Blogs from Centre, Moldova, Europe - page 8

It's Adrienne, and I wanted to write a quick update about our Monday. As Wendy mentioned, our morning did not go well. One reason may be the weather. It is so hot and humid here, so we are constantly miserable and sweating, with nothing but a cold shower to provide relief (I never thought I would appreciate a cold shower, but there you go). Our host said it was 40 degrees Celsius yesterday, and there was no breeze. The thermometer in our room said 84 degrees Fahrenheit last night. Needless to say, we did not sleep well. So today did not get off to a good start. Our room had only cooled down to 83 when we were leaving for the orphanage. Then our group of kids was acting weird, so that made us feel very ... read more

Adrienne writing to you from the McDonald's Internet Cafe. Apparently "McDonald's" is Moldovan for "very nice bathroom." Since bathrooms have been such a prevalent part of my diary, I feel compelled to share that with you. So if you are ever in Moldova and find you need a bathroom break, look for a McDonalds. Just don't eat anything. We've been here over a week and are getting around Chisenau like a couple of natives. We've figured out the buses and most of the streets in the center of town. We take a microbus to work for 3 lei (1 USD equals 13 lei). At lunch, we take the trolleybus to the center of town for 1 lei. After lunch, Internet, and walking around, we head back to work on the 3 lei microbus. The other day ... read more

Adrienne writing to you from the McDonald's Internet Cafe. Apparently "McDonald's" is Moldovan for "very nice bathroom." Since bathrooms have been such a prevalent part of my diary, I feel compelled to share that with you. So if you are ever in Moldova and find you need a bathroom break, look for a McDonalds. Just don't eat anything. We've been here over a week and are getting around Chisenau like a couple of natives. We've figured out the buses and most of the streets in the center of town. We take a microbus to work for 3 lei (1 USD equals 13 lei). At lunch, we take the trolleybus to the center of town for 1 lei. After lunch, Internet, and walking around, we head back to work on the 3 lei microbus. The other day ... read more

Hi all, it's Adrienne. We finally figured out what some of your comments meant--that you could not see other comments because we need to do something on our side. So I just went through and approved them all so there is bit more reading for you. I have to say that it is so nice to read these notes. While I'm online I totally forget I'm in another country, except for the ever-present Moldovian techno and rap music that has become the soundtrack for this trip. In an effort to communicate with people with only a basic knowledge of English, Wendy and I have simplified our conversation into the most simple subject/verb/object types of sentences. When people ask about me, I find myself saying, "I have husband" or "I work Human Resources." And when Wendy called ... read more

Hi all, it's Adrienne. We finally figured out what some of your comments meant--that you could not see other comments because we need to do something on our side. So I just went through and approved them all so there is bit more reading for you. I have to say that it is so nice to read these notes. While I'm online I totally forget I'm in another country, except for the ever-present Moldovian techno and rap music that has become the soundtrack for this trip. In an effort to communicate with people with only a basic knowledge of English, Wendy and I have simplified our conversation into the most simple subject/verb/object types of sentences. When people ask about me, I find myself saying, "I have husband" or "I work Human Resources." And when Wendy called ... read more