Saturday was quite an awesome day. In the late morning, Florin stopped by my hotel to pick me up on the way to pick up Revs. Nancy and Pat. We went to a center called Seeds of Happiness. It is a kind of Buddhist-flavored center. It's a beautiful building with great meeting and meditation space. We were there to meet an American author and spiritual teacher whose name is Regina Sara Ryan, a former Ursuline nun of my era. She is in Bucharest this week to teach a seminar on her latest book called "Praying Dangerously". There were a great group of young people in her class. One was a beautiful young woman who has been around the world climbing mountains. We had lunch and discussion with Regina and her class. It was really great. After lunch we all dispersed back to our hotels for a bit. The weather is beastly hot and humid. Florin stopped by again around 5:30 and we took a taxi to pick up Nancy and Pat to go for a communion service and discussion at an LGBT center Florin started called ACCEPT (pronounced ahk-chept - stress on the second syllable). Only fivepeople came, three guys and two young women and the four of us. We had a really good open conversation and heard the story of a young man who had been severely spiritually and emotionally abused by a priest he trusted. He had been refused communion 4 years ago when he was 17 because of being gay. He had not had communion since and didn't ever expect to. When it actually came time for communion, he chose to receive. After the service, we all went out to a pizza restaurant and had a meal together. it was excellent. Oh, the young guy I mentioned asked if I had heard of the Assyrian church. I said "Of course" since that is the church of Iraq. It turns out he was baptized in Iran by an Assyrian priest - his parents were diplomats under Ceaucescu.
Sunday. There were plans to go out with some Embassy folk this afternoon but I decided this morning that I wouldn't go. I am a bit peopled-out and needed alone time. After a restful morning and early afternoon, I went out in search of a meal. The desk clerk suggested a place which I didn't end up finding but I did find, on my own, a Lebanese restaurant that was awesome. I got to speak some Arabic and eat Lebanese comfort food. I had fatush, lamb kafta, spicy potatoes, good bread, baklava and kunafa, finished with a small cup of strong Turkish coffee with cardamom. It was wonderful. The waitstaff were so happy to have a foreigner who spoke some Arabic and knew their food. I nice little serendipity in an otherwise solitary afternoon.
This evening, I will connect with Florin, Nancy and Pat either for dinner or dessert since we will be saying good-bye to our dear Florin tomorrow and all flying off on different flights to the USA.
Sunday, June 10, 2012
Friday, June 8, 2012
Thursday and Friday in Bucharest
Florin, Pat, Nancy and I met for a strategics meeting early and then went to be present at a morning seminar on a clearinghouse for pro bono work among lawyers and then had lunch. I went back to my hotel for a nap after that.
In the evening, Nancy was scheduled to give a talk at the University. There were about thirty in attendance, mostly young women. It was, as expected a very powerful talk on MCC's approach to sexuality and faith and religion. In the discussion period afterwards, which went on for well over an hour, it was clear that most of those present had decided that the church had little to offer them but that they were very anxious to discuss with Nancy the aspects of faith she described in her talk. Florin, Pat and I also mingled during the wrap-up having very interesting conversations. One couple approached me, a man and a woman. His father and brother are priests. Her father is a priest. They really wanted to continue the discussion with us and asked for a meeting time. I suggested that they come to our meeting on Saturday evening and they agreed to do that.
Picture of Nancy preparing for her talk:
Picture of Florin introducing Nancy:
Picture of the techs using a fire extinguisher as a microphone stand:
We went out to dinner afterwards to debrief and all of us felt very good about the lecture and especially about the participation of those attending. It was after 11 when I returned to my hotel.
On Friday morning early, Florin met me at my hotel and we walked up to Nancy and Pat's hotel to go together to a meeting at the Romanian council of Churches office. we met with a woman who was vibrant and passionate about her work with women. We were joined by a priest who in former days had been one of Florin's professors at seminary. He was difficult. He was a sender rather than a receiver and liked to hear himself talk. We had no common ground and it was a most difficult hour. We all wanted to strangle him. The woman got so frustrated she left the conference table. Although the four of us are generally easy-going, we weren't kind in our assessment of that priest.
My companions had lunch with a government official and a physical in women's health issues and I chose not to attend but went back to my hotel. I wandered the city for a while in the afternoon but the heat and humidity finally drove me back to the hotel to nap. Florin picked me up around 7:30 and we walked over to pick up Pat and Nancy for dinner. We went to a "country" restaurant and ate outside while the peacocks cried their eerie calls and on the other side of us, folk musicians played with gusto. I finally had sarmale (cabbage rolls) and mamaliga (polenta) and reveled in the taste. After dessert and coffee, we did a walking tour of the city. the heat and humidity had me soaked. I got back to my hotel at almost midnight.
In the evening, Nancy was scheduled to give a talk at the University. There were about thirty in attendance, mostly young women. It was, as expected a very powerful talk on MCC's approach to sexuality and faith and religion. In the discussion period afterwards, which went on for well over an hour, it was clear that most of those present had decided that the church had little to offer them but that they were very anxious to discuss with Nancy the aspects of faith she described in her talk. Florin, Pat and I also mingled during the wrap-up having very interesting conversations. One couple approached me, a man and a woman. His father and brother are priests. Her father is a priest. They really wanted to continue the discussion with us and asked for a meeting time. I suggested that they come to our meeting on Saturday evening and they agreed to do that.
Picture of Nancy preparing for her talk:
Picture of Florin introducing Nancy:
We went out to dinner afterwards to debrief and all of us felt very good about the lecture and especially about the participation of those attending. It was after 11 when I returned to my hotel.
On Friday morning early, Florin met me at my hotel and we walked up to Nancy and Pat's hotel to go together to a meeting at the Romanian council of Churches office. we met with a woman who was vibrant and passionate about her work with women. We were joined by a priest who in former days had been one of Florin's professors at seminary. He was difficult. He was a sender rather than a receiver and liked to hear himself talk. We had no common ground and it was a most difficult hour. We all wanted to strangle him. The woman got so frustrated she left the conference table. Although the four of us are generally easy-going, we weren't kind in our assessment of that priest.
My companions had lunch with a government official and a physical in women's health issues and I chose not to attend but went back to my hotel. I wandered the city for a while in the afternoon but the heat and humidity finally drove me back to the hotel to nap. Florin picked me up around 7:30 and we walked over to pick up Pat and Nancy for dinner. We went to a "country" restaurant and ate outside while the peacocks cried their eerie calls and on the other side of us, folk musicians played with gusto. I finally had sarmale (cabbage rolls) and mamaliga (polenta) and reveled in the taste. After dessert and coffee, we did a walking tour of the city. the heat and humidity had me soaked. I got back to my hotel at almost midnight.
Wednesday
While Florin went to the airport to pick up Rev. Elder Nancy Wilson and Rev. Pat Bumgardner, I waited for my friend, Andreea Molocea, whom I hadn't seen since Fall of 2009 in Timisoara at a conference. She arrived promptly, more beautiful than I even remembered. She is studying for her doctorate in feminist studies at Central European University in Budapest which has fairly low residency requirements.
We walked to the old city where there are many sidewalk cafes and chose one at random. Andreea said they were all good. Lunch was leisurely and pleasant. We spoke of our lives and what's going on, of friends, a bit about politics. It was very pleasant to catch up. We walked a bit afterwards and then went our separate ways, I to the hotel to wait to hear from Florin; Andreea to go pack for her trip to Italy the next morning.
Florin called and I walked to the hotel where Nancy and Pat were staying and we all headed out for dinner. We didn't do much business, just hung out and caught up.
All in all, it was a pleasant day of catching up with old friends.
We walked to the old city where there are many sidewalk cafes and chose one at random. Andreea said they were all good. Lunch was leisurely and pleasant. We spoke of our lives and what's going on, of friends, a bit about politics. It was very pleasant to catch up. We walked a bit afterwards and then went our separate ways, I to the hotel to wait to hear from Florin; Andreea to go pack for her trip to Italy the next morning.
Florin called and I walked to the hotel where Nancy and Pat were staying and we all headed out for dinner. We didn't do much business, just hung out and caught up.
All in all, it was a pleasant day of catching up with old friends.
Wednesday, June 6, 2012
After a long hiatus - written in Bucharest
Picture one is a chicken breat sauteed with herbs with a rich herb pesto, a side of rice with vegetables
Picture two is chicken meatballs in a savory tomato-onion sauce with a side of steamed buckwheat
Picture three is a bottle of Morshynska sparkling water
Picture four is orange wedges sort of arranged as a spider
I haven't written for a couple of weeks. I quite frankly have felt lousy with significant fatigue and light-headedness. I finally suspected that it was medication induced. The cardiologist supposed to be working on my blood pressure switched three meds just before I left the country. One of them was a potentially potassium depleting diuretic. I stayed on my two original meds and discontinued two. I started eating bananas daily and within a few days noticed improvement. Today so far I've had no episodes and my blood pressure is under pretty good control.
After the distressingly violent attempts to hold Pride in Kiev and the discussions in Parliament about "gay propaganda" laws which would make it illegal to even say the word "gay" or any related word, most of my time was spent with friends trying to encourage and support. I became closer to Jenia and Kate and had some wonderful meals with friends.
We had two three day weekends in a row. First for Kiev Days celebrating 1530 years of existence. I spent two wonderful days of wandering with Sergei and then we had the Feast of the Holy Trinity which is a national holiday. One of the customs is to bring arms full of greens (especially a kind of rushes that when walked on give a pleasant aroma). When friends arrived for liturgy on Sunday, they strewed greens all over the floor of every room. Untypically I sat for worship because I felt terrible. After my friends left, i rested for a while and made my slow way to Glossary for a meal. I decided to break my routine. When I told Jenia that I would not have cabbage salad, he shouted to the chef - "He's not having cabbage salad!!!!" Everyone laughed. I asked Jenia to make me a fresh fruit smoothie with bananas and then had a poached salmon dish. Within an hour I noticed that I felt better than I had. When I walked home, i had little weakness and walked pretty fast. That's when I stopped taking the potassium-depleting diuretic.
On Tuesday morning, Jenia and Kate picked me up after they stopped at Glossary to pick up breakfast-to-go for me. They took me to the airport. I got there at 11 for a 1 o'clock flight which was listed "on-time". I got to the gate and found that it was going to be delayed so I broke out my "breakfast". It was cabbage salad, savory chicken meatballs, and steamed buckwheat. I was, in the end, glad for it because the flight never left until 4:45 arriving in Bucharest at 6:30. Poor Florin had been waiting since 3. We checked me into my hotel and went out to a rather fancy restaurant for dinner. We had a private dining room (private in the sense that we were the only ones in that particular room). We had a cream of potato soup, vine leaves stuffed with strong male sheep with mamaliga (polenta) and a profiterole for dessert, topped off with cappuccino. That was it for me. I slept like a rock. I'll pick up Thursday later. The pics at the top are of Glossary favorites.
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