The Little Things

(written March 6, 2008)

I'd like to talk a little about the cultural differences I've seen so far in Moldova.

The kids are most striking. At least the ones in my household. They're so incredibly well-behaved! Quiet, do *everything* they are told to do.... the 14 year old here does most of the chores around the house when the mom's at work.

We were at a lunch the other day and the two girls were incredibly well-behaved. We were there, in one room, without entertainment or toys, for four hours. They didn't complain, or bug the adults. They just say there, or went and laid on the couch. They listened to the adult conversation, and spoke when spoken to.

They also drink wine. Shots of wine to be exact.

Though that's the same for everyone in Moldova. They all drink shots of wine rather than glasses of it. Very interesting.

It's very good wine - almost all of it it homemade. Most people have vineyards in their backyards, you see. My family makes white wine, which is nice for me because it means I can actually drink it.

It's very taboo, in the little village that I'm staying in, for women to smoke in public. Or greet men. Or greet people younger then them. Or smile.

Guess how often I've broken that rule.

For a minute I tried to keep up the no smiling thing. Then I decided to screw it. I say hello to everybody but the men (because apparently that could cause real problems - them I just ignore), and I particularly smile and say an enthusiastic hello to the kids. Americans are known for to be smiley, overly nice people, yeah? I see no reason to break with that tradition, particularly if the result is that Moldovan kids happen to come out of my visit thinking that Americans are super nice people.

Peace Corps mission accomplished?

We were told today that, and I quote, "Peace Corps mission is to promote world peace and understanding. That," our director said, "is our expectation of you.

They aim low.

(Who else in the house got that "what's so wrong about peace love and understanding" song stuck in their head immediately following reading that? I know that I can think of nothing else sense then. And I don't even know who that song is by, or what the rest of the lyrics are.)

Apparently the United States government invests $40,000 per year on each Peace Corps volunteer - that includes the salary of all the staff here, the security, etc. It surely does *not* represent the salary I will receive in Moldova, and surely does *not* come close to the salary Ireceived in America. But it's, oh, roughly 35 times what an average Moldovan makes in a year.

Or to put it another way, my computer (an apple computer, mind) could pay for an entire family here for one year. Try explaining that to someone in a language not your own.

You know how we, as Americans, get annoyed sometimes at seeing and hearing Spanish everywhere? We feel like people should just learn to speak English already?

Imagine, if you will, living in a world where you're constantly barraged with languages you don't understand...

the Nokia phone the dad owns? the instruction manual is in German.

The tea biscuits? English.

Some of the music is in Spanish, some in Russian, some in English, some German, some in French...

the girls know a shocking amount of Britney Spears, but get her confused with Shakira. I guess when you don't know Spanish or English they could both sound the same.

I wonder if eventually all these languages will just kind of blend together, you know? Surely, particularly with the borders in Europe dissolving, the seperate languages can't continue.

Though it does seem that people, faced with the loss of something, seem ever more determined to keep it. The Irish did a pretty remarkable job of reviving Gaelic. My god, look what the Jews did.


I get the feeling that my family is getting kind of frustrated that I'm not picking up Romanian more quickly. I've been here almost a week - surely I should be able to understand and carry on a conversation by now, right?

But they are surrounded by English all the time. They could sing Piece of Me... hell, the dad sang some Beach Boys song to me the other day - not knowing, I think, that he was calling me baby perhaps.

I don't know. Maybe he did. Wouldn't that be funny. And scary, obviously.



So here's the thing - Peace Corps keeps talking about how we're supposed to integrate, and when we get to our sites we'll be partners... sustainable partners, participatory partners. I talked to a few of you all about my concerns about this before I left... I am quite good at doing things on my own. Just, doing them. Taking on projects, finishing projects, getting them done - that independence is seriously frowned upon here.

I am an independent person. I like taking on projects and completing them. Wonder how that will go?