My Tuesday morning started off by jumping out of a train. Really. You see, I was up in Kyiv for the day to attend a meeting (which I'll explain later). Because of my newfound appreciation for traveling by train, I boarded the 3:25pm Kyiv-Odessa train. However, I depend on the provodnik, the person whose sole responsibility it is to wake passengers up before their stop, give us bed sheets, and kindly open the door at each stop. No problem, I maintain extreme kindness, patience, and try not to have any problems along the way to annoy these workers.
Adapting from my last trip home, where I missed my stop because I was sleeping in the wrong seat and the provodnik did not wake me up, I set my alarm about 20 minutes before my estimated arrival time. Shortly after my alarm, a provodnik that I had not seen the entire trip (I think she was from a different boxcar) asked, "Who is getting off at Adabash?" Oh, that's me, I quickly replied before she awoke the loudly snoring, bare-chested man sharing my compartment. You're next, she said and quickly disappeared.
About twenty minutes later, after I folded my sheets and gathered my belongings, I made my way to the entranceway of the boxcar. The train slowed and I became nervous as I waited for the provodnik to come unlock the door for me. After all, the train only stops at my station for two minutes.
I waited about ten seconds and went to the providnik's room to ask for help. The provodnik that I had seen when I first entered the train was sound asleep. Excuse me, excuse me, I said quietly. No response. I said it louder. Still no response. I started to shake him and said, "Please, I need the door open! This is my stop!" I continued to shake him, he even opened his eyes once, but he never regained consciousness!
In the seats closest to me, there was a group of young teenagers who had been watching. I asked helplessly, "Please help me. This is my stop but he's sleeping - I only know a little Russian!" They looked at me like I was crazy and said, "I don't know what to do." By now, the two minutes had passed and I realized the train was pulling away from the station and picking up speed.
Then I saw my hero - the woman provodnik entered from the other end of the boxcar! I gave her a look of desperation and said, "Hurry, please!" She immediately ran to my side, unlocked the door, unhatched the stairs (which are attached to the train), and said, "Jump!" Which I did, from a train moving only about 20mph, but I landed on all fours in the gravel, and if only for that instant, pretended I was being filmed for a spy movie! Oooh, I love an adventure!
Now let me back up...
On Friday, I went to Kyiv for the day to attend a Grant Writing Workshop. It was extremely helpful to meet with other volunteers who had previously written a grant and then implemented the project. We were able to discuss grant ideas and better understand the different types of grants available to Peace Corps volunteers. After talking with teachers, students, and some parents, I have many ideas to improve my Novoukrainka community. However, today I will organize some rough outlines and within the next week, I will present to my colleagues at school and survey students to determine which projects are our priorities. I will certainly keep you updated and may ask for your support down the road. Please stay tuned....
On Saturday, I came back to my oblast and helped at the first round testing for the FLEX program (Future Leaders Exchange Program). Three of my students completed this test of basic English to qualify for Round 2 testing in order to spend one academic year studying in the United States. Two of my three students were able to participate in Round 2 on Sunday. This was exciting news because less than ten students out of eighty, who qualified for Round 2, were from the "village" schools... and we are from the village :). We had been preparing for these tests for weeks, so now we will wait about a month to see if they're able to move on to Round 3.
At 2am on Monday morning, I boarded a train to Kyiv for the second time in four days. This time, I attended a meeting regarding continuing professional development for volunteers throughout their service. We established a group of facilitators that will organize meetings with volunteers in their region to collaborate on professional development topics. I'm looking forward to organizing my first regional meeting within the next month. It was also great to see some of my closest friends at this meeting, albeit a short visit!
In other news - the mentor program is certainly taking shape! After establishing a core group of volunteers to serve on the "Leadership Team," we have successfully matched over sixty trainees, who are nearing their departure time, with current Peace Corps volunteers (definitely shows it is a need because the trainees must self-select into this program). Because it is the first round of matching, we will be looking to make many improvements to the program for the next group, but overall, I'm impressed with the volunteers' willingness to support this program and the trainees' interest.
The first weekend in September, I made my way to Eastern Ukraine for a friend's birthday gathering. It was a small group, which made it easier to manage and get to know each other.
We stopped at a small cafe on the main street in Lugansk. Here is a picture of Sarah and I:
We rented an apartment right off the main square. The two Natalies are pictured below (it was this Natalie's birthday party).
With Natalie and her boyfriend, Mike:
On our way back to the apartment, Mike, Evan, and I were stuck in a broken elevator for over thirty minutes with three Ukrainian girls. It started to get fairly hot and we were all frustrated. For the rest of the weekend, we certainly exercized by climbing the nine flights of stairs each way. I managed to snap this photo in the midst of the chaos:
The view from our balcony, overlooking the main square:
Chris, Sarah, and Drew enjoying the scenery. We had perfect weather!
Hare Krishna Festival, which is one of the Hindu religious organizations.
Of course, what weekend with friends is complete without going to a disco? Here are the girls: Sarah, me, and Natalie
Below is a picture of the entire group (I'm taking the picture): Chris, Natalie, Sarah, Evan, Drew, and Mike. We were at the disco from 11pm to almost 2am - and not more than ten people ever joined us. I asked the security guard if the club usually has more people, and he said, "it's a winter club." Whatever that means? We liked having the entire disco floor to ourselves and had a great time!
Thanks for reading and take care!
Peace,
Nat
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