Chicken Jelly, My Humps, Sipping Whisky and la hora!
Today was a great day. Probably my best so far in Moldova. It started out not soo smoothly this morning when we were late for the welcoming ceremony in the village because I ironed my skirt wrong, and then walked very slowly in heels (I cannot walk in heels normally, never mind up a choppy hill). The ceremony was very gracious and warm, many community members spoke out about their positive feelings of having us in their community. We ate a traditional Moldovan feast, called the masa, and then danced traditional dances called the “hora” (think dubki, slow down the beat, and add an accordion). That was definitely a highlight of the day.
When we got back I was pretty stressed out, partly because of the new environment, and partly because I hadn’t done anything physical in a while besides walking. After a 40 minute conversation asking my host mother if it was okay for me to go for a run. But right before I left the house, she asked me to come to what I could only deduce was a birthday party with her. Hesitantly I went, which has been one of the best decisions yet. The people there were very friendly, and there were children who spoke a little English, broken, but it was still nice to have. There was a little boy around 15 who reminded me a lot of scott, because he had this look in his eyes that I knew he was up to no good. He kept taking pictures with his cell phone, and was showing me the English he knew—by singing dirty rap songs such as “my humps” and “in the club.” Try explaining to a young child that the English words he knows are “dirty…” it’s not that easy let me tell you. By the end of the night we were friends though, which is good, as you all know I relate easier to children anyway. I got going away presents of new vocabulary, walnuts (off a tree) and a rose from the garden. Very good!
While at this party I was trying to be as open as possible to the culture, I was in fact, an uninvited guest at this intimate dinner party—so I tried all the food. Including one called “Chicken jelly” which is this gel made from bone marrow and chicken fat, but it is the traditional food of Moldova. So I dug in. I probably won’t eat it again, but, heres for trying things once J The men were also drinking a lot, and trying to get me to drink a lot. Which was not going to happen, especially since they were doing shots of whisky (yuck). So I sipped it instead. The host father found it funny though to pour whisky into my glass and say “it’s okay, a few”. Sweet.
Today really reinvigorated me for the rest of the village stay. I am excited to meet more community members, to have more discussions, and to break away from my English / Peace Corps cushion. We will see what happens!
When we got back I was pretty stressed out, partly because of the new environment, and partly because I hadn’t done anything physical in a while besides walking. After a 40 minute conversation asking my host mother if it was okay for me to go for a run. But right before I left the house, she asked me to come to what I could only deduce was a birthday party with her. Hesitantly I went, which has been one of the best decisions yet. The people there were very friendly, and there were children who spoke a little English, broken, but it was still nice to have. There was a little boy around 15 who reminded me a lot of scott, because he had this look in his eyes that I knew he was up to no good. He kept taking pictures with his cell phone, and was showing me the English he knew—by singing dirty rap songs such as “my humps” and “in the club.” Try explaining to a young child that the English words he knows are “dirty…” it’s not that easy let me tell you. By the end of the night we were friends though, which is good, as you all know I relate easier to children anyway. I got going away presents of new vocabulary, walnuts (off a tree) and a rose from the garden. Very good!
While at this party I was trying to be as open as possible to the culture, I was in fact, an uninvited guest at this intimate dinner party—so I tried all the food. Including one called “Chicken jelly” which is this gel made from bone marrow and chicken fat, but it is the traditional food of Moldova. So I dug in. I probably won’t eat it again, but, heres for trying things once J The men were also drinking a lot, and trying to get me to drink a lot. Which was not going to happen, especially since they were doing shots of whisky (yuck). So I sipped it instead. The host father found it funny though to pour whisky into my glass and say “it’s okay, a few”. Sweet.
Today really reinvigorated me for the rest of the village stay. I am excited to meet more community members, to have more discussions, and to break away from my English / Peace Corps cushion. We will see what happens!
This entry was posted
on Tuesday, September 19, 2006 at 2:39 PM.
