To the South!

My Project--Comrat

My research project is interviewing leaders of NGOs (Non-Governmental Organizations) about how they work to help people overcome differences to create civil society.  I have had eight interviews so far with one more tomorrow and I hope one on Friday.  I visited Olanesti to see a group home for children and the elderly, visited with 6 organizations in Chisinau that have national missions, and made a special trip to Cahul and Comrat to meet with two unique organizations that amazed me.  Comrat is in Gauguzia and this is a very different part of Moldova because it is an autonomous region where the primary ethnic group are Turkish Christians that migrated there 400 years ago and speak an archaic Turkish dialect (as well as Russian).  Intergration led by Tatiana Litvinova works to bring a dialog between youth in Central Moldova (Romanian speaking), Gauguzia, and Transdenistria (Russian speaking).  Our former, exchange student Dinu was my translator.  He did a fantastic job!!!  While we were in Comrat we snapped a photo of Dinu, Andy, and Father Lenin.


Gospodina Taitiana, Dinu, and me hard at work.

Dinu, Andy, and Father Lenin.

Cahul

 

Cahul is the only large Moldovan city that I had yet to visit and that was remedied Monday/Tuesday. Cahul is in the far southwestern corner of Moldova and has a large Russian speaking population.  Liz Bibb, a recent Mercer alumna, is a Fulbright English Teaching Assistant there.  I am so proud of her and her work here.  She speaks beautiful Romanian--sorry that her assignment over the summer turned out to be in a Russian speaking city.  I met with Tatiana Coslec, the Executive Director of Ograda Noastra, about her work integrating the Roma population into the normal low of Moldovan life and knowing their rights as citizens of this nation.  She only had a half an hour but our wonderful conversation lasted for two!  Afterwards, Dinu, Andy, Gene, and I made a night trek back to Chisinau.  I was always terrified of driving at night here--another fear now overcome.

Here are Gene and Liz our Mercer Fulbrighters in Cahul (yes they love each other :)...and a pic of Andy behind the wheel of our durable Opal Combi that took us from the Nowrtheast corner to the Southwest corner and back again.