Update May 2014

I've looked at clouds from both sides now.

Just down the road is where I live.

Things are just ducky here.

Just a load of oak for next winter.

Sergiu and his mom, Julia

The corn is already several inches high.

We've had generous rain showers.

Anatole opens the champaign.

Catholic church in Orhei.

Helping Sr Mary make the brats.

Pizza Party with PC staff trainers.

Yes, it's already the end of May.  Time for some updates from this busy month.  The weather has been just grand here in Moldova.  May was more like summer than like Spring this year.  We had generous temperatures in the 70's  and frequent showers now and then.  Just the perfect combination to get the crops going.  The corn is already several inches high.  New life is showing itself everywhere as you can see from the family of little ducks at my house.  The cherry trees are already ripening.  Strawberries are locally abundant.  Now's a good time to buy your wood for next winter.  The prices are lower than in the Fall.  You can see a picture of our load of oak dumped in the back yard.  Now we just have to cut them down to size and split them.  Well we have all summer for that.  Another good reason to buy early.  This past week we had a birthday of a staff person at work, Anatole.  You can see him opening up the celebratory bottle of campaign at our birthday masa.  This past week was also Ascension Thursday and like Easter this year,  the date for both the Orthodox and Western Christians was the same.  I went to my local parish in Orhei to celebrate and after church service we had a barbeque.  I helped Sister Mary make the brats.  Just two months now until I leave Moldova.  Friday we had a farewell pizza party with some of the Peace Corps staff who trained us in just two years ago.  

Wedding Contest in Berezlogi

The mayor's office provided the van.

Our birde, Victoria, with her mom looking on.

The casa cultura in Berezlogi

We are one of many villages participating.

Piatra group arrives in Berezlogi

The brass band is playing marches.

Mayor Parascovia Negrutsa in blue dress.

We join the parade of performers.

Groomed horseman lead us 

Nansi wear white sashes.  Doamna Cristina is center.

The bride and groom

lovely embroidered blouses and skirts

Piatra group takes the stage

Doamna Cristina leads the singing.

Our bride and groom are wrapped with love (blankets).

Bride and Groom lead the hora.

Everyone dance!

Final bow as they leave the stage

It was a great show.

Hey!  You already got a bride.

A wedding contest is nothing like the bachelor or bachelorette show.  It was a sing off contest between folk ensembles from various villages around the Orhei raion.  It look place the second Sunday of May in the village of Berezlogi.  This little berg is only about a half hour's drive from Piatra.  The Piatra Ensemble was made up of many staff from the center where I volunteer and a few other villagers.  Since we were representing our village, the mayor's office van was our transportation.  The mayor was also along for the ride.  Here we see Sergiu, who plays the part of the groom in our presentation, leading us to the van about 9 AM on Sunday morning.  Our bride, Victoria, is still in her teens, so this was just a dry run for her.  We arrived in Berezlogi and proceeded to the "casa cultura" building.  A place was set for our group on the terrace and a brass band was playing some lively marching music as we unloaded from our van.  The lady in the blue dress is our mayor, Doamna Parascovia Negrutsa.  We join the parade of groups who are led into the presentation area by groomed horseman.  Our presentation group includes the nanasi (marriage godparents) who wear white sashes to indicate their role.  The bride and groom make a charming couple.  Our ensemble members wear their embroidered folk blouses and traditional skirts.  Each village group takes a turn on the stage to demonstrate a "Frumose Nunti"  a beautiful wedding.  The saying goes 'frumos nuntile se leaga'  or 'a beautiful wedding is binding'.  Doamna Cristina leads our performance with several traditional songs.  The bride and groom are being wrapped in blankets --even though this is May--because this shows the love and support of their families.  Then of course it's covers off and everyone dance the hora.  Doamna Cristina and the Nanasi take a final bow as the Piatra group leaves the stage.  My girlfriend, Sylvia and I enjoyed the contest, but the groom almost stole my date!  Who won the contest?  Mmmm.  Not sure, but every group got a diploma for participating and we all enjoyed some placinta and wine afterwards.

Springtime in Moldova - Primavara

fruit trees are blossoming

clear the field of weeds

everyone pitches in at the community center

Marius gathers the weeds.

the tulip path

tulip is lalea in Romanian

post tulip wrap up

the roz lalea

the galben și roșu lalea

the violeta lalea

itțs a lalea - palooza!

the liliac arbust

puișor

rața

a

Sergiu off to plant corn

two kernels in every hole

Sergiu and his father Ilie

Sergiu, Marius (nephew) and mother Iulia

horse whisperer

fishing with drag net

Springtime in Moldova.  That's "primavara" in Romanian.  We may be a few weeks ahead of you folks in the midwest back home in Wisconsin.  You're still coming out of the ice age, and we're already into lilacs.  A few weeks ago the fruit trees began to blossom.  Stand under a blossoming fruit tree and you'd swear you can hear it humming.  That's the bees already getting to work.  Springtime is "sapa" time here in Moldova.  A "sapa" is a simple hoe.  The ones here have a type of rounded blade as compared to the square edge ones I'm used to back home.  One thing you have to do in Spring is clear away all the early weeds that have sprung up where you want to plant.  That's what we are doing in the first pictures at the community center where I volunteer.  Moldovan children know how to pull weeds at the age of two as demonstrated by young Marius here.  Let's turn our eyes on the flowers.  Tulip time is almost past now but you can see what a glorious path of red tulips we had at home leading from the house to the outhouse.  Definitely an upgrade to the experience.  Soon their day was over, but then some specials popped up in pink, and yellow, and purple.  Some people go all out for tulips which are called "lalea" in Romanian.  And now the lilacs are beginning to bloom.  Other things are coming to life in Spring, like the new chicks and ducks (puișor and rața).  I have enjoyed watching the baby ducks follow their mother around the farm yard on small expeditions learning how to eat bugs. Sergiu leads the way to do some serious planting this past Saturday morning.  He dug the holes and I dropped the corn seed in them.  Our whole family was involved for about four hours to plant the whole field.  The weather was pleasant, a slight breeze kept the small flies off.  We admire some of the horses grazing by the riverside on our way home.  Some boys are trying their hand at fishing in the river.  Springtime is a beautiful time just about anywhere, but especially here in Moldova.