Should I continue to blog?

I am thinking to start writing on my Blog again. Its been about 9 months since I wrote anything about my experiences abroad....

Traveling on the bus

I just remembered this conversation I had with this Bulgarian guy on the bus. Of course, he did not expect me to speak Bulgarian so he kept attempting to translate with his broken English things the announcing lady was saying. It was actually really sweet of him. Once he figured out that I could understand Bulgarian we started a great friendship that lasted throughout my bus ride.

One of the interesting things he asked me was if I liked Bulgaria. My response to this question is typically "yes" even though I do not think Bulgarian is the best place to live for a person from a developed country. I answer "yes" because I do not want to get into the discussion of what I think is wrong with Bulgaria. As a guest in Bulgaria I do not think it is right to complain to Bulgarians about the things that are wrong with their country. I hate when people do it to me as an American so I do not want to do the same to others. However, when the guy made the state "Bulgaria is just like America" I had to disagree with him in a non argumentative way... which is not very typical of me. I simply said "There are many differences between America and Bulgaria. Have you travelled to Germany or Holland? America is as developed as Germany and Holland". I left the conversation at that and we enjoyed to rest of the 16 hour bus right to Vienna.

Drinking Viennese Coffee,


Crystal

Pictures are coming.

Travelling

Hey All,

I made it to Vienna and checked into my hostel!

Vienna is a beautiful clean city so far as I can see. I am planning to do some sightseeing to get a better perspective. It is very interesting to travel alone from Bulgaria (the Balkans) to Central Europe as an African American. I get the feeling that people really want to know more about me. I hope I make some friends soon...

Actually I am meeting a friend tomorrow for coffee. I met her in Bulgaria and I will spend a couple days with her at her family village.

Moving slowly to the developed world... Is that bad to say?

Crystal

I am done

My Peace Corps service ended today! Wow three years and 3 months in Bulgaria who would have known.

Being in Bulgaria has caused me to see life in a new way. Being Peace Corps Volunteer has also caused me to see myself in a new way. I am very happy to have had the chance to experience this....

For some reason I cannot go into more detail about my life these past three years. I have a lot to process so I decided to take a little trip in Central Europe alone! I am traveling by bus, train and no planes. Traveling this way will hopefully give me the chance watch the roads pass by and think.

Crystal

Summer is here!!!

Wow! I have been in Bulgaria for three years already. Time has just flown by. I am leaving Bulgaria in the fall to return to America. I am really happy that I spent so much time here, but it is time for me to go home. I want color back in my life!

I want to write more about what it is like being African American in a Post-communist country but at the moment I can't. There is just too much for me to process and too many emotions involved. That is one reason why I haven't written on this blog in a long time. I will try to write more about this when I understand better my own feelings.

I can't wait to get back to America to see my family and friends- if my friend still remember me.

Overall life is good.

Here are pictures below to show what I am looking like these days.

My locks are growing!!!! They are 9 months old now.





Hanging out with friends:


My running buddy and friend:





Little gypsy girl at the market:


Giving a presentation at work about my hometown:



My students after the presentation:



My co-workers:

Cleaning a park in Stranzja (a park reserve in Bulgaria) with friends:



Morning cleaning:


Have a great summer and in the mean time I will be moving and shaking around BG,

Crystal

I'm back!!!

Hello all,

I hope you have had a wonderful holiday season meaning Christmas, New Years,and Valentines day. I am still moving and shaking in Bulgaria. Wow, can't believe it is my third year here. Time is moving so quickly.

I have been very busy teaching and traveling this past few months. My latest trip was to the wonderful country of Serbia. I was only in Belgrade but it was a wonderful experience indeed.

Here is a picture of my friends that traveled with me...

Here is me and some friends at a cafe called biblioteca...





I am in front of some church in Belgrade...



I went home for Christmas to America which was fun, interesting, and a little confusing. I really enjoyed seeing my family and friends but I felt like a shell of myself. I did not feel like I was a part of America culture. It was the weirdest feeling in the world for everyone around me to be speaking my native language but I could not understand everything they were saying. It felt like I was living inside a bubble. Anyhow, here are pics of me with family...

Voted!!!

I voted Friday. I was totally afraid that my vote would not count while I was in Bulgaria but thank God for absentee votes!!! I can’t wait to see if my candidate will win the votes. Only God knows who will be in office come November. Of course I am a democrat so you can only guess who I voted for… Obama, Obama, Obama. I think it is about time America has had some diversity in the White House. Also, Obama seems capable of handling the ropes of the White House.

Wahoo only a couple more days before we know for sure!!!!


Here are a couple pictures of the last few weeks.

Me dancing. I am with some friends at international dinner night.






The Turkish people cooked dinner that night.





A Greek and a Turk together in a picture smiling. Who would have thought it possible.... There is hope for the rest of the world.





People at the dinner.






My friends from the University. Bulgarian, Austrian, and French... in that order.






Ohhhh I almost forgot!!! I am going home for a month in December! Wahoo. Can’t wait to see my friend and family.

Crystal