

July

It’s officially vacation time. I will be running around Europe with one of my besties and then meeting up with my parents in Italy to go on a cruise. My 20 day vacation will include the following countries: Sweden, Denmark, Poland, Czech Republic, Italy, Greece, Montenegro, Croatia.
Ohrid, Macedonia. As if my vacation was not long enough I will be spending a few relaxing days with one of my friends in Ohrid.

August

Ilinden in Krusevo.
Greece (I need to use up those vacation days)
COS conference in Berovo

And after all of that I have two months of school left. I have to pack and say goodbye to everyone. I know it is still five more months to go but it really does seem like it is tomorrow. Let the insanity begin.

we had a traditional bachelorette party complete with toilet...

Thu, 30 May 2013 09:04:32 -0700

we had a traditional bachelorette party complete with toilet paper dresses and a racy cake design.

weddings in Macedonia are so much fun. especially when a pcv...

Thu, 30 May 2013 09:01:00 -0700

weddings in Macedonia are so much fun. especially when a pcv marries a hcn (host country national). a night full of oroing and the electric slide. the perfect combination!

Photo

Wed, 22 May 2013 11:02:27 -0700

Matka, Macedonia

Wed, 22 May 2013 11:01:53 -0700

Matka, Macedonia

Photo

Wed, 22 May 2013 11:01:10 -0700

Valentina and Carly after circling the church for orthodox...

Thu, 16 May 2013 13:37:48 -0700

Valentina and Carly after circling the church for orthodox easter

Orthodox Easter was a few weeks ago and what a fun few days it...

Thu, 16 May 2013 13:32:47 -0700

Orthodox Easter was a few weeks ago and what a fun few days it was. The festivities started with my students decorating eggs and going on a massive easter egg hunt (which is a tradition they don’t have here). Following that my friend Carly came to visit to join in the traditional festivities. We went to the monastery in Palanka and then circled the Rankovce church three times at midnight. Easter day was full of delicious food and lots of egg cracking fun.

My awesome 3rd graders waiting for the announcement of the...

Thu, 16 May 2013 13:29:26 -0700

My awesome 3rd graders waiting for the announcement of the winning easter eggs

Dating

Thu, 16 May 2013 13:25:16 -0700

I have had the opportunity of going on a few dates with locals throughout my year and a half here. Dating and relationships are so much different here in Macedonia than they are in America. In an attempt to describe the differences I will reflect upon a few of my first dates here in Macedonia, let me assure you, non of them led to a second date.
When I first arrived to Macedonia I met a man in my training community who took me out to get pizza. He didn’t eat any pizza. He watched me as I awkwardly ate it by myself. He then took me to an abandoned park to try to put his moves on me. That was very short lived.
A few months later there was a man who took me to get coffee and talk in an incredibly loud bar. Following coffee he lead me to an abandoned park and tried to put his moves on me. Sound familiar…? A few weeks later I found out he was married.
A few months after that I went on a date with a nice guy who is friends with another PCV. I met him in the capital and he took me to the mall to get ice cream. I felt like I was in middle school again. As we awkwardly sat in the food court and discussed life.
My most recent date was two days ago. My landlord introduced me to a man who had just come back from working on a cruise ship in America. He took me to a gas station restaurant for coffee, followed by driving me to the middle of no where so he could put his moves on me (which didn’t work at all). Later that night I found out he was engaged.

There is an obvious trend here with shady restaurants and then ending up in abandoned areas. Something tells me my safety and security officer would not approve of me ever dating. For some reason men here think that they just need to buy you coffee and then you are theirs for the taking. I have yet to have a successful date and yet everyone in my village always asks me why I don’t have a boyfriend.

Getting Sick

Wed, 01 May 2013 11:07:51 -0700

Macedonians believe that almost anything can get you sick, cross breezes, eating ice or ice cream, wet hair, sweat…really anything pleasant. I however do all of the opposites of everything people advise me not to do because I honestly don’t believe cracking the window in a car to get some fresh air is going to get me sick. Unfortunately this year I have gotten sick quite a few times (I’m even sick right now), and every time I get sick I refuse to tell any of my Macedonian friends because I just know they are going to say something along the lines of I told you so.

The first time we crossed the river we took our shoes off and...

Wed, 01 May 2013 09:16:21 -0700

The first time we crossed the river we took our shoes off and walked through the river on our way back we found a crafty little bridge about 5 feet away from where we originally crossed. I tested it out and it was definitely the most dangerous and unsteady bridge I have ever crossed. Valentina refused to use it and crossed once again the old fashioned way. Who needs fancy bridges I guess.