So many options

Riding the bus in Romania is probably like anywhere else, but I have little experience elsewhere on buses.  On the RATB  (Regia Autonomă de Transport Bucureşti) website, I can get a route planned for me. Using the Google browser, I can use Romanian websites and Google translates them for me. Holy Cow Batman! Right out of Star Trek!!  The RATB site does have its own English language version though, and it is easier to read.

Google is a literal translator, which can be amusing sometimes. For instance, it can change the numbers of prices, but then it changes the currency without doing an actual conversion. Something that is 1,3 Lei can show up as 1.3 Euros, which is about 4 times the actual cost. Oops.  I am glad I don’t depend on it to translate Klingon or Ferengi !

Of course, if the bus on which we are riding has a scrolling destination screen that does not update, we could miss our stop and go the whole circuit, back to where we started. Which we did. Now we know everywhere the 301 line stops, and doesn’t. And, Katherine and I had several interesting conversations. 

I also ate way too many pastries. Yes- I can consume wheat in this country without getting a migraine! Even if I eat two pastries, a soft pretzel, and have half a dark beer with lunch. I may never move away from here, but I don’t know if it will be because I love it or because I will have gotten too fat to move at all.

Bucharest is an interesting mix of old and new, traditional and imported, cheap and high quality. This mix applies to the merchandise as well as the people, but as you can see from the photo, some things are basically the same in all big cities. I keep finding more reasons to love it here. Oh, the waterfall is running in the pond in our backyard now. Perfect place to enjoy a beer.

good news- bad news

July 17, 2014

It’s a Good News- Bed News day.

Good News – My clothes and I are all clean now.

Bad News- Kitten frightened by dog (Ute) pooped all over my ‘Minions have the TARDIS’ shirt.

Good News- I didn’t set the kitchen on fire (traveling hint: Butane apparently burns hotter than natural gas).

Bed news- I had to do a bit more kitchen cleaning today than intended

Good News- New sod may be in on Saturday

Bed News- it has taken all day for the gardeners to dig up the yard by hand to prep for the sod, so Ute couldn't play in the yard today.

Good News – We went on multiple walks.

Bed news- There was this kitten…

Opportunistic education

Went walking with Ute, and taking pictures. I imagine some conversations I could get into as we walk, so I have an idea of how many words I don’t know and what to look up when I get home (Ok, I don’t make a list and I never remember later, but it’s still good practice). So, of course as my dog relieves himself, I wonder what would happen if someone came and got upset with me about my dog pooping on the grass outside their compound. I have a feeling that the word ‘shit’ is pretty universal. And because I learned the word for ‘sack’ as part of a tongue twister, I could show my plastic bag, say roughly, ‘my sack’ (mea sac) and ‘my dog shit’ (mea caine shit).  I don’t think I could do that with a straight face though. Luckily, this conversation is not likely to come up, as few people even make eye contact when we are walking, and I can always  blame the poo on the street dogs.

The construction around our house is on-going, although it seems contagious now. The workers have removed the neighbor’s fence and are repainting and rebuilding it. Then, this morning, the thunder started and it rained hard for a little while. I looked up the word for rain, but didn’t know how to pronounce it. The construction guys are on smoke break waiting for the rain to stop and dry a bit, so I look up the word for ‘read’ and ask one of them to read to me. They look amused and all three come to the porch where I have set up a table and my books. I show them one of the children’s books I have and explain I need help with pronouncing words. They are even more amused, and we read two pages, about 50 words, while they correct my pronunciation. Then my brain is full. I give them cookies, and they go back to work.

Around town

I was shopping for a purse yesterday. I haven’t carried a purse for years, but I seem to be the only one wearing a backpack here. I thought maybe I should adjust, in the interest of not looking completely and obviously foreign.

I wanted something appropriate for summer and walking around the town and city. Not a giant shopping bag, but big enough to carry a water bottle, or maybe the camera, if I decide to take it without its own bag. And one last thing, I don’t want one made in China. That was the hard part. The prices ranged from a low of about 100 leu, to over 800 leu. That’s roughly $35 to $260. Ouch. And these are synthetic, like vinyl and plastic. I think some of the more expensive ones might have been leather, but honestly, I didn’t look that close. I wasn’t going to spend that much. Patience paid off. Three trips to the mall, and comparison shopping, plus spring sales meant I got a nice tan and black canvas bag, made in Belgium, for under 50 leu. I celebrated by spending 10 Leu on a jar of caviar. Probably not sturgeon, but small, black, and delicious anyway.

Then I walked home, because I had spent my cab fare. 

One of many street dogs, though most are pretty skinny, not fat like this one at a busy commuter bus stop.

 Building under construction. There are a great many things here under construction, or at least that appear to be under construction. Some are incomplete, but have been that way for years.

The bus ticket window, where I bought bus passes. Which I didn't use yesterday when I walked home in the 90+ degree (Fahrenheit) weather. I have to learn which buses go where.  

Many people leave water buckets and scraps out for the street dogs. I have seen meat scraps, leftover sandwich parts, bread, thawed frozen vegetables, and cottage cheese. I leave kibble with some distilled water in it for one of my favorites. I think her teeth are bad, so the dry kibble is difficult for her to eat. And oh, the regular water is pretty high in heavy metals and sometimes germs, so we only drink distilled and bottled water here. We were advised not to feed street dogs, but the poor thing was sooo skinny. I don't hand feed her though.

Motivation

I am learning some very important phrases. The one I seem to use most is, “Nu vorbesc romaneste,” which means, “I don’t speak Romanian”. I really want to stop needing that one.

Staying in the house with no human interaction makes me more and more shy of getting out. My new rule is to get out and talk to someone every day, in Romanian. My other new rule is to use the air conditioning. It has been very hot here. Today was cooler this morning, but now it’s 32°C/ 90°F and 50% humidity.

My accomplishment for today (do not laugh) is that I was able to understand the amount the sales lady gave me when I asked about the price of a planter. So I bought it. (Ok, you can laugh)

We have been here three weeks.

We have been here two taxi rides, three trips to the mall, one visit to the zoo, and four dog baths.

We have been here two parties, one brunch and one dinner out, and I don’t even know how many loads of laundry (very slow loads of laundry).

The neighbors are friendly, and several speak English. Many have dogs, and some have cats. Ute loves the cats. He now spends his days staring out the glass doors, or laying on the porch, and watching for cats in the street outside the yard.

He also loves other dogs, but the street dogs are not social, and the neighbors are mostly too cautious to let Ute close to their, usually smaller, dogs. Today, I learned why the extreme caution. A couple years ago, someone brought a not so nice dog into the complex and it killed a beloved little dog. Rather violently. We’ll need to do some trust earning here to help people relax. Although Ute is not considered a large dog in the States, he is mostly taller than the street dogs. Ute’s black color and one stand up ear seem to add to the perception that he is a large dog. I think the pointy-ish muzzle and stand up ear also seems similar to the Alsatian breed dogs, which are expected to be so aggressive that they are required to be muzzled in public. Our gate guards like Ute though, and spoil him with treats. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d0yGdNEWdn0

Chris Lonsdale is right

This is basically what I have been doing. I just have to keep doing it. I found a "language parent" too. She is about 8 years old. lol.

Redneck In Romania

July 6, 2014

Ok, we are here. :D  Most of our stuff will not be here for another month or so. The house is already beautifully furnished, so that part is easy. We have loaners for basic living accoutrements, like linens and small kitchen appliances. Our air shipped belongings have arrived, in two large boxes. We have a beautiful patio, but no patio furniture and our travel expense claim is not in yet, so cash is short. Therefore: DIY furniture. The stools came from the kitchen, which has a little swing out table under the counter. Since we eat at the dining room table, the stools won't be missed from the kitchen. Not quite ready for a party, but making progress.