Romania, Day 14

Happy Birthday Shaun!!!

Today we took the train to Sighisoara - the birthplace of Vlad the Impaler. It is a beautiful medieval town with an intriguing skyline of medieval ramparts, towers, and spires. Catedrala Ortodoxa is a stunningly beautiful church which sits looking over the River. I couldn't stop staring at it! The 13th century Turnul Cu Ceas (Clock Tower) stands at the top of the central hill overlooking the rest of the village and River Tarnava Mare. There is also a beautiful old church, Biserica Mânăstirii, near Turnul Cu Ceas. It was built in 1937 in the Byzantine style. It is gorgeous! The architecture is stunning. Even better is the view from across the river on Strada Mihai Viteazul. The church stands next to my favourite tree, a willow tree. We dined in Pizzeria San Genarro, which sits off a beautiful square of medieval homes - Piata Cetatii. The waitress certainly was quite frustrated and impatient with us. You never know what kind of help you will get here, in comparison to the US. I have noticed that many restaurants and bars only have one server for the entire restaurant. Life here is much more slow-paced and Romanians are much more relaxed and diligent in their life reactions. I really appreciate that Romanians slow down and fully experience and take pleasure in the mundane activities of life that we often take for granted in larger cities. I just really appreicate living life day by day and to the fullest.

Veritas sponsored activities today for International Children's Day. Many children from the local community participated - there was sidewalk chalk drawing and a BBQ at the Veritas Center. Veritas are one of the only NGOs to provide day program services to adults with disabilities, at least from what I understood. I was so excited to see picture emotions displayed on the wall to assist the clients in communicating their feelings.

They also did music activities and organized community trips. There was a handmade wheelchair in the room - it made me really sad that there is a huge lack of handicap accessibility in Romania. I thought it was really great that the staff or someone had improvised, but does the individual have a proper wheelchair?!?

I was really happy to talk with Eva, the social worker. She seemed so caring and to really enjoy working with and advocating for adults with disabilities. 

I am sure that many of you have been curious about how I am coping with my dietary restrictions. It was as I expected in terms of dining out. I have now had meals in four different restaurants in three different cities, all salads. Brasov's Pizza Roma had the best salad by far. I was also able to have potatoes at Pastravaria Alex - they were actually very good but certainly not a sustainable meal. The rest of the time? I've been living off corn thins with peanut butter and fruit. This is mostly because we leave early in the morning and don't return until dinnertime or after. I have found the eating situation very challenging, especially during long days and on our weekend excursions. My typical day begins with my bowl of panda puffs and a cup of coffee, along with my flax meal. If we have too early a start, I pack myself some fruit for breakfast. Lunch I pack every day - a corn thin with peanut butter, a piece of fruit, and almonds. We have been able to sit at an outside table of a cafe and sip a caffea macchiato while eating lunch. Dinner has been my Tastybite and some cheese as a snack, although on a few occasions I have made sauteed veggies with parmesan cheese and fruit afterwards for dessert. I have definitely lost weight. All of my pants and shirts are loose on me. I think things would be very different if I was able to heat up lunch and cook dinner every night. The grocery stores are much much better than I expected. I could easily purchase all sorts of vegetables, beans, chickpeas, fish, and rice which would be adequate ingredients to cook healthy filling meals. The next time I come to Romania, hopefully, I would only bring gluten free substitutes, such as granola, cereal, oatmeal, pasta, and crackers. I do feel quite weak from the weight loss. We have also been walking for hours/miles a day. We easily walk between 5 and 8 miles some days. I am concerned about the weight I've lost and from noticing the growing number of bones protruding from my rib cage. This is what I had anticipated though.


Speaking of tastybites - this is what I came home to one day and loved it!

I am disappointed that I have not been able to work out here. The university gym is not open on the weekends, and is only open in the evenings for four hours. I did run the track, but there really isn't the time to fit it into my schedule. I also worry about losing even more weight if I do. I estimate that I've been eating maybe 900-1000 calories a day. And again, like I said, it would be different if I could cook more of my meals.

I am really looking forward to my first meal back in the states. My mum and dad, after picking me up from the airport, are taking me out for one of my favourite meals - Maggianos. I already know what I'm getting - Caesar salad, Fettuccine Alfredo with Broccoli, and Creme Brulee for dessert.  
There were some shocking events/observations during the excursion today. There were a lot of beggars, especially children. A woman in dirty clothes and barefoot, holding an infant wrapped in dirty blankets was begging on the bridge. You would think that that would be the worst - it wasn't. On the platform at the gara waiting for our train, two disabled men in manual wheelchairs came onto the platform. They were both dirty and missing either one or both of their lower limbs. I watched in complete horror as one of the men started hitting people and laughing at them. He appeared to enjoy tormenting the people waiting for the train. I'm not sure about how I felt - I felt sorry for him, yet appalled and disgusted by his behavior. I felt badly for those on the platform who kept moving just to get away from him. 

In the evening, after arriving back from the train station, we had a game of beer pong. We taught our professor, Becky, and our graduate assistant, Mihai, how to play. It was good fun. Four of us ended up staying up drinking and chatting until 4:30am - whoops! Thanks to very drunk Jeff and Matt, my dowry has been paid for my arranged marriage. Unfortunately, I am worth only one pot.