I was awoken at 2:30 in the morning last night to an earthquake. This morning, I found out the epicenter was in Romania, and it was a 5.5 earthquake. The room shook pretty good, but nothing in my room fell at all. And it was pitch black, so I wasn’t able to see anything. I just stayed in bed under several layers of blankets (it’s cold here at night!), and when it finished, promptly fell back asleep. I think under normal circumstances, it might have alarmed me more, but I was so tired, I wasn’t really processing what was happening.
In other news, I’ve read 5 books in the past week. Despite working and teaching and planning, I have wayyyy too much free time on my hands. I’m hoping to fill that time soon with an English club or other club with students, but I’m still figuring out what they want and need, so it’ll be a bit until I start that. Although I’m bored, I do love that I’ve rekindled my love of reading and that I have the time to read for fun. I’ve read almost 15 books since arriving here, and I think that’s more than I had read in the 2 years prior to that. I had gotten some books from the Peace Corps lounge, but now that I’ve made my way through them, I’ve been very happy to have a tablet that I can use with e-books. I still prefer a real book, but it sure is convenient to have an e-reader!
The weather is finally feeling like fall! This past week was actually rather cool, and I even wore lined stockings one day! I think after the hottest summer I’ve ever experienced, my body is having more trouble adjusting to the cool weather. At night, it’s been quite cold. My host mom has mentioned that she’s never started heating the house with the soba this early, but that she thinks she might have to, as it has been freezing in the house at night. I’ve been pretty comfortable with a big pile of blankets and a couple of layers of clothes. I’m really glad I was able to squeeze my favorite blanket from home into my suitcase. It’s warm and has been keeping me warm for the past 10+ years, and it seems to be doing the job just as well now. The only problem is staying warm if I need to make a late-night trip to the outhouse (and I know it’s only going to get colder) or when I have to climb out of my warm nest in the morning- brr!
I am seriously craving “American” foods, namely my mom’s cooking (especially mac and cheese!). I also really want to bake. I’m trying to figure out how to make chocolate chip cookies without brown sugar. I’ve heard it might be possible to get brown sugar in Chisinau, but haven’t had time while there to see.
I think that’s all for my rambling thoughts.
The Oke Den 