Independence Day - 4th of July!!!-- July 6, 2008

The 4th of July event this year in Constanta at the Delfinariu was so nice! Thanks again to Jane Little and the Rotarians of District 5010 for sending us the decorations, and you can see from the photos below that they worked out very well! Mihaela Paraschivescu from the Embassy also sent many handouts that were just perfect. I was delighted that we were able to get a big American flag from the Romanian Navy! As you can see there was a good crowd and the press was in attendance for media coverage. I haven't seen a news article yet, but I hope to get one. The only minor hitch was having a tray of champagne glasses get spilled at the end, but spilling something is believed here to be very good luck! So probably that made it even better!
     Online version and translation of News article HERE (image below).

The speakers were Decebal Fagadau, General Director of the Natural Sciences Museum Complex; Bernadette Roberts, Vice Consul from the American Embassy; Sevil Sumanariu from the Constanta County Council, Department of Black Sea Cooperation; Adina Ciugureanu, Dean of the Faculty of Letters at Ovidius University, and newly elected President of the Romanian Association for American Studies; Tim Ehlinger from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee; and me, of course, for the Peace Corps and Alaska.

I was glad that the Embassy was able to send Bernadette with a driver for the long drive from Bucharest, more than three hours each way, so she could kick off this celebration, for what is hoped to be the first of many annual celebrations in Constanta for our American 4th of July. I was so happy that my friend Fanica came to provide moral support, you can see her below talking to Vice Consul Bernadette, also Bernadette with Decebal and with Adina.

Adina, Bernadette, Tim, Decebal and me
...and afterwards, Decebal and the Museum Complex treated us to a real feast!

Me with Adina, Sevil, and Bernadette... and in the evening it was great fun to go with Sevil out to the far end of Mamaia where they had a terrific fireworks display! Amazing!

News Article July 5, 2008 (click to enlarge) -- online version and translation at link in first paragraph, this page.

On Saturday, the 5th of July, I was able to host the other two Peace Corps Volunteers who are working on the coast, so we could spend the day together. I fixed Mexican food, apple pie and chocolate cake, and we were able to celebrate with the "Independence Day party in a box" sent by Katie! (Thanks my dear friend for making the weekend so special!) The emotional ups and downs of living and working as a Peace Corps volunteer in a foreign culture are often extreme, but I'm happy to say that this turned out to be a very good week.

And the next weeks will be very busy ones. On Thursday I have been invited to participate in the Fulbright panel in Bucharest, and next week I will be leaving for Budapest to spend a few days with my friends Sonny and Gloria and some other volunteers. Finally! I'll get to see something of Eastern Europe away from my worksites! Stay tuned!