Goodbye Bucharest!
With training week complet, and Bucharest ringing in at 40 C / 100 F we were ready and excited to head up north to the small country of Moldova where the heat is a bit less intense. We did this via a 14-hour train ride full of e
xciting times in a "cozy" car with no a/c, wild thunderstorms, French-speaking customs personnel, and a few dramatic "repairs" made to our lovely means of transportation along the way.
All in all I thought it was an experience worth having. Definitely a time to sweat out the antioxidants! The countryside reminded me of the Midwest with its rolling hills and cornfields. Loved it! We have also seen a ton of sunflower fields like the one pictured left.
Hello Chinisau!
Upon our arrival in Chinisau, Moldova, we grabbed a bus from a few Russian-speaking drivers and headed to the hotel. The language barrier is becoming increasingly apparent now that we are out of the big city. Essentially, people here seem to speak Romanian and/or Russian with little comprehension of English. This turns every conversation attempt into a strange form of pictionary, and a lot of guessing!
Beyond the obvious, there are other challenges we are beginning to face while on the race. Today, my "first time" accomplishments went like this:
1. Grocery Shooping On A Budget
We are now operating under Moldovian Lei, which is 11.73 / 1 USD. 
Our food budget this month is 4 USD per person, per day. Therefore, we really have to buy strategically and prepare meals creatively. Add the element of foreign labels and it was an admittably pretty stressful experience for our group. In the end we came out under budget and filled everyone up! Here is what we made for lunch:
2. Handwashing Laundry
I look back on my poor attitude about laundry in the states, and think shame on me! Just one week of laundry was enough to make me reconsider ever getting clothes dirty again… It is kind of fun to hang them out on the line though. Simple life. I'm trying!
We're Coming Cornesti!
So you know I came here to actually work, right? I promise that's coming. Tomorrow we meet our contact for the World Team (our ministry of the month) and he's gonna take us up about 25 miles to Cornesti and we're gonna get to work! With roads being as bad as they are here, this drive should take us just under 2 hours. Also a plus: we are getting a translator-wahoo! Life is good.
Fun fact of the day: Romania and Moldova both use crepe paper as toilet paper….crazy right? Im just thankful to have something! : )
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