Day 6: Bear, Boar, and Cow Intestines…IN MAH BELLY!!

Today the Hope 4 Kids gang took a much-needed break from the craziness of the week. Ever since we stepped on to the plane the trip has been hectic, hot, and draining without much of a breather. However, none of us really realized how truly tired we were until today because we have been having such a good time.

It rained all day and I think it might have been the first time in 5 days I wasn’t sweating. The rooms don’t have much air conditioning (if you can even call it that) and the weather in Romania is incredibly humid which, even though I am from the desert, is a heat I am not used to at all.

I have been staying up until about 2:00am to do this blog every night so being able to sleep in until 8:30 felt absolutely incredible. We all got fancy and out of our t-shirts-and-old-shorts uniforms for church, and had the privilege of listening to Tom speak. The church is one of the first free form churches since the fall of Communism, and almost the whole congregation was under 30. Even though I didn’t understand a word of worship I was so moved by the passion and heart the people put into their praise.

We followed church with a nice lunch by one of the old Soviet “resorts” and despite the rain walked along the flee markets (the guys have been baffled by the popular “short shorts” European men wear and were on a mission to buy some. Unfortunately they were successful.) I found a couple more gifts for Dorothea who I am looking forward to seeing again tomorrow.

Left: So happy to be in rain! Right: Double fisting some ice cream?

Roxy (one of our translators) and I were given these lilly pad..things. We weren't sure what to do with them.

 We came back to the hotel with the intention to hang out as a family and every person ended up falling asleep for 3 hours (somehow Aaron managed to nod off in the crack between the “air conditioner” and couch. Ow?) 

We went out for a family dinner and now I am finishing my blog before 11:00pm! Wohoo!

Doobie fell asleep after about 3 minutes of sitting down. Easiest babysitting job I've ever had!

Big news today! Congrats to the new Phoenix fire captain!

I would like to finish by talking about my other favorite boy here who needs a sponsor. He is absolutely beautiful with eyelashes any girl would die for. He is incredibly shy, but polite, gracious, and ALWAYS prays the loudest.  He even sat still while I took creeper shots of his face all day. Winner.

<not fair.

Tom asked us today at church how God is calling to us. I can honestly say that I have never been more sure of the path my life needs to follow, and that path leads directly to small children in need. I am SO in my element when I am with these kids. Maybe God isn’t calling you to missions or to travel across the world. Maybe you can help right where you are.

Whatever it might be, he is calling. Are you listening?

Day 5: Cut-offs and arm hearts

 Every day here is completely new and different from the day before.  I have been so blessed by every person that has come across my path, and I am so thankful for every second here.

Today I was able to meet my sponsor child, Dorothea. She lives in a poor village called Cheresig, but it is still leaps and bounds above the village we visited yesterday. Cheresig is not considered a “gypsy village” because it is mixed with Romanians, Roma, and even some Hungarians, though the gypsy people are still secluded at the back of the town. 

Hope 4 Kids has been teamed with the village for several years now and we were able to see before and after pictures; the change is incredible. They now have a set school, church and lead pastor, and even an after school “daycare” service (sort of). As opposed to the craziness of yesterday, these children were well mannered, polite, and civilized. A select few could even speak a few words of English.

 After some searching for my little girl, I found myself in front of the smallest and shyest child in the village. I spent most of the day with her, and it was such a wonderful feeling to be able to hold her hand in mine.

There are so many kids in these villages that need sponsors. It is just a dollar a day and it goes directly to the needs of the children for school, food, and necessities. You may recognize this adorable little boy from my post yesterday. I absolutely fell in love with him. That smile never leaves his face and his eyes could melt even the hardest hearts.

 I have heard some amazing stories about how much of a difference a sponsor has made in these kids lives. It isnt just about the money. It is letting them know that there is someone out there who loves and supports them. Please consider taking him on. I am on a mission.

Day 4: Picasso in a Wheelchair

I already mentioned that Day 2 was spent mostly traveling, so instead of filling up another blog post with pictures of a city, I am going to skip to Day 3 which is much more interesting. Plus, Europe is way ahead anyways so I figure this will catch everything up. :)

Today we went to a village outside of the city Oradea (where we are staying) called Lazareni. The ride out there was like a scene straight out of the Sound of Music (we even saw a Stork nest?!)

The entire village is practically split in half with a fence separating the Gypsy people (or the Roma) from the Romanians. It is incredible to see the prejudice and hostility between the two groups. Even our bus driver could not believe we were going into the Roma village, and when we were leaving he was very harsh with the children.  

Waddup Esmerelda!

The Lazareni village is fairly “new” and thankfully a small school has been set up for the many Roma kids that live there. We spent most of the day playing with them: they were overjoyed we were coming and made a little skit for us (kind of like A Bugs Life?). We provided lunch, all made shirts together, and simply enjoyed the company of such wonderful people (though I have to admit, I had to keep my camera and bag clutched tightly at all times.)

We have almost no way to communicate with the kids other than pointing and trying to mime (which really just ends being a comic act for them), but I had a child in my arms almost instantly, like there was no gap between us at all.  I have never seen such beautiful children. They all have darker skin, beautiful hair, and eyes that can see right through you. Take a look and try not to fall in love.

Look ma! No pants!

On the right--a shout out to Aaron for being so awesome!!

 About half way through the day we took a 2-mile walk to the water supply for the village. Beautiful view, but I can’t imagine carrying a bucket of water that far back. Oh yeah, did I mention the trek home is uphill?  

Compare the size of this "spring" to the child's shoe caked in mud.

My favorite part of the day came in a small little package and went by the name Cosmina. When we arrived this particular little girl would not smile, laugh, make eye contact or make any facial expression really. By the end of the day we were great pals and she even asked for a kiss good bye. I obliged with no hesitation. Experience the change in little Cosmina.

 

Days 1 & 2: Buda, meet Pest.

And so begins the Hope 4 Kids Romania adventure. Like all trips I go on, I am the least prepared of the 19 team members. I came here knowing close to nothing about the culture, language, or even the trip itself, so I have no expectations and everything I share on this blog is what I have learned here. The only thing I can say I DO know and that I am looking forward to is meeting my 7 year old sponsor child, Dorothea. J

Like I said, there are 19 team members, lead by Tom who is the founder of Hope 4 Kids. The whole group is awesome: about half are older and the other half about my age, plus two little ones who came with their parents (5 & 7 years old).

I wasn’t kidding when I say I came unprepared. List of things I forgot to pack: computer charger, ipod, sweatshirt, swimsuit, toothbrush, “feminine products” and sunscreen.

Yesterday was one of the longest days of my life…literally. I don’t think I ever saw the sun set and I was up for 35 hours straight. The travelling consisted of a 3 hour flight to Minnesota, a 9 ½ hour flight to Amsterdam where there was a 5 hour layover (guess who went through customs and immigrated into the country JUST to get a stamp on their passport? THIS girl!), and then a 2 hour flight to Hungary. 

 Aaron: a fellow Arizonian on the trip

Welcome to Amsterdam!

Ouside in a garden? Wrong. Still in the airport.

The “younger” group spent the afternoon exploring the beautiful city of Budapest, or rather Buda and Pest. A large river separates the two parts of the city; Pest is very flat and holds the Parliament building while Buda (which was my favorite part) is filled with hills and greenery, cathedrals, winding streets and street performers. 

Pest:

Buda:

The one thing that surprised me was how quiet the city was. It celebrated its 1900^th anniversary last year (as opposed to the United States mere 225 years of existence), so the buildings are very old but pristine. It was surprisingly clean, but the streets are still small and mostly cobblestone so there are almost no cars, which made it almost eerie. The whole team met up for a family dinner at one of the traditional Hungarian restaurants in the city at 6:30. The portion sizes were overwhelmingly large, and absolutely delicious (I tried a plate of the beef goulyas and loved it).  After literally falling asleep on the dinner table after eating, we went back to the hotel and fell asleep by 9:00pm.

Today we leave for Romania by bus. Yet another day of travelling. So many countries in 2 days. Holy cow!

At your service.

I like to expect the best in people.  Which is why today I am going to talk about serving in a restaurant. I am doing this because I would rather think that people are innocently ignorant rather than just plain rude.

To start off, servers make less than minimum wage. Way less actually. At my restaurant we don’t even make $4.50 an hour. I could work 60 hours and not even get $150 dollars in my paycheck after taxes. So this whole belief that whatever you tip is ON TOP of what we get paid hourly should just be flushed down the toilet, because we get paid zilch and completely depend on the tips we receive.

I have come to realize in my time as a server that it doesn’t matter how nice or witty you are, how fast you get the food out, or how many times you check up on your customers; it all comes down to the tipper.  Last night I had a teenage couple come in to eat for prom and ended with a bill of $40. After using a $5 off coupon he continued on to do some strenuous math on his receipt and then left $4 on the table. Ok, ok. This can be expected of teenagers. But what about the middle-aged couple that did the same thing a few hours later? Or the elderly couple who paid for their meal and then slipped me a 12% tip, winked and said, “This is all for you honey. Thank you for your great service.”

As cute as they were, 20% is an average tip. An easy way to find 20% without a calculator? Double the first two numbers on the bill (i.e. $25 tab, $5 tip).  Again, this is average.  My advice would be to tip based on the quality of the service rather than the size of your bill. And if you can’t afford a decent tip, then why are you going out to eat in the first place?

1. If you go out with your grandma and she wants to pay, agree, but say you want to leave the tip.

2. If you sit at a table chatting for 2 hours, leave more than 20%. You have just taken up your servers table that they could have been making money on. Do not tip based on the $9 salad you bought.

3. If you wouldn’t use 9 plates for a loaf of bread at home, I would suggest cutting back in a restaurant. We do dishes too.

4. At what point is it EVER cute for your child to rub noodles into the carpet?

5. A ceazar salad without dressing or croutons is just lettuce. And a Steak and Blue without steak and without blue cheese is not a Steak and Blue.

6.  If you are a Christian and you make a point to bow your head and pray, you had better make a point to leave a good tip. Servers notice, and Christians are notorious for bad tipping.

Disclaimer: I do realize that there are bad servers out there, and I have witnessed quite a few myself. They complain, roll their eyes, get nervous, etc. But think about it, how much would their bad mood improve if a table decided to tip generously? How much would their confidence be boosted if you complimented something they did right? Just a thought...

(Ps: Last week of school! Wohoo!)