November 22, 2001

Thanksgiving Day. Last year, I wondered how this day would feel. But after coming home from a terrible class, I’d have to say it’s a little skewed. We’re putting together our little holiday meal as I write. Kate’s teaching her last two classes for the day and we’ll be pigging out as soon as we can. It’s not turkey tonight, roasted chicken instead. We’re heading to a small town southwest of Silistra to really celebrate Thanksgiving this weekend with other PCVs. There’ll be turkey there. But tonight we’ve got all the fixins’ except for a real turkey and pumpkin pie. We’ll be making the pumpkin pies for this weekend. There’s a little happiness that this year is the last we’ll be away from family for these important holidays. Last year, we didn’t really know what it would be like to have a holiday like Thanksgiving away from family. Naturally, we want to be with family, enjoy the traditions, and cork off on the couch to the Detroit Lions game. (If we had cable, we could actually get the Detroit Lions game.) And while my family will watch “Christmas Story”, as we usually do every Thanksgiving, I’ll have to remind myself, much to the dismay of Kate, of the beloved lines from the flick . . . “You’re gonna shoot your eye out kid!” “It was, . . . soap . . . . poisoning!” “Fra-gee-lay . . . It must be from Italy!” “Daddy’s gonna kill Ralphy!” “When it came to fuses, my old man was faster than a rabbit on a date.” I could go on, but I’m sure that’ll do.

It’s cold here in Silistra. We even got some snow the other night. It came down in big flakes, not really sticking much to the ground, but still exciting. Early the next morning I was walking to school and the hill off in the distance was like a frosted over bon-bon. Underneath the white flakes, it was brown from bare trees, and homes, with smoke pluming from their chimneys, dotted it. On the top the TV tower stood, unmoved, as it has for quite some time, and will for much more time. The air was frigid as I inhaled the frozen humidity. It felt clean and strong.

The smell of burning coal and, consequently, the burning garbage dumpsters from people dumping their smoldering coal into the containers is now everywhere. We walked outside today and into a cloud of smoke from our dumpster. But we’re very happy to say that our block has gotten together to repaint the entranceway and the doorway. There are also lights in the entranceway. For so long, our block has been the darkest and most menacing of all blocks to enter in our neighborhood because of the peeling paint, neglect, and lack of light. It’s starting to look up. I think we even contributed four leva to the repair of it a few weeks ago. At least that was what the lady said to us when she took our money and had us sign in a notebook. Well worth the cash. The first time I walked through the entranceway last year, I pulled out my pocketknife and twirled around as I tried to scare off any potential attackers. Since then, we haven’t really thought twice about it. Now it almost seems too bright as we walk in to the floodlit entrance. It even partially lights the sidewalk outside of our block.

In other news, Bulgaria has a new president. Georgi Purvanov, a socialist, will soon be inaugurated. It came down to a second round of elections last weekend after neither leading candidate (a socialist and a democrat) won a clear majority of the votes during the first round. After Bulgaria elected the parliament of the former King of Bulgaria into office in June, then the King Simeon himself becoming the Prime Minister, and then the Simeon supporting the democratic candidate, it seems a little bizarre that the socialist candidate came out on top. I’ve heard that people are losing patience with the Prime Minister because he’s not very outspoken with the media. Bulgaria seems to be ready to try anything to get this country going. But as we notice more and more commercials, an increase of foreign investors, and things like travel agents popping up in Silistra, it may have little to do with the President in the end. It’ll still come down to the people of Bulgaria and their own determination to make this country better. Bulgaria experienced a setback by being excluded from any possibility of entering the EU in 2004, a goal they were aiming for. Along with Romania, it now seems that 2006 is the target date. I hope to read about their eventual entry someday back in the States!

We wish all of you in America a Happy Thanksgiving!! Enjoy the food and family!

-Josh