You thought it was over?

Asian Adventure

After a successful 25-month stint with Peace Corps Romania, I headed to Asia (Bangkok and Manila) for some much-needed R&R. I must say that it was THE perfect transitional step before returning to American soil.

The 26-hour transit time it took to get from Bucharest to Manila felt like the longest and most horrible trip ever. I was exhausted from the whole closing service process and instantly experienced Romanian withdrawal symptoms. There I was, in the middle of a bustling Frankfurt airport, and all I could think about was “No sh*t, I’m done???” Fortunately, once my bottom was parked semi-comfortably in seat 38G, my exhaustion gave way to sleep and that was that.

4 days in Bangkok and 24 in the Philippines – it was fantastic kicking it with the relatives. Sorry, no photos from Bangkok because the battery died so we had to make do with a disposable one. However, here are several pretty snazzy photos taken in the Philippines:

This is Tita Chi, my godmother. She, along with the rest of my mom's side of the family, made sure that my pillows were fluffed, rice was always on my plate, and I was taking my daily vitamins.  They definitely spoiled me during this trip.Who was I to disagree?  

This is TAAL volcano, the smallest active volcano in the world. It is located in a city called Tagaytay - about 2 hours north of Manila.

My cousin Francis and I watched Black Eyed Peas in concert ...

... along with the rest of Manila's population...

... I could tell my cousin really enjoyed it.

We also checked out Subic, a former US Naval Base.

Gearing up for parasailing...

... I can hardly open my eyes from excitement...

... almost ready for take off...

... off I go... from 20 feet ...

... to 200 feet...

... to 400 feet! It was an awesome feeling to be suspended up there. I was literally in a whole new hemisphere. At one point, I saw a bird flying right below me.

The next weekend, Tita Chi, Tita Beck, Francis, and I flew to Ilocos Norte in the northeastern part of the Philippines to visit a region which successfully preserved the Spanish cultural heritage. During one of the guided tours, our van broke down and we ended up taking the local bus (shown below) ...

Tita Beck and Francis clearly excited over the bus ride.

We wanted to go even more local so we rode one of these ...

... kalesa, a horse-drawn cart used in the olden days.

We rode through the most well-known historically preserved street in Vigan city. Spanish-influenced buildings line both sides.

This was Juan Luna's home, the famous Filipino painter. His most popular work is the Spolarium. 

Included in the trip was the Paoay Church, a UNESCO heritage site. Construction of the church started in 1704 and was completed in 1894.

To end the weekend with a bang, I just had to hold one of these...

During a weekday, we went to check out Manila Bay ...

... and waited for its famous sunset.

I also hung out with the barkada ...

... and in some cases, their offspring/s. Kyla's brown school uniform was what we wore back then too.

And last, but definitely not the least, one of my childhood best friends (Sigrid) and I embarked on an adventure few Filipinos even try to attempt - The Banaue and Batad Rice Terraces in the Ifugao region of the Philippines (9 hours by car from Manila). Banaue is considered the eighth wonder of the world and I can certainly attest to that. 

The 2 adventure seekers.

The jeepney (pictured) is another local transportation in the Philippines. Before we started our hike to Batad, we saw this skillfully maneuvering its way towards us. Here's a question: how many Filipinos can you fit in a jeepney?

In the background: Batad Rice Terraces arranged in amphitheatre-like style. It took 2 hours of intense hiking to get here. Then we had to traverse it - which took another hour....

...

And descend ~300 of what seemed like vertical steps to get here ...

The water was cool and the view relaxing...

The hike back was painful. This was taken during the halfway point - sweat, sweat, and more sweat. Sweet. 

This was Sig's expression of protest after 8 hours of extreme hiking.

By the way ...

...after being harvested, these are what they look like.

During our stay in the Ifugao region, we also tried to interact with the local people...

Jumping for joy amidst the Banaue Rice Terraces

Of course I couldn't leave without the usual pasalubong shopping.

... surrounded by everything carved and wooden.

All in all, it was a fabulous vacation involving family, friends, culture, and good food. Who could ask for more? I am forever in gratitude to these people (picture below). Without them, the word family is incomplete and meaningless.

Farewell Romania

July 2006 was a period of milestones and inevitable Romanian goodbyes.

The "see ya later" parties continued with the Sibiu gang (Jeff, Lauren, Dave, Brian, and I) and a couple of Romanians throwing a "Happy Bday Jeff/Bon Voyage/Happy Anniversary" shinding on a Saturday night. Jeff, super PCV, hired transportation to bus in the ENTIRE village of Vurpar (well, almost) for the party. We started cooking at 2 pm. Luckily, Jeff arranged for a local high school's kitchen staff to help us out! We were, afterall, making food for an entire village plus other friends.  There were cheeseburgers, coleslaw, potato salad, chips, and FREE ALCOHOL.

Jeff surprised all of us with bouquets of flowers. What a nice guy.

He was, in turn, surprised by a bday cake and a shisha (hooka)!

I also visited my gazda (host family) for the last time and promised to come back again soon. They said that if I marry a Romanian right away - I wouldn't have to say goodbye! Uh, well, what do you say to that? I will definitely miss my gazda sister Lijia.

I had an incredible last meeting at my organization and an unforgetable send-off. Those guys really mean a lot to me. As they chanted their usual "speech, speech, speech" and egged me on to the front of the room, I couldn't help but suddenly become emotional. 2 years worth of memories overflowed and I just burst into uncontrollable tears. (Lame - I know I know but seriously couldn't help it.) They showered me with gifts and organized a dancing party at a local disco. Good times.

I took the train out from Sibiu on July 13th and guess who showed up at the station? 20 people from my organization! (Not all pictured here) They stayed with me until the train conductor blew his whistle. Then my very last memory of these guys were of them running alongside the train.

This was my home away from home for 2 years, Sibiu. (Photo by Lauren)

These were the Sibiu PCVs who completed service this year, except Jeff who is still holding down the fort with new PCVs. A very composed and hardworking bunch...

and people who can definitely let their hair down.

There were more parties, celebrating, and last minute goodbyes in Bucharest. I spent my last night enjoying Romanian beer of course. I checked out that Friday, officially COSed on July 16, hopped on a plane July 17, and said "la revedere" to this ...

 (Photo by Lauren)

There is a story about overweight luggage at the airport while checking in but I won't go into details. Because they (evil airport people) were gonna charge me 600 euros, it took me 2 hours to repack everything right in the middle of the airport. Thank GOD Irina was with me - an amazing grace.

Last few months in Romania

It’s been awhile. Let me just sum up the past month and a half: a roller coaster of experiences.

I turned 25

It was a great day. Good food and great friends (who I probably wouldn’t be able to bring ALL together again in one room). I wonder what’s in store this year.

Group 19 says “See ya later”

Saturday, May 13^th. Cheeseburgers, mici, potato salad, and chips & dip. Loads of fun. I chaired the beer contest. Partying together for the last time as 19ers. Pretty big moment there. We were in the homestretch of our service. The first 19er to go left 2 weeks after that party.

Chairing the beer contest

Fill it up!

The proud winners

Amsterdam

What a trip. 4 days. May 18^th – 21^st. Flying Pig Uptown and Youth Meeting Point Hostel. I hung out with my favorite trainee in the whole wide world and a good friend of mine, Harm! Also met Melina. J But THE reason for making the trek – Eddie. Haven’t seen this guy in 2.5 years and I wasn’t gonna pass up hanging out in Amsterdam – a good ways out, across the Atlantic, from Cali. Fantastic time catching up. Just like the good ol’ days. The difference? We were both older (What comes with age? Pragmatism counts J). That’s about it (at least from my part). Shamim, Eddie’s roomie, made it to Amsterdam too. He’s still due for a trip to the Red Light District. (*wink wink)

Back To Back Travels

 Here’s what I did.

Traveled from Sibiu to Bucharest (6 hours by train) for some Peace Corps business. Stayed for two days. At 6 am the next morning, I took the train to Targu Neamt for Jan’s Farewell Party (6 hours by train). Stayed overnight but didn’t really sleep. At 5 am the next morning, took the train back to Bucharest but missed connection by 2 seconds so had to wait in the freezing station (in May? Go figure.) with 3 others for 2 hours. Total travel time until Bucharest was 8 hours. Then on to Craiova by train (3 hours) to deliver AIESEC trainings. Stayed for 2 nights. At 9 am the next day, I traveled back to Bucharest to get a connecting train to CLUJ-NAPOCA (8 hours) where I stayed for 2 weeks to volunteer at the Transylvania Film Festival… Whew. I was kinda pooped after that.

Transylvania International Film Festival in Cluj-Napoca

Got my energy back after a night’s rest in Cluj. There were 6 PCVs total who volunteered for the event. Erik, Jonathan, Kenny, Alan, Dave, and myself. FABULOUS time. Apart from seeing movies and going to parties for free, the aspect which I enjoyed the most about this event was the camaraderie of the group. I truly enjoyed hanging out with these guys and tried to soak in the moments of pure group boredom, perpetual inebriated state, and those other

special moments up the tree house (aka bunk beds). Cluj rocks.

All the international volunteers during the festival

Fellow LA-ers. Westside.

The tree house

Trojans forever. Boo the blue. No offense. Fluturasi ...

The rest of the time…

I’ve been doing all kinds of preparations for closing my service. A plethora of Peace Corps paperwork, packing/getting rid of stuff, and making plans to say thanks/see ya around to all who have impacted my stay in Romania. Not easy but somebody’s gotta do it.

Mixed feelings

Bittersweet. Sometimes I am just totally READY to get outta here. Sometimes I’m not. Sometimes I think I need more time. I admit. I’m just scared of the next step. Was my PC Romania experience some kind of a simulation? Are the feelings I have here valid back home in Cali? Reintegration scares the sh*t out of me when I think about it too much. So, I’ll stop right here. 

Here’s a question

When you find yourself in a moment that you want to last forever – how do you stop time? How do you capture everything that is beautiful in that moment and make it last forever, or at least make it seem to last forever? How does letting go be the same as holding on to that moment? Mere musings. Rhetorical questions…

18 days til I become an RPCV (Returned PCV). Until then, I’ll be busy soaking it all in. Two years went by fast. 

Sibiu Plays! Take 4 (April 27 - 30)

11 high school teams competed in a 4-day English theater competition. One of my last projects in Romania. The aim was to improve English skills of participants and promote healthy competition.

Angela, the Emcee

Adi Tibu, my co-emcee and the wonder kid who makes this project sustainable

Students taking a break outside the theater

A student onstage

The audience. The house was packed every night.

Entertaining the audience

And still entertaining...

Overall, it was a GREAT time. I will definitely miss those kids.