Since my last post, I have been working on greeting people in my village. Moldovans traditionally greet everyone they pass on the street – including strangers – with either “bunӑ ziua” (hello/good day), “bunӑ dimineața” (good morning) or “bunӑ seara” (good evening). However, there are certain rules to this practice. For one thing, as far as I’ve observed, the greeting is rarely said loudly or with a smile; it’s usually mumbled. Also, women aren’t supposed to make eye contact with men because eye contact is seen as an invitation. After two weeks, I think I’m starting to get the hang of this greeting people thing.

I’ve also been learning how to walk in the mud, which is an important skill when you live on a dirt road – and it rains for a week straight. I must not be good at walking in the mud because somehow my host sisters’ shoes never get as dirty as mine, even when I follow their footsteps exactly. But I bought some galoshes the other day, so now I can squish my way to school in as much of an unladylike way as I please. I still have to clean the galoshes when I get to school, though, because the custodians who work at the school where we have our training sessions won’t let us in the building if our shoes are dirty.

Like many families in Moldova, my host family has a large garden, and I have been eating a ton of fresh fruits and vegetables. My family grows potatoes, carrots, onions, garlic, tomatoes, cucumbers, peppers, beans, corn, cabbage, pumpkins, beets, radishes, cherries, apricots, peaches, strawberries, raspberries, melons, apples, pears, plums, grapes, and nuts. Their homemade jam is amazing!

My host family is wonderful. They called me Emilia for a while, but now they just call me Emie, and I love it. The other day, I coughed while I was working out, and both my host mom and host sister came up to me and expressed their concern that I was getting a cold.

In other news, the phrase “til the cows come home” actually means something to me now.