a summer {in passing}

So September arrived, with little to no delay the crisp fall air did too.

so what happened in July and August?
that's a great question.

July marked my team of volunteers middle of service, meaning that we had a conference to discuss further, what it is exactly we are doing here in Bulgaria... Relationships...Development a balance of the two. I have come to terms with the fact that I will probably not see any extraordinary result of my service, no people from my village dramatically pulling themselves out of poverty or even becoming highly proficient in English, but i think that my time here is still quite profitable, for me and for the Bulgarians i'm with.

otherwise, i met up with my family in london, and saw some cool stuff including a day trip to oxford to see the pubs where c.s. lewis and j.r.r. tolkien used to hang out! [photos]
following london, my family came to bulgaria and that was a good experience. we hung out around the village and saw some of the other places in the region. they say it was an incredible experience. for me their reactions reminded me just how weird it is that certain things have become so normal to me. i also realized that i don't mind chalga anymore...how the heck did that happen?

August, was hot, peaceful and mostly spent outside. my town had it's town festival which last year signified the beginning of my friendships with my friends here in the village. Although it was still a crazy time here, all day horo all night disco, there was still missing a certain vigor that last year's festival seemed to have. Unfortunately i think it's due to the major infrastructure project in the area that is coming to an end, hence major lay-offs and an exodus from the village. A trend that i expect will continue through the fall and into the winter...

this past weekend was really good too!
i was able to do somethings that i've wanted to badly do this summer.

1. Play Kubb with friends at a bbq
2. Swim in the River
3. Play Settlers of Catan
4. Sleep on my terrace
5. Channel the animal spirit.

a few peace corps buddies came into town for a bbq and also to show an outdoor movie on a hill top. it went superb. most everyone in the village showed up for the showing. people are still talking about it, it's thursday.

Sneak Peak Sarles Family Christmas Card 2010

[one of the many pubs frequented by c.s. lewis and j.r.r. tolkien

joke ;)
q. how do you turn soup into gold?
a. add 24 karats!!!!


p.s.

a friend recently suggested i write about the beer in Bulgaria, i feel that a fellow mid-westerner and colleague in the peace corps has already written the definitive analysis on the matter.