Get to know Moldova...

Even though you all studied with a Moldova, it does not mean that you know Moldova, as I am not a very good representative of my true homeland. I found today a blog of an American Peace Corps volunteer who teaches Health Education in a village somewhere in the middle of nowhere in Moldova in which he describes different stories of his day-to-day life there. Here is story where he describes the differences between the US and Moldova (for more stories, please visit: http://baladofthesunrising.blogspot.com).

Moldovan life has brought many Americans here to accept numerous aspects of existence, which in the US would either be intolerable or something you cannot stop staring at, to be everyday and normal. On special request from an avid reader I have compiled a list of some of these things:

On Food:

In the US food is amazingly available: what you want, when you want it, and it tastes good. In Moldova: if you want cookies you have to wait for the cow to come home; if you are in the mood for a flavorsome burrito you have to spend half of your living allowance and wait until you are in Chisinau; if cereal is what you desire, it would be who of you to learn karate and take your host mom out before fixing a bowl (this is after you have made a two hour trip to Chisinau to buy the product, and then waited until the cow came home); if ice-cream is what you had in mind you are in luck if you were wanting an individually wrapped drumstick; and most everything you wish to buy is done in the open-air market, in sub-zero temperatures, while arguing with a woman, in a foreign language, who outweighs you by 150 lbs and has a mustache.

In the US they generally put red sauce on your pizza, not mayonnaise and potatoes.

Here, corn is delicacy.

In the US, you typically do not have to be on the lookout for animal organs in your meal.

In Moldova Sour Cream and/or Mayonnaise go with everything.

In the States a particular pie is one of symbols of our country, large, round, filled with goodness, and more often than not tasty. In Moldova, Pie is also a symbol of their country, but it is usually the shape and size of small finger sandwiches, filled with lettuce, potatoes, or cheese and has the reputation of being a hit or miss on the deliciousness scale.

And apparently the greatest invention the US has created/embraced, until the next thing that seems very useful, has not been adopted in Moldova; there is no sliced bread here.


General:

In the states alcoholics are generally the only ones who drink before noon. Here, you drink before noon to have good health.

In the US the automobile is considered par for the course. In Moldova the automobile is not standard, neither are rubber tires on bikes or horse pulled carriages.

For those who do drive a car in Moldova, you will notice lacking upon the roads are useful traffic signs; those particularly involved with telling those operating the vehicle when to STOP and the speed of traffic.

In the US the thirty chickens you walk through on your way to the front gate do not really exist.

One thing you do realize while living in Moldova, is that other countries exist beyond the United States and Iraq. You can also here about them on the news, something unavailable in the great fifty.

White teeth are a common attribute lacking in Moldova, but the occasional or extremely prevalent all gold smile makes up for this lack of white shine.

Everything is done in the metric system.

In the states the police are our common defender against those who wish to break the law. Here, police are generally your biggest threat to safety.

Nobody speaks English

In most of our states your vote is counted, here you can generally assume the Communist candidate will win a majority of the votes, whether or not anyone voted.

To stay warm in the winter you do not have to rely on your ability to start a fire nor the quality of the coal you bought.

If you are hungry and want to eat something good you can order it, go out and pick it up, or cook it. Here, you must wait two years until you can go home.


Science and Technology:

In the US, science is looked at as a reasonable platform for basing an argument. Here science is the enemy, and to be viewed with caution. But nobody is upset about watching satellite TV and using internet cafes for porn.

In America when you turn the knob on the faucet, water comes out. Here, faucets and sinks are for show, and in anticipation of the possibility that someday they may get running water. (My host family has been waiting 15 years)



On Ethnicity:

Here all Asians are referred to as Korean or Vietnamese.

A person with black skin is "African" (no matter where they live), if the person saying the ethnicity is trying to be politically correct "African American" (no matter where they live); either way the person will definitely be pointed out and the color of their skin mentioned.

On Age:

In America someone my age is treated like an adult. The children here are under there parents supervision, they can go to college but are not allowed to make decisions without their parents, until Married. Therefore, being unmarried, Volunteers are treated like children as well. (by their host families)

On the Phone:

In the US, conversations on the phone do not usually take three to fifty attempts due to dropped calls.

The rotary dial is still in fashion.

Cell phones do not charge you by the second, and your monthly living allowance (in the US) is rarely spent on one phone call to two friends, who are in the same city, directing them to meet you at McDonalds after they left the city because they thought you wouldn't call, and then took an extremly long amount of time to make the decision on whether to return, but eventually doing so because they were drunk.

On Reaching Your Destination:

In America, people do not ask you, after you have arrived home and they are looking directly at you, if you have come home yet.

On Relieving Oneself:

On the other side of the pond one often takes the time to sit down while attempting the daily poop. In Moldova, you have to aim your shit while in sub-zero weather with a crosswind of 40 km/hr.