hello i am in slanic, which is a small rural town about two hour’s drive outside of bucharest. i am living with a gazda (family). the father, costin ionescu, is 51 years old. his wife mariana is 50 and she works as a nurse. they have two children. the son’s name is catalin and he lives with them. he is 26 and an engineer in the salt mines. their daughter is a teacher in spain. i arrived last night and it was just like green acres. i am living on a farm. they have chickens and pigs and lots of dogs. the neighbors have ducks, horses, cows and sheep. last night i had warm milk that just came out of a cow…of course, she boiled it before she served it. needless to say, the air is very pungent with the smell of nature and i’m careful where i step. my room is in the attic. it’s quite lovely b/c i have a terrific bedroom and a large balcony with a great view. i am awakened by the sound of a rooster (cocos (pr. cocosh) in romanian), and the pigs are always snorting about. the only problem…when it rains the water system shuts down b/c of sand and salt clogging the system and it’s been raining a lot. slanic is one big salt mine, which is the major industry in the town. they get the water from a communal well and carry buckets back. it’s very strange b/c i am not sure how to work the toilette so i haven’t gone in the house. my gazda does not speak english and i’ve been pantomiming and using dictionaries to get my points across. it’s hillarious. sometimes we’ll sit laughing and holding up forks or knives or pointing at things and saying the word in romanian and/or english in order to communicate. i pointed at a duck and was told vaca and they all laughed when a pronounced it back. when i got to class, i learned that vaca was the word for cow…so obviously they are having more fun than i am. i plan to let them know that i’m aware of the joke now. i also now know how to ask how to use the shower, toilette, when does the water come on and how long does it run. all things considered i think i’m in the posh corps instead of the peace corps. tonight, i am supposed to meet some instrutors and other voluteers for a beer…ahhhhh life in romania…. i do have to do a needs assessment for the community while i am her. so i am working. i will tour the salt mines, local garment center, and other small businesses and make suggestions to make things a little more efficient. it’s hard b/c the people are adverse to change…they still do their laundry by hand.