When in Sofia...

Question:  What do you do when the Bulgarian Ministry of Education shuts your school down because you have too many sick kids, forcing you to take 5 consecutive days off?

Answer:  Go Rome-ing, of course!

Faced with the prospect of having to spend 5 work-free days in Mladost (the not-so-pretty neighborhood around the campus), Amanda and I decided that since flu-days aren't very common, we should take advantage of every one of them.  Certainly, we did not ask for these days off, and disturbingly, if given the choice, we would rather just have ridden out the time until Thanksgiving so that we didn't have to rearrange our lesson plans, testing schedules, and all of the other bureaucratic junk that comes with teaching in Bulgaria.  But, since we have no choice, let us not dwell on the past - let's go make some memories instead!

The question became where to make them?  Having lived in Sofia for more than two months now, I can't actually say that I know the city very well, nor have we been to the second biggest city in Bulgaria - Plovdiv, which we both hear is great for a day-trip.  So, that became our plan.  Go into and explore Sofia for a few days, then head out to Plovdiv for a nice getaway.

That was until one of our colleagues brought up the idea of going to Italy!  Did I mention that Monday was Amanda and my 3rd anniversary?  And while I'm sure that there have been a few people who have written love sonnets and epic romance stories about Sofia and Plovdiv, I can't admit to reading any.  But Rome!  Now were talking romance, passion, great food, rich history, and an emergency vacation well spent!  And in about 6 hours, Amanda and I will be spending the beginning of our 3rd year together in a little town that became the seat of the world's greatest empire.

I should be able to get some wi-fi internet on my phone while we're there, so if you have any ideas about where to go or what to see, send it along, we'd be happy to take any suggestions.  Otherwise, be sure to check back next week to see how the trip went and catch some pics (if there's actually anything to take pictures of...maybe one or two things).

City #8 on the list - check.

Arrivederci and Nazdrave!

Vacations, vacations everywhere! They're falling like...students?

So it appears the country of Bulgaria has the flu. The whole country. Alright, maybe not every single person, but enough that it appears we're going to have a flu-vacation next week. Ever hear of a snow day? Well this is a flu day. And it might just smell of pork.

I haven't been able to figure out if most of the cases in Bulgaria have been swine flu, but here's what I do know:

1) A lot of people are sick! Today, in my class (I only teach one on Fridays) of 18, I had 7 students. Yep, 7. Supposedly, if the entire student body reaches 30% absent due to flu, they cancel school. I had 7 out of 18 present. For those playing along at home, that's a 61% absent rate!

2) This flu looks nasty! I'm not saying students and teachers are going to die from it, but those who have gotten it have looked like the walking dead for about 3 days, and don't fully recover for about 7.

3) The virus that is destroying the work and academic population is most likely H1N1 - the swine flu. What makes this one so bad? Nothing more than the regular flu, it's just that it was transmitted by animals; that's something that's pretty rare, so they are behind in making the vaccines. Can't blame them. You can't prepare for everything. The only people that really have to worry are the elderly, the very young who haven't developed their immune system yet, and those with compromised immune systems. The rest of us just get the flu.

4) Despite the jubilation of the students, I am not happy about this "vacation" for two reasons. First, it will be just my luck that I will get the damn thing at the beginning of next week, and spend the week actually being sick. So much for the "vacation". And second, students are required to be in school for a certain number of days. If the Ministry of Health closes the school, they will just have to add those 5 days on somewhere else - like Winter break, Spring break, Summer break, or even Saturday school. Swine flu, I am not impressed with you.

I find it somewhat fitting that I sign every blog at the end with the Bulgarian term "nazdrave", which literally means "too your health". Well dear readers, it with the utmost sincerity that I sign off on this one. May all your days be piggy-flu free!

Nazdrave.

A bad travel joke

What does a Southern Californian cow and Thanksgiving have in common...

Is-tan-bul, Turkey! And it where we're going for the break! Time to check another city off of the list.

Although maybe not all the way off. We're leaving Sofia by train on Wednesday night to arrive in Istanbul (not Constantinople; "Why did Constantinople get the works? That's nobody's business but the Turks...") on Thursday morning, and we'll be there until Saturday night when we take the train back. The only problem is that we might not get to see all of the sights we want. Turns out that our break coincides with Eid, one of the high holy days of Islam. Down side: many things will probably not be open, like the Grand Bazaar and the Spice Market. Up side: while it's not quite like going to Jerusalem for Rosh Hashana, or the Vatican at Christmas, you can't beat going to a major destination site for a major religious holiday in terms of cultural exposure! Eid marks the end of Ramadan, the month of fasting in the Islamic calendar, so it holds a special significants for it's adherents. This should be quite the adventure, and I promise pictures and stories for everyone that reads this blog! So, tell a friend.

Nazdrave!

Czech this out!

It's official! In the spirit of making the most of our short time in Europe, Amanda and I have made the executive decision (and the required purchases) to stay in Sofia for Christmas and perhaps attend a service at Nevsky Cathedral, and then the day after leave for a week in Prague! That's right, New Year's in Prague people!

Before leaving for Europe, I made a mental checklist of all of the major cities that I want to get to before I came back to the US, here is but a brief excerpt:

1. Barcelona
2. Prague (For New Years, 2010!)
3. Amsterdam (thinking maybe Spring Break 2010)
4. Venice
5. Vienna
6. Istanbul (how about Thanksgiving 2009?; check back next week)
7. London (technically already done, but for only 4 hours...not enough)
8. Rome
9. Paris
10. Munich (sad that I missed my chance to meet Ed and Jodie for Oktoberfest)

You may notice that Sofia is missing from that list. If I had only known of it's exquisite beauty before leaving America, it for sure would have cracked my top 50.

Honorable Mention: Copenhagen (just barely didn't make the top 10 before I left, but is quickly moving up); Stockholm (why? because Dave Matthews Band is playing in February, and Amanda has promised the little child in me that we can go for my birthday! *giddiness*); Moscow (this could be harder than expected since the Russians just don't let you stop in for a visit); Florence (I'm not sure why this didn't make the top 10).

Got any more suggestions for me? Any other cities that are a "must see" before the end of the Summer 2010? Click the link below and let me know. (We're going to Prague. Sweet.)

Nazdrave!