Romania

Thursday, December 21 – Winter Solstice!

Three stops is morning on the way to Tutova – 1) bank with Bernice’s newly working ATM Card, thanks to a phone card that we purchased last night (her bank had seen her first withdrawal at the beginning of the trip and blocked other transactions) 2) Berlin market for yoghurt, chicken and #3 diapers, 3) the stationary store for notebooks on the 4 newest arrivals at the clinic.

Bernice and I plan to spend time on Friday night between packing to update the journals of the individual children that we have spent time with.

Bernice’s 4 had not eaten much of the early bottle, so it would be a long and loud session for her before the noon bottles arrived. Little Paula is still pretty red, but not very complainey. I got the mobiles in to the toddler room and spent a little time with each on the way in. Mirella has become quite a whinger. As soon as any of us go past her door and she is ALWAYS ON THE LOOKOUT, she begins to cry and insists of being the first one held and taken out. That worked earlier with me, but I felt that at times others needed their special time as well. My wish would be that they move all the mobiles into one room so that once you get one, you get them all. With the non-mobiles mixed in, I may be trying to get the other room settled first, but am constantly bombarded by the mobiles. If it were a perfect world!

As I went down the hall with the first mobile, I noticed that all the little walkers did not have their cloth seats as they had been to the laundry. (Very much needed laundry, I might add). This told me that the afternoon session would most likely have to be in the bigger room once the toddlers went with their teacher. In the mobile room this am we only had one major melt down with Mihaela and I put her back in the crib.

I had a good session with Sylvia standing between my legs. She is getting bolder and even making a few steps. I am encouraged that she is on the brink and it will simply take consistency to get her mobile. We learned today the next team arrives in Romania on Saturday and will be with the kids on Christmas Day, next Monday. I will make sure that my diary entry for Sylvia encourages continuation. Marian also did a few walk steps. He was feeling a little fragile (along with the rest of the group as most of them have runny noses and coughs are becoming more prevalent). Maybe tomorrow. I will ask Bernice to come into the Mobile room with me and get pictures with me and each of the guys!

Bernice is feeling a little low herself, so lunch of wonderful warm soup with lots of veggies and oranges was most welcome. As we were heading out for our walk, Dr. Delia was entering the clinic on her rounds. We stayed for a few moments in order for her to tell us some of the backgrounds on the children. Denisa and Larisa (the 2-month old preemie twins) are from a gypsy family with 7 children about 80km from Tutova. Little Denisa has clubfeet and will most likely have to have an operation. Dr. Delia will try to get her to see the specialist in Iasu in January or February. Crina (the 4 month old – that looks a lot more like 6 months to us) has a sister in the clinic in the toddlers and was abandoned by her young mother. Paula the 3 months old that we called Elf, will be tested for genetic conditions after the first of the year. She also was abandoned. I am sure Bernice will follow up on each of these little girls. I told Mihalla (the country manager) that she would need to check Bernice’s luggage as she leaves Tutova on Saturday morning.

Lots of new stuff this afternoon. Ramona, the former translator, arrived with lots of goodies for the staff, toddlers and the clinic. Thanks to her, there is now a wall mounted TV and VCR in the largest playroom that was playing animal videos by the time we left today. The kids were thrilled with the fresh bananas and the staff also received little goodies. The walker’s cloth seats were back and installed so the mobiles could exercise in the hall. As I was moving non-mobile around, I notice an Orthodox priest (with a parka on over his vestments) entering the building. More apples for the toddlers. He met me in the hallway and pushed an icon at my face. I looked at it and Lily said I was to kiss it. Bernice told me after the fact it had happened to her as well and she was not sure what to do so she kissed it. She wasn’t sure if she was supposed to kiss his hand or ring as well. Being a Buddhist, she was afraid she had offended the priest. The staff told her that to kiss the icon was respecting their religion. She was relieved that she had not offended anyone.

Non-mobile room was pretty quiet except for the snuffling noses and the little coughs. I so prefer to be in this room with the music droning and the overhead light off to allow the natural light in through the window. Even though it is cloudy, it gives a nicer light than the fluorescents high above.

Hard to believe but we are low on diapers again. We will make one more stop tomorrow and hope that will last until the next team arrives.

We met Mihalla at the travel agency. I had the perfect finale to today when I found that I had the later fight on Saturday and therefore did not have to leave a day early! YAAAH! We also learned that we would be taken back to Bucharest on Saturday so we don’t have to take the train. I am sorry to miss the train, but am pleased that I don’t have to hassle the taxi from the train station to the airport. THANK YOU ANGELS!!!!!

We went to pick up Gabriella at Myosotis and found that Santa had left a little gift of each of us, lovely Romanian Milk Chocolate. We thanked Gabriella and asked her to pass the message on to Santa for us.

Tonight we had dinner with Helen, her husband Alexandru, sister, Tantsa, Gabriella and Nastasi. It was a wonderful evening full of laughs and good food. Just WAY TOO MUCH FOOD. We even had a special cake with three sparklers and a sip of champagne to celebrate the finale of the team.

One more day with the kids.

Thought for the Day – Spend so much time improving yourself that you have no time left to criticize others. – Creed for Optimists

Friday, December 22

With sleepy eyes and neither of us feeling 100%, we left for Tutova for our last day. It was grey and very cold and I thought I saw the odd snowflake here and there.

We decided to try and catch Dr. Delia first thing as her day tends to accelerate and get away from her. We dropped off a small token of our appreciation from the team and also some donations to be used to help the clinic purchase car seats for transporting the children to the hospital. The traffic laws have changed recently requiring child seats in vehicles. Mihalla said that the law has been in place for a long time, it is just that the seats are so expensive, the police have not insisted or given tickets if there were no seats. Dr. Delia may be feeling the needs for the seats as the children are no her own and are being transported to and from the hospital.

Bernice then went into the room with the four that was blessedly quiet as we entered the building. A first! I got Marian, Mirella and Mihaela in the toddlers’ room but Sylvia was having a bit of a lie in. Bernice joined us with first Larisa, then Denisa and finally Paula and we took picture of each other with our favorites. Sylvia was finally awake and was happy to be removed from her crib.

Sylvia walked today! Not totally on her own, but she was definitely taking steps towards Bernice with me supporting her around the chest. Unfortunately, Mihaela and Marian were at war at the same time, so our exclamations of praise for Sylvia were drowned out by two howling children.

Yoghurt time for three with Bernice working with Marian and I with Mihaela and Mirella. I think Bernice now appreciates how distractible he is as she inadvertently smeared his forehead and ear with yoghurt as he head whirled around.

After our walk, we loaded all the non-mobiles into the room. They had not had a chance to get out at all this am and were anxious for their time. Ramona allowed me to give her the bottle again and it went very smoothly. What a thrill! I spent time with my first lover boy, Samuel who yesterday and today has finally remembered how to smile. He just captures my heart. Bernice helped with Daniel, Andrea and Daniela. Within 15 minutes, Daniela had thrown up her entire bottle onto her chest and rocking chair.

As I diapered the entire herd of mobile and non-mobiles for the last time, I spoke to each of them and asked that they receive the best Christmas present I could imagine - to go home or to be put in a fabulous foster home as soon as possible.

As we left for the last time, we hugged the three staff available and presented them with some yummy cookies to celebrate the holidays. Although we left with sadness, it was wonderful to know that on Monday, the next team of 13 will be visiting and picking up where we left off. With such a large team, more children should be given more individual time. The most wonderful thing about Global Volunteer is the 17 teams a year come to the clinic so that the children never have a week without people who want to hold, kiss, play and love them.

What will we remember most about our time at the Tutova Clinic? Florin and his little-man ways, traffic cop attitude and happy smile and wonderful hugs? The incessant banging of the wooden cribs with toddlers who weren’t being let out fast enough? The dogs that waited at the door any time we exited for goodies and treats? The yummy soups for lunch from P. Giani?

I know that I will always remember the little song in the non-mobile room, Sylvia’s happy screech, Mirella’s insistent wail if she spotted you and you weren’t immediately picking her up, Marian’s impish grin, Mihaela’s shy way of playing with me and her dancing and of course, little Samuel’s raspberries.

Thank you Global Volunteers for your ongoing commitment to making a difference for the children at Tutova.

Thought for the Day – When volunteering and you are not sure where to help, pick an agency and just do something.

Saturday, December 23 – To Bucharest and flight to London

We both had a very quick breakfast and there was some confusion about if we had to pay for breakfast. Because we weren’t sure, Bernice paid.

We loaded into the bus and went to pick up Mihalla for our 5-hour trip to Bucharest. We arrived at the airport at 12:45 for my 3:40 flight on British Airlines to London. There was no indication of which check in desk to use until 1:30. There was a long queue of people using the only line that indicate BA, and another one for AA at the same time. A pair in front of me jumped the queue and went directly to the AA line, which irritated a young Romanian man in front of me. There was an unpleasant conversation between them that left a lot of emotional vomit in the air. I was pleased I was next so I could leave the area soon.

By the time I got to the front, I was concerned about the weight of my luggage. They seemed more concerned with number of bags instead of weight. My ticket was concerning to them as it was an open ticket and did not indicate the specific flight I was on. They had my name in the system, but they had to take my tickets and speak to the supervisor. It only took 15 minutes, but it seemed longer. Finally, no problem and off I went to the gate, having thanked the supervisor who assisted with my ticket. I had my window seat and I was at the gate at 2:40. There was a 30-minute delay due to fog in London. This wasn’t’ too bad considering that the previous three days, London had major delays and cancellations. By boarding time at 4:15, we were still delayed with no plane at the gate. When we finally boarded, we had a completely full flight. After 30 minutes on the tarmac, they told us that that we had engine problems and we should know within 40 minutes if the engineer could fix it. He did and after another 15 more minutes on the tarmac, we were finally in the air at 6:20 for a 3-hour flight. I must say that BA and the pilot in particular were absolutely the best in keeping us advised as to what our status was and when we would know our next information. WELL DONE BA!

We arrived in London at 7:20 local time and finally at the gate at 7:45. As I sat there looking at the airport, I remembered that the last time I was in Britain it was 29.5 years ago. Our bags took a while, so I took the opportunity to change both my Romanian and South African Rand into Pounds. (I had come across a stash of 1100 Rand in one of my bags that I had forgotten to exchange!)

Tired after a long day, I opted for the fastest way to the hotel, a Black taxi. The Premier Travel Inn is one of a chain and is very clean, modern, and very basic. No cute little soaps and stuff, but there was soap and shampoo containers attached to the walls. There will also be no meals on the 25th,

I opted for a pizza for dinner as I didn’t want to go to the restaurant and the bar would be closing soon. The pizza tasted fine, but was undercooked, so I ate all the good stuff off the top. Typical when I have been away from TV too long, I spent way too much time watching telly until the early am hours.

Wednesday, December 6

Breakfast 8am
Left 8:45 – Lauren in the arms of Memory of a Geisha until 3am was a little slow to arrive
Arrived at the clinic at 9:15

Worked with the mobiles early and we were joined by Andrei and Lauren. Within a few minutes in the room, Andrei had pulled Sylvia backwards which caused many tears from the bumped head. John and Sandy then came in and I went into the Toddler for 50 minutes. Lunch for the toddlers consisted of liver pieces, scrambled eggs from our breakfast followed by cream of wheat. We have noticed that the kids are a little hesitant with any new taste or texture. They seem to love the cooked liver that is great as most of these guys still have some anemia.

Our lunch was watery soup, not very tasty pasta, apple tort and bread. None of us ate very much of it so it went to the local dogs and the leftovers of soup and pasta to the kitchen for the kids.

We continued our pattern of the after lunch walks and during this lunch, we found a small store for Lauren to buy a hat.

Afternoon was the non-mobiles with a special visit from Alessandra, the brittle bone baby who has the loveliest smile.

After work we went into town to find the train schedule (looks like a 7am train for Bernice and I on Saturday the 23rd which will get me in by noon). That should give me plenty of time to get to the airport for my 3pm flight. We also tried to find an internet café as our server is still down at the hotel. We went to three different locations, including the local gambling establishment where Bernice approached two young boys who we suspected would know. No luck. We will ask Manuela when we see her next.

Penny market with Bernice for juice for our entire time, more diapers, diaper wipes and chicken for the kids.

Dinner at Alona restaurant again with Manuela and Stella a student at her HS and her father to discuss the Orthodox Church in Romania. We arrived and had to walk through a St. Nicholas Day party complete with dj and keyboards.

Manuela was going to meet us at 7pm and luckily she sent Helen (the English teacher at the HS) to tell us that the student and dad would not be available tonight. Helen stayed and ate an orange and assisted us with ordering. Lettuce is not in season in Romania so salads usually only have cucumbers, tomatoes and the other ingredients listed. Most of the ingredients are listed separately so it is almost impossible to come close to what the US calls a salad. I found one that I like that has eggs, ham, cukes, tomatoes, onions (not my favorite) and parm cheese on the top. After lots of back and forthing, we finally ordered.

The wines that we ordered came with the entire bottle that was unexpected but not too expensive. The red Lauren and Bernice shared was not well received, as it appeared to have turned or have been stored at the wrong temperature. The white ordered was wonderful and most of the table switched from red to white.

Manuela arrived after her last class and helped me finish by 4-cheese pizza (2 slices of each of the 4 cheeses – rather a fun way of eating 4 cheese pizza). We had not ordered dessert as we had the previous lunch so 3 of us ordered fruit salad. What we got this time was the confection with lots of whip cream, caramel sauce and fruit cocktail chunks. Not at all what I expected, and after a bite, I left the rest. Not my proudest moment of the trip. (I admitted I was tired, cranky and that all I wanted to do was go back to the hotel). I realized that we had ordered fresh fruit the previous meal and what we received was delightful. I now know to order fresh fruit.

We finally left and upon arrival from the dinner unloaded the bus and went up stairs in hopes of internet connection – no luck. May not be able to find it again until I get to London. Manuela said that she would take us somewhere tomorrow.

We did a little more searching in the journals for some of new favorite babies. Most of them were preemies and many from young parents.

Thursday, December 7

What a great day!

Still gloomy and cold when we woke for breakfast, we all benefited from a good nights sleep. Today we were making a special stop on the way to work to pick up treats hosted by John and Sandy for the adults in the wards. Lauren had purchased a Santa suit at the Penny Market that would also be making its debut. Our Romanian failed us again, but Lauren made our desired known in Italian and for a mere 25 RON (around $12), we walked away with 5 bags of little puff pastries.

We then picked up Manuela who was looking very exhausted. Her hours lately have been 7-9, an entire day with us and then classes between 5-8 pm. Plus we found out today that not only does she teach, but also she is the science curriculum lead for all of Barlad. Not to mention she has a family and young daughter and a life outside GV. What a woman!

Next we made an unexpected stop at an office supply store of sorts to see if we could find paper, crayons or other art supplies for the toddlers. We all went in but as the other ladies had it well in hand, I looked around and then left. The store had 4 counters, two that most definitely specializing in office and stationary and the others across the way had items from batteries and clocks, through hair supplies, toys, cosmetics, laundry soaps and ended up with nylons and bras in the final case. Sort of a modified Office Depot/Ultra/Victoria Secret all under one roof!

We were late arriving and also carried dog food purchased by Lauren and last night’s pizza remnants for the dogs. Lauren has become very popular. The dogs were appreciative as you can imagine.

The toddlers were all waiting for us as we were later than usual and John and Sandy jumped in with the art supplies. Lauren and I started collecting babies, changing diapers and putting them in their exercise rooms. I am again with the mobiles that are quickly becoming my favorites. I began with Mirella, our lady in purple, who has been rather needy lately and wanting lots of attention. A little whingey during diaper change, she was happy to be picked up.

Next was Mihaela, who also not pleased with diapers, began her day with two balls in her hands. Next was Sylvia, who is always pleased to see anybody and smiles and gurgles. Finally, my little frog, Marian entirely in green as if you could not guess. All of this took over 30 minutes besides getting all the toys lined up and the equipment in the room. I met John in the hall and he said that unhappiness reigned as they closed up the art class and that the toddlers were wild today. OH GOODIE!

I went in with the group and everything was fine until Mihaela melted down, threw down the two plastic beads she had been playing with and had a glorious tantrum complete with circles on the floor on her back, arching upwards and grimaces of absolute rage. Peace returned after a short cuddle and setting her in the bouncy swing. In her rage she had clunked Marian in the head and also Mirella, so I had two others who needed hugs and cuddles that continued until I left the room. Little Marian needed lots of attention and his head would whirl around nearly at 360 to find me if I was out of his sight. Mirella was also needy and finally I had both of them in my lap, Mihaela in the bouncy and Sylvia bumping her back against the wall. As I left them down to get her, both dissolved into tears. SIGH!

Sandy came in to relieve me so that I could go and relieve John in Toddlers. More melt downs by Marian as I left.

I entered the room to see John telling Florin he had to stay in the room that caused Florin to lift a chair over his head to throw it. I took it from him and turn him to face me to tell him that was dangerous and that he could choose another way to seek attention. Not happy with being disciplined, he took his anger out on the tv. At least it wasn’t someone else’s head. Lots of tears and tantrums as I would put one down to get to another and two didn’t seem to fit in the lap without positioning and pushing. Toddlers are exhausting to me and without Romanian, hard to negotiate with.

Finally it was time for treats. First was the gourmet cooked chopped liver and chicken breasts that Bernice had supplied. Nearly all ate the liver with relish, but the chicken breasts only got limited play. Followed quickly by the cream of wheat and yoghurt soup which lead to food fights with the spoon and upended bowls on the floor. The children were not spanked for the behavior just scolded and cleaned up. Next came the juice bottles, cut up oranges and little bits of cookies. By this time, half the herd had becoming disinterested and was removing their bibs, tracking through the gruel and racing up and down the hall without their socks. Naptime was just around the corner.

We had a good lunch of sandwiches, soup that had been pureed, bread and fruit. Both Lauren and I also supplied sweet treats for snack. By the time we were finished, it was sprinkling but Lauren and I still took our walk. Both Sandy and Bernice stayed back to feed the little twins who are hungry more often and needing lots of attention. They found that one of the babies had diarrhea and now bad diaper rash and they were very upset that the staff be notified to the seriousness of the condition. We are now in search of newborn pampers to try and rectify the situation as soon as possible.

I am in charge of daily supplies. Usually I bring one roll of toilet paper, one roll of paper towels, 4 cartons of juice and two packs of diaper wipes. We will add 2-3 packages of diapers, and two tubes plus one pot of AD diaper cream for tomorrow. We were told today that the kids may not have chocolate, but can have slightly sweet treats or pastries with jam or cheese in them. They also said that they only use 1-2 cartons of juice a day, so I will cut back on the number.

We were to have a short afternoon as we had to visit the adult wards with the treats supplied by Sandy and John before we left a 3:45. John was a hit in the Santa suit and the ladies were charming. The men were a little taken aback when John arrived, but took their share of the treats and smiled. I think the hospital director was happy that we had made the effort.

We left early, as we had to find the pharmacy for the diapers, then to the internet café for our correspondence and finally, meet with Stella for a trip to the Orthodox Monastery and her father, the Priest of the local Greek Orthodox Church. The pharmacy had plenty of diapers, so we all bought at least one pack. The internet café only had 3 machines available, but we all were connected within 5 minutes. All the other machines were loaded with teenagers playing games.

We picked up Stella and then had a 30-minute ride into the woods to the Monastery. It began to look like the woods from the Blair Witch Project and the longer it took, the more we were convinced that we would not make it home that night. The monastery is undergoing a major face-lift and they were laying cement even in the pitch dark. The monastery was dedicated to the Virgin Mary and was lovely and ornate on the inside. The chandelier was absolutely magnificent and the twin candle sticks with the double eagle amazing. Apparently, the double eagle has been used in Romania for the local kings for years. We learned about the legend of how the monastery was founded which included a local peasant and his donkey. Apparently, every evening the donkey would disappear at a certain tree. When the man cut it down, on the stump was a replica of Mary so on this site the monastery was founded.

Only 10 minutes away was the little village for the church. We got out of the bus and walked through a dark graveyard on the way to the church. Stella’s father is the priest and is a friendly rotund man similar to Friar Tuck. This church had two styles of paintings the Byzantine (more two dimensional) and the Catholic (three dimensional). This church was dedicated to St. George (of Dragon fame) and we saw the painting of him being drawn and quartered. The church had the steepest set of stairs leading up the pulpit on the wall I had ever seen. The congregation stands for upwards of 4 hours every Sunday at the services.

The priest showed us the books they use to pray with, the chalice and their special hosts that are actually bread and the special way that they cut them to represent Christ, Mary and all the angels and special people to pray for. After receiving a dried herb that will be used tomorrow to bless the holy water, being anointed with special oil from Greece and some wonderful white wine, we took our leave. It was a wonderful church complete with a painted picture of the current priest on the balcony looking at the sacristy.

Back on the bus, we were very late for dinner and our massages that had been arranged by Ionata for us. At dinner we were told that Bernice would receive a free massage because she was over charged for the last one. She went first, I was second and Lauren last. IT WAS WONDERFUL! I have never had my elbows massaged like that. I sit sleepy eyed to finish about today before I go off to sleep.

I am partially packed for our trip to Transylvania for the weekend. YAAH!

DREAM – moths ate all my business clothes. No problem in my mind and I was happy at the end of the dream.

Friday, December 8 – Last work day for John and Sandy

We have been taking our lunch daily from the hotel restaurant to the clinic in a plastic blue and red box. Today, there was a misunderstanding about our lunch. We were a little delayed in our departure and this would already be a short day for Lauren and I as we were to be picked up at 1:30.

I assisted Lauren by helping deliver non-mobiles to her room and then I played with the mobiles. We had a very quick lunch and then it was time to say goodbye to Sandy and John. It is nice to know that they are just up the road in Boulder once I get home.

At 1:30, Marius in a silver car arrived to whisk us away to Brasov. We left Banca in mist and I suspected that we would not have good visibility until we had climbed to the mountains. We had been told that we would have a driver and guide, but we found out that we would only have Marius. In addition, he had not done this tour is several years, so we were not surprised when he had to ask several times for directions to our hotel. At one point, we were at an intersection and the name of the town we needed had two signs, each pointing in the opposite direction.

The ??? hotel looked okay from the outside and inside it was clean, if a little outdated. The LP was not very complimentary, but then again, they didn’t highly praise any of the lodgings in Brasov. We were at the front of the building with lots of Christmas lights. We left the hotel to walk to dinner along a pedestrian street.

There was a central plaza with a huge lit tree and lots of character. Both Lauren and I ordered a salad and a stuffed cabbage with meat and rice. Both tasted great!

LP had spoken of a miraculous beauty cream that was supposed to take 20 years off you. The founder/creator had died at 90 and looked only 70, or so the story goes. As it was sold in all the pharmacies, we suspected that we would be able to find it. Of course, as with any good miracle cream, there was more than one to use. We made our selection, I with a night cream and hand cream and Lauren with two others plus a shampoo/conditioner. I did a sample test before bed with one side of my face with the new stuff and the other side with the old stuff. We will see how much younger we look tomorrow

Life in Romania

Daily, we pass horse drawn carts with young colts in tandem with their mothers learning to drive. The carts may have a huge load of cabbages, twigs, possibly several people and one day, there was a full-grown cow being pulled by the wagon. (My question – why can’t the cow be walked down the road like the horse?) While cars are everywhere, there will most like be a large percentage of the population that will never be able to afford a car.

Boots and babushkas – We are in the country and not close to one of the major cities. Many of the people live on small farms and grow their own crops – cabbage, cows, pigs, sheep, corn, etc. It is not uncommon to see a little lady in Wellington rubber boots and a scarf or babushka on her head.

Gray skies – winter is here for sure and we have had 95% gray skies and mist. We are in a low valley, probably with lots of streams and rivers. I have remarked that it reminds me of Anatevka from Fiddler.

Smoking – EVERYBODY SMOKES IN ROMANIA from what I can tell. My clothes smell and I don’t feel I will be able to totally loose the smell until I get to England.

Right side of the road – They drive on the right-hand side of the road like in the US. It sort or shocked me to find that I found being driven on the right hand side of the road rather foreign to me. I guess after 8 months in the other lane, it would seem strange.

90% Greek Orthodox - the main religion is Orthodox (and while they say Greek, other people say it is a blend of both Russian and Greek Orthodox)

2% of population Gypsies – This portion of the population is still looked down on by a lot of the Romanian people. Not as nomadic as they once were, in some areas, they have formed a settlement with houses.

Generally small in stature with strong noses, magnificent bushy eyebrows – the first thing that I noticed about the Romanians is that they have wonderfully strong noses and abundantly bushy eyebrows. Seriously, some of the men have eyebrows that could be groomed.

Dark hair/dark eyes – The babies have the most wonderful dark hair and eyes. While I have seen many hair and eye colors, the dark/dark combinations are the most prevalent and are wonderful.

Delicate drains – euphemism on how you do not put your toilet paper down the toilet. That is what the little lidded trashcan is for!

Language – As a former Roman province, they consider themselves Roman, hence Romania. The language has so many similarities to Italian that Lauren managed to be understood in over 90% of her interactions with the Romanian people. Some things were different, but the similarities far outweighed the differences.

Entry # 32 C – Third Week in Romania

Saturday, December 16

Slept in until 10:30 and left the room at noon.
Walked to Banca with Bernice at 2 and we were accompanied by strange, short man who kept clutching Bernice’s arm and talking a mile a minute. My vibes told me that I was feeling uncomfortable, so we turned back and took our walk in a different direction
Back by 3pm for a white hot chocolate and more PD James.
Bernice knocked at 5:30 and said that Helen and her husband had arrived and invited us to dinner at their apartment. I had hoped for a quiet day, but went and had a good time. Helen’s sister, Tantsa, is a hoot and recited all of her English words for us. Her best response was after being complimented on her marvelous cooking, she would get the cutest look on her face and said “Nothing” meaning it was nothing.

Home by 8:30 and the finale of PD James. Lauren’s room was occupied and they had found the music station on the TV and had it turned on high. Luckily, they turned it off at 10:45 just as I as getting ready to go to sleep. THANK YOU ANGELS!

A lovely day, not thinking too much about the kids and spending a lot of time by myself.

Sunday, December 17

Slept until 10:30. Thought about putting henna on my hair, and then decided that the drain system might not be up to it. Henna may happen in London.

I was internetting in the morning and it is amazing how within 24 hours, I can end up with 58 spams. Luckily I am on apple and not Microsoft as it would most likely be worse.

Gabriella arrived in a cab around 12:15 and we went immediately back to Barlad and her apartment for a wonderful lunch.

All of the apartment buildings are high rise (4-6 stories), grey concrete with minimal ornamentation or distinguishing marks. Some have little porches and occasionally there are bow windows, but not often. Someone from Romania told us that Ceuachesque?? had only one design he liked and during his 25 years, all the construction took on that look.

I have been in two different private apartments during my stay and their exterior look and inner staircases and floor hallways were the same. Most people begin to decorate their apartments by adding a marvelously carved wooden outer door. Upon entering, you are in the hall with a short walk to your left to the very small kitchen. Behind you and to the left is the living room with one window. Gabriella’s had a marvelous plaster ceiling plate around the central light and it really made the room look nice. Back in to the hallway, the bathroom was immediately ahead of you and to the left next to the bathroom, the entrance to the bedrooms. Small and cozy, the apartments are usually purchased by their owners and tend to be within walking distance to work.

Gabriella’s two children were at the apartment and had lunch with us. Her daughter, Reluca, is a second year college student in Iasu studying psychology. It is a three-year program for bachelors, but you cannot practice after that, you must go on for a 2 years masters program. She thinks she will specialize in corporate psychology, I believe that means that she will work within HR and possibly be the EAP person for the company. Gabriella’s son, Sergiau, is in 11th grade and wants to be a pediatrician. Both spoke wonderful English, as does Gabriella.

They showed us pictures of international trips to London and Denmark. They are very well traveled, as Gabriella always took one or both of them on international trips.

Gabriella had dinner with us last Thursday and everything that was unavailable on the restaurants’ menu was on her table. She made not only the stuffed cabbage rolls, but also the stuffed grape leaves. We had marvelous beet salad with fresh horseradish and fabulous sour cream. That would have been enough for me, but she also made chicken schnitzel followed by a fabulous cream cake for dessert. In addition to all this, there was white and red wine and crusty bread. Both Bernice and I were stuffed when we left at 3:15.

We stopped by the ATM as we both needed an influx of cash. Neither of Bernice’s cards worked, so we planned to go to the bank during office hours tomorrow and exchange some money. Luckily, mine worked for me and I was ready to loan Bernice cash if it became necessary. It sounded like her problems might have been a combination of the ATM being out of funds on Sunday, her magnetic strip or also that her bank is very cautious about her cards as her purse had been stolen recently.

We had called Helen, Bernice’s friend from last night, and had made an appointment to visit one of her husband’s friends who carves wood. We went in Alexandru’s new Opal again, this time without crippling fog, and went into a small village with dirt roads close to Barlad. The man Ion, had played rugby with Helen’s brother and is a self-taught craftsman. He likes to find natural wood in the forest and then carve what he sees from it.

We entered his gallery that he had built himself with a beautiful tiled floor. Every piece in the room he had made by Ion down to the rolling wooden bar cart, central glass topped table with 4 different and unique stools, shelving for his items and even the two bulb light fixture above our heads. So many of the pieces maintained the natural flow of the wood with a little bit of carving to bring out the image that he saw. My eyes went to a small piece on the center table that looked like a lizard. He told us that this was his first piece that he did when he was 17. None of his items were for sale as this is his private gallery. There was one piece that was in a special handmade glass case that was entitled the Holocaust. It was a twisted pile of bodies all made out of one piece of wood. He had been recognized by the local arts council with a certificate. He had been asked to display his art both locally in Barlad and also in Bucharest but he refused. He said that people who wanted to see his art could come to him as many of his items were delicate and he did not want his pieces damaged.

He is a wonderful craftsman and we both signed his visitor journal and had Helen translate our messages to him.

Our final visit at his place was to the small upstairs bedroom and balcony made entirely of wood that his 7 kids use when they come home to party with their friends.

It was dark by the time we left the workshop and we made our way to Helen’s for hot wine made by her sister, Tantsa. It was good, but half way through my cup, my head was beginning to pound. Not sure if it was the quality of the wine or the added sugar, but not a good combination. Alexandru very generously offered to drive us home. He is feeling much more confident with his new car.

After a quick dinner, we both retired early.

Monday, December 18

After a wonderful restful weekend, I think both Bernice and I were looking forward to being back at Tutova. I know that Bernice goes to sleep dreaming about the twins, Denisa and Larisa, and is always wondering how they are doing. The staff was disappointed when Bernice said she would not be back until Monday, because weekends are very busy for them and the children do not get much time out of the cribs. As much as she missed them, I think Bernice was glad she took a little break.

Mihalla, the country manager from GV, should be back in the country today after two weeks in Minnesota for Team Leader training. We expect to hear from her soon.

Nastashi was early, of course, and we were out of the building by 8:30 as we needed to make two stops, Penny Market (after all we hadn’t been there in 2 days!!) for diapers #4 and #5, and then to the bank as we had some difficulties with the ATM’s over the weekend.

Penny Market accomplished, Bernice exited the car at the bank. She arrived back at the car with both she and Natashi giggling. Bernice had just entered by, mistake, the car behind us without looking at the driver. Nastashi had watched the situation in his rear view mirror. Imagine the look on her face when she turned to the driver and it was not Nastashi!

We arrived at Tutova and the dogs were nowhere to be seen. Bernice had to go back out after we had unloaded all the diapers into the clinic to find Donna, the mother dog. Mission accomplished.

We knew our work would be increased today with only two of us and three different sets of kids to keep track of. Bernice went off to visit the room with the 4 littlest and found a red bottom on her Larisa. Larisa is so sensitive that with even a short time in a wet or soiled diaper, her bottom is red. We found several others today, though not truly terrible, and determined that some of the kids have been put into diapers that may be a bit too small for them. We will try to make sure that all the sizes are always available.

The toddlers had the largest room this am again, so I loaded the mobiles into the hallway walkers and let them fly around, as Bernice and I moved the non-mobiles into the playroom. I am afraid that I did not do as complete a set of calisthenics with the non-mobiles as Lauren accomplished the previous week. I found that by the time we got everyone up, changed diapers, kissed, and put them in the room with some type of amusement in front of them, and then got the rest of the group settled, it was time to feed yoghurt. After yoghurt it was time to change diapers and put everyone down for the midday nap. The room with the smallest four was relatively quiet today, which meant Bernice was able to assist me with the mobiles and non-mobiles. I felt sorry for the smallest as they normally get a lot more personal time with Bernice. Hopefully tomorrow that will be easier and she can spend much more time with her 4 babies.

As I was moving around with the groups, Bernice told me that Sylvia had managed to pick her nose all by herself. Well done Sylvia! She does not walk yet, but has accomplished nose picking. We will work on the walking later today.

After our traditional lunchtime walk, with lovely sunny skies and mild weather, we were back for round two. Bernice and I did a little walking with Sylvia. She is 18 months, a little chunky and a rather placid baby. She seems to really not trust herself to walk. I have been working with her to stand between my legs, supported by my knees until she is distracted and then I can take my legs away and she rests lightly on the chair behind her. Luckily, earlier today, she was very interested in a book with a pink elephant that makes a noise when it is pushed. Maybe this can be used as an inducement to encourage her to move.

Sylvia is a very content little girl and is happy to sit or scoot around on her bottom. She is not overly stressed when Marian comes over and steals her toy. When she is offered a toy, she reaches for it slowly and tentatively. She is amused with mirrors for long periods of time and hesitantly fingers new things. It may be a challenge to get her enthusiastic enough about anything to make a real effort to walk. She needs to start soon as she is large and heavy. As with so many of the children, what she needs most is someone to have consistent time with her to build her confidence, to gain her trust and to encourage her repeatedly to walk.

While we were in the non-mobile room, the staff came and took Beatrice away. Her mom, dad and a set of grandparents had come to visit. It is lovely to see that at least some of the children do have visitors. Our fondest wish it to see one of our babies go out the door and back home while we are here. We will keep our fingers crossed.

We ended the day a little late as I found that it took us longer then 30 minutes to get everyone changed and back into his or her room. On the way back to Banca we stopped at the pharmacy, as we ended the day totally out of #3 diapers.

It was good to be back to Tutova. I know that this last week with absolutely fly by and that soon we will both be home wondering about our special young friends at the clinic.

Thought for the Day – “If not now, when?” Talmud

Tuesday, December 19

Not a great nights sleep for either of us last night so we both started the day a little tired. We had a stop at the bank for Bernice to change some of her larger bills into smaller currency and I was after more #3 diapers. We almost had another repeat of entering the wrong car. As I approached the car, there was a woman in the passenger seat that was not Bernice. I did a double take and it was Nastashi’s wife that we had met the previous week at dinner. Another giggle for all of us.

Meals this week have been becoming a bit sparse as compared to the previous weeks. We have not seen Oneta this week to see if we can straighten it out. Lunch today consisted to two foil wrapped sandwiches. While we had asked for a reduction in quantity and especially the size of the dessert, we weren’t expecting such an abrupt change.

It was a rainy day, the first for us, and there are hints that it might snow. I am not even thinking about it! No dogs as we arrived and just as well as there were no delicious scraps for them from breakfast.

I spent some time with the mobiles this morning as they had gotten the short end of the stick yesterday with personal time. I had them in the toddler’s room and we danced and hummed along to the cd. No meltdowns, not even at snack time, which was mashed potatoes today.

Bernice juggled the twins and took a small number into the non-mobile room today. We are missing Lauren and the kids keep looking for her. Samuel has hardly smiled at all since her departure. Just as we were getting ready to go to lunch, I saw the nurse go into one of the toddler’s sleeping rooms with a shot. From the loud cries that came out, I found the little girl who had been on the receiving end. I patted and rubbed her back until she settled and managed to go to sleep

Lunch was small and short today, which allowed us more time to get the non-mobiles into their room for the afternoon session. By the time the 2pm bottles were passed out, I had 7 kids in the room. Little Crina was howling so Bernice took her back to her room. I kept rotating who I was helping to eat by supporting the bottles. I was sure glad when Bernice came back into the room. We continued with baby exercises and alternating tummy, left side and right side time for the twin boys. I changed tons of diapers and most of the kids were prolific today with a completely full diaper every 45 minutes. What have they been feeding them lately?

The kids were diapered and ready for bed a little early and we caught Nastashi mopping out the van as we arrived. Within a few minutes, we climbed in and put our newly muddy shoes all over his nice, clean, wet floor. We were meeting a driver at Myosotis (the family planning clinic where Gabriella works) to be taken to a local wood carvers workshop. As it turns out, Gabriella was there to introduce us to Micci, a nice young man who is the youth volunteer coordinator for the foundation that runs Myosotis.

While we chatted she helped us to understand why we were having difficulty mailing a package that had been left by a previous team member. All packages are only accepted between limited hours on Tuesday and Thursday. This is because the customs man has to be present to inspect all the contents before it is accepted for posting. After it has been inspected, then the package can be sealed. Our package was sealed and addressed and on top of that, we didn’t have a detailed list of the contents. Bernice will contact the person who asked for it to be mailed and will ask them what they want done with the package.

Micci drove us down the backstreets of Barlad and into a heavily rutted street not far from the center of town. The craftsman, named Grigetzou?, has been sponsored in setting up his business by Carol, the British woman who founded Myosotis. He makes lovely hand carved wooden spoons and statues. Some of the designs are based on the Welsh spoons given at weddings, but he has also expanded the line to include Romanian designs. His business is young and we were pleased to see him in his workshop with his brother who is his apprentice. We made some purchases as we heard about the plans for expansion into a shop, a web based advertising and the satellite shop in Wales.

Micci was kind enough to run us home to the Giani. He told us along the way that he had been away in Europe when all the traffic lights were installed in Barlad. There is one intersection that is very confusing. It is a main street that connects to the highway with a T intersection. There has been no signal until this week and everyone just sort of ambles through it, but there have been no wrecks or honks that I have heard.

Dinner was welcome as we were cold and hungry. Internetting and early to bed tonight for both of us. Only three days left with our special babies.

Thought for the Day - I am the only unique me that will ever be. I have the power to make a difference in this world. I look forward to taking on the grand adventure of life, living and always remembering to be myself. I love being me. Catrinka

(I have just found out that I don’t have a reservation between Philly to Denver! I am not happy with my travel agent. To be fair, I have a vague memory that he mentioned this would be an issue. I just wish he had not let me forget this until 3 weeks before I am going home. The upside is that I have found a direct flight instead of a connection in Chicago.)

Wednesday, December 20

I got lost in my book again last night until late and when I turned off the light, I was so wound up I couldn’t sleep. It may be another long sleepy day for me today.

Bernice and I made a direct trip from the hotel to Tutova, one of the few for this trip. The day showed promise with damp streets but no sign of snow, rain and the sun even came out.

A repeat of yesterday, I got the mobiles set in the toddler room and we had the addition of Florin who commandeered all the best toys. At least there was no fighting. Bernice was back with the twins and poor little Paula has a very red butt. Lots more full diapers this am.

We had a complete lunch today including lovely little tarts for dessert and Bernice and I managed our usual lunchtime walk.

We got back in time to help with the 2pm bottles. I had 4 in the room and luckily one of them could hold the bottle by herself (Alexandra) and one would need more assistance but she wasn’t fussy (Ramona). This left me with a bottle in my left hand for Daniela (formerly known as Sandru which is her last name) and a bottle in my right hand for Beatrice. It was a lovely quiet room with everyone drinking and the little baby music machine droning along. Both Bernice and I hear the music and our eyelids droop. Too bad it doesn’t have the same soothing affect on the babies!

I had a chance to give Ramona her bottle. You may remember that she is the little girl that needs to kidney transplant and is delayed and slight. She is difficult to feed and does not take any cereal at this point. I held her close and put her right arm under my left arm. With gentle persistence, and a quiet room that was wonderful, she finally settled and took the entire bottle. I felt so blessed.

We had a lovely surprise during the afternoon when we were both in the non-mobile room when the nurse and Lily came and collected Daniel and Vasili because their mother had come for a visit. Bernice went out with her camera and I followed a little later. The mother is very young and has three other kids at home. Vasili is the spitting image of his mom with their lovely light colored eyes. The babies were so happy to see her and it is obvious that she comes to see them and that they know her. Our second mom sighting this week.

Also during the afternoon, I saw a policeman in the hall. Lily said that it was the one that brought Crina and Paula last week and he had returned hoping to speak to Lauren. Unfortunately, she had left on Friday.

Bernice had lots of crying from her room of 4 today and we tried to sooth them in the vibrating baby holder with the musical mobile. Not a roaring success today.

Today I had a chance to watch the staff work directly with Andrei, the oldest and most challenged on the children. He is often left alone in a room with the 5 bunks and not much else. He is pretty good at amusing himself such as climbing into the sink and up on the radiator to the windowsill. Not the safest occupation, but he seems to know his limits at least in these instances. Several times a staff member would intervene to keep him out of harms way. At one point, Lily went in with an assortment of toys to keep him occupied and he instantly began playing when given the toys. Late in the afternoon as I was finishing diapering the non-mobiles, I looked in to find all the cribs pulled away from the wall. As I looked closer, at times I could see the artist at work. Andrei was moving behind the cribs along the wall placing one here and another there. He does manage to amuse himself.

We left and had to make a stop in Barlad. SURPRISE!! I went to the travel agency to see about arrangements to get back to Bucharest on Friday for an early Saturday am flight. I will find out tonight if I need the arrangements and then will go back to the travel agent on Thursday night to lock in the details and pay. If a car in not available, I will have to take the earlier train on Friday.

We confirmed that Gabriella would join us tomorrow for dinner at the hotel. It will be nice way to say goodbye and thank you for all their assistance and hospitality during our stay in Barlad.

Thought for the Day - We need more light about each other, light creates understanding, understanding creates love, love creates patience and patience creates unity.

Entry # 32 B – Second Week in Romania

Saturday, December 9 – Transylvania – Sunny, just as I had hoped!

Out of the hotel by 9:30 to begin our walk to the Black Church. Currently an active Lutheran Congregation, this church survived a huge fire in the 1600’s that pretty much decimated the city of Brasov and turned all the statutes on the outside black. They are currently housed inside. This site is also known for having over 120 Ottoman carpets that are hung from the balcony and in front of the banks of pews. Very Lutheran, the pews have wooden back supports that completely separate people sitting next to each other.

Post cards bought, we ambled down the pedestrian walkway and did a little more shopping. We had purchased some of the wonder cream, Gerovital, from the pharmacy last night and arose refreshed and much younger looking (at least to ourselves). Having tested the wonderful stuff, we bought more as gifts.

I also happened across an accordion band on the sidewalk and bought a CD as my Romanian music sample. I found a small coin purse and a Romanian flag, so all I have left is to find the Romanian photo album. Lauren found several antique stores so we both had several bags, or rather Marius, gentleman that he was, had several bags to carry.

We went into the Star Market – the largest department store in Romania, where Lauren bought a wonderful brown hat and I found a towel for my last henna treatment on the road. Outside the store was a large fruit market where we bought a pomelo, pomegranate and this large (apple could be pear, might be something else) yellow fruit that we will eat next week. (The yellow fruit turned out to be an apple/pear that was not completely ripe and therefore, not very sweet).

Lauren and I wanted some more soup so we ended up at the same restaurant as last night for meatball soup and beet salad with freshly grated horseradish. Yummy! On the plaza outside the restaurant, we found several kiosks where I bought a pretzel and Lauren found large, freshly made and decorated gingerbreads.

Then it was time for us to get in the car for our short trip to Bran Castle (commonly called Dracula’s Castle). In reality, he never lived in this castle.

Bran Castle was the summer residence of Queen Marie of Romania in the early 1900’s and straddles a mountain pass. It was key for guarding the pass and being perched up on the mountain, it had excellent views on both sides. It was quite a climb up the hill to reach the front door. The Castle was filled with small rooms, each with open fireplaces or stoves. The many winding staircases and inner balcony and walkways made it very interesting to see. It had been restored to the time when Queen Marie was in residence.

We stopped for a brief coffee before we got back in the car that was wonderfully hot, but very strong for me. Not sure why I am so surprised that it was already very dark by 4:45, therefore, we didn’t get to see much of the countryside.

The Alexandros Hotel had good reviews in the LP book and was MUCH NICER than our hotel from last night. Very clean and modern, we looked forward to our evening.

We went to find the internet, as we have not had it available lately at the hotel. We found an internet café and by the time we exited, my stomach was not feeling well, so I decided to make it an early night. Marius and Lauren gallantly walked me back to the hotel (which was not necessary, but they insisted) and they went off to dinner. I spent a quiet evening reading and listening to my Ipod. Upon later review, Lauren and I decided that our stomach fuzziness might have been due to the amount of cabbage or root veggies that we had eaten in the last two days. I think mine was also off due to the coffee I had late in the day. I have been drinking nothing but decaf tea since South Africa.

Our room was very hot, but thanks to quick thinking Lauren, she opened the door to our balcony and we both had a good nights sleep after that.

Sunday, December 10 – Transylvania – More sun, thank heavens!

7:30 alarm
First stop – Peles Castle (Pronounced pell esh) The former residence of the monarch of Romania – Carol I – in the 1900’s, the first castle with central heating and electricity. Very nice, magnificent staircases and the inlaid wood paneling absolutely AMAZING. Lauren felt it had too much wood, but there cannot be enough real wood for me in a castle. With a staff of 100, it might be doable. When you come to Romania, Peles Castle s a must see in my book.

After the castle we had coffee or hot chocolate on the patio of another complex of buildings in full view of the castle. There were several 3 star hotels on the same grounds and it would have been nice to stay there.

On the outside of the gates, we went through another gauntlet of kiosks. At the completion of this shopping trip, Lauren asked that I get ready for a chotchkie intervention with her to prevent further shopping forees.

The last official part of the tour was to take a cable car up the mountain in Siniea. It only got us halfway up the mountain and to the bottom of a chair lift for a ski area. NOT A SPECK OF SNOW at this point. We did have greats view of Peles Castle on the way up and down. I could have missed this part and not felt slighted.

We began our 5-hour trek back to Banca at 2:45. As none of us were very hungry, we had decided to possibly stop for coffee once and maybe some soup. I Ipoded again and rested and when I opened my eyes, found that we were surrounded by very dense fog. At some points, Marius was driving very slowly and keeping close to the side of the road. I was pleased that he was driving.

We made it home by 7pm just in time for dinner with Bernice. It was lovely to be home and back in my own room.

On the whole, the tour was fun, but we both felt that we paid more than we received. It was a new experience to have to pay for the room for the driver/guide and also cover his meals and admissions to the sights. I will ask more questions before booking a tour the next time.

Bernice told us that she had gone to the clinic both days from 9-4. The babies spent most of their time in the cribs, as the staff was busy doing the once-a-week deep clean. Sunday had only a skeleton crew so the babies were pretty isolated all day. Bernice finally took the loudest criers out for an airing and a portion of the toddlers got out for a short video session. Not as we would prefer, but it is what probably happens frequently when the volunteers are not around. None of us feel that the staff neglects them, but it is a fact of their limited staff, space and resources.

Monday, December 11

Up at 7:45 to leave at 8:30. Tired, as I knew I would be, but we were still looking forward to the little faces and I planned to spend as much time as possible with the mobiles.

The toddlers had been put in the room that traditionally is used for the mobiles so I joined my troop of mobiles with Lauren and her non-mobiles. The morning went pretty well without too many crying fits.

By lunch we all were feeling our weekend especially Bernice with her 7 day straight of time at the clinic. Lunch turned out to be cold soup, huge sandwiches and pomelo that Lauren had bought at the market in Brasov. The pomelo was amazingly sweet and in good shape. Lovely to find that, as most pomelos I have had outside of Thailand have been small, tasteless and rather dry.

I took the mobiles for the afternoon into their regular room. There was one toddler (one of the numerous Andreea’s) that had not been taken into the toddler room, so I took pity on her and brought her in with us. She was definitely a toddler who had spent a lot of time with boys, so she was pretty aggressive and threw things. Everything was fine until she chose Marian’s head to repeatedly pound her toy. I scolded her loudly by saying NU (no in Romanian) and put her back in her crib for time out. Poor Marian had huge tears by the time I got back to him.

When I went to check in with Lauren at 3:40, she looked exhausted and rather pleased to get ready to leave for the day. We changed diapers and most of the pampers and supplies that we had brought last week had been used up over the weekend. We would make another trip to the Penny Market tonight for more diapers. I also intended to buy an electric kettle for the staff/volunteers. While they have a wonderful kitchen, the kettle will help people, both staff and volunteers, get hot cups of coffee.

In addition to going shopping, we stopped by to see Gabriella, a nurse in the city who has facilitated volunteers who want to send money to Romania to sponsor one of the kids. Lauren was interested in helping the 6-month-old twins, Vasili and Daniel, at some level, but also wanted to know that the money will go to whom and for what it was intended. More information was needed from the Dr. at the hospital, because children when are at the clinic, it usually means that they cannot be placed with either their family or extended family for some reason.

Lauren was a godsend with her Italian because it meant that we could ask questions of the staff. Lauren had found out that the staff could use a dish washer (possible her friend Robert from England can help on this one). Other Romanians have said that to really help a child or young person in Romania, sponsorship of their education can make a huge difference in their lives. Previous volunteers have sponsored schooling and in one instance, paid for eye operations for a pair of sisters with crossed-eyes.

We got home exhausted and went to dinner early. Thank heavens we did because by our traditional eating time was, every table was full.

Tuesday, December 12

Still feeling the result of our weekend, rising and shining was difficult again this am. Lauren ended up leaving her prescription glasses on the breakfast table and I found that I had left my water at home.

The toddlers were still in the mobiles room, so I took my kids into the toddlers’ room briefly in the am. I didn’t feel that we could invade Lauren’s non-mobiles again. During the am, several men arrived with cement and tools to clean up around the windowsills and doorframes from the newly placed windows and doors. The windows and doors are all metal construction with very good insulation. I imagine they have made a huge difference to the warmth of the rooms and keeping the weather out. Soon the toddlers came back into their regular room, so I put my mobiles in the rolling seats and they drove up and down the hallway.

Lauren had a chance to speak to Ramona, a former country leader and interpreter for Bernice when she led a team in Iasu (pronounced Yah sh) 5 years ago. Ramona is a lawyer who is currently living in Brussels with her Romanian husband. She was home on vacation, but says that she always comes back to the clinic to see the orphans. As I had mentioned, Lauren is interested in sponsoring a child/children from the clinic. From various conversations we have had, it is obvious that sponsorship can be done, but it takes planning and the help from a local person in Romania. In the past, some volunteers have gone through a foundation, which is no longer an option. Others have gone through private people who will accept the money on behalf of the family and if necessary, will make sure that the necessary supplies are purchased and given to the family.

So much of the sponsorship depends on if the family or foster family will be able to be located once the child leaves the clinic. While the family or extended family is always preferred, some are so poor there is no way that they could take back the child. I had heard before I came that it is not uncommon for some of the gypsy families to pick up their last child from the clinic and drop off the new one. The children also come to the clinic with some medical reason, sometimes only malnutrition, but usually with multiple problems. Anemia is the other main cause for entrance to the clinic. Until the child is well enough and of a certain weight, they are not eligible for either placement back home or into a qualified foster family. The irony of the situation is that if the family takes the child back, they only receive a small amount of money from the government, where as, if a foster family take the child, they receive money for the food, clothing and other support for the child.

According to Ramona, adoption is not a common practice within the Romanian community. Fertility is not a problem and therefore, most families would rather have natural children than adopt. Usually, adoption only happens when a family who has had a child, loses the child and the woman is beyond childbearing age. The EU insists that countries take care of their own and therefore, Romania no longer allows international adoptions. Many of these programs in Romania have already been shut down, and while there are no plans to close this clinic, there is no guarantee that this program will continue either.

For the last two days, we have been lunching late to accommodate the noon bottles for Bernice’s the two-month-old twins. I helped feed one of the little ones, Denisa today and I could tell how tired I was by my level of impatience. Grandma Bernice clued me in to the technique she uses with Denisa, the smaller of the twins, that keeps her eating and not drowning in the milk.

Today when we arrived in our dining room, the soup had been placed in our bowls as had the coffee and it was totally cold. As I entered the room, I could tell we were probably having cabbage soup. The first bite told me it was fish soup. Both Lauren and I took it outside for the dogs that also turned their noses up at the offering.

During the afternoon, Lauren and Bernice had an appointment to see Dr. Delia to find out about the specific children and to learn about the sponsorship opportunities. I was on mobile duty again with the little racecars in the hallway. Even little Sylvia, our weight challenged little pumpkin, was racing up and down. I always find her standing in her crib and yet she is reluctant to walk on her own. This week, I have been putting her between my knees with her feet on the ground and quickly, I can open my knees can open because she is standing on her own. Little faker!

Two stops on the way home for more pampers for the little twins and supplies such as toilet paper, milk for the cereal for the non-mobiles and baby wipes for little bottoms.

I admit, prior to arriving at this placement, I was not looking forward to changing diapers. After 10 days, I am not finding it that bad not even the real poopy ones. I guess when you have been pooed on by so many things during the year, a dirty diaper does not appear so daunting.

Wednesday, December 13

Slept well and felt refreshed for my day. Today the new things included an intake of two new babies, one 3 months (Paula) and one 4 months (Crina). The 4 month old has a sister in the clinic, but we are not sure who it is. The 3 month old seems very small and underdeveloped and probably has some inherited genetic disorder.

Today we also had hot soup and coffee for lunch. We brought the items with us from the kitchen and because we waited to bring it with us, the temperature was better.

Lauren only has two days left at the clinic after today and was beginning to feel the pull of her life in Italy, but also a profound sadness about leaving the twins, Vasili and Daniel.

During out time together, Lauren (42), Bernice (76) and I have been having wonderful single women discussions and Lauren is teaching us flirting 101. Ladies, you will know what I mean!

Lauren is fascinating and living a life that most of us can only dream about. At 42, she is living in Tuscany and finishing the editing of her first book. A former NJ State Police officer for 15 years, her book chronicles her life as an officer, the death of her only son, and how she made the transition from the US to Italy. She is currently dating a handsome Brit who has a villa in Tuscany and she travels extensively in Europe and back and forth to the US.

Her life in Italy sounds intriguing and foreign at the same time. A great conversationalist and interested in human nature and everyone’s story, she has shared so much about her life with us. Lauren is totally integrated into the village near Lucca and spends time helping her neighbor who owns and runs the local animal shelter. Village life in Tuscany goes at a slower pace than most of the world and she finds time to share coffee with the gasman when he comes to deliver her propane, bikes into the village for her staples and up until recently, every three months had to go to the immigration office to extend her visa. She has finally been granted residency, which has allowed her to buy a car. Without residency you can buy a house, which she did, but you have to be a resident to buy a car. She still travels back to the US 2-3 times a year to catch up with family and friends. Her friends ask if she will return to the US permanently, and she indicates she will probably stay in Tuscany. She says that her standard of living is higher in Italy than it would be in the US.

She has opened my eyes to many things that I had not considered. She says living in the foreign country sort of turns you upside down, but once you become used to it, you seem to be able to take on anything. HMMMMM? Is it time for me to be upside down?

Thursday, December 14

Off to a late start today as we stopped by the Posta (post office) for post card stamps for all of us and to mail a package for Lauren. My stamps were about $1 each and the post cards are on their way. The package acceptance office would only be open between 10-12 two days a week, and since we were there at 9am, we chose not to wait.

Bernice (76) of Japanese/Hawaiian background is amazing. May we all look that good and have that much energy at 76. Bernice lives in San Francisco, one of my most favorite cities in the entire world, is a retired community college teacher and comes from a grape growing family in Lodi, California. She is very active as an international volunteer and life long learner. She has two grandsons whom she has taken on Elderhostel trips and has led GV trips in Poland, Greece, Romania, Tanzania, South Dakota, Minnesota, Montana….

She loves all things baby, but especially the twins Larisa and Denisa (premature and only 2 months old), and within two weeks has brought them from fussy babies with diaper rash and irregular sleep patterns, to a pair who both take their entire bottles, clean bottoms and good sleepers. When awake, however, they scream until Bunica Bernice (Grandma Bernice) picks them up. As soon as they feel her hands, they quiet. As soon as she puts them down, they wake! What clever babies!

The immigration officials will need to check her luggage as she arrives in the US, as there may be two little stowaways among the dirty socks!

Bernice now has the other two new babies to contend with as well, who are taking precious time away from her first loves. Paula, little elf baby (the one that we think might have dwarfism or some other genetic condition) is taking a lot of time as she is so small, has not settled since the move and has difficulty breathing, eating and sleeping. Corina, the other baby, is doing better and may even be ready to go into the non-mobile room, as she is so accomplished and alert.

I admit it! I love the mobiles the best at this placement. Funny, I thought it would be the tiny babies, but I love the concentration with which they play and their attempts to walk and crawl. Sylvia, Marian, Mirella and Mihaela have my heart and most of my attention. I am not sure how I will accommodate all the other kids that I may need to share my time with next week and not spend my entire time with my 4.

Each day I try to get one of them up first and have some special time with them. With the exception of Marian, my only boy, who is highly distractible and possibly a little ADD, the girls seem to like the special attention and get frustrated when I have to put them down to assist someone else. Today, I spent time with Sylvia. She is the pudge, 18 months old, stands in her crib, scoots on her butt and can race up and down the hall in a supported rolling walker chair, but has not made the leap into free style walking yet. When you grasp her hands and try to assist her to walk, she sags to the floor in a sit. This week I have been holding her between my knees while I am seated in a chair, with her feet on the floor. After she gets settled, I can spread my knees and she is essentially free standing with some leaning back on the chair. Bernice and I have a commitment that we will work with her next week to see if we can’t get her ambulating under her own steam.

Part of her issue is that she is so passive, that there is nothing that entices her to stretch herself. When offered a toy, she reaches for it very tentatively and slowly and examines it minutely and quietly. When a toy is whisked out of her hands (usually by Marian), she doesn’t stress about it and waits for the next toy to drift into her perimeter. She like to come to me, so hopefully, if Bernice has her and I call to her and am in close and comfortable proximity, she will take that important first step. Expect a report during the final week.

Marian is also at the brink and where it is simply a matter of time before he puts it together and begins to tear around on 2 instead of 4 appendages. He will be an easier walker and we will try to get him up and moving next week.

Tonight we had our usually stop at the Penny Market for diapers that should last through the weekend. Lauren also stocked up on candy for all the aids, and special treats of cheese, sausage and bread for a little celebration with the staff tomorrow.

We also had a final dinner with Lauren at a new restaurant, ARCADIA, with Gabriella, Nastashi (our driver and his wife, Sofika) and Manuela as our guests. We have found that most likely due to the time of the year, restaurants don’t always have everything on the menu. Tonight, we had decided on our favorite beet salad with horseradish, stuffed cabbage with meat and rice and papanash donut for dessert. The beets they had, but the others they did not. We did not find out all at once that our desired dishes were not available, so the poor waiter had to keep appearing to tell us that we had to select again. His final time, he slunk up to Gabriella and admitted that he hated to tell us, but our dessert option was not available.

We had a wonderful time hearing from Gabriella about the health and childcare systems in Romania and her work at the family planning clinic and as an advocate for the children at Tutova.

It was a fun evening and a lovely celebration to see Lauren off. We got home late and the morning found us all slow to get to the breakfast table.

Friday, December 15 – Last work day for Lauren

A late start again after a short night and then a trip to the bank so that Bernice could exchange money to pay the first two weeks of transportation costs. Bernice says the budget part is the hardest thing about being a team leader. The budget is in US Dollars and the Euro (which Romania is not currently using) and we are paying in RON – The new Lei for Romania. While Romania will enter the EU on 1/1/07, they will hold on to the RON for another seven years and then make the conversion.

We arrived and I had a list of pictures that Lauren wanted taken with her favorites, the twins Vasilei and Daniel, Andrei and Ramona. I had the mobile 4 in the walkers in the hallway and Bernice had her twins. Crina was being impossible and was not willing to stay in her crib, so we brought one of the little baby chairs that vibrates for her to try. It worked like a charm and then Bernice only had potentially three fussy babies to contend with instead of 4.

It was a short morning as we were so late. We were all surprised to see Zorin and Abel, the two little boys who had eye surgery yesterday, back in their cribs today. Other than the one red eye each, neither of them looked or acted like they had been in surgery yesterday.

At lunch Lauren cut up all the goodies and she invited the staff to come and join us. She also worked with the nurse on duty to label a box of chocolates for each aid, nurse or teacher who helped at Tutova in the clinic. As you might imagine, all of the treats were very well received.
Lauren and I had our last lunch time walk and Lauren told me all about the foundation called Wade’s Heart that she will set up with the proceeds from her book sales. The foundation will fund projects/workshops or camps that will give kids that aren’t normally heard an opportunity to express themselves. The aim of the foundation will be empowerment, networking, brainstorming to increase confidence and self-acceptance in young people.

Our afternoon sped past as we got the last pictures that she requested. The mobiles again were rocketing in the hall way and I spent some time with each of them in my lap. At one point, as I went past Andrei (the 4-year old with aggressive issues) who was alone in a room, I saw that he had managed to remove the carpeting and was proceeding to lift the tiling underneath.

In the past few days, I have also been around Annamaria, the little girl with some mental problems and learning disabilities, who has the habit of sticking her hands down her throat and regurgitating her last meal or two. At times she is in a walker and you know what she has been up to by the smell. She shares a room with 5 of the non-mobiles and occasionally when you go in to get someone, the smell overpowers you. The staff members are saints! They efficiently work with these two children who might well be neglected because their behavior problems, with grace and kindness. There are kissed and cuddled and a gentle when they handle them. We look at them and try and imagine their future and the lessons they bring to us.

A day to go down in history!!! We did not stop at the Penny Market on the way home! We had massages waiting. I took the pre-dinner one, as Bernice wanted to shower ahead of time and Lauren prefers the last one so she can go right to bed.

Lauren accepted the offer of a ride from Natashi tomorrow to get directly to the airport. The only rub is that she must be up and ready to leave at 4:30 am! She probably won’t go to bed and will sleep in the car.

Bernice and I will miss her tremendously next week. All the babies and the staff love her and she is so lively and engaging, she can speak to anyone and it truly interested in them. It will be a quiet week. I will attempt to keep up her exercise program for the non-mobiles and promised to keep her updated on the progress being made. I will also be in charge of writing the daily journal for the team (of 2) for the week, as Bernice will be doing the weekend entries.

I have decided to take my full weekend away from the clinic. While I will miss my special babies, I know that I need a break, a sleep in, and time to catch up on my blog. Bernice will most likely go to the clinic on Sunday and I know that the aids asked if she was coming.

Entry # 32 A –First Week in Romania

Saturday, December 2

Up at 5:30, with crowds of people still moving about the streets having not gotten home from last evenings parties. The taxis were all taken, so I asked the angels and within 10 seconds, my cab arrived. I did not know my terminal so the driver called on his cell phone and confirmed I was to go to terminal #2. I was at the airport in 20 minutes.

I found after I arrived that I was in the wrong terminal but as my flight wasn’t for 3 hours, not that big of a problem. (Just a well I got there early, as you will see). I walked to Terminal 1 with the twins (my luggage) and found a line for Air Madrid. After one hour in line, I noticed that all the people were really short and Spanish looking. After another hour in this line, I determined that I was in the line for Ecuador instead of Bucharest.

Made it into the correct line where a huge crowd had gathered in a disorderly mess. Luckily, I did not loose my place in line as they asked everyone to back up and form one line. Made it to the front. My baggage was 5 kilos over so I had to go pay an excess baggage fine. ($45 dollars, which was cheaper than if I had mailed it home). I think I will carry the stuff from now on and risk the fine, instead of running around trying to mail stuff home. Also if I load my other backpack with the heavy stuff, I may still be okay.

When I was going back to pick up my boarding pass, after paying my fine, I saw a sign for a US Air flight to the US for Filadelfia. I wanted to take a picture of it, but they wouldn’t let me. The closer to the US I get, the more rules there are for air travel.

I had the row to my self until Barcelona, and then two Romanian men next to me for the 3-hour flight to Bucharest. Crowded but okay.

Looked out at one point and I could see snow on the mountains. As we landed, there was quite a haze, partially because it is cold and the weather has settled and partially because there is quite a bit of pollution in Romania.

Before landing, I noticed lots of farming communities with houses only along the roads. It appeared that the farms were in very narrow strips with no outbuilding other than those that were clustered at the roads that border the farm plots. I will see if I see the same pattern when I am on the ground.

Landed at 4:20, which was just about dusk and 1 hour late due to air traffic hold ups in Madrid. No issues with exchanging money or immigration. Found the Global Volunteers who had been waiting 4 hours in the airport. They some how had my arrival time wrong, but luckily my team leader was coming in close to my delayed arrival time. One volunteer, Lauren, was arriving outside the pick up window and would need to make her own way to the hotel.

We will be a small team of only 5 for this week, 3 the 2nd week and only 2 the final week.

Hotel Caro is very nice, very modern and lovely.

Dinner at 6:30 with Bernice (team leader from SF), Manuela (Country assistant for Romania), John and Sandy from Boulder, and finally Lauren from NJ, but currently residing in Tuscany, Italy who arrived late and had an adventure finding us.

Saw pictures of the children and have already spotted a real cutie. Tomorrow, an early breakfast, meeting and then a 5-hour bus ride to our town, Banca near Barlad our major city and on the far side of Barlad is Tutova, where the hospital and clinic are located. We will be working in a failure to thrive clinic. The children are not technically orphans but have been removed from their families or released by the families, as they cannot care for them. The children tend to come in underweight and malnourished. They are then placed in foster care (one of the EU requirements before Romania joins the EU on Jan 1, 2007) as soon as they are healthy enough and a suitable home is found. Several of these clinics have closed around Romania, preparing for the EU transition.

Sunday, December 3

The alarm rang way to early this am (7:10 am), but as I had already packed, I was at breakfast at 8 for a 9 am departure. The first one in the restaurant, it had an amazing spread of yoghurt, cereals, eggs plus all the trimmings and wonderful pastries. In the middle island were cold cuts and a wonderful selection of cheeses. I restrained myself based on the weight I put on in Spain.

Long story short, we all had a hard time getting up and by the time Lauren made it to the lobby, it was 9:20. We left close to 10 in very foggy, damp cold conditions and headed northeast out of Bucharest.

We chatted for the first hour of the trip. Lauren is writing a book about her former career in the NJ State Police for 15 years and her decision to quit and subsequent move to Italy. This is her second GV placement.

John and Sandy own several small resorts in Estes Park and live in Boulder. They have done many GV trips in Eastern Europe and China.

Bernice our team leader is from San Francisco and has taught college and is currently leading up to 3 trips a year and taking care of her 96-year-old mother in between.

Manuela is our local coordinator while Mihalla is in Minnesota for country manager training. She lives in Barlad the closest major city to Tutuva that has our clinic. 27 children between birth and 5 are resident in the clinic.

We stopped at a McDonalds for lunch mainly because it had western toilets. I managed to get locked in the toilet because I was unaware of the system. In order that only paying clients have access, you have to buy something and at the bottom of your ticket is the access code. You punch it in as you enter the stall and then when you use the button to exit. I had just entered the stall when the last women exited. I found out later the code was 1001.

I had ordered my standard McD meal of double cheeseburger, small fry and orange drink. I added a coffee latte that was okay, but pretty tepid. We all went to the ATM to withdraw some money.

After we left lunch, the sky cleared slightly and we could see the fields we had been passing. Mainly grapes in this region, we began to see little stands on the roadside with plastic jugs full of juice. It was local wine and we asked to stop so that we could buy some. The driver knew of a good place so we ended up stopping and pulling into a compound. A rag tag assortment of dogs met us including a husky, two young puppies and a poor mother dog that looked the worse for wear. The tasting room had large plastic containers for white or red wine and some bottled cabernet, merlot and pinot noir. We were given completely full glasses of wine as our samples. The group ended up buying a 5 Liter jug of both white and red for a whopping 30 new Lei (about $10).

Along the side of the roads, it was not uncommon to see horse drawn carts and we passed a farmers market with local grain grower displaying their grains in piles on burlap sacks on the ground.

The buildings I have seen so far are a varied assortment of very old, some built around 1940-50’s and some very modern. The small villages remind me on Anatevka from Fiddler with little yards behind low fences.

I have seen a number of cats and dogs all outside and looking cold and hungry by US standards.

The people that I have seen are well protected from the cold, usually with hats or bandanas. After months in the tropics/temperate areas, the moist cold is as expected. I definitely did not bring enough warm clothes. We will definitely do a little shopping on the way back to the hotel tomorrow. Lauren did what I did at the start of my year and left her shampoo and toothpaste at home, John and Sandy need an alarm clock and I need the standard Kleenex, washing powder and now for Romania, sweat pants and shirt and possibly another shirt or two

The clinic is in Tutova that is farther South than Barlad, the major city, and our hotel is on the other side of Barlad. We will have about a 15 minute ride each way to get to the clinic where we will work from 9-4, with 2 hours for lunch.

Our Motel Gianni appears pretty new and we each have private rooms. In addition to the GV supply room with two computers and a separate meeting room, they have a sauna and Jacuzzi ($5 for 15 minutes) and they also offer a massage service. They also have laundry services that are economical and a full service restaurant and bar. We are rather isolated at the hotel, but I think we will be able to get cabs into Barlad if we want some evening entertainment.

Tomorrow, we will get a list of excursions offered by the local travel agency for weekend trips. John and Sandy leave next weekend, so it will only be Lauren, Bernice and I. After the first weekend, it will only be Bernice and I.

When we finish up our time at the clinic, we will take the train back to Bucharest. That will be a fun bonus, as I love short train travel.

We had an early dinner with the tv in the restaurant blaring above our heads. I asked Bernice if it would be possible to have our table moved to the opposite part of the room for all of our future meals. It will be done as of breakfast tomorrow.

Off to an early bed time for blogging and very welcome sleep.

Monday, December 4 – Angels all around me!

I had spent a little too much time with my new book last night, the Historian (about the Dracula legend) so 8:00 am came a little early for me.

Did I mention that my bed has pastel, plaid seersucker sheets? The texture is very strange to sleep on and under.

I sent 5 pairs of socks, nightclothes, 2 tops and 2 pants to the laundry, asked the housekeeper for a new bulb for my bedside lamp, and to see if they could fix the strobe light in my bathroom.

What a busy day we had! Breakfast at 9:00 and then we went up stairs for the traditional GV exercises of what are our team goals and what makes a good team. Mine were to spend time with the children, to make a difference and to learn more about myself. (COTU strikes again!)

Then we had a Romanian language lesson with Manuela. As we started, we needed some supplies from the resource room and as I was searching for white board markers and large paper, came across a dead mouse where the oatmeal was stored. The motel was very apologetic. Later discussion resulted in us tossing out any of the zip locks that had any mouse teeth marks at all. We can’t have the babies eating tainted oatmeal! We made a list of the office supplies we still needed and the recommendations from the previous team was to bring juice, yoghurt or boneless chicken breasts to the clinic as the children don’t normally get these treats. (The note said it made a change from boiled chicken livers! As most of them are anemic and malnourished, I guess liver is good for them, but YUK!)

Before we left the motel, we prepaid for our massages for tonight. Only 28 RON (new lei), we were looking forward to our hour on the table. We were told that the masseuse was able to speak English.

After our lesson, we loaded into the bus for lunch downtown at the Alona Cafe. The menus were in Romanian, and as we had not discussed any food words, we had Manuela order for us. I ended up with a great veggie soup and a ham and cheese salad. (Salad in Romania does not include lettuce, simply the other ingredients listed.) It really was very tasty. We ordered fresh fruit salad for dessert. YUMMY!

We were finally going to go to the clinic that we had heard so much about. Similar to Peru, these children are not orphans as most of them do have parents. The parents simply cannot take care of them. The clinic is associated with a small hospital with 70 beds, 30 for the failure to thrive children, 20 for pediatrics and 20 for adults.

We met the director, Dr. Delia, who was a lovely woman and who had good English, but felt more comfortable with the translator, Manuela. We saw the emergency room, about 10X10 with three beds including a delivery table that the Dr. admitted should be in a museum. They see anywhere from 5-10 births a month, and the mother and child are moved via ambulance to the 900 bed hospital in Barlad (about 5 minutes away) within an hour of the birth.

Then we saw the lab and while they have some of the machines, they do not have the necessary supplies to complete all the tests. (i.e., they have three one-step blood machines for monitoring blood sugar, but they cannot afford the strips at $1.50 each.) There blood work machine has the capacity to run up to 100 tests, but they only have the ability to run 16 different tests.

Next we saw the men’s ward, with three patients, 12X12 room with 6 beds. The woman’s ward had 12 beds and 20 patients. Doing the math you will find that this means that 8 of the bed has two occupants sleeping head to foot. They were in for chronic diseases such as high blood pressure, arteriosclerosis, diabetes, pulmonary issues, etc. I asked her to tell them for us that we hoped that they would get better soon, and she said that they would as they would all want to be home for Christmas. The ladies were sad to see us go and asked us to come back.

Next, the land of the children. We walked out of the adult wing across a yard and past a nice fenced playground with swings and outside toys that had been funded by GV money. We could hear them before we saw them. Through the door we could see a very small room with about 12 toddlers and one nurse. Sweet faces through the door and at the first sight of opening, Florin was out into the hall way like a rocket. I can tell he is a little monkey and was very happy to see us and anxious to touch hands and play.

Next we met a pair of twin boys who had TB and toxic hepatitis. I am assuming Hep C that has no inoculation. I am not sure if we will get to play with them.

Next we saw the newest babies, twin girls who were less than 2 months old. Very sweet.

We visited several rooms, each with about 5 wooden cribs approximately 2X3, with one child each. The children are separated into several groups including mobile (they can crawl or walk but are smaller than the toddlers), the non-mobiles (self explanatory) and the special needs children.

There are 6 special needs cases. Alessandra has brittle bone disease and although she is 3 years old, is no bigger than a non-mobile. Ramona is a pale 2 year old that needs a kidney transplant. The clinic can only afford one dose a month and she needs a dose twice a week. Samuel is a lovely downs syndrome baby of about 2 years. Zorin is a toddler, has crossed eyes and probably some other brain injury or learning disability. Andrei, a 4 year old, has some brain disorder and while not intentionally mean, due to his size and weight causes considerable damage to the littler guys. Abel, under two years old with crossed eyes, otherwise appears fairly normal. Matiste (not sure of this spelling) is a toddler-sized girl who cries a lot. She is often by herself.

Most of our hearts melted with at least one of the children and my current favorite is Samuel, a downs syndrome baby with a delightful smile. A little shy are first, but as soon as you touch him, he beams and giggles.

We finished our tour and walked past the largest toddlers including another Andrei who is 4 and potentially quite a handful. The hospital had recently received money and they totally redid the kitchen that is wonderful to behold. With the next grant, they will most likely destroy the two sections of the hospital that was hit the hardest during the last earthquake. (Romania seems to suffer every other year with earthquakes of varying severity.)

Our time was limited today so we had only a few minutes to go back to any of the rooms. Both Lauren and I went in with the babies for a few minutes of cuddles. We had to leave too soon and there were some tears as we left. I promised Samuel that I would see him tomorrow.

Most of us had a little something that we needed at the store so we stopped at the Penny Market. This seems to be a chain in Europe and is similar to our Target. We had noticed that the clinic did not have toilet paper or hand towels at the sinks. We bought juice, but held off on the yoghurt and chicken until we can clarify with the clinic. We had to get back as Bernice had a massage scheduled at 5pm. Lauren and I are scheduled for after dinner.

Lauren and I went to the restaurant for coffees. Most of the group has found the coffee to be uniformly weak and usually tepid. We found out that even when you ask for cappuccino, you get a powdered coffee packet and possible hot water from the espresso machine. I opted for hot chocolate, but they only had white chocolate.

We then went up to the GV resource room to read the journals left by the previous teams. Each child has a folder with their diagnosis and progress reports, but a separate book with entries from the last teams telling us where they left off with each child. Most books have a picture of the child as well so that we don’t arrive totally ignorant about the children. Most of the volunteers have left their email addresses in the books asking future teams for updates.

Samuel has not only downs, but also anemia and rickets. He is not sitting up very well yet, but continues to make progress. The little face that won my heart last night we thought was Dimitri, but it turns out that his real name is Marian. I can’t remember all of his specifics, but will make sure to meet him tomorrow.

Finally dinnertime, we met John and Sandy in the restaurant. Bernice was late, due to the massage, and the waiters brought out our salads (tomatoes and cukes) and a wonderful procuitto pasta dish. By the time we were finished, still no Bernice.

Just as dessert arrived (chocolate and mint ice cream), here came Bernice. She had had a lovely massage, but was a little confused as the masseuse did not speak much English and she had asked Bernice to pay an additional $30 in US currency. The hotel owner had been adamant that we prepay for the massage and that she would pay the masseuse. It was up to us if we wanted to tip any extra. Considering we paid $15 for the massage, a $30 tip was a bit high. Bernice was not bothered about it. Lauren and I requested further clarification from the owner who returned to help us from her house behind the property to investigate.

20 minutes later, she came back to say that the masseuse had said that Bernice offered the money as she was so pleased with the service. At this point, my heart was not feeling good about this situation. The owner was in a bit of a delicate situation and did not press the issue. She did confirm that no more money was to be given to the woman and Lauren told Bernice that we would split the tip with her. The owner left and we discussed the matter between us.

Lauren was still game and knowing what to expect, she indicated that she would most likely give her a good tip. I told the ladies that my heart was not feeling good about this situation and said that at this point, that I would happily forfeit my money but that I no longer wanted a massage. I asked Lauren to let the masseuse know when she saw here. Lauren went to tell her she would be a minute or two, and I went back to my room. I was feeling a bit like a coward, as I did not plan to go to the woman myself and tell her that I would not take the massage. I checked my vibes to see if I was to go out and approach her myself and was told no. I checked to see if I was being a coward and was told yes.

Lauren knocked at my door within 3 minutes and told me that she had also decided not to go on the massage. As she entered the room, the woman, in perfect English said that the price was 28 lei for 15 minutes and that the hour price was higher as she would be doing 15 minutes of energy work and 15 minutes of other things. The long and the short of it was that neither of us felt that the woman was being honest with the owner or us. It seemed to me that the woman had taken advantage of Bernice’s kind heart and innocence. Lauren said during the exchange, she felt that the woman was shaking her down. As I look back on it, I can tell that my angels were helping me in this. Had I been the one to go into the room (which was the original plan), I probably would have ended up feeling bullied and might have ended up giving in to a massage that I did not want with a person that I did not trust. THANK YOU ANGELS! I am complete with this.

Lauren and I decided to take a sauna instead and we spent a hot and steamy 15 minutes in the box that helped me get over the last of the cold that I developed in Spain. During this time, Lauren regaled me with tales of her experiences in a Turkish bath in Istanbul where a woman with naked, pendulous breasts and a towel around her waist, exfoliated her with a rough cloth and basically stripped off her bra and undies. (It is so hard to know what is the appropriate attire in these cases!!). Considering that Lauren had been unaware of the exfoliation process, and had assumed that she was only going in for a steam, you can imagine her surprise. Apparently, the woman’s breasts swung around a lot as she worked and at one point caught Lauren in the face. I am amazed she did not leave with bruises.

I ended the day with a lovely shower in my bathroom where I no longer have the strobe effect, and then typed my blog in bed with my new bedside lamp illuminating the scene. It was a good day and I am looking forward to tomorrow.

Tuesday, December 5 – First day on the job

Up at 7:00 for breakfast at 8:00 for departure at 8:45. We had to pick up Manuela at 9:00 after her two classes in the morning. School in Romania is from 7am until 8 pm with two rotations,
7–1 and 1-8. A very long day for teachers who may teach early and then late in one day.

Orneta the hotel owner had heard about our massages and wants to arrange for a different masseuse to come later this week for free massages for us. We appreciated her going this extra distance for us.

We arrived at 9:30, just as everyone was getting the second bottle for the day. Apparently the daily schedule at the clinic is:

7am first bottle
baths
9:30 second bottle
11:30 – oatmeal
diaper change
nap 12-2
2 third bottle or cream of wheat
4pm we leave
4:30 second meal
6pm fourth bottle
8 pm fifth bottle

John and Sandy with limited time are trying to get to every group as much as possible. They took the first shift with the toddlers and had them until 11:30. We heard that they are very exhausting and should only be done in 1-hour shifts. I started with the mobiles, Bernice went with the new 2-month old twin girls and Lauren was with the non-mobiles.

My group began with Mihaela – quiet dark eyed little girl who enjoyed walking around with a plastic ball in each hand. She liked it when I picked up a third ball and touched mine to hers. Not wanting cuddling and content on her own, she only had one major meltdown in my first 30 minutes.

Next was Slyvia – a large eyed, light brown hair, square headed pudge who was dressed in a blue suit that had huge pantaloons that made her look like a blue pear. While she stands well in her crib, she seems to have a weight in her butt and shoots and crawls a little bit, but make no effort to walk or even pull up on your fingers. She also is very vocal, will make a fine addition to any opera chorus she goes for and most of her vocalizations are happy and shrill. Only one melt down with Slyvia, but it brought the stork like bespectacled nurse to my room to see if I was abusing the children.

Next came Mirella – a petite, sylph-like dark eyed charmer who will be a great actress. She has the pouting lower lip look down, but had a good day with me in the corner in a bouncy swing with music and light when the right button is pushed. Very sweet and a very good walker when she is not in the chair.

Finally – little man Marian who has a smile that will melt any heart. Crawls like a fiend and zeros in on any interesting toy currently in the hands of any other occupant in the room. Very happy and lovely smile. This was the face that I saw in the camera that won my heart. What a cutie!

At 11:30 I exited the room and assisted briefly with toddlers before we went to lunch.

This morning the therapists were working with most of the special needs babies so we did not have the full range today. There are several children who appear to have some autism, one with some cognitive delays and possible brain damage in addition to the others that we saw yesterday.

The nurses and aids that work with the children all day are also the ones that warm up our lunch and cart it over the hospital where there is a lunchroom. Lunch today was huge sandwiches, a very tasty veggie soup with carrots, bread and fruit. We had also bought coffee and asked them to make it strong, as most of the coffee we have had has been pretty weak. I augmented with biscuits and more fruit. Traditionally, any part of lunch that is left over is taken back to the clinic if it would be appropriate for the children or staff. Any other left over go to the 5-6 dogs that live in the compound. Both John and Lauren did a little feeding and when they were too slow, the black and white dog helped himself to the food and little bit of their hands.

We had some time, so Lauren, Bernice and I struck off down the road for a short walk. The sun had finally come out and we decided to take advantage of it, as it may not come up again. I realize that we are in a valley with rivers so the amount of fog we have been experiencing is not unexpected.

The afternoon, the toddlers have a teacher most days, so the volunteers can focus on the other kids. Both John and Sandy and Bernice each try to spend some time with the TB twins with hepatitis and the tiny girl twins that were born about two months ago. Lauren spent time with 4-year-old Andrei, who is probably autistic and usually sequestered from the other children due to his erratic behavior. Several of the kids have scrapes or bites from Andrei. While large and a little hard to follow, he is not mean and really responded well to the individual attention from Lauren. She even got a hug and kiss last thing today. She will repeat the time with him tomorrow.

It is hard for us to understand at some level why many of the things are done at the clinic. Our American can do attitude and let’s fix it becomes frustrated when things don’t flow, as we would like to see them. We try to ask questions, but our Romanian is far from adequate. While we understand that the staff is limited in their time and ability to make real changes, the group had lots of suggestions on how things could be done. There are 6 rooms with cribs with high bolt locks on both sides of the door. The doors are glass fronted (not plexi-glass) so that you can see in and see 95 % of the room. At times, a child may be locked in the room by themselves, especially in the case of Andrei. As babies are being brought into the mobile ward, they may be alone for a while as another child is being collected. Twins are housed in separate cribs from each other and cannot even look through the bars at each other. Babies are not held when they are bottled, bottles are propped on towels or blankets next to the baby. Babies aren’t changed when the diaper is wet, only when it is poopy. We brought disposable diapers that will allow the urine into the next layer and help relieve the diaper rash, but the aids still diaper with two cloth diapers, rubber pants and two pairs of pants. The longer we stay the more we may learn, but I think when all is said and done, the staff is doing a marvelous job with these kids under difficult circumstances and inadequate money and assistance.

Diapering is done on a table in the hallway in a production line. First, unwrap the kid from the onezie, unsnap the top and remove the plastic pants. Take out the two diaper pins that hold the double folded diaper onto the kid. Drop the soiled diapers into a large bin. Clean the bottom. Many have diaper rash and we have A&D Vitamin cream and also some Desitin lotion. Lay out one diaper open once and put the still folded second diaper in the middle of the first diaper. Put the two diapers under the back of the kid and fold the tails of the diapers into a point. Bring them up through the kids’ legs and fold the tail over to form the waist. Pick up the open diaper pin and run in through the splotch of AD ointment on the wall to ease the pin through the 6 layers of diaper. Repeat on the other side. Put on the plastic pants and tuck them into the diaper on the back and around the legs. Redress the baby, kiss it on the head and send it on its way to either its crib or into the play room.

My afternoon was spent mainly with the non-mobiles including little Samuel the downs baby. He is so placid and sweet and watches you with light brown eyes. He has the cutest smile and loves to blow raspberries.

At the end of the day we tried to help with our last set of diapers and delivering the babies back to their rooms. There is no way around it, we are not as good at cloth diapers and I believe, one of the little escape artists had managed to loose one of the cloth diaper that one of us had just put on before we had even left the building.

Tonight we stopped for Lauren and I to make our deposit for our trip this weekend to
Transylvania. The price is high as it is only two of us and we will require a car, driver and guide for three days and 2 nights of lodgings for the 4 people. But after all, how often am I in Romania? I was also interested in buying some inexpensive sweat clothes to wear to the clinic. Most of the people today were urine soaked within the first hour. Somehow, I managed to stay clean and I intend to stay that way if at all possible.

Manual took Lauren and I to a shop next to the travel agency and I bought the find of the century - hooded sweat shirt and pants sets that were long enough for me for a mere $9 each. Olive green, but cheap! I bought 2 sets.

Dinner was chicken and for dessert, they only delivered three chocolate pancakes. We asked them to cut in half the number of desserts so instead of smaller portions, we only had 3 pancakes for 5 people. Not a problem, we cut them in half. (An example of our words not quite conveying our meaning in Romanian. More to come on this lesson, I am sure).

I was in my room early and found that my laundry was not back (HMMMMM?) and that my wonderfully constructed warm nest in bed had been dismantled, folded and the two top layers (the bedspreads) had been removed. I had asked for a second blanket, but it had not appeared before I went to bed. I donned by fleece and left my socks on, (I know, the fashion statement of the year) and went to bed.

I SLEPT WELL and did not rise until the alarm went at 7:20!